In a world of swirling regulations, opposing forces of needs versus
budgets and increasingly pressing deadlines, it is far too common to get
caught up in the tornado that is our everyday work. Generally, when a
tornado comes the best plan is to get out of its way. When that is not
possible and the tornado takes hold, our survival instincts immediately
look for a way out. I am here to propose a better plan.
Think about it. What happens as you move towards the edges of a
tornado? The winds move faster and faster and eventual you get flung out
in an unexpected direction. Often this causes great harm to you and/or
anyone or anything near the tornado. If you stay in the swirl of the
tornado, the vortex may steal your breath away and items within the
storm may catch you unaware. Since we know that escaping a tornado is a
recipe for disaster and being tossed about is also a great risk, we
should aim for a completely different plan.
When caught up in a cyclone of work and accountability, I suggest
that you move quickly to the eye of the storm. The idea may be
terrifying and opposite of your instincts, but the eye of a storm is
calm and focused. You can operate from the eye while reaching out
plucking from the melee those things that you absolutely must get done.
You can focus on critical tasks and let the storm rage around you until,
like it always does, it calms down and fades away.
An Executive Compensation Tornado
Year-end is approaching. The company
just hired a new CEO, and at the same time the Board has brought in a
new compensation consultant. A month ago your company announced that it
would be acquiring a major competitor that has operations almost
exclusively in countries where you don’t. The performance equity plan
from three years ago will pay out at around 75% at the end of the year
and the system you use only partially supports this transaction. Since
the end of the last quarter you have had changes in three of your top
five institutional investors. At least one of them uses an evaluation
methodology you are not yet familiar with. On top of everything else you
have been told that your HRIS system is going into lockdown for 6
months for an upgrade. Inevitably, the IRS has just rolled out another
of its “almost year-end” rule clarifications. Have I mentioned your
compensation analyst is out on maternity leave and the SVP of HR is
going through their first year-end at your company? The tornado is
almost upon you (again), what will you do?
- Remind yourself of your priorities.
- Focus on your priorities while reaching out to those around you for assistance.
- Get the key items done while keeping an eye
on the lower priority items. In short, do the most important things
well, rather than doing everything poorly.
As we move into the final quarter of the year and prepare for the
maelstrom that is typically called year-end, it is important to have a
strategy to come out the other side as unscathed as possible, while
still fulfilling the necessities of your position. Of course, afterward
there will be a great mess to clean up. The difference is you will be
able to address the mess instead of being part of it.
Dan Walter is the President and CEO of Performensation
an independent compensation consultant focused on the needs of small
and mid-sized public and private companies. Dan’s unique perspective and
expertise includes equity compensation, executive compensation,
performance-based pay and talent management issues, Dan is on the board
of the National Center for Employee Ownership, a partner in the ShareComp virtual conferences and the founder of Equity Compensation Experts
a free networking group. Dan is frequently requested as a dynamic and
humorous speaker covering compensation and motivation topics. Connect
with him on LinkedIn or follow him on Twitter @Performensation and @SayOnPay