Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER September 21, 2015 10 NEWS/EXECUTIVE SERIES COMPENSATION (416) 498-7800 ext. 1 www.resourcecorporation.com Compensation Surveys Incentive Programs Job Descriptions Job Evaluation Pay Equity Performance Appraisal Salary Administration Sales Compensation CONSULTING an intricate machine propelling them to achieve Bezos' ever-ex- panding ambitions." Reaction to the article was swift, with critics lamenting the demise of a kind and civil workplace, while proponents praised the no- nonsense, driven approach. Really, it's about fitting the cul- ture and structure with the right people, said Douglas Reid, associ- ate professor of international busi- ness and strategy at the Queen's School of Business at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont. "Could Amazon's way work in Canada? Probably… but not for everyone, not everywhere, and not where the expectations of different treatment militate against some- thing that goes quite against the grain. One of the impacts of their approach is likely burnout. But, at the same time, for people who like that pace, it could be wonderful." ere are elements to Amazon's approach that Howard Levitt, se- nior partner at Levitt & Grosman in Toronto, agreed with. "Obviously, the characteriza- tion of Amazon's culture in the New York Times is egregious at the very minimum, so I don't condone it, but there are aspects of it that not only are obviously making a difference in making it the num- ber one market cap retail com- pany in the world — from relative obscurity not that many years ago — but that (are) not dissimilar to a lot of law firms," he said, citing as examples the long hours, var- iegated compensation models and focus on metrics. "Do I attribute Amazon's stun- ning success to its culture? To a large extent, yes," he said. Levitt also admired the focus on having the very best people. "I don't tolerate mediocrity," he said. "If people aren't good, you can't afford to retain them, and that's an Amazon approach too." "Amazon is anomalous. I find that a lot of employers, for rela- tionship reasons, among others, and for morale reasons, will retain mediocrity and won't fire people who are slightly below average." Amazon is not necessarily unique in its workplace culture — law firms and consulting firms have similar practices, said Susan Power, owner and CEO of Higher Talent in St. John's. But it's alarming employees are so expendable, she said. "To me, if that's true, that's proof that there's something dys- fuctional there," said Power. "Any really successful company has a strong workplace culture, and that's not a bad thing, but where it becomes almost cult-like is what comes to mind... it can almost take on a life of its own and has got to be held in check." Brand recognition is a big part of it, said Merge Gupta-Sunderji, leadership and workplace com- munication expert in Calgary. "If you're a company that's the size of Amazon and has the brand recognition of Amazon, it's OK if hundreds of people fall and falter along the way — there's bright- faced recruits just waiting to sign up," she said. Amazon appears comfortable with hiring really young people, said Gupta-Sunderji. "My sense is they aren't looking to build experience, they're com- fortable bringing in new, smart people, letting them do their stuff, burning them out, letting them go," she said. "Amazon can ride that because their costs of recruit- ing are fairly low, people are lining up, but in any other organization, turnover comes at a price." There are Amazon workers who are biding their time until they have an opportunity to get out, she said, "and there are people there who thrive on it and love it and will probably stay there for a long time — they're the ones who will climb the ranks." Blunt communication e New York Times described a company where people are told to "rip into colleagues' ideas, with feedback that can be blunt to the point of painful" — and that has its merits, said Power, since open communications work well to get the highest quality work, product or service. "They're encouraging people to say what they really think and it becomes part of their culture where people aren't afraid to speak up, even if it's a higher-level manager that they disagree with." But, like anything, it can be taken to the extreme, said Gupta-Sunderji. "e philosophy of being able to give feedback, particularly when used in a positive way, is awesome, but when it's used in a way to undermine people where they don't even know what other people are saying about them, they don't have an opportunity to respond, then it just… goes underground." Measurement Another integral component to Amazon is a focus on measure- ment. e company uses "a self- reinforcing set of management, data and psychological tools to spur its tens of thousands of white-collar employees to do more and more," according to the New York Times. Employees are held accountable for an array of metrics, with "anxiety-provoking" check-in sessions that can include pop quizzes for employees. There's nothing wrong with meetings to share information, said Gupta-Sunderji. "It's another thing when there's pressure attached to it, then it's the same kind of thing as when we went to exams — 'What if I don't pass, what am I going to do?' — it shouldn't be like that." You've got to measure things to manage them properly, said Power. "Any corporation that I've worked at has been very metric- driven, whether it's a call centre environment or you're in