Who should attend?

Trained Predictive Index analysts only (those who have completed the Predictive Index Management Course™).

There is no fee, but please register by August 2nd, if possible:

The post Problem Solving with Predictive Index^® appeared first on ADVISA.

In the second quarter of 2013, we celebrate:

20-year anniversary:

CL&D Graphics  Oconomowoc, WI

15-year anniversary:

Red Gold, Inc.  Elwood, IN

5-year anniversaries:

Corporate Benefit Strategies Grand Rapids, MI
Columbus Regional Hospital Columbus, IN
Fordsell Machine Products Company, Inc. Warren MI
First National Bank  Howell, MI

The post Congratulations! Q2 Milestone Anniversaries appeared first on ADVISA.

Upon her return to work after her honeymoon, Aszure will be changing her last name to Gray.

The post Congratulations to Aszure Grimes! appeared first on ADVISA.

• preparing for a job transition
• starting a new position
• building capacity
• developing high potentials
• closing a performance gap.

Studies and surveys confirm the value of the time and money invested in coaching. Here is a sampling of three:

• A Manchester Consulting Group study of Fortune 100 executives found that coaching resulted in an ROI of almost six times program cost.
• An International Personnel Management Association survey found that productivity increase by 88% when coaching was combined with training (compared to a 22% increase with training alone)
• Metropolitan Life Insurance Company found that productivity among salespeople who had participated in intensive coaching program rose by an average of 35%.

Our own experience coaching clients bears out these results. In a recent year-long project we completed with a group of high-potentials, we received this feedback:

“It forced me to think differently and stop and be proactive and not reactive.”

“Development and strategic opportunities will not be realized without making a detailed plan to aside time to think along this path.”

Download our guide:  Seven Things to Consider Before Choosing a Coach.  Or contact me to learn more.

The post When to Consider Hiring a Coach appeared first on ADVISA.

MacExperience   Indianapolis; computer technology
Ultra Steak, Inc.  Anderson, IN; food and beverage
Earhart Petroleum Troy, Ohio; energy
Allegient LLC  Indianapolis; technology
Metal Forming Industries  Russellville, IN; metal manufacturing
HANESBrands, Inc.  Winston-Salem, NC; apparel
Lenex Steel   Indianapolis; metal manufacturing
Formstack   Indianapolis; technology
Wensco Sign Supply  Belmont, MI; manufacturing
UBT  Troy, MI; consulting
Leo Burnett Shanghai Advertising Co. Ltd.  Shanghai, China; marketing
BMO Harris Bank  Chicago, IL;  banking
Mersino Management Co.  Metamora, MI; construction
Rocky Brands, Inc.  Nelsonville, OH; apparel
Air Lift   Lansing, MI; machinery
Toledo Museum of Art  Toledo, OH; non-profit

Want to see our entire client list or sort them by location and/or industry? Please go here.

The post We Welcome 16 New Clients appeared first on ADVISA.

1. How long do you think one should plan on it taking before attitude and/or behavioral change is seen in someone?

It is very conditional. Severity of the issue and the coachee’s awareness of the issue are the two largest determinants. Often, a person will need to ‘think’ differently about the situation before any movement can be made. That ‘thinking’ can take weeks, months, or even years depending on how invested they are in their way of thinking and acting. The second step is that once they make a shift in thinking do they know what the behavior change looks like? We make a lot of assumptions that when a person knows the change they need to make that they can make it. Sometimes they will need help in clarifying what the behavior looks like. With this said, a good coach will know what progress the coachee is making in a short amount of time (1 – 2 months), and progress is often seen in 2 – 3 months.

2. What makes someone a successful “coachee?”

My best coachees have been people who are open to learning about their behavior tendencies and highly motivated to make improvements in their effectiveness. Good coachee’s are open to learning about themselves rather than defending who they are and how they see things. From increased awareness they add a level of motivation that looks like, “I will do whatever I need to do in order to improve.” Entering a coaching relationship with these attitudes will almost always guarantee success.

Jim is owner and president of Leadership Vision, LLC, a consulting and coaching firm that focuses on maximizing personal, team, and organizational effectiveness. Before beginning his coaching business, Jim honed his understanding of how organizations and leaders excel through many years in senior business leadership positions. Most notably, he spent 21 years as president and CEO for Mutual Hospital Services.

Contact us with any questions or feedback.  Go here to learn more.

The post Two Questions for James Struck appeared first on ADVISA.

We asked Fredricka to respond to two questions we often receive about coaching:

1.  How do you distinguish between when training is needed and when coaching is needed?

Training interventions are most appropriate when learning is related to established practices, system or process issues, or development of new technical skills. It can also be used to introduce new concepts and tools.

