Aiming for the summit

By Lachlan Colquhoun

 

While working toward climbing Mount Everest, Belinda-Jane Dolan CMgr FIML is using the same tenacity, abilities, and framework she employs in her mountaineering to help clients reach their own business and personal summits.

Dolan is the founder and Chief Executive of the Clariti Group, a business advisory and training company based in Brisbane. The firm operates all over Australia and around the world and has been recognised as a seven-time award winner in the annual 2017 Stevie Awards for Women in Business for its work. It delivers leadership and performance advisory and training across the globe and in some of the most remote regions of Australia.

By late 2018 Dolan will have climbed South America’s largest peak, Aconcagua in the Andes. This climb will be the fourth of the seven summits. “I’ve climbed three so far: Elbrus in Europe, Kilimanjaro in Africa and Mount Kosciuszko at home, although that was more of a jog than a climb,” she says.

Dolan’s ambition and achievements are even more remarkable given that she was born disabled and walked with the assistance of calipers until the age of five.

It was in overcoming this disability, and in proving her doctors wrong, that Dolan’s sporting and mountaineering ambition was born.

“I’m the sort of person who, if you tell me I can’t do something, it’s like a red rag to a bull,” she says.

“When they told me I wasn’t going to be able to walk, I remember thinking ‘what is the most gargantuan and audacious thing I can do?’, and that’s when I thought I’d go out and climb the highest mountains on each continent.”

Dolan’s goal-setting also extends to the Clariti Group. “Our focus is on using our company to positively impact the lives of one million and one people globally through our work. Clariti is a standout brand dedicated to building workplaces and leaders to reach their ultimate performance and, with our guidance, they truly believe in themselves that they can achieve their dreams,” she said.

Taking the symbolism of mountaineering further, Clariti is set to launch an online training program called Finding Your Own Everest as it seeks to make its business and leadership education work accessible globally.

“Whether you aim to expand your business in revenue or performance, the focus of the Climb Your Everest program is to achieve a pivotal goal, and we help guide you to reach your goals,” says Dolan.

“It’s about finding the highest point you can reach and understanding that the difference between good and great is often just a little bit more effort — that’s where Clariti comes in.”

Dolan began her career in education and formed her first company in her 20s. She has spent the past two decades living and working across eight different countries, from the US to New Zealand to Turkey and the Gulf States.

Her passion has been business education and leadership, “to bring individuals together to make great organisations remarkable.”

Part of Dolan’s passion was motivated by witnessing some negative experiences in the corporate world which were alienating talented people and creating “corporate refugees” who still had a lot to offer. However, they were frustrated with the leaders and/or the culture of their organisation, which Dolan, says, “didn’t allow them to grow and shine.”

Clariti Group seeks to embody the best of corporate culture and to promote this vision to its clients. Dolan explains, “We understand how important leadership and performance are to the success of companies both here and abroad. As a developer of leaders and high performing teams sitting on and advising boards we can directly or indirectly influence the positive outcomes of organisations.”

For Dolan, the most important quality for leaders is “relatability”. “As a leader, you have to be real, and you have to be able to understand what you are good at and what you need your team to help you with,” she says.

Dolan recently completed the Chartered Manager qualification through the IML and said the process was “invaluable.”

“Completing the qualification was a fabulous decision, and I’m so glad I did it,” she says.

“As a goal-oriented person, the process of self-reflection that this qualification instils within you was incredibly valuable. As inspired leaders, we know that reflective practice is the key to operating at your optimum in an ever-evolving business environment. The qualification provided me with the opportunity to take my practice as a leader to the next level.

“I would not have done this to the same level if it hadn’t been for the Chartered Manager program.”

Digital innovation primer: Part one – Digital transformation (DX)

By Craig Baty FIML

 

In this first of five articles, we’ll look at digital transformation (DX) in general and introduce the key technologies and concepts to be aware of. DX is important for non-technical leaders to have some level of understanding about, so as to effectively manage and use it to their advantage.

