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January 31, 2005

Sharing the Secrets of Success

Thanks to Fast Company for giving me another chance to talk about Contagious Success, my book -- and a subject I never get tired of. I've long believed treating people with respect is imperative for businesses, but it took the work of my team at the Hudson Highland Center for High Performance to prove it. Now I'm trying to spread the word whenever and wherever I can.

The bad news? A recent study we conducted of knowledge workers globally found that only 10% of our highly paid and well educated respondents could provide evidence that their workgroup was high performing.

But our research -- and my experience -- also shows that every company has high-performing workgroups... groups that make money for the business or develop new products and services... groups that adapt to changes, understand their customers and know how to get what they need... and most importantly, groups that create environments in which people can flourish. Every company has 'em, but few know how to take advantage of them.

I'm curious to know if any of you have had similar experiences. Does your company have high performing workgroups? Do these groups share their "secrets" with the rest of the company?

Posted by Susan Annunzio at January 31, 2005 11:39 AM | Category: guest host: susan lucia annunzio | 2 Comments

2 COMMENTS

Posted by: Laura Thieme at January 31, 2005 1:01 PM: Yes, we do. All of our search engine marketing employees record billable time and must show that they have a 3:1 revenue to cost each month, quarter and year. They earn 10% of anything they bill over a predetermined amount. They also earn a year-end bonus based on the group's performance, their individual contributions, and resulting revenue.
Posted by: Susan Annunzio at January 31, 2005 4:44 PM: Thanks, Laura. That's a great example of a workgroup that is really providing measurable results for the company. Has the search engine marketing team ever had a chance to "share their secrets" of success with the rest of the organization -- not only in terms of the financial rewards and incentives, but how they work together to achieve this level of revenue growth?