Disqovery Blog

Real Leaders Work For Tips

Wed, 28 Sep 2016 00:00:00 -0700

Alternate titles include: “Real leaders serve,” and “What managers can learn from waiters.”

I don’t often end up in fancy restaurants, but when I do, I’m most impressed by the service I receive. A few friends have previously worked as servers, so I try to tip generously, with a little extra for the truly exceptional.

This got me thinking: a lot of what makes a good waiter also makes for a good people manager. In any talent-driven organization, your employees are a precious resource and can be compared to diners at a high-quality restaurant. To get the best results out of them (tips), you need to provide them with exceptional service.

What do you want from your people? From yourself?

It’s important to establish your high-level goals as an effective manager. Here are some items on my list, which are interrelated:

Get the best performance I can from my team.
Make sure that my people have what they need to do a good job.
Have a team that feels good about their workplace, their capabilities, and their growth.
Be respected as a capable leader.

The service connection

This concept isn’t new. There are great examples, including from the military, in the book Leaders Eat Last. As an aside, the author Simon Sinek, has a great TED talk you must check out.

Bruce Buschell over at The New York Times put together a list of top 100 don’ts for restaurant staff, and a surprising number of these apply to all leaders. Here are some of the items in that article, together with my thoughts.

I. Watch your words

Never say, “Good choice,” implying that other choices are bad.

Saying, “No problem” is a problem. It has a tone of insincerity or sarcasm. “My pleasure” or “You’re welcome” will do.

Do not gossip about co-workers or guests within earshot of guests.

Words always matter, but they’re especially important when you’re in a leadership position. There are two main reasons for this. First, you are respected by your team, and it’s easy to lose some of that respect by saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. Second, your words have influence, both direct and indirect. For example, speaking poorly of a colleague can result in their teammates excluding them from work and non-work activities.

II. Be available

Do not turn on the charm when it’s tip time. Be consistent throughout.

Do not disappear.

Do not stop your excellent service after the check is presented or paid.

This one is probably the most obvious. Being a good manager requires being present; pay attention to what’s going on around you. Be there for your people when they need you, not when you need them.

III. Know when to get out of the way

Do not interrupt a conversation. For any reason. Wait for the right moment.

Never hover long enough to make people feel they are being watched or hurried…

Do not take an empty plate from one guest while others are still eating the same course. Wait, wait, wait.

This forms a delicate balancing act when combined with the advice from number I above. I would try to offer guidance in this article, but being highly available without micromanaging is a blog post all on its own. If you have good sources of feedback, you’ll know if you’re pulling it off, or which way to course-correct your style.

IV. Get feedback from multiple sources, and act on it

Never remove a plate full of food without asking what went wrong. Obviously, something went wrong.

When you ask, “How’s everything?” or “How was the meal?” listen to the answer and fix whatever is not right.

Do not say anything after a tip — be it good, bad, indifferent — except, “Thank you very much.”

Never patronize a guest who has a complaint or suggestion; listen, take it seriously, address it.

Listening to your staff takes more than your ears. A waiter does not rely only on receiving a tip (feedback) at the end of the meal. They look for non-verbal cues, make sure to ask for periodic feedback, and act on what they find. As a manager, it would be nice if just an annual survey or your gut feeling were enough, but we and KPMG know that feedback is not so simple. Multiple sources can include: surveys, town halls, one-on-ones, walking around, and feedback tools.

Acting on feedback is where the magic happens. Think about a time when you had feedback as a customer, even a small piece, and the staff went out of their way to make it right. How did it make you feel? Acting on feedback generates loyalty in customers, and it does the same in your workforce. Not only does it give you the awareness you need to improve the workplace, but it also lets your people be heard and feel heard.

So think about how you listen today, and think about how you act on what you hear. Start working for tips.

Disqovery takes care of employee analytics and feedback in a casual and lightweight way, so managers can understand what’s really happening in their teams. Managers should check us out for info on how Disqovery can help you. Varun can be reached directly at varun@disqovery.com.

-vkm

Lessons for Employee Feedback from Brexit

Wed, 29 Jun 2016 00:00:00 -0700

This sounds weird, right? I was surprised to find a connection here, and I just *had* to share this example with you.

tl;dr: people need a constructive outlet for their feedback, and they need to feel like they are being heard. If you don’t give them an outlet, they will find their own, and you probably won’t like the results.

Why feedback matters

Getting accurate feedback should matter to you. As a manager, good feedback is critical to understanding your team and their experiences at work. You use it to assess the state of the workplace and make improvements for your people’s productivity and happiness.