 

What is digital transformation?

Digital technology, in all its forms, is transforming business and society. Virtually every area of human activity is being profoundly altered. The most successful people and organisations are those embracing this transformation to build new products and services based on innovative business models enabled by the many technologies that comprise the trend.

The famous Austrian economist Joseph Schumpeter, regarded as the father of the study of innovation, described it as ‘creative destruction’. That is what is happening now, all around us. The old ways of doing things are being destroyed. In their stead are rising new ideas, new techniques and whole new industries. In our increasingly digital economy that process is called Digital Transformation (DX).

 

What’s driving this revolution?

There are many enabling technologies driving this revolution. Foremost amongst them is the Internet, which has allowed levels of communication, connectivity and information sharing unimaginable a few short years ago. It has given rise to the Cloud, to the Internet of Things (IOT), and to new ways of delivering and sharing software and services. In a few short decades, it has grown from a limited low bandwidth network connecting just a few computers to a universal high-speed matrix covering the whole planet.

Another key driver is the range of technologies known collectively as Artificial Intelligence (AI), which are enabling new ways of working, new ways of analysing data, and new ways of using existing technology. Massive advances in computing power have made possible AI technologies like machine learning, robotic process automation (RPA) and predictive data analytics. These techniques enable us to make sense of the vast amounts of information (often called ‘Big Data’) generated by the new technologies of the era of Digital Transformation.

 

Digital transformation impacts all aspects of leadership

Massive changes are happening all around us. In the workplace, mobile technologies increasingly mean that for the first time in history we are location independent. We are connected any time and anywhere. Smart phones have transformed many people’s lives and have been the most quickly adopted technology in human history. They have also enabled many new applications and new ways of working, driving a whole range of initiatives and technologies, often referred to as Workplace Innovation, to improve employee productivity and engagement.

At the enterprise level, corporate data and corporate applications have also become untethered from the physical world. Large scale corporate wide applications (Enterprise Applications/Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)), services and even infrastructure are now delivered by the Internet. The separation of the digital world from the physical world is blurring, with robotics transforming manufacturing, drones being used for an increasing number of applications and autonomous vehicles becoming a reality.

Governments at every level are delivering their services digitally and are opening government data to third parties to help them develop new information-based services. Electronic identity management has become commonplace.

These changes are revolutionary. But they are not without cost. New technologies mean new opportunities, bad as well as good. In a totally connected world, Cybersecurity has become a major issue. It encompasses a range of technologies designed to protect computers and networks from unwelcome intrusion and to ensure their continued reliability.

Digital Transformation is sweeping the world. Its effects are significant, at every level of business and society. Leaders in all spheres of human endeavour will be impacted and need to become aware of the essential concepts and implications to maximise opportunities for innovation and managing in this rapidly evolving environment.

In the rest of this five-part blog series, we will cover each of the key DX technologies introduced above. Next week we will introduce Workplace Innovation and related technologies.

 

Digital transformation – why you should care

Join us in Sydney where Craig will present an informative and insightful TEL Talk: Digital Transformation – Why should I care? This brief primer on Digital Transformation will address:

  • What is Digital Transformation and why is it important for today’s leader?
  • What are the key technologies and processes to be aware of?
  • How have these technologies been used to create truly transformative business outcomes?
  • As a leader, how can you prepare yourself for an increasingly digitalised future?

Craig Baty is Principal and Founder of Technology & Management Services (TMS), which specialises in research-based data-driven thought leadership and consulting for ICT strategy, outsourcing, vendor management, go-to-market execution, and market and competitive intelligence. TMS also consults on cross-cultural communications and managing virtual teams across multiple geographies. He previously held C-level leadership roles with global telecommunications provider BT (British Telecom), Japanese ICT & technology giant Fujitsu and ICT research and advisory firm Gartner. Craig currently serves as NSW Vice Chair of the Australian Computer Society (ACS) and on the NSW Council of the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA).

