problem solving

Have I got a solution for you!

Conferences. Every presenter and exhibitor have THE solution for whatever ails your organization. It might be a technology dashboard that presents all of the KPIs in graphic form, or a customer service training program that has “proven” to increase sales.

Those with products to sell have invested heavily in figuring out what problem you most likely have, and crafting a message that leaves you feeling hopeful that the problem can, indeed, be solved.
You probably do have the problem they are solving. But does that solution address the root cause? That’s the critical question you have to ask before you buy. (more…)

The Fallacy of “Reduce your Attrition” and Other Marketing Promises

CauseEffectI get dozens of emails each day telling me how a great product can have a miraculous effect in my company. Twenty years ago, I would get excited about new products, new technologies and best practice ideas. Now, not so much. I have become cynical, I suppose.

This most recent one promised to reduce attrition. Sponsored by PRISM HCM, their new Beehive software automates the grievance process, so that all employee communications to HR are done through this online tool, thereby allowing the capturing and analysis of issues. My apologies to the folks at PRISM because I suspect they are very capable, and their products are indeed helpful to organizations, but I struggling with how this would be helpful to an HR department that has not yet built their own credibility. (more…)

If I Had A Hammer

hammerRemember Peter, Paul and Mary’s song “If I Had a Hammer?”  The song goes “If I had a hammer, I’d hammer in the morning, I’d hammer in the evening, all over this land.”  That song was an anthem of the Civil Rights Movement and a classic American folk song.

Lately, my mind has been rewriting the song “If I had a hammer, everything would look like a nail, and I’d hammer all over corporate America.”  Okay, well not too poetic, I admit. But the premise is what seems to happen when consultants, conference and best practices converge on a business entity to provide solutions to often unknown problems that relate to their human resources. (more…)