Pre Event Offer - Breakfast Seminar (15th May) : Successful Innovation

There are still places available for our free Breakfast Seminar on 15th May and we are now able to offer you a chance to have your own on-line personal profile taken prior to the event. 

The Dolphin Index can help release the creative and innovative potential within specific key teams, departments and throughout your entire organisation.  

It matches your score in the 13 dimensions* of innovation against norms established by other respondents and many years of research.  

As soon as you have completed all the questions you will get an immediate snapshot of your results. If you want a permanent record you need to print your profile BEFORE leaving the screen and don’t forget to bring it along on the day.

Mark Brown will be available to discuss results on a 1-2-1 basis at the completion of the morning’s activities.

Please click here to start.

*The 13 dimensions:

COMMITMENT

This dimension refers to the extent to which employees are committed to organizational goals and operations. This covers the amount of emotional involvement that members of the organization or team feel to the goals of the organization (or team/division). This dimension also refers to the extent to which the work is perceived as stimulating and engaging.

FREEDOM

This dimension refers to the extent to which employees have opportunities to make their own decisions, seek information and show initiative. The extent that there is freedom from tight supervision within the organization. It focuses on the independence that individuals have in their jobs.

IDEA-SUPPORT

This dimension refers to the extent to which employees are encouraged to put forward ideas and suggest improvements. This also focuses on initiative and around the feeling of encouragement and support from the organization regarding the generation of ideas.

POSITIVE RELATIONSHIPS

This dimension refers to the extent to which people trust and get on well with one another at work. This also refers to the extent that there is an absence of personal conflicts.

DYNAMISM

This dimension refers to the extent to which the atmosphere is dynamic, lively and exciting. Dynamic environments are characterised by high levels of positive change.

PLAYFULNESS

This dimension refers to the extent to which people laugh and joke with one another. Moreover, it refers to the extent and ease to which humour is used and displayed in the organization.

IDEA-PROLIFERATION

This dimension refers to the extent to which people are perceived as having creative ideas and varied perspectives towards their work. This also refers to the level of debates encouraged in the organization.

STRESS

The extent to which people feel overburdened and under pressure at work. This also refers to the extent that people do not feel they have the resources to cope with the demands at work.

RISK-TAKING

This dimension refers to the extent to which new ideas may be implemented and where people are prepared to take risks. Uncertainty is tolerated and decisions are taken quickly regarding actions.

IDEA TIME

This dimension refers to the extent to which employees have the time to generate and consider new ideas. This dimension focuses on the time allowed and encouraged in an organization regarding the generation of new ideas.

SHARED VIEW

This dimension refers to the extent to which there are open and adequate communications between more and less senior employees. This also refers to the extent to which individuals feel that there is openness between people at work.

PAY RECOGNITION

This dimension refers to the extent that people are satisfied with their remuneration and appropriately rewarded for the effort and work that they do.

WORK RECOGNITION

This dimension refers to the extent that people receive praise for their achievements. This includes the extent to which individuals’ efforts are recognised in terms of encouragement and support.

The Rules of Engagement

Sometimes phrases like "Employee Engagement" sound so vague and "corporate speak" that many cynical operational managers just don't want to get in to an initial discussion with HR about how they might tackle these sort of issues.

With this in mind we asked a previous Engagement Manager at Morrisons Supermarkets (who incidentally we placed!) to come up with a simple introductory document regarding Employee Engagement that would outline the key elements of how to go about building "Engagement" in your organisation.

It is a simple guide, it is supposed to be, but if you want to have a more detailed conversation with our contact please do let us know (0121 687 4040)

The Rules of Engagement

Having an engaged workforce is proven to increase productivity and revenue and reduce sick leave and staff turnover. It is also intrinsically linked to good customer service – if you’re happy in your work, your interactions with customers will automatically be more positive than if you’re merely going through the motions.

More and more businesses are starting to understand the value of engagement, but according to recent studies, the UK is still behind the rest of Europe. Your business is only as good as the people who work for you - if you don’t engage your people, they will either leave in search of an organisation that truly values them, or they will ‘quit and stay’.

Here are some of the key elements in building engagement in your organisation;

Individuals – All your employees have a life outside work! Understanding this and recognising that they have families, friends, needs and interests away from the workplace will help you understand their motivations, development needs and preferences.

Alignment – Do your employees fully understand the goals, values and strategic direction of the business? In reality, very few employees can even cite the company's objectives, much less articulate how their work helps achieve them. But it is crucial that everyone in your organisation understands this connection.

Trust – If you treat people like grown ups they will probably act like grown ups! Creating policies and procedures that must be rigidly adhered to may seem easier than coaching and managing performance, but inviting discussions about these rules lets people know that there is a degree of flexibility to allow for common sense and this increases engagement.

Communication – it is important to communicate in a transparent, open and honest way to keep employees informed and up to date with the needs of the business, but communication has to be a two way thing. Giving your employees a voice and really hearing what they have to say is also a key factor in engagement – and you may just learn something.

Leadership – an employee’s relationship with their manager is one of the biggest single factors in employee engagement. Equipping your managers to coach and support their teams, set clear goals and praise good work will result in employees who willingly give discretionary effort and know how to apply it.

It’s not usually large complex things that affect engagement. It’s mostly about the management style – energising the human side of your organisation and creating a passion, not just handing out tasks. Encouraging people to enjoy coming to work will build team working and morale and finding out about each individual person to see what makes them tick and what motivates and drives them – because we are all different!