Dr. Jonathon Halbesleben, an associate professor of HR management and organizational behavior at the Culverhouse College of Commerce at The University of Alabama, has spent his whole career researching what makes employees happy and more productive at work.

“When people feel like they have meaningful work and it’s adding to what the company is trying to accomplish—particularly if they buy into the company goals— that can be the most powerful force to keeping people happy,” Halbelsleben said.

His research found that pay and benefits only account for so much and don’t play into overall happiness.

“What you need to do is have that (pay) at a baseline level that people can be satisfied with it, and then these social factors like how meaningful their work is, how well they get along with their coworkers—these things play a much larger role,” he said. “The people that ask a lot of questions about pay and these basic things, they tend not to be real happy in their jobs. The people that stay in their jobs and are really happy are people who often, from the beginning, are asking about opportunities for growth.”

Google is one company that is famous for its 80/20 rule—80 percent of the time is spent doing your specific job, and 20 percent is used for a personal project. Google products such as AdSense and Gmail were developed during the 20 percent time, for example.

“At Google, there is a set percentage of time within the workweek that an employee can do whatever they want with that time, and it’s not whatever you want as long as it makes Google more profitable, it just gives them the freedom to develop these new, crazy ideas that they don’t have to worry about it intruding on the other work that they should be doing,” Halbesleben said. “So rather than coming into work each day and you’ve got this to-do list and you’re just checking it off, it’s a chance to sort of shape the job in a way that you really, truly enjoy. I think a lot of these companies do a really good job of that and as a result, people are really happy there.”

One rising trend Halbesleben sees is job crafting in which employees create the job description they’re interested in.

“On the surface that sounds really scary because you’re like, look at all these people doing their own thing,” he said. “Take for example professors at a university—the courses have to get taught. You don’t all decide that you’re going to craft your jobs, but not teach. The work gets done, but employees might naturally reconfigure how the work gets done and who does what work in a way that better suits their desires, their talents, and their aspirations for the future. And as an employee, working with your coworkers to craft your jobs in a way that puts you in that place that makes you happy, that’s going to be really important.”

Finally, Halbesleben suggests that job happiness depends on taking a break.

“So actually switching off from work for a while, not checking your email at night, these types of things, go a long way to the time at work being happier and more productive,” Halbesleben said. “There’s a whole line of research about recovery that looks at that issue of what people do in their off time. And it consistently finds that having time away from work—truly away from work—gives people a chance to recharge their batteries and come back to work in a much better place, be more productive and less stressed.”

(Image: Nestlé/Creative Commons)

These are selected news articles that showed up in our inboxes on Monday morning that we want to pass along to you.

Holographic Marketing Technology Used In NBA All-Star Weekend Festivities (SportTechie.com)
“ARHT set up multiple 3D kiosks and holographic stage units throughout Toronto, such as inside the Air Canada Centre and a Champs Sports in the city. The holographic technology displays enable participants to browse through Mitchell & Ness products and obtain promotional offers.”

Los Angeles Dodgers Ink Booking Pact With Oak View Group (Billboard)
“Through this new pact with the Dodgers, OVG will leverage its extensive music industry relationships to bring live music to Dodger Stadium.”

Waste Management Phoenix Open Continues to Explore Ways to Handle Ever-growing Crowds (The Arizona Republic)
“Last week’s PGA Tour event shattered more attendance records, drawing a record 618,365 fans, including a single-day record of 201,003 for Saturday’s third round, which was the second-largest crowd for a sports event in U.S. history.”

Aichi Prefecture to Build Major Convention Center at Nagoya Airport (AnimeNewsNetwork.com)
“The building will take up 60,000 m² (645,835 square feet) and is scheduled to open in the fall of 2019.”

State-of-the-art Practice Facilities All the Rage in the NBA (StarTribune)
“Players have 24/7 access to all kinds of amenities.”

(Image: Twitter)

The Severe Weather Preparedness program takes place February 26 in Dallas, Texas. It’s an advanced, one-day training program where participants learn information about all aspects of severe and threatening weather.