It feels good to be heard. Encourage and solicit regular feedback from your employees, and use what they’re telling you. Not only will you make things better, but employees will feel better just knowing that they’re being heard.

You can’t ignore it

Credit: Oliver Spalt

Pressure can build up. You must provide adequate opportunities for people to be heard. Your employees have things to say. Healthy feedback channels will allow for a steady stream of communication. If you don’t provide such channels internally, the pressure will build; feedback will be shared in non-productive channels: both internal (bitter peer-to-peer conversations) and external (Glassdoor reviews).

It goes without saying that these possibilities are bad for company culture, productivity, and recruiting. That’s why you can’t ignore feedback.

How to deal with it

The key here is to regularly solicit casual feedback from people: always be listening, and manage by walking around. Disqovery customers use our software to take care of this process. Again, the emphasis has to be on lightweight, in-the-moment, regular feedback. Employee annual surveys just don’t cut the mustard.

What about Brexit?

Whether you agree with it or not, the Brexit is happening. It is an historic period in the history of the UK and the EU, and we will watch the events unfold. Those who voted against the EU (to “leave”) did so for many reasons, but one reason in particular stood out to me, as quoted:

© The Daily Show with Trevor Noah

There were some people who knew exactly what they were voting for. And they didn’t necessarily want Britain to leave the EU, but they just felt that the vote was the only way to express their frustration. - Trevor Noah, The Daily Show (video)

Meanwhile, others were more isolated protest voters who simply wished to register some displeasure with the EU… - Katherine Cross, Rolling Stone

Do you see the commonality? Some Britons felt that they were not being heard by the governments managing their country. They had no accessible channels for feedback, and took advantage of a referendum vote to voice their opinions. The pressure was released in a way that many citizens and government officials have now come to regret.

Don’t ignore feedback

It’s not just a tool for making things better. It’s how you keep your culture strong.

-vkm

KPMG is dumping engagement surveys, and so should you

Tue, 22 Mar 2016 07:48:23 -0700

A side-note before we begin: Disqovery handles all of the issues outlined in this post. Say hello and we’ll be in touch.

We are on the verge of something big. Managers are beginning to rethink what people data really means and how it is and isn’t useful. You don’t believe me?

Even KPMG is abandoning staff surveys, that old annual corporate ritual. (link, PDF)

This news comes via Robert Bolton, head of KPMG’s HR practice. I highly recommend you read the writeup from AFR. It has some of the most progressive HR thinking I’ve seen from a company of KPMG’s size. I’m going to give you some extra insights into Mr. Bolton’s quotes, and why it’s so important and relevant to managers today.

Why are you measuring data?

“We are entering an era of evidence-based people management.” - Robert Bolton, KPMG

Indeed, why? Too often managers and HR collect data without a clear plan for how that data will be used, and to what end purpose. On the flip side, managers also try their best to make improvements, but how do they know that their strategy is working? Gut feeling? Investments in people are becoming more important, and without hard evidence to demonstrate their effectiveness, executives will balk at anything that disrupts the status quo.

How are you measuring data?

“In reality, engagement is an ill-defined term. And measuring it once or twice a year with some static survey is not very scientific, no matter how much it’s dressed up to appear so.” - Robert Bolton, KPMG

I’m sure you’ve all seen these surveys before. Your company does them once or twice a year, and they typically take 10 to 30 minutes to complete. Have you ever thought about how flawed this approach is?

Is it timely?

You don't ask someone for their Amazon wishlist 6 months after their birthday, do you? #engagement #employees https://t.co/rkwcH9cWIf
— Disqovery (@disqovery) June 26, 2016

The workplace moves fast. Now it moves faster than ever. If you collect data via surveys once or twice a year, that information is already out of date. Don’t go making decisions and measuring effectiveness using old data. You don’t ask someone for their Amazon wishlist 6 months after their birthday, do you?

Of course if you’ve ever designed, deployed, and analyzed a survey, you know well how much time it takes to run through that cycle. That’s why traditional employee surveys cause so much trouble.

Is it accurate?

How many questions on a survey before you stop paying attention to it? How many times can you answer strong agree or disagree before you’ve zoned out? Research has gone as far as to show that respondents had 30% lower answer quality once a survey went past one minute.

Is it scientific?

If you visit New York on a rainy day, you don't assume that it rains constantly. #engagement #employees #SurveyHell https://t.co/rkwcH9cWIf
— Disqovery (@disqovery) June 26, 2016

Let’s pretend for a moment that you get the data you need when you need it. We still face the problem making sure your survey means something.

