KEYGroup® Current Articles Freedom native publishes book to help employers motivate, retain talent A few minutes of panic on the treadmill could have been just an embarrassing situation for Joanne Genova Sujansky. She'd pressed the wrong button while working out on her home treadmill, and her feet started flying like an out-of-control cartoon character. She called for help to her 11-year-old daughter, Jenna, who arrived with a group of giggling friends in tow and informed her that "Mom, all you have to do is pull this key." Out of breath, she got off the treadmill and immediately thought, "Oh, this is a great story! I am being taught by an 11-year-old!" Finding lessons even in life's silliness is a natural reaction for Sujansky, a Freedom native who is fascinated by how people learn, how they react to different situations in the workplace and in particular, how they respond to their bosses' behavior. She's the daughter of Mary Ellen Genova of Beaver and the late John Genova. She's turned her interest into a career as a speaker, author, and CEO of the KEYGroup® in Upper St. Clair, which helps businesses develop leaders, manage change, and motivate and retain employees. U.S. Steel Corp. has been a client for all of her 23 years in business, and other clients include corporations such as Bayer, PNC Bank and GlaxoSmithKline. Her most recent book, "The Keys to Motivating & Retaining Talent" has a definite Beaver County flavor. Sixteen-year-old Hopewell Township resident Derek Reed, the son of KEYGroup® president Jan Ferri-Reed and her husband, Rich Reed, illustrated the book. Reed has illustrated four of Sujansky's five books. While the most recent books were self-published, the national publisher that handled one of the earlier books was a bit taken aback at learning her illustrator was 12 years old. "People laugh and say I'm his agent," she said. "I've seen his growth, and he has a whole lot of talent." "The Keys to Motivating and Retaining Talent" is literally pocket-sized, barely four inches by four inches and 100 pages long. Every other page contains brief words of wisdom on retaining employees, such as "Don't micromanage. Employees expect freedom combined with frequent, honest feedback." "Those little books, people just love them," Sujansky said. "It's tips. People like tips. They like to get a quick read." After graduating from Freedom Area High School in 1968, Sujansky went to Slippery Rock University intending to become a teacher. She knew early on it wasn't for her, and pursued a master's degree in counseling and student personnel. Even as a graduate assistant she was fascinated by seeing why people did good work for certain bosses and not for others. She was wrapping garbage in some newspaper when she saw a classified ad for an employee trainer. She sent in her resume and was hired by the former Presbyterian University Hospital. She saw the hospital hired outside vendors to design management training programs and figured she could become one of those vendors. Her husband, Chuck, told her he saw no reason why she shouldn't go out on her own, as long as she made as much money as she did at the hospital. The financial challenge was enough to motivate her to succeed. Now, she mostly does consulting and delivers keynote speeches. She employs six people in Upper St. Clair, along with 10 subcontractors, and presides over smaller operations in Cleveland and Amsterdam. "I love taking my message, what I've learned, into places that need it," Sujansky said. Retaining good employees is a big problem vexing today's employers. Many know what to do, but "things get in the way and they don't do them," she said. "Star employees that seem to be self-motivated really do need recognition," Sujansky said. "Often, for top people, the reward they get is to be assigned more work." The most frequent mistake managers make, she said, is not leading. "They have to explain, this is where we're headed as a company, this is what our division needs to do, and this is your role. Managers have learned to control and direct; leading means empowering your followers and inspiring them. In some workplaces there is no passion, no fun, no creativity." At one speech to managers at a Pittsburgh corporation, Sujansky told the group that "We need to bring more joy into the workplace." A voice in the back of the room quickly responded, "Who's Joy?" Another story for another time. This article may be reprinted for your use in an organizational newsletter and or e-zine provided that you contact Kelly Hanna, Director of Sales and Marketing at 724-942-7900 to gain permission. |
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