The onus is on leaders to create safe and respectful workplaces

By David Pich FIML

 

The nature of the workplace has changed. We no longer tie ourselves to a nine-to-five schedule, we work from home – even feel ‘at home’ when we’re at work. It’s not surprising then that in IML ANZ’s 2018 National Salary Survey, we found an increase in the number of workers who left jobs due to a lack of flexibility. It’s now an expectation and simply the way the modern workplace operates.

What that then means is in many cases, the lines that separate the workplace and home become blurred. The home can become a workplace or people may start to see the workplace as a home. Here lies the direct link to safety.

As a leader, we put measures in place to maintain safety in the workplace – physical or psychological. But the changed nature of work means you must go beyond that. Ask the question: “Are the homes of the people in my team a safe environment?” Not to pry, but to know if this requires your attention as their leader.

It matters because if one in five people who’ve experienced harassment say that this is a common occurrence in their workplaces, and they also experience some form of abuse at home, where do they go for respite? We spend a lot of time and invest a lot of effort in the workplace, therefore we all deserve to feel safe there.

Of course, safety isn’t just about the absence of danger but also involves feeling safe enough to speak up if a situation occurs. Robust whistle-blower policies can help in a couple of ways. First, it maps out exactly what actions people can take to combat abuse and harassment in the workplace. More importantly, it sends a strong message of what your organisation considers to be acceptable and unacceptable behaviour. A policy is only as good as the people who implement it. Whilst policies are a must, you need to lift it off the page and live it.

Any form of harassment, whether it occurs at home or at work, is damaging and must be stopped. Organisations must be proactive and take the lead in preventing abuse. Are your managers prepared to act if an incident arises? Do they know how to support victims? Are they role models of the type of behaviour you’d like to see everyone displaying in your organisation?

Our actions as leaders set the tone for all those around us. When I interviewed Alan Joyce for IML ANZ’s book, Leadership Matters: 7 Skills of Very Successful Leaders, he spoke of the fundamental role leaders play in achieving buy-in and influencing the workplace culture: through actions, decisions, and messages we send. However, the culture that I’m talking about here isn’t limited to boosting engagement and results – it’s about a culture that highly values a safe and respectful workforce.

To be clear, abuse is not something the majority of us face daily. Naturally, it’s important to equip ourselves as people leaders on how to handle bullying, harassment and abuse, regardless if it occurs at home or in the workplace. I invite all managers and leaders to seek out ways to understand the reality that abuse, harassment, domestic violence and bullying is real and more common than you might think. Arm yourself with strategies, plans and a deep awareness of how to effectively handle what will most likely be a delicate situation.

Beyond all our other targets, goals and results – we are responsible for people. They give a significant amount of their time, effort and commitment to ensure targets are hit, goals are achieved and results are delivered. We owe it to our teams, as fellow workers – as human beings – to provide an environment where no one must look over their shoulder in fear of abuse. The time to act is now. Waiting until an event occurs is no longer good enough (if it ever was!).

David is the Chief Executive of IML ANZ. Learn what you can do as a leader to create a safe and respectful workplace at IML ANZ’s Leadership Outlook series 2019.

Five minutes with a leader: Emma Skea

At just 21 years of age, Emma Skea IMLa started to forge a successful career. She previously worked in administration and as a paralegal at Shine Lawyers on the Sunshine Coast and now is an Administration and Operations Officer with recycling giant Remondis. Leadership Matters asked her to share five reflections on leadership.

 

1. COMMUNICATE

I am still quite young and I am still learning, but I observe a lot and have managed staff myself. I recognise that communication is the most important thing. You have to be honest as an employee and as an effective leader. Communication is something that you must learn and adjust to. In my workplace, we work in very close teams, and communication is essential. We have several team huddles throughout the week to ensure we are all in constant communication. Our team huddles allow us to touch base, as well as bounce ideas off one another.

