Can you solve these puzzles?

1. There is a man who lives on the top floor of a very tall building. Everyday he gets the elevator down to the ground floor to leave the building to go to work. Upon returning from work though, he can only travel half way up in the lift and has to walk the rest of the way unless it's raining! Why?

This is probably the best known and most celebrated of all lateral thinking puzzles. It is a true classic. Although there are many possible solutions which fit the initial conditions, only the canonical answer is truly satisfying.

2. A man and his son are in a car accident. The father dies on the scene, but the child is rushed to the hospital. When he arrives the surgeon says, "I can't operate on this boy, he is my son! " How can this be?

3. A man is wearing black. Black shoes, socks, trousers, lumper, gloves and balaclava. He is walking down a black street with all the street lamps off. A black car is coming towards him with its lights off but somehow manages to stop in time. How did the driver see the man?

4. Why is it better to have round manhole covers than square ones?

This is logical rather than lateral, but it is a good puzzle that can be solved by lateral thinking techniques. It is supposedly used by a very well-known software company as an interview question for prospective employees.

5. A man went to a party and drank some of the punch. He then left early. Everyone else at the party who drank the punch subsequently died of poisoning. Why did the man not die?

6. A man walks into a bar and asks the barman for a glass of water. The barman pulls out a gun and points it at the man. The man says 'Thank you' and walks out.

This puzzle claims to be the best of the genre. It is simple in its statement, absolutely baffling and yet with a completely satisfying solution. Most people struggle very hard to solve this one yet they like the answer when they hear it or have the satisfaction of figuring it out.

People Attrition and Talent Retention - Part 2/2

We have no choice but to admit the fact that retaining an employee is getting harder by the day. Information or recommendations can now be easily obtained. Fanned by the advancement of information technology – humans are separated by just a phone call or an email away. Social networks like Facebook, Friendster, Plurk, Twitter etc. spread information like wild fire with just a few strokes of the keyboard and clicks of mouse. Creative ways have to be thought of in order to maintain good employees and ensuring business sustainability. How?

Hire the right person – all potential candidates have to be well informed about the real situation at work. Slogans like “Enjoyable workplace”, “Fun at work” etc. might backfire if the gist of it is not well communicated. Hence, it is utmost important for a company to communicate clearly the working condition, reality at work and the company expectation on the employee to prevent any wrong perception and also to hire only those who think they suit the job.

Having a clear vision – communicate the company’s vision clearly to all employees and create visibility on how every employees’ action can contribute in achieving the vision. Vision must be able to be put into action or else it will remain only as words on the wall. Great company vision enables a company to build long term employees commitment. Committed employees will perform better and will give up life and limb to ensure a company’s success and stay loyal to a company. Engaged employees stay because of what they can give while disengaged employees stay because of what they can get.

Having a creative / competitive reward package – Creativity is a must in designing a reward package to seek a balance and create a win-win situation for both the company and the employees. Performance Based Remuneration System (PBRS) is now widely discussed and applied. It was discussed earlier there should be a clear linkage between the employees’ action and the company vision. It is best that employees’ action or contribution towards achieving the company vision can be measured and be rewarded accordingly. This will create a sense of satisfaction and ownership towards the company and hence ensuring a long term commitment. Employees need to feel recognized for their achievements and it is not necessarily to be in the form of money. As the Chinese saying goes, “Punishment and Rewards need to be in time”. A word of encouragement or token of appreciation that comes fast enough following a job well done will have a greater positive impact compared to something that comes months later or only during the year end. The value of an award or token given is not that important, what is more important is the recognition given to the employee and the suitability of the reward. In example, a family meal voucher can do wonders for a culture that treasures family bonding. An employee gets the recognition from the company and get to share the reward together with his or her family. The support from the family can even encourage an employee to strive together with the company.

Be a Learning Organization – One very important factor in employee motivation and retention is the opportunity for an employee to continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire. A lot of time, an employee left because a job has provide no room for growth. Provide a platform for employees to continually enhance their capabilities and grow their potential. With this, new and expansive patterns of thinking can be nurtured, collective aspiration set free and employees continually learning to see the whole together.

Be Employee Oriented – Focus on interactions between all levels of employees in the company. Let the employees feel that they are part of the company as a whole and with this, trust and loyalty can be built up. Encourage open communications – share problems and communicate success. Constant communication sessions between the management and staffs can promote mutual understanding. Private talk or coffee talk as some companies call it, are good for more introvert employees to voice some of their concerns that are normally not voiced during open session. Effective team building is a good way to nurture employees communication outside the workplace and provide a chance for employees to know their coworkers more.

You have more ideas? Voice it out to make your company a better place to work for!