See, this is the problem that Robert Bolton refers to when he says it is “not very scientific.” And unfortunately, this is where everything falls apart.

For example, if you’re tracking a specific metric, like employee sentiment, over time using semi-annual surveys:

Hmm, according to my surveys this team looks to be consistently good, and gradually getting better. Oh wait, when I measure continuously I see that it’s not that simple.

One of your teams may be going through a particularly tough time at the moment that they receive your survey. Whatever data you get from them is focused only on their experiences in the last week or two. That’s how you lose meaning when you get data once or twice a year.

If you visit New York on a rainy day, you don’t assume that it rains constantly. You must get enough data for your analysis to make it statistically accurate.

What to do?

“It’s a revolution.” - Robert Bolton, KPMG

This is a tricky problem. How much time can you devote to surveying, compiling, and analyzing data? Surveys are boring, and getting good data out of your team is hard. If we truly are in the era of evidence-based people management, then the quality of that data is more important than ever.

If we're truly in the era of evidence-based people #management, then your data quality is everything. #engagement https://t.co/rkwcH9cWIf
— Disqovery (@disqovery) June 26, 2016

Disqovery is a tool that uses experience sampling to get a small set of data at a high frequency and high accuracy. We ask a few lightweight questions that take no more than 30 seconds, and we’re focused on exactly what you need to understand your people better and get feedback to improve the workplace. You just have to say hello to get started.

Banner image is credited to Seattle Municipal Archives.

Self-reflection for better MBA applications

Tue, 17 Mar 2015 04:48:48 -0700

Some of you know that I've been an MBA admissions consultant and career coach. What I've learned from those experiences has contributed to Disqovery; now it's time for Disqovery to give back. To that end this blog post is also being shared with the GMAT Club community, my home away from home.

What I've seen as an admissions consultant

Having a good applicant story is a key part of being admitted to top business schools. My fellow GMAT Club members and I have said as much before. If you haven't thought through your motivations in the past and (especially) the future, good luck getting in. The story is what solidly ties what you've done, what you want to do, how you want to do it, and most importantly why.

'Stats' are necessary, yes, but not sufficient. Many admissions consultants try to craft a story out of your stats: GPA, GMAT, ethnicity, nationality, age, sex, years of experience, employer names, clubs, sports, volunteering, etc. From my experience, that is the precisely wrong approach. The strongest applicant uses his story first, then layers the relevant experiences and stats to fill in the blanks. The difference may seem subtle, but its effects are powerful.

Why; how; what. Let's look at this another way. Simon Sinek had a powerful and widely-watched TEDx Talk, "How great leaders inspire action," which you must watch. Thought it is focused on leaders and companies, these same lessons apply to pitching yourself to business schools. Admissions consultants often take the opposite approach and latch onto what you have done and what you want to do first.

As an aside, I use the why-how-what technique when talking to people about Disqovery, starting with my why followed by Disqovery's why, and it has made a big difference.

Self-reflection is key for getting started

That's the simple secret. Before you can explain yourself to the admission committee, you must know yourself. You might have some intuition into what you believe motivates you, but take time to regularly think about this, and connect the dots over time. Regular self-reflection will allow you much deeper insights into yourself; deeper insights lead to why.

This should go without saying, but you must start early enough to get useful insights before your applications are due!

Disqovery can help

Job check-ins at Disqovery provide exactly the kind of self-reflection that you need. We ask you three simple questions every few days: How was your day? What was the best part? What did you work on? Our data analysis engine can literally help you connect the dots over time.

When you're thinking about what you want to write about on your essays, and even planning your next moves, we can help identify what aspects of your job you enjoy the most, and which you enjoy the least. Self-awareness is important, and with Disqovery you can learn non-obvious truths about yourself. Empowered by this kind of information, you're in a better position to succeed.

I wish I had Disqovery back in my day

When I was applying to business schools in 2010, it was hard for me to come up with my why. My first applications lacked a solid story, and only with more months of difficult reflection did the pieces start coming together for my later applications. I realized I was driven by a need for developing person-to-person empathy; there are many reasons for this, including my childhood experiences and education.

This was why as a developer I enjoyed usability studies so much, why I moved to program management, why I enjoyed UI design, and why an MBA would help me: with that degree I could move to product marketing, where my entire day would be focused on understanding the needs of customers and helping them succeed. As you know, my plans since changed; they do for many while in business school. However, my why still carries me forward today.

