3 Ways Artificial Intelligence (AI) Can Improve Your Culture, Hiring, and Bottom Line
When it comes to differentiating your organization, leveraging technology such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) can strengthen and improve your culture, and increase operational efficiency and productivity, if it’s implemented in a thoughtful way that doesn’t disrupt workflow. Bill Gates said it best – “The advance of technology is based on making it fit in so that you don’t really even notice, so it’s part of everyday life.”
Recruitment is one of the best applications for AI. Over the years, we’ve seen a gradual shift from traditional recruiting practices (think headhunter) toward automated, machine-driven features. AI is everywhere and is changing the game for recruiters. Chatbots, automated scheduling, gamification, and video-based assessments are all the rage. By 2020, it is predicted that 85% of customer interactions will be managed without a human. Whether we like or not, AI is here to stay and will continue to shape the way we interact with others.
But how can AI technology really help your recruiting function (and bottom line)? Consider these benefits:
- Increased Diversity (which has been linked to higher revenues)
Implementing AI in the recruitment process can help organizations achieve diversity goals – allowing the AI technology to rank and score candidates based on qualifications without bias creeping in. According to a recent Gallup study, the more diversity the better the organization with 14% higher average comparable revenue and a 15-fold increase in sales revenue for companies with high levels of gender and racial diversity.
- Increased Candidate Quality (which leads to less time and money spent sourcing talent)
Predictive algorithms are emerging as a great resource to identify the best candidates for your organization. Outside of what is on their resume, AI technology takes it a step further – assessing a person’s emotions, tone, word choice and behavioral gestures – giving us deeper insights into human behavior.
- AI and Your Culture (not just recruiting)
AI is not just for recruiting. In fact, an organization that embraces AI technology in its day-to-day activities, will promote a culture that is not afraid to try new things, is determined to stay on trend, and wants to offer the best experience for their employees – which just happens to be a culture today’s talent is looking to join.
One thing remains the same – recruiting is one of the most vital activities your organization undertakes. The people you hire will make or break your culture and business. Exploring innovative methods to find the best and brightest talent for your company should be top of mind.
Reach out to us at https://www.successfulculture.com/contact/ to discover how we can help hire and develop your people using today’s most cutting-edge techniques and resources. Our SCALE Academy is the perfect place to start! Building cultures where everyone feels valued is what we do best.
What does your employee’s well-being say about your culture?
Over the last few years, we’ve seen a focus on employee well-being and improving ‘life at work’ – recognizing the importance of supporting the mental, physical and emotional health of our workforce. Afterall, our mental and physical energy drives our ability to think, act and create. Although offering a wellness program is often made with the best of intentions, these programs often fall short because one key element was overlooked – the role of the organization’s culture.
What does that mean? Well, think of it this way…If you tell people to get an annual physical, but do not offer programs that address health concerns or foster a culture that is inactive, how are you really helping them? At the end of the day, you cannot force someone to participate; however, the more you tie your program back to your culture and what fits within your organization, the better is will be received. Unlike the movie Field of Dreams, employee wellness initiatives cannot have a ‘build it and they will come’ approach. There’s more to it.
Don’t believe me? Consider these wellness stats: Although 85% of companies offer a wellness program, only 60% of employees are even aware it exists – and of those who know it exists, only 40% participate. To be successful, your wellness program must have strong leadership support, reflect the company’s cultural beliefs and values, and address the whole employee (social, emotional, mental and physical health).
So how can you weave your culture into your wellness initiative? Try some of these great ideas:
- Get Moving! Consider adopting stand-up meetings vs having everyone sitting as usual. Or conduct a walking meeting if it is just with one or two others. In fact, walking meetings are linked to increased creativity! Steve Jobs knew this as he preferred to conduct important business meetings while on a walk. The more we move, the more creative and engaged we can be.
- Skip the Donuts! Ok, maybe not every time given they are a crowd pleaser, but make sure to offer healthy snacks that are packed with the nutrition our bodies need when working long hours on a critical project.
- Reward & Recognize! Your employees are working hard on their wellness – reward them for their effort! And make it public to show your support and commitment to a healthy culture. Receiving positive feedback is a great way to boost emotional health.
