 | Gregory P. Smith
Lead Navigator
President
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We have expanded our DISC training programs to offer you more choices and flexibility.
Our assessments help you identify individual personality styles so you can hire the right people, reduce conflict, improve communication and unleash team performance. DATE CHANGE! WEBSEMINAR CLASS DATES Dates: March 5, 6, 10, 12 Time: 3:00-4:30 E.T. Cost: $1295 per person Two-Day Advanced Class Feburary 18-19 (Atlanta, GA) March 26-27 (Durham, NC)
Your registration includes over $900 in DISC training materials! Check our training schedule for a class Call or email us for more information. 800-821-2487 or 770-860-9464 |
300 Online Courses!
Our classroom and online leadership and management courses will help you advance your career by learning the critical skills needed to become an excellent manager or supervisor - retaining your best people, motivating, delegating, resolving conflict, coaching, customer service, professionalism and more! |
| Bright Ideas Employee Suggestion Campaign
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| Capture Hundreds of Employee Ideas and Suggestions
The Bright Ideas Campaign Facilitator Kit includes all the information needed to implement a proven, day-by-day suggestion process. The Kit comes with a facilitator guide, instructions and training materials. This will allow you to manage a highly successful employee suggestion program. Our Campaign shows you how to initiate, capture and implement the Campaign generating ideas and suggestions from the bottom up in a three-week time period. Our Campaign is built upon a proven process generating a record level of employee participation and engagement. It accelerates the idea generation process and eliminates the typical pitfalls found in employee suggestion programs. As a result, you will capture hundreds of ideas and suggestions from your workforce improving productivity, cutting costs and boosting a high level of motivation, improved communication and a sense of teamwork. More information |
 | "We should seize every opportunity to give encouragement. Encouragement is oxygen to the soul. The days are always dark enough. There is no need for us to emphasize the fact by spreading further gloom."
- George M. Adams "A smile while giving honest criticism can make the difference between resentment and reform."
- Philip Steinmetz |
| | | Letter from the Lead Navigator: Whew! Where did all this snow come from? Last week's snow storm put a real "freeze" on everything here in North Carolina. Well, let's hope for warmer weather as we head into the summer months.
I will be heading to Ireland this week and returning March 1. I hope to post some photos of our trip on my Facebook page. P.S. If you get a chance, please "Like" my Facebook page. I truly would appreciate it! 
Gregory P. Smith President and Lead Navigator 770-860-9464 |
| Customer Service Certification Training | | |
| Does employee engagement matter to company success? |
|  Today you hear a lot about employee engagement. Senior executives have been concerned about this within their company for some time... and for good reason. There are many descriptions of what employee engagement is and what an engaged employee looks like. In recent newsletters, we have discussed these areas. If you missed these articles, contact us and we will send them to you right away. An engaged employee is: - Willing to put in the extra effort
- Have high levels of loyalty
- Have an emotional bond to the company
- Promote the company as "the employer of choice"
- Strive to inspire peers
Are your employees engaged? According to a Gallup Study and a recent report from SHRM, on average, employees were only moderately engage. In addition, employee engagement levels have been consistent for the past several of years. Average levels of engagement: - 29% actively engaged
- 55% non-engaged
- 16% actively disengaged
What does this mean to businesses? - Lost productivity costs businesses $350 billion per year (Gallup)
- Companies with highly engaged employees were 200% more profitable (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)
- One disengaged employee can bring down performance by 30%-40%. (Felps, Mitchell & Byington)
Business performance suffers greatly due to disengaged employees. Mission, Vision, & Values must be congruent and understood by all employees in order to increase employee engagement. Connect each employee with the overall strategy & success of the organization. Help everyone understand the "big picture" and how they contribute to this overall strategy. Reward engagement consistently based on each individual's values, motivators, EQ, & behaviors. Always be on the lookout for disengaged employees and take action quickly. If you have any questions about this article, or about how we can help in creating a highly engaged workforce, contact us today! Engagement is the key to organizational success! ~ Gary Sorrell Call or email us for more information. 800-821-2487 or 770-860-9464
Written by Gary Sorrell, Sorrell Associates, LLC. Copyright protected worldwide. All rights reserved. References & Sources; TTI Success Insights, Gallup, Watson Wyatt Worldwide, & Felps, Mitchell & Byington) |
| | | | Time is on my side.... Yes it is! |
 In today's environment, we must do more with less. Each person is working harder, expected to do more, and all with fewer resources. IE: not enough help, need more supplies, not enough time, etc... So time management is vital and critical when having meetings. Unfortunately, many of the attendees view meetings as a waste of their time. Often they turn into complaining sessions with little or no direction and / or a reason for the meeting. You, as the leader, must take control of the meetings and make sure they have a purpose, objectives, and are time bound. When scheduling a meeting, it may be helpful to remember the acronym POT. Purpose - define the purpose of your meeting. Why are you having a meeting? Send the agenda to all participants prior to each meeting. This way they will know why they need to be there and it also gives them the ability to add a topic to the meeting. Objectives - What needs to be accomplished? Set an agenda and list the topics to be discussed. Each topic should have an allotted amount of time and should total the overall meeting timeframe. Set aside suggestions that don't fit in the current meeting agenda and address them (if time allows) at the end of the meeting or put them on future meeting agendas. Time bound - What is the duration of the meeting? Set up a start and end time. Meetings need to start on time. Don't wait for people to show up or review for those that are late. That wastes the time of the people who showed up on time. Do not go past the end time unless it is absolutely vital and the participants agree to the additional time. Ask the participants to help keep track of the time so you don't run over. If the meeting leader/organizer does not show up on time, the meeting should be considered cancelled and attendees should go back to work. Junk meetings are worse than Junk email. They waste a lot more time and money. At least with junk mail you can set up a folder and hit delete. Stop unnecessary meetings like the "standing weekly meeting." Meet when you actually have something to discuss. If your meeting does not meet this criterion, than you should not have it and toss it in the POT. :) Have a happy productive meeting! Need an agenda template? Click here to download it at no cost. Call or email us for more information. 800-821-2487 or 770-860-9464 Written for us by our associate Gary Sorrell, Sorrell Associates, LLC. Copyright protected worldwide. All rights reserved. |
| | Achieving Emotional Intelligence |
 Considering that high performance and good decision making are the ultimate outcomes, how are they attained? There is no doubt that general intelligence and technical skills contribute to high performance. However, to truly succeed consistently, one must also possess a high level of Emotional Intelligence (EQ). EQ is the process of recognizing, managing, and appropriately leveraging emotions within yourself and with others. The value of emotional intelligence increases dramatically with job complexity. Research has shown that those with high EQ are 127 times more productive than those with low EQ. Through his research, Goleman has concluded that the key differentiator between star and average performers is EQ. Emotional Intelligence is the ability to sense, understand and effectively apply the power and acumen of emotions to facilitate high levels of collaboration and productivity. (Cooper) Adapted by Gary Sorrell TTIVAA with permission. Copyright Target Training International. LTD |
| |  Like the Navigator? Pass it on to your friends! The Navigator Newsletter is received by over 35,000 subscribers in 49 countries, in addition to other websites and magazines. Reproduction for publication is encouraged, with the following attribution: "Chart Your Course International, by Gregory P. Smith, Copyright 2014." Sign up and receive free articles, tips and newsletters at our website or call us at (770) 860-9464 or (800) 821-2487. |
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Copyright © 2013. All Rights Reserved.
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