Seeing Is Believing: How the New Art of Visual Management Can Boost Performance Throughout Your Organization - Softcover

Liff, Stewart; POSEY, Pamela A.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0814400353 ISBN 13: 9780814400357

Publisher: AMACOM, 2007

Synopsis

"Take a look around your workplace and try to find the following items: A statement of business objectives. I think it’s in that pile by the copy machine. A schedule of divisional goals. Everyone got that e-mail last year. Clear performance standards. They’re in the employee handbook. Team workflow documents. On the bulletin board, sticking out from under the first aid sign. Regular communication and motivation from management to employees. We have the quarterly meeting, and we send out memos. Stop. Is the information your employees need every day truly accessible? Just because it’s there doesn’t mean it’s present. When information is hard to find, outdated, nebulous, or incomplete, the effect is profound. If they can’t see it, it’s as good as nonexistent. The fact is, the visual elements in a workplace have a tremendous impact on execution, morale, and productivity. And it’s not just about information access. A visually dynamic workplace energizes employees, builds pride and ownership, and conveys the strength and currency of the organization. Design and graphics, art and color, sculpture and dimension -- all have profound effects. Far from simply prettying up the office, your organization needs to create an environment of visual stimuli that convey goals and expectations, that engender a collaborative attitude, and most important, that cannot be ignored. This book represents a milestone in the science of workplace design. Whereas there are countless approaches for improving the comfort factor of work environments through color, lighting, furniture, and spatial flow, Seeing Is Believing is the first book to link visual elements directly to specific organizational objectives and individual tasks. The authors have created a step-by-step plan for creating and implementing a Visual Management program in any environment. You’ll learn how to create a dynamic VM system that: Replaces information overload with information sharing and dramatically improved workflow Seamlessly incorporates clear information exchange into an aesthetically pleasing and energizing workplace that will make people want to come to work Resonates with workers of every generation, whether they identify with Life magazine or MTV Enhances relationships not only among employees, but also with customers, business partners, investors, and the public Ensures uniform understanding of crucial requirements and desired outcomes Seeing Is Believing features many examples of how VM has improved performance in corporations, government offices, schools, and other organizations. The dozens of photographs and illustrations not only show the theory in action, they also show the many different approaches and alternatives you can consider in creating a VM program that’s perfect for your workplace. Somewhere buried in the piles of paper and the daily torrent of e-mail, your organization does have great ideas, worthy goals, talented employees -- and a lot of potential. Bring them all together with Visual Management. Because seeing is believing."

About this title

About the Author:

STEWART LIFF began his career with the federal government in 1974. He is a winner of the President's Council on Management Improvement Award and the Presidential Rank Award for Meritorious Service. His books include Managing Government Employees (978-0-8144-0887-2).

Review:

"""Liff and Posey reveal a dimension of organizational life in the Knowledge Era that we can no longer take for granted -- the sea of visual cues that pervades the workplace. Seeing Is Believing provides rigorous arguments and compelling cases to show how vision maps, customer photographs, performance charts, instructional posters, ‘walls of fame,’ and historical artifacts can engage employees, reinforce a performance ethic, and bring an organization’s mission to life.""

-- William M. Snyder, Principal, Social Capital Group, co-author of Cultivating Communities of Practice

""Liff and Posey have created a masterful work on visual management. Any manager who is unaware of how this new paradigm can improve communication, focus, and productivity will be seriously disadvantaged. Read this book!""

-- Kimball Fisher, author of Leading Self-Directed Work Teams and co-author of The Distance Manager and The Distributed Mind

""You may recognize a productive workplace when you see it, but if you have ever wondered about the principles behind creating such a workplace, this is the place to start. Both practical and visionary, Seeing Is Believing has ideas and tools for senior managers and change agents at all levels of the organization.""

-- Marty Cohen, Director, Associate Services, The Conference Board; former Senior Vice President, Client Services & Programs, Work in America Institute

""A compelling easy-to-read handbook on improving organizational performance by rallying employees around the mission and the metrics. Liff and Posey richly illustrate the method with vivid examples from successful practitioners in manufacturing, government, health care, and education. An original and totally replicable approach!""

-- Bob Stone, author of Confessions of a Civil Servant, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense

""This book offers a well grounded approach to changing an organization to improve performance and employee contribution. But what is fascinating is the creative addition of visual conditions and the application of fine arts concepts to even further enhance results.""

-- Bob Wroblewski, Director, HR Planning & Administration, Weyerhaeuser

""If a picture is worth a thousand words, why are so many organizations devoid of visual excitement and coherent visual information? And, what difference would it make if, from the moment you walked into an organization, you saw and felt its purpose, its customers, its accomplishments? Seeing Is Believing expands the meaning of ‘communication’ to include the visual, and tells readers how to use visual information to help people stay energized and focused in their information-overloaded world.""

-- Patricia McLagan, Chairman, McLagan International, Inc."

About this edition

• Publisher: AMACOM
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0814400353
• ISBN 13: 9780814400357
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 272