The wellness of your employees matters. It is not only human to care about others – especially those that give us their time, ideas and energy day in and day out – but creating a culture of wellness will inevitably impact your bottom line – enabling your organization to be more productive, more creative, and just a great place to work for all.
Reach out to us at https://www.successfulculture.com/contact/ to discover how we can help your organization design a wellness program that reflects your cultural values to best engage your employees. Our SCALE Academy is the perfect place to start! Building cultures where everyone feels valued is what we do best.
When It Comes to Rewards & Recognition Programs, Culture and Timing is Everything.
The Boston Red Sox are World Series Champions! Years of hard work, dedication, and drive culminated this past week – end result? Trophies, championship rings, banners, confetti, bubbly, praise – celebration for a job well done. Did the players have to wait long for these rewards? Not at all. The world was right there ready to reward them in real time (well, maybe not the L.A. Dodger fans!). What a letdown if everyone had to wait 6 months to celebrate!
In the workplace, the timing of rewards and linking the program to your culture is everything when it comes to offering a rewards and recognition program that delivers real impact.
In recent years, we’ve experienced a shift from traditional once-a-year performance reviews to a more continuous performance management model . This shift has brought about a new challenge as many organizations have not adjusted their rewards and recognition programs to fit this new approach. According to a study published by Deloitte, 40% of companies have re-engineered performance management, yet only 5% believe they have best-of-breed reward programs and worse yet, 74% say their programs are ‘out of date’. The result? Employees are not being rewarded in real-time for the efforts. The shine wears off by the time the reward catches up.
To design a best-in-class rewards and recognition program that fits your culture and motivates your employees, consider the following:
- Your culture should be the driving force behind your rewards and recognition program. Base your rewards around the shared values, beliefs and mission of your organization.
- Reward in real-time and even on-the-spot for outstanding performance. Gone are the days of rewarding for performance only at the annual review cycle.
- Offer a well-rounded strategy that considers both the intrinsic and extrinsic motivation of your employees.
- Make rewards personal. Reward programs need to speak to all people. Offer rewards that fit your culture and that all of your employee can love.
Employee rewards and recognition programs can strengthen your organization’s culture, employee engagement and overall performance. Reach out to us at https://www.successfulculture.com/contact/ to discover how we can help your organization design a best-in-class program that fits your culture perfectly. Our SCALE Academy is the perfect place to start! Building cultures where everyone feels valued is what we do best.
Are Your Leaders of Tomorrow Ready…Today?
As a leader, one of the most important things you can do is groom the next generation as capable of continuing your vision – or better yet, transform it into something even better than you could have imagined. When leaders fail to develop those around them, no one wins. Top talent leaves for greener pastures and businesses struggle to grow. Take it from Seattle Genetics, Amazon or any of the other companies voted as having the best training and development programs – when your leadership training program is done right, job satisfaction levels increase, you promote more from within and have better retention overall. Everyone wins.
Need more convincing? Consider this – 63% of Millennials do not believe their leadership skills are being fully developed and are likely to leave an employer for an opportunity to better develop those skills. Possibly more shocking – in a study reported in Forbes, 58% of managers said they did not receive any type of management training for their current role – inferring they may be good at their job, but have no direction on how to lead others. So what’s a business leader to do? Here are a few things to consider when designing your leadership training program…
Leadership Training that Fits Your Culture
Developing a leadership training program does not happen overnight – it takes careful planning and execution to ensure you have a program that fits your culture. Some skills are universal to becoming a strong leader such as being a great communicator , knowing how to delegate, and executing against the “big picture”. However, make sure to look to your culture for additional skills and behaviors that represent a good leader in your organization. A great resource for this is your people. As them “As an emerging leader, what skills do you want to personally develop?”
Offer Internal Mobility
Don’t limit your employee’s vision of what growth opportunities are possible. Becoming a great leader is not a straight path up the org chart. Instead, encouraging internal mobility and cross-department training is a great way to give your next generation leaders hands-on experience. Understanding how the business operates from different vantage points creates a well-rounded leader.
