(Great) Employees Only P

Jacket Description/Back: "A mediocre employee in your group is more than one mediocre employee--he or she is a human multiplier-effect, to the downside. If you have even one mediocre employee, you have announced to the world that mediocrity is okay by you, while conceding that you are willing to slow the entire group for the sake of the worst employee. Thus, allowing that one person to stay is not being kind or generous; it's dangerous. It's dangerous for the individual, who knows that, at some level, he or she is doing second-rate work, and who you are locking into mediocrity, and it is dangerous for the group, which is slowed and distracted."--from "(Great) Employees Only""Dauten will challenge every preconceived notion you have about making your career take off."--Harvey Mackay, author of "Swim With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive""You'll rediscover the joy that's missing in your career, your coworkers, and yourself."--Ken Elkins, former president and CEO, Pulitzer Broadcasting CompanyBiographical Note: Dale Dauten writes two nationally syndicated weekly columns that appear in more than one hundred newspapers. He began his career as a consultant before heading his own marketing research firm, whose clients include McDonald's, Procter & Gamble, and 3M, among others. Most recently, as the founder of The Innovator's Lab, he has worked with such companies as Georgia-Pacific, General Dynamics, Caterpillar, and NASA. He is also the author of "The Gifted Boss."Jacket Description/Flap: From "(Great) Employees Only" "Let's say we have two managers who, on the same day, take over identical teams. Both are bright and eager to excel. One has read all the management books on motivation; the other has just this book to go by. Within six months, the first manager will have increased productivity by ten, maybe twenty percent. The second boss, using the GEO system (that's "Great Employees Only"), will have increased productivity by over 100 percent, while putting in one-third fewer hours at the office. Along the way, our second manager will have encountered less resistance, and will have made more friends, learned more, and had much more fun."With lively language and entertaining stories, "(Great) Employees Only" reveals how gifted bosses hire, de-hire, and inspire, and shows you how to emulate their tactics to achieve stunning success. You'll get an insider's look at forty-eight insights developed from author Dale Dauten's research into America's most effective leaders, including what it takes to: Master the art of contrarian thinkingTap into the "underground" talent marketTransform employees into lifelong alliesReplace the act of "firing" with the graceful art of "de-hiring"Establish a culture that hires and de-hires for youCreate the set-up-to-be-a-hero syndromeEnjoy the benefits of effortless leadershipThis guide will show you how to do staffing right, letting you minimize your day-to-day managing and focus on the big issues of business. When you promote your best and get rid of the rest, great people will not only want to work for you, they'll feel appreciated, valued, and motivated. The title says it all--the secret to success is "(Great) Employees Only."Praise for "(Great) Employees Only""Dauten's work clearly soars ahead of his time. He is the Obi-Wan Kenobi of business consultants."--Steve Chandler, author of "The Story of You""While Dale's writing will keep you up late reading, his book is like a great night's sleep--leaving you refreshed, renewed, and eager to try something new."--Bill McLaughlin, President and CEO, Select Comfort (creator of the Sleep Number(R) bed) Table of Contents: Preface xv48 Things Gifted Bosses KnowPART I 90-10-0: The Formula for Leadership SuccessNumber 1 Hiring Is Motivation, or It's Less Work to Get 100 Percent Improvement than 10 Percent Improvement 2Number 2 You Can Change People, or You Can Change People 6Number 3 The First Step to Finding Star Employees Is Believing That They Exist, or How to Make the Playing Field as Un-Level as Possible 8Number 4 You Can Lead an Employee to Water, but If You Find One Who Knows a Better Path to the Water, Shut Up and Get a Bucket 11PART II From Employees to AlliesNumber 5 Those Aren't Employees (or Friends, Enemies, Family, or Students)--Those Are Allies 14Number 6 Those Aren't Former Employees--Those Are Graduates 19Number 7 You Never Get Rid of Anyone 23Number 8 It's Not Closure That's Needed--It's Aperture 25Number 9 How Two Allies (a Great Employee and a Gifted Boss) Find Each Other 26Number 10 Assume the Best, Part I: The Art of Being a True Ally 29Number 11 Assume That the Best Employees ALWAYS KNOW 34Number 12 What's a Great Employee Worth? 