 

2. BE HONEST

If you are having a problem with something or someone, you need to fix it. It needs to get sorted in a constructive way where all parties can agree on the outcome. Regardless of the size of your team or where you rank, if a resolvable issue is at hand then honesty is the best policy.

 

3. PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

Personal development gives you tools along the way to grow your capabilities. Ten per cent of your salary every year should go toward personal development. It’s a great way to expand your knowledge and skills as well as network and meet people in a similar industry, or even the complete opposite. I myself take it as an opportunity to get to know my community as well as grow my skill set and knowledge.

 

4. SET AN EXAMPLE

I worked in hospitality and, when I was running events, I would have 30 staff with 500 people attending and it could very easily turn into a high-pressure situation. One thing I took out of it, was that everybody has to be on the same page. If the manager is saying one thing and doing another, not only is it a bad look, it gives extra room for errors and doesn’t allow you time to perform at your highest standard. The best teams are headed by strong managers who nurture growth and play to their team’s strengths.

 

5. BE KIND

I have always been told: do to others as I would like done to myself. If you are kind to your colleagues and team, especially in a high-stress workplace like a law firm, that kindness is contagious. Being kind is such a little thing but it can change someone’s day and mindset. The happier you are as a team, the more productive you will be.

Remuneration’s role in fostering diversity and inclusion

Remuneration is a fundamental element of the employment transaction. While employers devise many ways to use their remuneration offers to attract top talent, is it possible to also attract and support inclusion and diversity?

It’s prudent to assess the current state of your remuneration offers. To help, ask yourself these three questions:

 

Do certain employees fall through the pay gaps?

Before you can determine where you are at in terms of pay inequity, it’s a good idea to gauge the overall environment. Insightful reports such as IML ANZ’s National Salary Survey and supplementary reports can assist in this matter.

Then, analyse the situation within your organisation. Do certain people or groups suffer from a significant gap in pay? Make a candid assessment as to whether this is due to factors such as age or gender. Are all employees truly being compensated based on their ability to perform tasks?

 

How strong is job equity in your organisation?

Are some employees being overlooked for particular roles due to age, gender or cultural background? Companies should consider evaluating gender and minority representation across various jobs and levels within the organisation. If too many of the same people are occupying similar roles or sit within the same areas of the leadership hierarchy, there may be a need to update talent development plans accordingly.

Encouraging leaders to sponsor or coach the next generation of leaders is another way to promote job equity. Is there an opportunity to train-up a team member who is a potential leader but is otherwise held back due to age, gender or culture?

 

Do you view remuneration holistically?

Remuneration goes beyond just pay. It also includes all the benefits employees can expect to receive. The concept of total rewards looks at other benefits such as development, rewards and opportunities for promotion. How readily available are these to your entire workforce?

Finally, to directly influence diversity and inclusion, organisations could introduce rewards that relate to promoting D&I in the workplace.

 

With careful planning, candid assessments and strategic actions, your organisation can enjoy a heterogeneous and fair workplace to the benefit of all.

Management skills that promote workplace diversity

The actions of leaders impact not just the work culture but also the composition of their team. Selecting and hiring may give leaders a high level of control over the workplace make-up, but it’s skills and behaviours impact employee retention. Do you find yourself surrounded by clones? Or do you attract a diverse team? Developing certain skills could determine the answer.

 

The composition of our society is marked by increasing diversity. The same can be said of our workplaces. More than ever, the skills of today’s leaders must match the needs of modern organisations.

 

In addition, saying all the words can never outweigh a leader’s actions. If the focus of an organisation rests on creating a diverse and inclusive workplace, the actions of their leaders matter.

 

So, what skills will help managers respond to the needs of today’s workforce?  Here are some leadership skills that help promote workplace diversity:

 

Skills that support open communication

Promoting diversity is all about breaking down barriers. Communication can be both an enabler (when done well) and a barrier (when done poorly) of an inclusive culture. For those taking the lead, skills such as active listening, handling difficult conversations and developing skills in speaking to culturally diverse groups is vital. Displaying mastery of these skills will assist in breaking down communication barriers and encourage open conversations.

