29May1996 Benchmark Notes To: "USGS Employees" From: " benchmark, Reston, VA " (Benchmark) Subject: 29May1996 Benchmark Notes X-Mailer: To: All USGS Employees From: Director Subject: 29May1996 Benchmark Notes To send e-mail to me or my immediate staff, please use one of the following addresses: SMTP: BENCHMRK@USGS.GOV Groupwise: INTERNET:BENCHMRK@USGS.GOV Banyan Vines: BENCHMRK CCMail: SMTP_MAIL BENCHMRK@USGS.GOV Supervisors, please share this message with employees without access to e-mail. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Taking Charge in a Changing Work Environment Many of you may have by now seen or heard about the recent story in the Washington Post's Sunday magazine section on the effects of last fall's reduction-in-force on the members of one branch in the Geologic Division. The article brought vividly into relief the pain and personal grief of that time. But the article also sharply reminded me of a visit that I made to the Denver Federal Center early last fall. In a luncheon discussion with a dozen or so employees, we turned to the disturbing and unsettling events swirling about the Survey and, more particularly, to the RIF that was soon to occur in Geologic Division. As we talked about the fact that none of us had personally experienced such an event in the USGS, one member of the group, Tom Ahlbrandt, offered a contrasting view. Tom's comments, which I asked him to repeat here in writing, were, "The current uncertainty, turmoil and job insecurity felt within the USGS in the past year are new to Survey employees but are not new to those who have recently worked in the geosciences outside of the USGS, particularly in industry. In the mineral and energy resource industries, rightsizing, surplusing, and downsizing or dissolution of entire groups or companies have been everyday facts of life for over a decade. The requirement to be flexible and responsive to an organization's needs is critical for survival of not only the individual but also the organization. The USGS is no longer insulated from such forces, but can and must respond positively to such change." The theme of this Benchmark Note is TAKING CHARGE. Recent changes in our workplace have affected all of us, at least to some degree. This year has brought months of uncertainty in our budget (now thankfully resolved for the rest of this fiscal year), the merger with parts of the former Bureau of Mines and the planned merger with the National Biological Service, the reassignments of our senior management and administrative staff that took place earlier this month, various internal reorganizations, and the reduction-in-force in Geologic Division, to name only a few of the more apparent changes. And indications for the future are that such change will continue, driven by powerful and profound scientific, political, economic, and social forces that are shaping our whole society. As earth scientists, we realize that change is a fundamental characteristic of the Earth, but we sometimes assume that our organizations and our lives are immune to change. The events of this past year show rather dramatically that this assumption is mistaken. As I think about the many changes that we have experienced and are continuing to experience, I am reminded of a small book I read last year -- one that seemed painfully harsh when I first read it. I have since reread it, and while it still comes across as somewhat unsettling, it needs to be viewed for what it was specifically intended to be, a genuine attempt to help all of us better understand the new and present work climate and, then, do something about it for ourselves. The subject is self-empowerment and the book is entitled "New Work Habits for a Radically Changing World", written by Price Pritchett and published in 1993. Some key excerpts relevant to our situation follow: "Organizations can't stop the world from changing. The best they can do is adapt. ...the organization is merely responding to a rule change called by the world. ...Part of the problem [in responding to change] lies in the "entitlement" mindset that has crept into our thinking over the past several decades. ...Employees learned to expect regular pay increases and periodic promotions. Some folks even went so far as to presume they had a "right" to expect their employers to keep them happy and provide high job satisfaction. The burden of responsibility for people's careers kept shifting further and further away from employees, and more onto the backs of employers.... "Somehow, over the years, we've been led to believe that higher management is accountable for employee morale. ...nobody is well served by this line of reasoning. ...Let's give the average individual a lot more credit for being able to manage his or her own morale. If we attribute more emotional self-sufficiency to people -- if we expect ourselves to stand personally responsible for our attitudes -- we'll all be much better off. ...Since the world at large displays no concept of "fairness" in the way it deals with organizations, sometimes [organizations] ... are forced into corners. Higher management can end up having to do things that are hard for people to accept. ...If you put someone else in charge of your morale, you disempower yourself. You're far better off to assign yourself personal responsibility for attitude control. ...Rapid organizational change guarantees us that almost everybody is going to carry some battle scars in the years to come.... "Problems are the natural offspring of change ....Organizations need people who can take care of problems, not merely point them out. Too many employees get this confused. They seem to think complaining is a constructive act. Their attitude is, "Upper management is supposed to make it all work." ...So long as we search beyond ourselves for solutions, we disempower ourselves. ...We've come to expect too much of our institutions, and too little of ourselves as individuals...." All of this is, perhaps, much easier to reflect upon and agree with than to do, but the "good old days," the incredibly stable times, that most of us have known in our careers in the past have faded away. The profound changes we are experiencing now are not part of a cycle, they are permanent. Working in public service today carries with it many of the uncertainties that working in the corporate sector always has. The sooner we acknowledge this reality, collectively, the sooner each of us can begin to take genuine charge of our careers and our futures. Over the past months, we as an organization have confronted and reacted to the profound changes in our society. Through the Benchmark Teams, we have addressed systemic problems such as organizational structure, assessments, and a planning process that will enable us to ACT rather than REACT in the future. The missing component has been a way to empower individuals--or to encourage them to empower themselves--but that missing piece will soon be in place. In a few weeks, the Rewards Team will present their final report to the Policy Council. I have seen an early draft, and I was pleased to see the strong emphasis on providing tools for employees to use to take charge of their own careers. I look forward to sharing more of the report with you in a future Note. When I first read Pritchett's book, my perception of the challenges facing the Survey was that these changes would be very difficult for us. Today, however, I have altered my view to one of "difficult, yes; impossible, certainly not!" What I see are Survey employees responding by taking ownership for problems and offering creative solutions. I see parts of the organization delegating authority to the regions and to the lowest possible levels in an organization. I see employees taking the responsibility for actively seeking opportunities to develop collaborative, cooperative, and relevant partnerships, both internally and externally. Watching this transformation, this empowerment of and by individuals, has been one of the most gratifying events of my directorship. Certainly the times ahead will continue to challenge us, sometimes severely, but I believe we are more ready than ever now to face the challenge. A pithy item on a philosophical calendar caught my eye recently, and I want to share it with you here: "Listen to your critics. They will keep you focused and innovative." By listening to our critics, by responding to the profoundly changing needs of our society, and by genuinely empowering ourselves and each other, we are building a new, more relevant organization able to meet, and even exceed, the demands of the world in which we function and live today. And we are becoming stronger, more self-reliant individuals better able to succeed in this rapidly changing world. Gordie