Had I had Disqovery then, what was staring me in the face for years would have rapidly crystallized, and my applications would have been a lot easier to put together.

Time is of the essence

Whether you use Disqovery or not, this is a technique I recommend you use to build a stronger application; just make sure to start now. Steps to follow:

Sign up for Disqovery with your e-mail address right on our homepage.
While you wait to join, watch Simon Sinek's TEDx talk.
If you want to drop me a line, feel free to do so.
Follow me and Disqovery on twitter.

Shine. Contemplate. Reflect.

How I perform as a sole startup founder

Wed, 18 Feb 2015 04:22:19 -0800

Sole Founder

It’s like a dirty word, and for good reason. Many experts caution against it, and the statistics don’t lie: sole founders are less likely to build successful companies, and even when they do, those companies are less likely to be large successes. There are a few key reasons for this, but two stand out for me: multiple founders can support each other emotionally when things are down, and starting a company is too much work for one person alone.

I’m open to growing my founding team. Disqovery has a powerful mission, and whoever joins needs to eat, sleep, and bleed that mission; however, I’m not putting our product development, market validation, and fundraising efforts on hold in the meantime.

Some people I talk to are surprised by how much I get done in my role as Founder & CEO of Disqovery. It has taken work to get this level of self-efficacy, and I want to share some advice that could help other founders and potential founders out there.

I had to make a change

When you have a team, or even a cofounder, you have a system of mutual accountability. If a job doesn’t get done, someone will be there giving you a hard time about it. Loving your company is great motivation, but for most people not letting someone down is even stronger.

About a year ago, things were not going so well. On an average day even though I felt like I was doing a lot, by the end of the week it was clear that Disqovery had not made much progress as a business. My hours were long and odd, and I had basically no time for myself or others. I enjoy project management, and clearly the time had come to project manage myself.

First, I had to figure out what I needed

I had a set of goals in mind for whatever system I was going to design:

It has to be lightweight, and maybe even fun. In the spirit of Disqovery, I had to make a system that I would be engaged with myself. If it was hard to use or tedious I know I wouldn’t stick with it. Celebrating the wins, however small, has always been important to me, and I wanted to build that in.

It has to keep me consistently productive. Startups are a marathon. Every day doesn’t have to be amazing, but every day needs to have meaningful progress. I need to be accountable to myself by being accountable to my system. I also wanted to define an ’end’ of my day, so I can go to sleep, spend time with family, or just relax. Founders need to do enough hard work every day - not too little, but also not too much.

Founders need to do enough hard work every day - not too little, but also not too much. #startups #founders https://t.co/hD1foEUcjD
— Varun Mehta (@smartperson) June 26, 2016

It has to be unforgiving. Unlike a person, there is no negotiation with a system. I am tough on myself, and I’d like to remain tough on myself. I also want to stretch myself a bit outside of my comfort zone. It’s easy to fall into a habit, and so I’m going to design a habit that feels like a challenge.

The system

Disqovery already uses Asana for project management and issue tracking, and I think it’s a great app for the phase we’re in. It’s fast, flexible, and beautifully designed. Here’s how the Varun Mehta System works:

Every day a new task gets created. These tasks are under a project called Daily Reminder Tasks. Each task has a due date of today, and is automatically assigned to me. If I don’t accomplish enough that day, more work is going to pile up, so I have to keep things moving.

Every task is made up of 6 subtasks. In coming up with these subtasks, I focused entirely on what is important for Disqovery, not necessarily what I want to do the most. That means 3 tasks related to customer development, 2 related to team-building, and 1 related to the product. This helps me focus on doing the right work in the right quantities, without being weighed down by an onerous planning process. I’ve set a rubric for how much work counts as checking off one of these boxes. Here are some examples:

Customer: Research a lead and reach out with personalized message, hold a customer meeting, generate a new set of customer leads.
Team: Meet with a potential team member or cofounder, work through my candidate queue on AngelList or FounderDating, converse with an investor.
Product: Add or improve a feature, write a solid blog post, fix a user-reported bug.

End the day with a summary of its best part. This helps me celebrate the small wins, and lets me look at Disqovery’s progress over time. I do this by editing the Daily Tasks title with whatever I thought the day’s most significant accomplishment is. I recently learned that this design is supported by HBS professor Teresa Amabile’s “Progress Principle” (amazon). As you can see from the screenshot I have learned to cut myself some slack if I’m sick, but as I said I’m generally very tough on myself.