 

Skills that foster understanding

In order for diversity to flourish in your workplace, there is a need to empower teams to work together effectively. As a leader, your skills in facilitating teamwork makes that possible. You must also be aware of the need to develop skills in coaching so as to support where needed. If team members feel they may be disadvantaged in a certain way, good coaching skills will help fill that gap and grow their confidence in participating fully as a team member.

 

To create a work environment that fosters diversity and attracts workers from different backgrounds and beliefs, improving soft skills and continuous leadership development is the key ingredient.

The link between diversity and organisational resilience

In this ever-changing modern business environment, organisations need to build up their capacity to cope with unexpected events. The key to effectively handling turbulence may rest on your level of organisational diversity.

Latest research reasons that diversity can lead to the development and improvement of specific capabilities that contribute to organisational resilience. That is – anticipation, or the preventative aspects of resilience; coping, or the implementation of solutions and reactions to change; and adaptation, or the development of new capabilities following unexpected events.

In addition, the Australian Government named respect as one of the key factors in improving organisational resilience. One of the most powerful ways to demonstrate respect in the workplace is inclusion – meaning background, beliefs, age or gender are not seen as a reason for exclusion.

So, how can diversity strengthen an organisation’s resilience? Here are three ways:

 

Diversity assists in observing, identifying and preparing for major change

Our differences, when harnessed collectively, can greatly enrich our capability to detect and prepare for changes. Having a group with diverse experiences in work and life results in an increased ability to perceive changes in the environment and to identify necessary adjustments. Further, the greater the variety of ideas explored, the better prepared an organisation will be for the consequences of change and the less likely they are to be caught off guard.

 

Diversity improves an organisation’s problem solving

As change and turbulence are complex these cannot usually be solved with existing approaches. Creating solutions demands broad knowledge, the interaction of different people, and creativity in coming up with a way to tackle the challenges. Again, the more diverse the ideas are, the better equipped an organisation will be at arriving at the right solution.

 

Diversity enriches team learning

Having diverse perspectives when reflecting upon the aftermath of change pushes organisations away from simple conclusions. It encourages deeper discussions about what actions to take and challenges any common thinking that may exist. Thus, a heterogeneous knowledge base can reduce the tendency to simply skim the surface. Rather, it promotes using logic instead of blame when analysing why things went wrong.

Source: Duchek, S., Raetze, S. & Scheuch, I. Business Research (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40685-019-0084-8

Can AI eliminate unconscious bias in recruitment?

Most of us appreciate how artificial intelligence can simplify tasks. It’s a satisfying feeling when your phone suggests a great restaurant while you’re travelling in a foreign city. Meals are of course one thing, but when it comes to crucial choices, such as unbiased recruiting, can AI be just as reliable?

A key issue for employers when they recruit is assessing if a person can carry out the requirements of the job. They must clearly outline the essential duties of all positions when hiring, being careful to not to confuse ‘abilities’ with ‘characteristics’.

To be unbiased means employers select the best person for the job. They make no assumptions about what people can and can’t do, or if they will ‘fit in’ as a result of their background.

During the early stages of recruitment, it can be easy for biases to creep into the process. For instance:

  • Advertising jobs – the Australian Human Rights Commission calls out commonly used phrases such as ‘join a dynamic team’ or ‘seeking a mature, experienced professional’ as possibly discriminatory against certain age groups.
  • Shortlisting candidates – forming an opinion about the candidate’s suitability based on their name or geographic location and what that might tell you about their cultural or racial background.

Could this be where an unbiased selector, such as AI, step in to eliminate any inherent prejudices?