38PART III The Graceful Art of De-HiringNumber 13 Replacing People Is so Hard for Most Bosses That They Don't Do Enough of It 42Number 14 You Are Becoming Your Coworkers 43Number 15 A Meeting Moves at the Pace of the Slowest Mind in the Room 45Number 16 Firing Takes Guts--De-Hiring Requires Heart 47Number 17 Assume the Best, Part II: The Genius Lurking Inside 55Number 18 The My-Situation-Is-Different Myth: De-Hiring Works in Any Type of Business or Industry, Even Government 59Number 19 Intelligent Failing 62Number 20 You Can't Buy Love from Fired Employees 66Number 21 From Set-Up-to-Fail to Set-Up-to-Be-a-Hero 71Number 22 You Aren't Just Changing Employees--You're Changing Lives 75Number 23 Lessons from a Master of the Art of De-Hiring 78PART IV Inspiring, Effortless Leadership (The First Step in Hiring Great Employees) Number 24 You Can Take Credit, but You Can't Give It Away 86Number 25 Effortless Leadership, Part I: No One Wants to Be Managed, so Stop Doing It 89Number 26 Effortless Leadership, Part II: Management by Asking Questions 91Number 27 Effortless Leadership, Part III: The One Who Manages Least, Manages Best 94Number 28 Effortless Leadership, Part IV: Winning versus Working 101Number 29 Guess What Kind of Employee Is Attracted to Average Pay? 108Number 30 Never Bet on Employees Who Don't Want to Bet on Themselves 112Number 31 What's the Score? Or How to Go from Shooting Around to Playing to Win 115Number 32 You Get What You Pay For: What Employees Believe They Get Paid For, Not What You Thought You Were Paying For 119Number 33 When the Inspired Culture Takes over the Hiring and De-Hiring 121PART V Hiring Is What You Do So You Don't Have to Manage (and It's What You Do with Some of the Time You Save by Not Having to Manage) Number 34 Hiring Is More Important than Sales 126Number 35 The Hiring Pipeline: The Best Selection Process in the World Is Only Capable of Picking the Best Person in the Competition 130Number 36 Contrarian Hiring, Part I: The Underground Talent Market 137Number 37 If You're Feeling Insulted Right about Now 139Number 38 Contrarian Hiring, Part II: Finding Unusual People in the Usual Places 141Number 39 Contrarian Hiring, Part III: The Action Interview 146Number 40 Contrarian Hiring, Part IV: It's Not Just a Job--It's a Break 155Number 41 Contrarian Hiring, Part V: Hunting for New Talent Pools and/or Doing Pool Construction 157Number 42 Being Worthy of the Best Talent: In the Long Run, You Get the Employees You Deserve 161Number 43 If You Want Great Performances, You Have to Provide a Great Audience 165Number 44 If You Don't Have a Great Story, You Don't Have Great Employees or a WOMPing Good Place to Work 168PART VI Understanding Bureaucrats, Upper Management, and Other DistractionsNumber 45 The Unspoken Assumption of Bad Management and Bad Marketing 176Number 46 The Team Makes the Stars While the Stars Make the Team 177Number 47 Your Work Is Only Part of Your Job 184Number 48 Leading via Happiness 190Final Thoughts 195Acknowledgments and Sources 197About the Author 199Publisher Marketing: "A mediocre employee in your group is more than one mediocre employee--he or she is a human multiplier-effect, to the downside. If you have even one mediocre employee, you have announced to the world that mediocrity is okay by you, while conceding that you are willing to slow the entire group for the sake of the worst employee. Thus, allowing that one person to stay is not being kind or generous; it's dangerous. It's dangerous for the individual, who knows that, at some level, he or she is doing second-rate work, and who you are locking into mediocrity, and it is dangerous for the group, which is slowed and distracted."--from (Great) Employees Only "Dauten will challenge every preconceived notion you have about making your career take off."--Harvey Mackay, author of Swim With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive "You'll rediscover the joy that's missing in your career, your coworkers, and yourself."--Ken Elkins, former president and CEO, Pulitzer Broadcasting Company

Contributor Bio:  Dauten, Dale A Dale Dauten writes two nationally syndicated weekly columns that appear in more than one hundred newspapers. He began his career as a consultant before heading his own marketing research firm, whose clients include McDonald's, Procter & Gamble, and 3M, among others. Most recently, as the founder of The Innovator's Lab, he has worked with such companies as Georgia-Pacific, General Dynamics, Caterpillar, and NASA. He is also the author of "The Gifted Boss,"