Maximize the Learning Experience
To maximize the learning experience, learning content needs to be user-friendly and personal. Traditional classroom training can be highly effective; however, with today’s mobile app capability and introduction of AI, learners are increasingly pushing for “on-the-go”, individualized training. Riding the train to and from work, flying to a client meeting, or on their own time, employees today love the flexibility that on demand learning provides.
As with any program, the success (or lack thereof) often depends on whether or not the program has support from the top (that means you!). Executive leadership support shows your leaders of tomorrow that you are committed to their development and growing the organization.
Developing a leadership training program is the perfect way to create a culture of continuous learning, which will benefit your organization today, tomorrow and beyond. Reach out to us at https://www.successfulculture.com/contact/ to discover how we can help your organization develop a leadership training program that develops and retains your top talent too. Our SCALE Academy is the perfect place to start! Building cultures where everyone thrives is what we do best.
The A-B-C’s of Executive Presence
Years ago, I had the opportunity to listen to the hall of fame basketball Coach Pat 
Summitt speak at an HR leadership conference in Tennessee. When she walked on stage, her energy filled the room. The crowd was on the edge of their seats, fully engaged, and walked away with a sense of newfound purpose. I can only imagine the passion and energy she passed on to her players on the court.
We all know someone like this. They walk into a room, command attention and inspire us. Some people are just born with this ability; others have to nurture it. I’m talking about presence – our unique blend of personal and interpersonal skills and behaviors that influence others. As an executive, the presence you project can make or break your ability to inspire your organization and garner respect from fellow leaders. According to a survey in Forbes, having a strong executive presence accounted for 26% of the reason why someone is chosen for a promotion over their peers. In short, executive presence is a powerful thing.
Now that you’ve earned a seat at the leadership table, how would rate your executive presence? What makes your presence impactful? Inspirational? Where do you need to improve? Just like learning the alphabet in grade school was fundamental to your education, honing in on the foundations of executive presence is a combination of another type of A-B-C’s:
- Appearance. You’re a leader…dress like a one. But what does that really mean? We often get the vision of a person is a stiff, formal black suit behind a desk. That may not fit your culture and could backfire on how approachable your image appears. Take it from Mark Zuckerberg or Sheldon Yellen – your appearance should match the culture you want to create. What do you want your outward image to say about you? The way we dress makes a first impression, often before we even open our mouths.
- Behavior. All great leaders know you must exude confidence (not to be confused with arrogance). But there is a balance. Learning to own the room without steamrolling others is a critical element to a having a successful executive presence.
- Communication. Great leaders are great communicators. This applies to in-person, phone, email, online – anywhere you are communicating with others. Communicate like a leader and people will follow you.
Keep in mind – maintaining your executive presence online is equally important in today’s transparent, oversharing social media world. A survey in Entrepreneur reported that 64% of employers have made employment decisions based on reviewing a person’s social media accounts. Fine-tuning your executive presence will help you lead like the leader you are destined to be.
The executive presence projected from your top leaders can reinforce or hurt your organization’s culture. Reach out to us at https://www.successfulculture.com/contact/. We love helping our clients build successful organizations – full of leaders ready to take on the challenges of tomorrow and inspire everyone along the way.
Three Steps to Living Audaciously: Setting Your Lifetime Legacy Mission
My lifetime legacy mission (LLM) is to educate, equip, & empower 100 million entrepreneurs & leaders worldwide to reach their greatest personal & organizational potential.
In my last two speaking engagements, I watched the audience’s reactions as the conference coordinator read my bio aloud. People were taken aback. They raised their eyebrows and smiled in surprise.
During my remarks, I put my lifetime legacy mission into perspective:
- There are approximately 400 million entrepreneurs in the world, so my goal only reflects 25% of that population.
- I’m only 48, so I estimate I have another 40 years ahead of me to make my impact.
- There are so many ways to reach people globally today. Between my writing, speaking, online products (in development), merchandising line (in development), and consulting, I should be able to touch a lot of people.
- Even if I achieve only 50% of my goal, I’m still impacting 50 million people, which isn’t so shabby.
Here is what I know for sure: If I don’t envision it, and put it out there, it will never happen.