perfor- mance metrics, but that's a good thing, as long as there's some give and take by the employer to ac- commodate your employees." But with technology and things being so metrics-driven, they can take on a life of their own, she said. "People become dehumanized." Long hours are also expected of many employees, according to the New York Times. But a workaholic culture is a problem, said Power. "You don't own your employ- ees," she said. "Research shows that people who work all the time are actually less productive overall, have more sick days and a greater absenteeism rate overall." Role models It's critical for companies to keep trying to draw that line between work and life, said Gupta-Sun- derji. And that starts with leaders, who are the role models. "Your behaviour determines how they behave, so if they are seeing in their organization that all the senior managers all the way to the top have this expectation — they respond to email in the middle of the night and want an answer within 15 minutes — then you have no choice but to comply or get out." In response to the New York Times article, Bezos told employ- ees "I don't recognize this Ama- zon and I very much hope you don't, either" and "I don't think any company adopting the ap- proach portrayed could survive, much less thrive, in today's highly competitive tech hiring market." But there is no way the founder is unaware of his company's cul- ture and the unhealthy, workahol- ic behaviours encouraged among staff, said Power. "Jeff needs to take some own- ership of the problem, and pub- licly own the fact their culture has gone into 'overdrive' and has some unhealthy norms that need to be changed. If the CEO won't own the issue and continues to public- ly state this is news to him... this shows a huge leadership deficit in the company, and there is little hope anything (will) change for the better." But CEOs are a bit insulated from what's actually going on, said Gupta-Sunderji. "You get buffered from the true message… that's my message to CEOs: 'You have to, you simply have to find a way to understand what's happening at the front lines of your company because you will ... always get information that has been massaged." Bezos put all his energy into creating 14 leadership principles, which is brilliant, she said. But, over the years, he hasn't commu- nicated enough to say the prin- ciples are all equally important, said Gupta-Sunderji, citing as an example the one "Earn trust." "ere is no freakin' way on this planet that you could have an or- ganization, the kind that's been re- ported in the news, and have trust in your organization. So someone forgot about number 13, a whole lot of people — and a bunch of the other ones." Employees at Amazon spend their days breathing the principle "Deliver results," she said. "And that's not a bad one — I wouldn't want any CEO not to care about results — but the bal- ance got lost somewhere in that equation." Workers held accountable for array of metrics AMAZON < pg. 1 theory behind "self-actualization" continues to raise alarm signals in our workplaces? Could it be that the corporate world confuses pos- itive psychology with frameworks of psychology such as mental health or pathology? We keep hearing leaders talk about their commitment to build- ing a great company culture where people have a sense of connection, community and caring. Over and over, case studies report that im- proved productivity and innova- tion are the result of healthy work relationships in cultures where people care about each other and about their work If the concept of "positive psy- chology" is too right-brained or not strategic enough for the cor- porate world, there are five easy habits any leader can activate: Constantly work with a clear vi- sion where people understand and most of all are proud of their company's mission and reputa- tion; promote a culture where people feel respected and valued; encourage them to convey their appreciation for each other's contributions and to help them achieve their potential. Give peo- ple a voice in decision-making; include, involve and encourage them to share their ideas and opin- ions honestly; to actively listen to others ideas and opinions without judgment and disagreement. Be a responsible and authentic leader where you put the needs of others first before your own and encour- age others to do the same. Lastly celebrate; people are the heart of your organization, celebrate them; celebrate their loyalty and com- mitment to excellence, innovation and personal growth. If leaders and corporations are showing a renewed and increas- ing interest in leveraging positive psychology to improve workplac- es, the real question is: Are they ready to change their own belief and values system? Change has to start from the top. Are they prepared to change the way they think and the way they act? Trish Maguire is a commentator for SCNetwork on leadership in action and founding principal of Synergyx Solutions in Nobleton, Ont., focused on high-potential leadership develop- ment coaching. She has held senior leadership roles in HR and OD in education, manufacturing and entre- preneurial firms. She can be reached at synergyx@sympatico.ca. Leveraging positive psychology to improve work MAGUIRE < pg. 9 "Any corporation that I've worked at has been very metric-driven... that's a good thing, as long as there's some give and take by the employer." Are leaders prepared to change the way they think and the way they act?

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