No forgiveness. Replying to random e-mails, goalless networking, and other unproductive tasks do not count for anything. The Varun Mehta System does not allow you to “work ahead” and start checking off work for tomorrow. However, if you fall behind, you will have to finish that work up on the next day. There are no weekends in the Varun Mehta System. There are no holidays. Just steady progress.

Some extra tips

A good cofounder also provides emotional support, so make sure to seek out other sources. I’ve already written about the importance of building a support network ASAP and the research that supports my claims. Your family, close friends, and fellow startup founders are great to talk to. I’ve even found that Disqovery’s users, customers, and advisors are so bought-in to our mission that they offer great support and critical feedback.

It is really working

I started using this system over Thanksgiving weekend, and since then my productivity has improved by a factor of several-fold. At the same time I feel more energized and excited about working through my day. I even have more time to work on projects around the house, play my bass, and spend time with my parents. I can’t imagine getting by without the Varun Mehta System.

To the sole founders of the world: do what you have to do to make your startup a success. Whether you adopt the Varun Mehta System or not, I hope you find something that works for you. I’d love to hear from you and how you get jobs done.

I'm a #solefounder, and I GTD by making an accountability system. How about you? #startups https://t.co/hD1foEUcjD
— Varun Mehta (@smartperson) June 25, 2016

Disqovery aims to fix employee engagement by providing fun, useful career development tools. Individuals check out Disqovery here. Managers should check out this page for info on how Disqovery can help your organization.

HRTechTank: a founder's and presenter's perspective

Tue, 10 Feb 2015 04:31:08 -0800

On February 5, I had the pleasure of attending the HRTechTank NYC conference, and Disqovery was invited to be one of six startup presentations which took place throughout the day. The event was in the un-conference format, with a great variety of panels and presentations from consultants, HR tech investors, HR tech buyers, and startup founders. I know many were not able to attend, so for posterity here are my notes, shared from both the perspective of an HR tech founder, and from the perspective of a presenter.

Credits where they're due

I'm synthesizing information that comes from several sources. In addition to speakers at the HRTechTank conference on February 5, I have included information I picked up from the Strategic HR Analytics meetup as well as one-on-one meetings with friends of mine, all on February 4. This is a total of 15 pages of handwritten notes distilled into one blog post. I've included a list of sources at the bottom - many thanks to you all.

Presenting at a conference

[caption id="attachment_493" align="alignnone" width="1704"] Me presenting in non-ideal situations. I think I still managed okay.[/caption]

You are presenting. You are shiny. Embrace it. Deserved or undeserved, people came to pay attention to you, and once you present they will want to talk to you. Don't shy away. Milk this opportunity for everything it's worth.

1) Presenting can be tough

At some point I was a little nervous about this presentation, but the unconference format helped put me at ease. At a conference you have to try and keep it light, but don't default to lowest common denominator content. Try to be flexible - it should be easy since you know more about your startup than anyone else. Learn from presentations earlier in the day and adjust as much as possible up to the last minute. Bring your own slide clicker, too. I adopted Simon Sinek's "Why How What" method for this presentation and based on feedback it went very, very well.

2) Demo yes, but demo smart

So you want to do a live demo, like every other startup? Kudos to you. How will you handle it if all of the following are true (which it was at this conference):

Each presenter has to hold a microphone, occupying one hand.
The projected image is of low contrast and low brightness.
Your computer is sitting on a chair next to you, too low to touch without bending down.
The internet connection is spotty.

So Mr. Startup Hotshot, how did your demo go? As awesome as a live demo is when it goes off perfectly, I prefer to record a demo video beforehand. I have a local file for playback during the presentation, and I keep a copy on YouTube in case my computer dies. I record the demo using Screenflow, iOS simulator, and SimFinger. I mumble my narration while recording the demo, to make sure the demo flow is right, but I don't edit the video to make my product look better. When I present I just provide my live narration on top of an auto-running demo. This technique successfully handles problems #1, #3, and #4. To handle the low contrast on the projector I made a last minute change to my video to boost the visuals and zoom it in. Those that did not do this for the conference had great difficulty. Contact me if you want to learn more or get my advice.

[caption id="attachment_488" align="alignnone" width="400"] Seriously keep this thing with you. I love it, and it will save you. (link)[/caption]

Read the audience. While giving your demo see where people look more interested. Leverage your flexibility in timing to inject little extra tidbits where you can. This is hard but will really serve to drive the right points home.

