Most companies adopt preventive measures for protecting employees from harassing and hostile work environments ‑ policy statements are included in employment handbooks, some form of harassment training is mandated, a process may be designed for reporting concerns. Yet, despite decades of harassment awareness and prevention tactics, employees today are still subjected to creepy, unwelcome, and illegal behaviors from co-workers, bosses, even vendors and clients.
 
Social awareness through movements like #MeToo and broad media coverage have emboldened victims to finally emerge from the shadows and share their experiences publically. Simultaneously, proactive employers are playing offense by analyzing their existing processes, doubling-down on resources and reinforcing internal policies as a preventive measure to ensure their workplaces remain free from harassment of all kinds.
 
PROGRESSIVE HARASSMENT PREVENTION STRATEGIES
 
Test Your Culture. Beyond legal and legislative requirements, there is no single organizational standard for cultural behaviors and norms. Entrepreneurial start-ups run fast and loose seeking growth; family-owned businesses thrive from nurturing close internal relationships; global entities have traditions of written and unwritten behavioral expectations. Within today’s intense climate, business leaders and HR should review their company’s position and anti-harassment policies to clearly define and articulate behaviors considered unacceptable within their own unique culture.
 
Train Your People. Let’s make this assumption — all companies require harassment prevention training for their employees. But seriously, when we take a closer look at those “check the box” training requirements, how effective are they, really? New employees get a laundry list of onboarding to-dos, including a quick online e-learning module to view within their first few days . . . harassment training — check. I’ll bet somewhere there’s a signed Harassment Training Acknowledgment Form in a personnel file labeled H. Weinstein. Smart employers are beefing up prevention and awareness through professionally facilitated, collaborative and engaging positive workplace training programs. Far from “check the box” experiences, they help calibrate expectations across all levels of the organization and have a stickiness that translates well once employees are back on the job.
 
Communicate with Transparency. There’s one more critical step to ensure your company remains on the “Nice List.” If employees don’t know (or don’t trust) the actions they may experience when bringing a concern forward, no amount of harassment policy deployment or training will ensure an environment free from abuse. Boards should demand that executives set and maintain high standards, managers should be held accountable for monitoring and immediately reporting violations, and every employee should be helped to understand and articulate their company’s problem resolution process and the channels available for reporting.
 
The media accounts of high-profile sexual harassment allegations have triggered a watershed moment in our cultural history, and I doubt we’ve reached the tip of this iceberg yet. More notables will be added to the Naughty List, more shocking details will crawl across our screens, and through this movement, employees who’ve in the past suffered in silence will find the courage to speak out. In fact, the Commissioner of Minnesota’s Department of Human Rights predicts their office will see an uptick in sexual harassment charges and is gearing up through educational symposiums and videos aimed at building awareness and providing support.
 
Taking action to stay on the right side of the Naughty and Nice List always brings good results, especially for employers who show they care about their people by creating a positive work environment! 

​Is “fully engaged” enough? Is it truly the apex of employee satisfaction? Many organizations measure aspects of employee engagement in an effort to impact their bottom line. It’s usually captured through a 3-5-point Likert scale questioning employees on their thoughts relative to the work, their management and their organization with ratings ranging from “this pretty much sucks” to “I’m feeling awesome!”
 
What if we could actually capture a measure that lies beyond engagement —the moments spent working in the FLOW where we are fully immersed and engaged in the work we are doing?
 
Going with the flow
​Think about those times outside of work when you were doing something so enjoyable, so challenging yet required great focus and concentration. Maybe you slip into your state of flow when you’re running, enjoying a favorite hobby, or reading. For me, it’s kayaking,

​It’s not uncommon for me to suddenly realize that I’ve been gliding across the water effortlessly; unaware of the energy my arms were exuding or how far I’d traveled. Flow occurs when we experience a deeply satisfying connection to our activity, intrinsically motivating us to go further and making even challenging tasks seem effortless. Time passes quickly and unnoticed as we’re completely engulfed in the moment.
 
That’s not to say that flow can occur only in the comfort zone. On the contrary — many people (including me, I’ll admit it) can become easily bored when they’re too calm or cozy; when there’s no challenge, no adrenaline to sharpen the senses. Boredom leads to complacency and frustration. Flow, however, involves a highly engaged state of being, one where we’re focused on activities that utilize our best skills and allow us to perform at our peak.
 
If we’re lucky, we may occasionally experience states of flow in the workplace on a very individualized basis (if at all). When flow does occur, the organization reaps the benefits of optimal performance as a boon to the bottom line. How can organizations create the right climate? Here are three ways to inspire a foundation for flow to thrive:

1. Provide challenging opportunities that allow employees to utilize their best skills.
2. Connect the organization’s mission and values to individuals’ passions and beliefs.
3. Create a physical environment that supports collaboration and commitment to results.   

 
Let’s look beyond engagement. Let’s strive to build organizational cultures where employees can experience the sublime state of flow as a daily work experience.

