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Companies are wrestling with some big questions. As the mystics say, the answers lie within. Josie and the Pussycats does your company stack up?

1. How do we close the gap between emerging leaders and outgoing leaders? How can we transfer the knowledge when they Dunny talk to one another?

Labels like the entitlement generation reveal judgment and blinds capacity to Clea Bella skills beyond the labels. Once the mind is made up, it will not be confused by the facts nor is it open for discovery. At the heart of the matter, employees want to contribute no matter how old or young they are. Closing the gaps must start with a desire to learn from each other. A hefty dose of curiosity helps.

Judgment in the form of labels always reveals fear. The question is what is everyone afraid of?

2. We hire and lose Gen Y at phenomenal rates. How do we engage and keep them?

Most company cultures are based on the need to motivate employees; that extrinsic incentives are enough. Gen Y has it all. They want to be inspired to contribute to something that has real impact on the world. Not only that but most cultures are built on an outmoded notion of what power is; using information as leverage for influence. To Gen Y, you have personal power built in. What GenY can get on through connectivity the organization treats as privileged 1963 Topps baseball cards Working with Gen Y requires radical transparency. Unless there is a willingness to understand and discover what that is, Gen Y will continue to leave and remain disengaged.

Is your company culture calibrated for motivating people or inspiring them? Does it know the difference?

How do you use and treat information in your company?

3. How do we lower our overall turnover rate? We can't keep employees we want. Astute Gen Y and X have a built in radar detector for incongruence. Boomers see the Mr. Mxyzptlk but believe that to receive that pay check you must tolerate a certain amount of smoke and mirrors. If your company culture says one thing and your managers, hiring practices are saying another then the leadership teams intention and company built-in beliefs are unknowingly creating the issue. Is that what you want? Thinking must be agile enough to be reflective and to change perspective in order to see how imbedded cultural practices and habits are creating the dynamic. Unlike the Boomers, sucking it up is not an option for the younger workers. Changing the level of consciousness that created the situation it is the road to changing the result.

4. How can we protect ourselves from ethical breaches?

Research shows that 6/10 ethical breaches take place at the executive level. Most are supported by the culture that shapes behaviour. Clarity and self-awareness are the best offense. Expanding clarity requires a commitment to expanding the self. Do it collectively and you have the opportunity to reflect on the imbedded beliefs that drive the cultural wheel. When a person has a strong sense of personal identity (defined by self-value/worth rather than material possessions), self-security (defined by inner security rather than status, need for approval) then ethical breaches cannot take place. A self-actualized individual operates from passion driven purpose. Put that into an economic engine that supports innovation and stand back! Controlling and autocratic management styles reveal a lack of trust in the self overall. It signals a reliance on external measures of status over intrinsic value being brought to the table. The transformation from one state to another is not a difficult one but it is definitely easier to do by choice than by force.

What leadership style do you prefer and what does it tell you about your relationship with who you are and what value you bring?

5. How can our managers support performance? Traditionally managers have been trained to manage, which has been another word for control. Then the buzz word was enabling. Now it is about empowering. The lines can be grey. To see the invisible lines requires a commitment to regaining trust to the point where ultimately there is recognition that it is not what they know but what they don't know - their curiosity and ability to be present - that support performance. With that, employees can collectively achieve shared goals, and by following the joy of working together, creativity emerges organically.

Are you able to stop in the nanosecond between impulse and action, to reflect and notice precisely what is motivating your actions? If so, you are on your way to shifting conscious awareness to a higher state and greater ability to adapt.
Employees are searching for:

1. Workplaces to contribute their creative talent in a meaningful way.

2. Capacity to use the social networks to generate natural innovation and goal-oriented performance.

3. Opportunities to create a future with hope.

What is your company doing to give back to community, society, the environment or globally in a wholly authentic way?

2008 From InSight to Action Publications - Dawna H. Jones - Evolutionary Provocateur. To access other information at no charge visit FromINsightToAction.comFromINsightToAction.com Dawna H. Jones has spent 25 years helping companies and their employees expand insight and foresight to achieve higher levels of performance. Committed to doing whatever it takes to spark profound, lasting change in teams, organizations - or within oneself - she constantly pushes the edge to merge science, metaphysics, human and physical dynamics to optimal advantage. She can be reached at 1.866.605.0880.