Founders of HR Tech, this is for you

There is a lot to think about as a founder in HR technology, not the least of which is, "who the heck are you?" Several individuals, including noted HR tech influencer Anthony Onesto, said that they are more interested in hearing about innovative HR tech solutions when the founder is from a non-HR background; you are "fresher" to some degree. However, you should make sure to add credibility to your outsider status by experts in the industry on your advising team with experience in product, sales, marketing, leadership, and services.

1) The HR Tech Market

Much to my surprise, the HR tech market is considered mature. This is bad because you have to fight harder to find your niche; but it's also good because there is an existing budget you can get paid from when selling. Most segments within Human Capital Management are now beyond the early adopter phase, but consolidation still has not occurred: in talent acquisition, for example, the dominant players total to only 20-30% of the market, amongst approximately 650 active firms.

Consider how you (will) reach smaller firms. There are 42 times as many companies of 100-5000 as there are firms of 5000+. Large firms have a 12-18 month sales cycle, are saturated with solutions being marketed to them, and suffer from brand fatigue. Smaller firms move faster, and may be satisfied with lower levels of integration.

Go with data, my son. IBM recently published a report "Unlock the people equation" which predicts that predictive workforce analytics will grow dramatically in importance for organizations. George LaRocque's analysis reports the hot solutions for HR tech in 2015 will be in 1) Performance, 2) Engagement measurement, 3) Learning, 4) Leadership development, and 5) Analytics. Three out of five ain't bad for Disqovery.

HR people are smart, and they're getting smarter. There is a sense that of all departments, those that work in HR are often the most educated, and will typically hold the most advanced degrees. Beyond that Amit Mohindra, VP at McKesson, has called for HR professionals to pick up even more skills in predictive modeling, statistics, and financial projections. The HR cat lady stereotype is outmoded; your market is full of smart cookies - don't talk down to them.

2) Understanding buyers in HR Tech

More than in other industries, with HR tech your customers are not companies as much as they are people.

Get help reaching them. All startups have limited resources, so get help the help you need to get in front of your buyers. HR Outsourcing (HRO), consultants, and staffing firms can be your allies; sell to them, sell through them, and sell with them. Know the events that matter to your target audience, and be there and engaged. Also a fun idea from Steve Levy on using twitter. Don't be surprised if I do this to you:

Create a list on twitter of 'innovative HR people.'
Add the right people at your target companies.
Pay attention to anything they say about 'technology' maybe using an alert.
When you engage with them and have 3 twitter volleys back and forth, get them on the phone.

Consider how to grow within an organization. This is tricky to manage. Some companies (like DropBox and SuccessFactors) have managed to get into a customer by first getting several employees and managers on board. While this can work, especially within HR this can backfire; once HR has heard about a rogue tool being used, they may be quick to shut it down.

Another strategy is to go for an autonomous department or division within a larger firm. Companies that are really big and public might get pressure from the stock market to keep all of their systems standardized across the board, but it's still a killer way to find internal champions and get on the path to company-wide acceptance.

There are many people involved in HR decisions. Kara Yarnot of Meritage Talent Solutions wrote a (talent acquisition-focused) post on the 4 hidden buyers in HR. Take this and use it as a jumping off point to identify your other buyers. Talk to other HR tech vendors that work with your target companies to learn who the players are that you should engage. Here it's especially important to polarize your potential buyers, weed out the bad matches/parties quickly, and align to their interests. An HR consultant and coach I know points out that many employers will care more about engagement than retention. As a final example, consider the "gauntlet" Amit Mohindra uses to evaluate ideas, which is a tough but simple one to follow:

Productivity (Operating profit/FTE) ÷ Investment (Workforce cost/FTE) = Return (Operating profit/Workforce cost)

Integration is important, but don't go crazy. Many smaller clients are stuck on Excel worksheets right now, and are slowly becoming more sophisticated. Jason Corsello of Cornerstone is excited about them opening up a REST API, and HR tech startups would be wise to go with the flow on this one. Another point for Disqovery, by the way.

Investors & More

Most advice you'll get from other startup sources will apply to the HR tech founder, too.

Pay attention to which investors are paying attention

You'll press the flesh afterwards and make contacts, but those that are really truly present during your presentation & demo are already halfway sold. Even if they make deals bigger than you're looking for, having them on your side will make them valuable allies. Some investors will have specific focus areas (talent acquisition, learning, leadership) so might not be that into you.