How about you?
When, and under what conditions, have you experienced the state of flow in workplace?

​Scenario 1: Employees from a large, cross-functional team were invited to participate in a self-assessment tool to help them identify and further develop their natural strengths. The groups’ “top strengths” were then plotted on a comparative report, which generated great discussion among the team. Individuals could choose to share more about their results, but were not required to do so. There was constructive dialogue among the group that led to an increased understanding of the teams’ strengths, while personal boundaries were respected.   

​Scenario 2: A senior leader was looking for greater insight to help him assess and improve his leadership effectiveness with his team, his manager, and his colleagues. A 360-degree assessment tool was selected, the leader and his boss identified and agreed upon those who would provide feedback, and the instrument was launched with clear participant instructions for completion. Early on, it was made clear to everyone involved that the feedback would remain private to the leader only. What participants were provided was the leader’s resulting action plan detailing his developmental goals based on the feedback he’d received. 

​Scenario 3: Several individuals, both internal employees and external candidates, were vying for a plum executive level leadership role in the organization. As part of the selection process, final candidates were asked to complete an assessment of leadership potential, the results of which would be shared among the selection team as one aspect of the candidates’ professional profile. The scored results and comments were not shared with the candidates or feedback participants; rather, customized development guides were provided to each candidate based on their collective feedback.   
 
Clarity is the Key
Regardless of the type of assessment or delivery mechanism, the most successful employee assessment processes are introduced to employees with clarity and transparent communication to address the issue of ownership and visibility before any tools are launched. Without clear guidance and direction setting up front, employees may come to view assessments as a stealth mission intended to underscore or document performance improvement needs, disciplinary actions or stack ranking for workforce reductions. No one likes surprises, and misguided or misinterpreted outcomes will only leave people feeling dissatisfied with the process and cynical of assessment opportunities in the future. Lack of transparency hinders the organization’s ability to create a feedback-rich culture.
 
No one wants that, especially organizations banking on growth through talent development investments.   

 ​For years, I’ve kept a bucket list — a collection of experiences that I hope to check off before it’s “too late.” Some of the items are fairly inconsequential . . . mastering a Rubik's Cube  like the 6th grader I met at a recent NHL hockey game. His fingers were a blur as he spun that block like a boss in less than a minute. One handed.
 
Other entries on my bucket list are more significant (and potentially life-altering) undertakings. I checked one of these items off years ago when I finally worked up the courage to skydive for the first time. This was no chaperoned tandem event. It was just me, standing alone on the narrow jump platform of the Cessna 206, white knuckled as I hung on and listened for the jump master’s commands over the roar of the engine. There I was, ready to jump out of a perfectly good airplane. With the thumbs-up signal from the jump master, I took a deep breath to steady my adrenaline-soaked nerves, and then let go.  It was the scariest, riskiest, most exhilarating thing I had ever done. I was hooked, so I booked another jump, then another. With each subsequent jump, my confidence increased as my fears subsided (although not entirely, what fun would that be?). I achieved a dream by letting go.

Now I’m ready for another big leap, but this time, my feet are planted on the ground. I’m crossing another item off from my bucket list as I step off the corporate platform, pull the ripcord on a predictable paycheck and join the roughly 16 million professionals who have leapt before me into the independent worker economy. The feelings are similar to those of my skydiving experience — scary as hell, exhilarating, and filled with excitement for what  lies  ahead.
 
So how about you? Have you ever dreamed of jumping out on your own, leaving the comfort of your corporate gig to strategically pursue the work you love on your own terms? You certainly wouldn't be alone.  By some estimates, up to 40% of the American workforce, or 60 million people, will be independent workers by 2020. And with new technology platforms, mobile apps and co-working locations, self-employment no longer means isolation or disconnection.
 
Whether you’re thinking of launching from a cockpit or a company, here are three considerations that are critical to a successful landing:

1. Preparation paves the way. A full day of education and practice prepared me for my first skydive. Decades spent developing deep and broad expertise in progressive HR roles has prepared me to support client work in an independent consulting practice. When competence is developed, confidence grows and provides the fuel for motivation.
2. Supporters are vital. Take stock of your network, including mentors, colleagues, family and friends; keep them close and inform them of your progress so they can provide you with emotional support and encouragement as you transition from a comfy past to an unpredictable and exciting future.
3. Plan for contingencies. Anticipate barriers that may get in the way of your progress, and then develop solutions to prevent or resolve issues when things go off track. For example, set aside a financial bridge equal to three or four months of your prior salary to help you deal with the unexpected as you're jumping off.          

 
With the launch of THRIO Consulting, LLC, I’m pleased that I can finally place a check mark on my bucket list next to “start my own independent consulting practice.” What's on your bucket list? If you need inspiration or encouragement to pursue your passions, let's connect. My goal is to help people and organizations realize their potential. Drop me a note and let's tackle some challenges together.