 

Where AI has an advantage

Speed and accuracy. An area where machines outperform humans is around processing and analysing vast amounts of data. AI-enabled software and machines can carry out processes in a more advanced way. Although they mimic human behaviour when inputting and consuming information from multiple sources; they can gather, process and record data in more efficient way and in larger volumes. This means a larger candidate pool could be considered for roles, allowing for better diversity amongst the shortlist.

Perspective shift. Unlike humans who can at times respond based on gut feeling, AI always responds based upon evidence. In addition, AI’s ability to find patterns within data mean they could disrupt common thinking. In a similar way to how Deep Blue defeated Kasparov by making moves that his opponent didn’t anticipate, so can AI-enabled systems explore alternative avenues when selecting candidates.

 

Where AI falls short

In theory that may all sound convincing, putting AI to work however is a lot more complex. For instance, when Amazon created an AI-based recruiting system they failed to shield the system from bias. By teaching the system to rate male candidates as the ideal fit, not explicitly but by deducing through previous criteria that put female candidates at a disadvantage.

Ultimately, humans build the parameters that define AI’s decision-making. If bias creeps in then the system’s integrity is inevitably compromised.

 

Use AI to support a bias-proof recruitment process

For now it appears the best approach is not to view AI as superceding all human participation in recruiting. Rather it is best used as a support mechanism for unbiased recruitment.

Use the technology to hone in on specific processes that require objectivity. Software that check the language you use, such as Textio, can help edit out words or phrases that could limit the type of people who would respond to job ads. In addition, there are also existing systems that assist by removing information, such as names and geographical information, that may trigger bias.

Until completely bias-proofed technology exists, the onus still rests upon managers to use all possible options to ensure unbiased recruitment.

Data detective: Harnessing machine learning

By Emma Mulholland

 

Many of us don’t realise that, as we go about our days, we leave long data trails behind us. When we use our smartphone, for example, not only is our location and interlocutor recorded, even the way we hold the headset is. Is that a bad thing? It can be, says data innovator Shashank Pawar MIML. But in the right hands, he says, our data can help us take control of our financial future.

Pawar has worked at Microsoft for 19 years, where he oversees healthcare and banking portfolios. His mission is to bring back customer service – albeit in a modern, digital way. “I think about my mum and dad’s experience of banking,” he says. “They used to deal with one person at a local branch who knew everything about their lifestyle. He knew how old their kids were and would say, ‘Why don’t you set up a college fund?’ There was a level of service that we’re not enjoying today, even though the banks probably have more information about their customers than they’ve ever had.”

A computer science graduate, Pawar helps organisations store and protect customer data and put it to work (under Australian legislation, companies keeping information must have customer consent).

“I help my clients get the most out of the biggest asset they have within their organisation, which is data,” Pawar says. “When a person walks into a bank, essentially everything is recorded: the time it takes to solve their enquiry, the nature of the transaction and the money involved. That data becomes a competitive difference: it’s something you know about your customer base that your competitor doesn’t.”

And that’s where artificial intelligence comes in. Pawar develops algorithms that can sift through millions of these recorded interactions, establish patterns and make predictions about each customer. In years gone by, it could take up to a year to set up an algorithm; with cloud computing, Pawar can now run tests in a matter of days.

He hopes to create the banking equivalent of Spotify, a music-streaming service that uses machine learning – based on tracks played by the listener and their friends – to suggest new playlists. “Why can’t we do that with financial advice as well?” Pawar asks. “The bank knows my peers’ spending habits so if I’m aiming to save a large amount of money, it could tell me what other people my age, who managed to reach that goal, did – it might be shopping at alternative grocery suppliers.”

Pawar imagines a future where no-one will have to wait in line at the bank. Instead, organisations will analyse data and predict their customers’ needs. “Then we can use digital technology to text them the solution,” he says. “Or the next time they pop in to a branch, a friendly face will come and say, ‘This is what you’ve been looking for.’ The interaction is seamless – we seem to know about the customer and can give them personalised service. That’s the vision.”