Press

There's little special to say here. If you're doing the right kind of HR tech startup (you know who you are), your mission might be magnetic and get people involved. Don't seek out press, let them come to you. They're people too and they're looking for a story, so don't hesitate to give them your card and suggest you get coffee to talk further; in fact a little time will also help you gather your thoughts.

What about Disqovery?

I believe things went really well for me and Disqovery. As you can see, I learned a lot, and I met so many people who are passionate about HR technology; I never knew there were so many of us around New York!

If you want to get in touch, you can e-mail me, sign up for Disqovery, or learn about our HR offering.

There are HRTechTank conferences throughout the year; you should attend.

All the thank-yous

This information comes courtesy of many people. I've put as many as I can remember onto this twitter list. Check it out.

Five Career Blunders and How to Avoid Them

Tue, 27 Jan 2015 04:09:23 -0800

Temujin is back again this week, this time with even more insights from his own career journey. This touching story holds within it some important lessons; take it to heart. You can also read his earlier blog posts on picking your battles, and career stepping stones.

My Story

I just got back from lunch, and the sky was pleasantly clear. I was thinking about how I would enjoy the warm summer weekend with my family and friends at Lake George, but then I saw the text from my mom. I placed my right elbow on the table and gripped my hair while staring at the phone.

"I've had to make some very tough decisions"

My shoulders tightened and the rest of these series of memories is a blur. My grandfather was in the hospital, his blood pressure was extremely low, and the doctor didn't know why.

My grandparents took the time to raise me and my brothers while my parents worked so that we could have a respectable quality of life. I wasn't raised with a silver spoon in my mouth. I’m the oldest male in a first generation immigrant family and because of situations like these I've had to make some very tough decisions. There was no question about it: I would help my grandparents by sending them money for any medical treatment that they need.

The Opportunity

The day after I found out that my grandfather was hospitalized, I received an unsolicited interview invite. It felt good to know that people respected my work ethic, and that they sought me out. The position seemed interesting enough and would provide me with the means to help my grandparents. I was offered the position and I accepted.

The Aftermath

"Sometimes life throws us a storm and the answers are not so black and white."

Weeks later, the doctors found out that my grandfather’s glaucoma eye drops were leaking into his system and causing his blood pressure to become artificially low. The doctors adjusted my grandfather’s medication and it turned out that he was relatively healthy.

Did I make the right career decision? Sometimes I’m not sure. I do regret making the decision under duress, but sometimes life throws us a storm and the answers are not so black and white.

My friends always ask me for career advice so I've taken the time to write the top Five Career Blunders and How to Avoid Them. Here are some tips to help you create a better vision for your career, know your strengths, and ultimately avoid career blunders.

The Blunders

1. Accepting a Position Solely Based on Salary

There is a cliche that says you shouldn't take a position solely for more money. Studies show that once you reach a certain threshold of income and basic needs are met, more money doesn't provide much more satisfaction. A good question to ask yourself is if you feel like you have a mission, sense of purpose, or other non-monetary factor that can increase your quality of life.

2. Accepting a Position Solely Based on a Better Title

Usually a higher position goes hand in hand with a better title and a higher salary. Before taking a new position, ask yourself, "How can I derive purpose and flow from my new role?". What's in a title these days anyway? A Vice President in the banking industry is not the same as a Vice President at a traditional Fortune 500, but I'm sure any Joe Schmoe at some party might not know the difference.

3. Skill Set Incompatibility

Taking a position that requires a skill set that is completely out of your area of expertise can be taken to an extreme. There is reaching just slightly beyond one's comfort zone and then there is reaching to the point where the position is a complete mismatch. For example, a biology major might struggle working in finance unless he or she takes the time to learn on the job. If you feel like the new position is truly a great fit and you are willing to put in the effort to learning the ropes then go for it.

4. Company and Group Culture

Most people see themselves as the person interviewing for a position, but in reality the interviewee should also be interviewing the manager, group, and company that he or she will ultimately work for. Do you prefer retail banking hours or are investment banking hours alright? Does the group go out together for lunch or does everyone pretty much eat lunch at their desk?

5. Thinking You are Stuck

Out of all of these blunders, feeling that you are stuck and will not be able to move to a new position is probably the most detrimental. Does panicking while you are in a tailspin ever help?

While holding your ground in your current job, do some soul searching to figure out what you actually want. Take an inventory of your interests by asking family, friends, and colleagues about your strengths. A great way to explore your interests is to utilize Disqovery to learn more about yourself through the Job Check-Ins and Explore feature’s results.