- Elon Musk (Founder of PayPal, SpaceX, and Tesla)
- Jeff Bezos (CEO of Amazon)
- Mark Zuckerberg (Founder of Facebook)
- Steve Case & Ted Leonsis (Founders of AOL)
These are just a few audacious thinkers who have committed to changing the world.
Why shouldn’t you think big? Because someone else may find your idea to be grandiose? Because you sound unrealistic? Are those really reasons to limit our thinking?
“Thinking realistically is the quickest path to mediocrity.” ~Will Smith
I can’t remember the exact day when I committed to my LLM, but I do know this: everything changed the day I committed.
When I start to get tired, I remind myself of why the little things matter. When I doubt myself, or question why I am doing what I am doing, I reach back to my LLM, and the possibility of helping so many others live up to their potential.
You can set an LLM too, and here is how you do it.
- Think about what fuels you. What creates a fire inside of you? When an opportunity presents itself, or when you have achieved a specific result, how does that impact you emotionally, physically, and spiritually?
- Think about your success without limits. If you had absolutely no constraints (money, time, resources, energy), what would success look like for you? Think BIG. Think audaciously.
- Craft your LLM using this format:
My lifetime legacy mission is to:
1: Insert Verb
2: Follow that with the number of people you want to impact
3: Follow that with the target population you will impact
4: Follow that with how you will impact them
Your LLM should be connected to what you are doing every day. If it’s not, you need to re-evaluate what you are doing every day, and how you are spending your valuable time.
As a Melanoma survivor, I have a very healthy respect for mortality. Our lives pass by in the blink of an eye. Every day you should LOVE what you are doing. If you don’t, what is holding you back?
Your LLM begins with the mindset that you are capable and worthy of living a life that delivers joy, fulfillment, and impact to yourself and everyone you touch.
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” ~Marianne Williamson
Your LLM is inside of your heart & spirit right now. “Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? Your playing small does not serve the world.”
My hope is that as I let my own light shine, I am unconsciously giving you permission to do the same. As I am liberated from my own fears of failure, loss, and disappointment, my hope is that my presence automatically liberates you.
Today, commit to developing your LLM. I would love to hear your mission. Please email me your LLM at [email protected] and indicate if I have permission to share.
The world needs your light!
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Sign up here to receive Successful Culture’s leadership blog every Friday. All posts contain actionable content to make you the best leader you can be, to help you develop your people to their greatest potential, and to help you build your best organization.
About Successful Culture
We work with business owners, CEOs, and leadership teams that want to achieve their greatest personal & organizational potential. Through coaching, strategic consulting, retreat facilitation, and workshops, we equip leaders & emerging leaders with the mindset, tools, strategies, and processes they need to excel.
Ready to move forward? Email us today at [email protected]
Connect with me on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Engage with me during my morning Periscope sessions as well (@marissalevin).
Please check out my Inc. Magazine columns on my Author Page too.
~Marissa Levin
CEO, Successful Culture
“Taking Leaders from Triage to Transformation.”
Three Ways to Find Peace in Your Personal Choices & Priorities
In today’s self-promotional, often grandiose, rose-colored online society, it’s easy to feel that you never do enough, that you’re not at the right places with the right people at the right times, and that you can never catch up. It’s a self-sabotaging mindset that can dash our hopes and deflate our spirits.
How do we find peace with where we are at this precise moment in time, and with the choices we make for ourselves? How do we not feel as if we are missing out?
I live in multiple universes. For the last 20+ years, I’ve been a driven entrepreneur as I’ve built two companies while developing my writing and speaking careers. However, for the last 18+ years, I’ve also been a full-time, hands-on mother to two sons (now 18 and 15) with my husband of 23 years. During that time, I’ve also juggled elder care and loss during my mother’s grave illness and eventual death.
I speak frequently about the elusive holy grail of work-life balance, and the myths that one can have it all. I’ve spoken with and counseled hundreds of women about juggling my dual-careers of business- building and home-building.
Microsoft selected me last Fall as one of eight entrepreneurs to participate in a discussion with other industry experts about the future of women’s entrepreneurship. In my interview, I stressed the importance of “Leaning Out,” and of being OK with passing up opportunities that don’t align with where you are in life at a specific moment in time.