Coaching is more about supporting an individual in successfully integrating new skills and behaviors into their active management practice. Coaching interventions are typically focused on individual behavior changes, (sometimes very small individual behavior changes — such as learning to ask questions differently) that can make a large difference in an individual’s effectiveness.

Coaching can also be an effective way to shift habits and patterns that may be standing in the way of reaching higher levels of functioning.

2.  What do you think is critical for a successful coaching relationship and how can one help ensure that happens?

The success of a coaching relationship is largely based on how the relationship is initially established. Clear, aligned expectations form the foundation for success and include explicit up-front agreements regarding goals, what/how information is shared, what approaches will be taken, logistics, etc. It is also important for the coach to authentically care about being involved in the development process of another person and for the coachee to sincerely want to engage in a development process.

Fredricka has more than 20 years of business consulting experience. She operates her own consulting business and also serves as Associate Professor at the Indiana University East (Richmond) School of Business and Economics where she directs the Center for Leadership Development and the Master’s in Management programs.

Fredricka has worked with ADVISA since 2007 designing curriculum, advising on approaches with leadership development, and delivering coaching services.  She is the lead author of Engineering as a Social Activity: Preparing Engineers to Thrive in the Changing World of Work, which draws on her work using Predictive Index^® at Cummins Inc. and was published in the American Journal of Engineering Education – Spring 2012 edition.

Next:  Two Questions for Jim Struck

The post Two Questions for Fredricka Joyner, Ph.D. appeared first on ADVISA.

The webinar, “Replicating Top Performer’s Sales Success,” was sponsored by Sales Management Association.  If you missed it, you can access the recording here.

The post Sales Force Motivation: Start by Understanding Top Salespeople appeared first on ADVISA.

RightOn Interactive is a  dynamic client of ours who is growing and looking for top sales talent.  They leverage Predictive Index^® in the hiring process and are a sharp and savvy group.  If you are, or if you know anyone who has proven selling/negotiation/influencing ability send them RightOn’s way.

More about the position

More about RightOn Interactive, the company

The post Selling at RightOn Interactive appeared first on ADVISA.

A couple of recent posts describe the problem well and offer excellent alternatives:  Appraising the Performance of Performance Appraisals and Replacing the Performance Appraisal by the VeraSage Institute’s Ron Baker.

Several of Ron’s points really hit home with me.  The unfortunate truth is that in today’s break -neck business world, many managers take a tactical and often defensive approach to employee evaluation.  Early on in a previous role I held as a VP of operations, I remember looking at the daunting challenge of doing 26 employee reviews on top of the everyday “real work” that needed to get done.  I would get the flag from HR; fill out the cookie-cutter sheet – because that’s what I was forced asked to do; tell the employee to do the same; and then meet to compare answers.   The process was underdeveloped, incomplete and typically biased toward negativity.  It went against the way I managed and always felt unnatural.  In this limited scope the question was always “What do we need to fix?” as opposed to “How do we get more of the stuff that makes us great?”

In Replacing the Performance Appraisal, Ron describes strategies that are much more effective bringing out the best in people.  One of these is the Key Predictive Indicator.  More than just results-based measure of success (as in: “Did we hit X number in sales?”), the Key Predictive Indicator looks at the predictable behaviors that drive sustained success.

Ron echoes a reality that we can easily forget:  “Human capital determines the performance capacity of any organization.”   Yet we use traditional-style reviews as a “one-size-fits-all approach that impedes relevant, authentic feedback to different individuals.”  Organizational change and innovation is carried out by the people thinking and working in different ways to achieve a common goal.  A good leader leverages these talents.  Ron makes another great point about this aspect: “Good leaders—like good coaches—design performance processes and tasks around a person’s strengths, and ignore—or make irrelevant—their weaknesses.”

I would further argue that a reliable, science-based personality assessment (such as Predictive Index®) is essential to helping build authentic baselines for identifying and understanding the measures that map directly to positive work results. By identifying the behavioral requirements of each job – requirements such as work style, pace and risk-taking – managers can more effectively pinpoint proper expectations, giving even the most novice manager an automatic baseline for performance appraisals, and a clear road map for both praise and essential conversations that will lead to performance improvement.

When strong managerial skills are paired with a reliable analytical tool, managers can be very strategic and deliberate about giving employees real, actionable feedback that will help them happily grow and positively impact the company.

How satisfied are you with your current performance appraisals?  Reach out to me if you would like to continue the conversation or hear more about the role Predictive Index can play.  If you are thinking to yourself, “Hmmm…not sure we have ‘good managerial judgment…’”   ADVISA can help with that too.   Email me or go here to learn more about our impact areas.

The post Prune the Performance Appraisal, Perpetuate the Performance appeared first on ADVISA.