The Explore results page will show you skill sets that you may like based on the check-ins and will connect you with online and in-person training opportunities that will help you expand your skill set.

Take Action.

Once the results are in, speak with your manager and ask to be put on a project that involves these skills. When the ball starts rolling you can build on the momentum and make a name for yourself, realize your career vision, and ultimately make an impact where your heart leads you.

Career Stepping Stones or Stumbling Blocks?

Tue, 20 Jan 2015 05:00:44 -0800

Before jumping into new opportunities, it's wise to take stock of yourself, and your actions. Temujin, a Friend of Disqovery, shares some of his insights in this personal story. You can also read his earlier blog posts on picking your battles, and breaking free.

Career Stepping Stones or Stumbling Blocks?

I recently embarked on a new chapter in my career by switching from something that I was definitely good at to a job that is a big leap for me in terms of skill set. I have three challenges in the upcoming year and have been spending a lot of time thinking about my approach to overcoming them during my holiday break.

At first, I was upset because of the overwhelming odds, but then I remembered what I learned about leadership. I started learning about leadership in military school and have been studying it in some shape or form ever since.

I was fortunate to see military leadership exemplified in the corporate world because I ended up working for a manager that graduated from West Point. He managed to transform an organization that was on the verge of chaos into a high-functioning team with extraordinary morale.

Here are a) my challenges, b) the toxic employee’s approach, and c) the leader’s approach:

Finance Skillset
1. Finance background is not strong.
2. Just coast and learn as you go.
3. Take initiative to learn as much on my own by asking a lot of questions, reading books, and watching videos.
New Team
1. Four out of the five people in my team are new and we are learning how to mesh as a team.
2. Compete with team members, don’t let others shine, and follow the lead of people with toxic attitudes.
3. Encourage the team, share my strengths, acknowledge my weaknesses, and gain rapport through humor.
Organizational Chaos
1. The company just went through a large acquisition and almost everything is changing. Everyone has to get up to speed on the organization’s processes and systems.
2. Complain without suggesting a resolution to the problems.
3. Flex my organizational skills by openly communicating with my team, structuring the processes properly, and solving the 20% of the issues that will act as a force multiplier for completing 80% of the workload.

Leadership is a behavior and attitude that is exercised and it can transform your stumbling blocks into stepping stones.

Disqovery can now help you 'Explore'

Wed, 14 Jan 2015 05:00:20 -0800

The first 'Explore' feature of Disqovery has gone online. This is huge. For real.

Remember how last week I mentioned how Disqovery is using some powerful new statistics? Now we're putting your information to work, for you.

tl;dr: When you look at your job check-ins or click on the 'Explore' tab of the Disqovery app we'll show you a few learning opportunities to help you learn more about the things that you love to do.

Putting your data to work

Job check-ins are a vital source of reflection and understanding that allows you (and us) to figure out what really matters to you, and our users are clamoring for a way to turn that into something concrete. What's the point of using an app for self-development if it can't actually make concrete recommendations on next steps, right? That's why I'm proud to announce that Disqovery now provides its first 'Explore' experiences for our users.

How it works

As you do more check-ins, we're going to offer higher-confidence results of what you like, and what you don't like. For what you like, we connect into a database with many online/in-person training opportunities. These come from online courses, universities, and certification-providers. We prioritize opportunities related to what you love the most, and the results that we're most confident about. Recommendations come courtesy of another amazing startup, SlideRule. These folks rock real hard, and all of our course links will take you to them for more information.

How it can help

[caption id="attachment_400" align="alignnone" width="625"] I've been pretty impressed with the quality of course recommendations we've been pulling out thanks to our partner.[/caption]

When it comes to your career path, developing skills is critical to your growth. Skills are typically developed one of four ways: on the job, through a mentor, through self-study, and through outside study. All four are important, of course, and Disqovery today can now offer you connections for the latter two.

Room for improvement

Just like you always have room to hone your craft and improve yourself, even Disqovery has room for improvement, especially with this feature. Expect to see frequent updates as we fiddle, tweak, and enhance our capabilities. All in the name of better serving you, our incredible users.

Read more about the basics of job check-ins here.

Are you already on Disqovery but haven't enabled check-ins yet?

Enable Check-ins

New: Reminders for what counts

Tue, 13 Jan 2015 05:00:02 -0800

Hey people, just a quick note that you might see a friendly reminder from me if you miss a job check-in. We've seen a lot of users miss one of our e-mails, and up until today we'd never follow-up with you to bring you in and get you back on track. Let me know what you think.

- Varun