After performing this non-stop juggling act for almost two decades, I’ve finally learned the secret to knowing and celebrating your personal priorities:
You alone must make peace with your choices, with no regard for anyone else’s opinion, understanding, or approval.
This inner peace results from acknowledgement of three truths:
1: Your knowledge of your personal core value system, and how it drives where you are at this point in time;
2: Your courage to live your values and reach back to them when you are challenged to depart from them;
3: Your awareness that where you are today will shift. All is impermanent, including your priorities, at any given moment in time.
Prioritization is a pyramid.
While we may think we have “competing priorities,” we can only have one priority at any given moment. To be thinking of other commitments while we are physically engaged in a single priority only prevents us from being present in any priority.
I’ve created a Prioritization Pyramid that shows the correlation between prioritization and clarity. When we fully commit to our priorities, we achieve clarity. Clarity leads to renewed focus and a sense of calm.
When we are confused and conflicted, our path to clarity is through our core values. What matters most to us at this precise moment in time?
I was recently presented with several incredible opportunities that seemed like prioritization conflicts but through deeper analysis, I realized they were not conflicts at all. In the end, my choice of where to be at this precise moment in time manifested from my core value of “family first.”
My mother used to say, “We can’t be tall and short at the same time.” I think of this often as I continue to be presented with wonderful opportunities that may challenge my “family first” value.
When we are presented with “opportunities” no matter how big or small, we will miss something else if we choose to accept the opportunity. There are no “right” or “wrong” choices; there are only choices that do or don’t work for your specific life, at this moment in time.
Your choices don’t have to please others. They must simply work for you.
- Knowledge of your core values.
- Your courage to live your values and reach back to them when you are challenged to depart from them.
- Awareness and acceptance of the fact that where you are today will shift and that everything is impermanent.
These three truths will allow you to celebrate your personal priorities without second-guessing your choices, and achieve clarity & peace along your journey of both realized and missed opportunities.
Wishing you peace and clarity as you step into your personal power of prioritization.
PS: I wrote about the path to clarity in our businesses in a previous blog here. I also share my three integrated strategies (time management, energy management, and prioritization) for Peak Productivity here.
I work one-on-one with CEOs to help them clarify their priorities in both their personal and professional lives, so that they achieve maximum clarity, productivity, peace, and joy. Through my proprietary toolkit and highly targeted coaching sessions, we clear away the clutter. Email me at [email protected] if you can benefit from greater clarity of your priorities and more effective time management.
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Sign up here to receive Successful Culture’s leadership blog every Friday. All posts contain actionable content to make you the best leader you can be, to help you develop your people to their greatest potential, and to help you build your best organization.
About Successful Culture
We work with business owners, CEOs, and leadership teams that want to achieve their greatest personal & organizational potential. Through coaching, strategic consulting, retreat facilitation, and workshops, we equip leaders & emerging leaders with the mindset, tools, strategies, and processes they need to excel.
Ready to move forward? Email us today at [email protected]
Connect with me on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Engage with me during my morning Periscope sessions as well (@marissalevin).
Please check out my Inc. Magazine columns on my Author Page too.
– In my latest Inc, article, I share The Essential Guide to Avoiding Workplace Text, Email, & Social Media Disasters.
– Learn about the 9 Leadership Behaviors that Lose Employee Trust & Respect here.
~Marissa Levin
CEO, Successful Culture
“Taking Leaders from Triage to Transformation.”
The One Question You Must Be Able to Answer Before Contacting a Prospect
This past week, I’ve had conversations with three separate business owners about how to successfully connect with prospects. Should you connect through LinkedIn? An email? A phone call? The answer is YES – you should do all of those.
However, before you do any connecting, you need to be able to answer one question:
Four Steps to the Best New Year’s Gift You Can Give Yourself
“Those who live in the past limit their future.”
This was the message I received on my Yogi tea bag last night, as I enjoyed my nightly cup of tea. How timely and appropriate as we bring 2014 to a close.
Gratitude for You in 2014; Your Three Pillars of Success for 2015
As we bring 2014 to a close, I want to thank everyone for their support of Successful Culture. As someone who knows firsthand how hard it is to transform a business dream into a reality, I’m honored and blessed for the opportunities to help my clients achieve their goals.