On the schedule is an industry roundtable featuring representatives from professional sports leagues, such as Major League Baseball and the National Football League (NFL), and racetracks. Moderating the roundtable is Billy Langenstein, director of event services for U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Representing the NFL is Andy Major, vice president of operations and guest experience for the Buffalo Bills in New York, and representing racetracks is Ed Klima, CEM, senior director of public safety and track operations for Dover International Speedway Inc. in Delaware. Langenstein recently asked Major and Klima some questions about his experiences in handling and being prepared for severe weather in a venue.

BL: What is one severe weather anomaly event that you experienced, and how did you handle it successfully?

AM: Although I have had some experience planning for hurricanes and tropical storms during my time in South Florida, the SNOWVEMBER STORM in Buffalo, New York, is the one that comes to mind right away.

In November 2014, we had seven feet of snow fall on Ralph Wilson Stadium during the span of about 48 hours on a home football game week…this gargantuan snowstorm is commonly referred to as the Snowvember Storm in Buffalo. Most of the surrounding towns issued driving bans, and the county was in a state of emergency. Some people lost their lives while others were trapped in their vehicles or had to abandon their vehicles. Roofs caved in, people were stuck in their homes, and streets had so much snow they couldn’t be plowed. Our stadium and the grounds were buried in snow, and we had several staff members who were stranded at the offices.

Our organization hosts two table-top exercises prior to each football season where we review communication plans and our emergency procedures, including severe weather issues. These exercises include local, county, state, and national security agencies and all game-day partners, including Bills staff. We also meet separately with our game-day partners, county officials, and law enforcement agencies before and after each game to review the upcoming game/event and discuss game-day items of concern. In addition, we meet with many of our game day partners regularly in and out of the office, both professionally and sometimes socially. Buffalo is a very close, and tight-knit community and our off-the-field direction regarding fan safety and fan behavior has made tremendous strides over the past four seasons due to everyone’s valued support and buy-in to our mission.

The pre-planning table-top exercises, regular meetings, and the relationships that we have developed with our game-day partners absolutely helped us get through the storm successfully. We were all in this together. Because of our prior emergency exercises, there was tremendous, proactive communication. Due to our professional and personal relationships, we were able to obtain and share information with our team from local, county, state, and national agencies in a very timely manner—all who teamed to save lives and help the community in any way possible. This communication flow (which took place from my kitchen table at my home—that acted as my emergency command center—since I was snowed in like many residents) was incredibly helpful to our president and ownership team who were in Florida for business meetings during the storm week. Overall, this helped us begin a very efficient but difficult snow removal process. More importantly, our team made the right decision to cancel our home game that weekend so that everyone who worked at our game, along with the fans, could concentrate on their own recovery while also helping those in the community who needed it the most.

We moved our game to Detroit, and the Lions were very gracious to host our game against the New York Jets. The Bills won the game, and we had a successful recovery from the storm. We played at home the following weekend against the Cleveland Browns and won that game, as well. We also used this game as a community-type recognition, to thank all the emergency first responders and agencies who helped the community during the crazy week we experienced. Even for Buffalo, this storm with seven feet of snow in such a short timeframe was an absolute anomaly!

EK: As a promoter/facility operator who predominately holds outdoor events, we have experienced several weather-related incidents and associated evacuations. These have a ranged from an F-4 tornado to a hurricane. While each of these was unique in their own right and resulted in valuable lessons learned, I cannot stress the importance of the utilization of an actual meteorologist on site or weather service to assist in decision making. It is also extremely important to have developed a trigger chart that provides your venue with the tools to help make an informed decision. These triggers may be different from one event to another and should take into account multiple elements such as wind and lightning—not just one element.

Another great lesson we have learned over the years is to make sure a venue truly understands the shelter in place capacity they have for a particular hazard. This is fairly easy to calculate and is a valuable process.

BL: How does your severe weather communication plans differ from other safety and security plans you have in place?

AM: This doesn’t differ too much. The main difference is that we include all the relative snow removal teams (contractors, partners, staff) in the communication tree. The emergency preparedness piece is in place for all related weather or security related events/issues.

EK: Probably the biggest difference is that more people tend to believe they are “weather experts” as opposed to security or other topics. To a certain degree, you have to counter this to ensure that all staff understand the decision-making process and where factual information is coming from.

BL: How do you envision technology in five years improving to help you with severe weather preparedness?

AM: We envision the future utilization of our Bills mobile app for fans to access important real-time information regarding emergency situations at our venue. We also envision using all social media platforms to communicate with our staff and fans as we have in the past. The Bills are currently using a very good weather forecasting app that helps us with our severe weather forecasting and game-day planning. I would envision this technology to continue to improve so that there is less and less chance for surprise weather situations.

EK: While the technology and information available to the everyday citizen and/or staff member continue to improve, there can be a down side as well. As more and more tools are available on smartphones etc., we have to make sure that the correct interpretation goes along with it. From a scalability aspect, evacuating a Little League game based on a weather app may certainly be appropriate but larger events still need to rely on and utilize meteorologists that better understand the additional aspects of a storm.

Registration is still open for Severe Weather Preparedness.

Meeting Professionals International released the 2016 Winter Edition of its Meetings Outlook survey, and for the first time safety and security showed a strong emergence.

According to the survey, 44 percent of industry professionals anticipate changes to the meeting and event industry due to the increasing prevalence and threat of terrorism, and 28 percent of survey respondents say they are changing how they produce meetings because of recent terrorist incidents.

Other stats found relating to safety and security in the survey include

—15 percent of respondents are adding more security staff
—14 percent of respondents are developing new security plans
—9 percent of respondents of respondents are updating procedures and contingency plans
—5 percent of respondents are working with local and federal law enforcement

“Meeting professionals’ concerns about terrorism are contributing to an overall mood of caution in the industry—one that also extends to projections about budgets and business conditions,” Elaine Pofeldt reported in the survey.

Please read the Meetings Outlook to learn more about meeting and event professionals’ concerns about safety and security and other trends affecting the industry.

(Image: Thomas Hawk/Creative Commons)

After a big accomplishment, appreciation and adulation are not only well received, they are well deserved. From December 2014 to November 2015, experienced venue professionals were matched with individuals seeking to enhance their industry knowledge. Each pair then created a unique program tailored to their own goals, paces, and styles.

As a mentee, eight people entered into a year-long commitment to be open, vulnerable, and willing to listen in order to cultivate themselves personally and professionally. As a mentor, eight people agreed to share insights, encourage exploration, foster growth, and make time in busy schedules. To bring the team together, four industry veterans nurtured, coached, and guided these eight partnerships.  While we know it was fun, we know it may not have been easy, so these 20 people, IAVM and the Mentor Connector Committee want to say, “Thank you!”

It’s time to celebrate! Twenty people now have a deeper, more meaningful relationship with one another than they did a year ago. One of the most valuable aspects of IAVM membership is the access to a vast network of experienced venue professionals and dedicated Allied members. The Mentor Connector Program provides a crucial point of connection to people who may not otherwise meet. Twenty people who started out as strangers, or perhaps at best acquaintances, now have a stronger, life-long relationship with others who are passionate about our industry. To those people, we want to say, “Congratulations!”

The Mentor Connector Committee proudly recognizes the following fall 2014-2015 participants who successfully completed their programs:

Successful participants also qualified for Certified Facilities Executive (CFE), Certified Venue Professional (CVP), and continuing education points.

If you would like to become a Mentor Connector Committee Member and help grow this amazing program, the Call for Volunteers is now posted on www.iavm.org/volunteer-opportunities. The deadline to apply is February 26.

If you would like to learn more about becoming a mentor, mentee, or coach to further your professional development, an informational webinar will be hosted on Wednesday, March 23, 2016, at 2 p.m. (CST). Go to www.iavm.org/webinars for details and a link to register.

We accept applications all throughout the year for any IAVM members who are interested in participating in the Mentor Connector Program. There are two cycles per year – one starting in April and one starting in October. The deadline to apply for the April 2016 program will be Friday, March 25, 2016. The application process is simple and can be completed online at www.iavm.org/mentor.