February 6, 2005 16:17 - Customer
Things happen! Last night, I was watching 'The Terminal' starring Tom Hanks, Catherine Zeta Jones and Stanley Tucci. As a visitor who has 'fallen down a crack' Hanks' character was faced with this stunning beaurocrat ("only doing my job") called Dixon (Tucci).
Now Dixon is toeing the line with the 'rules' and forbidding Hanks' Viktor Navorski from leaving 'The Terminal' in either direction (home or NYC).
With me so far?
Dixon is up for a promotion and his boss tells him that he 'can only lose this job', so the pressure is on Dixon - and he has Navorski hanging around.
At a pivotal point in the movie, Dixon is told by his boss, 'sometimes you have to ignore the rules and concentrate on the people.'
How many times have you been a customer or a client and wondered why the 'rules' had gotten in your way?
Why is this?
Today managers and employees everywhere, seem to have that pressure on them whereby they daren't make a mistake - and too often the mistake is the common sense that, in most other circumstances they would use. the losers are all round - customer employee and ultimately the business
So, tomorrow, what would you say to your people to simplify the decisions they make around their customers - which of your rules could you truly 'bend', and use common sense instead?
February 7, 2005 10:08 - Communication
It's very wet out there at the moment and as I walk through the fields each day, I have to dodge lots of standing water. I find myself tippy-toeing through acres of puddles of varying depth.
As I walked this morning, I reflected on how that fits into our days managing people. Some days we are able to plough ahead on firm ground, without really caring too much where we put our feet. And it works OK - we make quick and easy progress.
Other days there is a sense about either us, or those we communicate with, that we should be more wary, tippy-toeing around the puddles - so we tread carefully.
Maybe that's right - or maybe not. How would we do if instead of avoiding those puddles, we still ploughed through? We observed some niceties, but instead of avoiding, we got in there and got our feet wet - it might be much more valuable.
February 8, 2005 14:35 - A Growing Culture - Management Nourishment
Management is not a one stop shop. It doesn't work that one day you go training and then you do it! It's an acquired skill. You get the best from your business by cultivating your managers and their people.
Developing a culture there which is nurturing, with the right strengths, the right values, the right medium too.
Managing people is like tending a garden, by providing the right conditions, tending the foundation material you will plant your precious flowers in and then, with a little care and attention, letting them do what comes naturally, achieve their potential.
Using 'intercept' with the managers and their teams that we do, we see them grow and 'flower' with the right support and attention. Knowing that they have it within themselves to meet their potential is very, very rewarding for our clients. And their people. And their businesses!
Thanks to Stephen for reminding me of this...
February 9, 2005 21:46 - Employee Motivation - Get the Basics Right First
To motivate your people, it is vital that you start off with understanding that there are some things that need to be fixed first, before you can get on with the above the line actions which develop a strong and engaged culture.
There are eight things you need to do.
Building a team of motivated people in your business is vital to get the very best results, but so many managers focus on the 'ra-ra-ra', rather than the important things - the things that make people feel comfortable in their working environment.
Click here to read on
February 10, 2005 18:24 - Receiving Thanks and Praise - The View from the Other Side
Receiving goods and services from suppliers, whatever shape or form they are, still means some human interaction, most of the time. Yet we are becoming much more demanding as customers. We demand more from those who provide to us and because we are frequently in roles which deliver goods and services ourselves, we are on the receiving end too - of complaints, frustrations and generally poor behaviour.
Why is it that when we are on the receiving end, we miss the fact that we ourselves, when we hang up our service-provider-hat at the end of our shift, often end up as 'customers behaving badly' too?
Why do we take our own frustrations out on others, the way it has been taken out on us? Why do we sometimes become the Hyde from our normal Jekyll?
So, when someone goes the 'extra mile' to say 'Thank you', or appreciate the actions you have taken? What do you take from that and how do you react? You feel good, I guess. Indeed, very good.
So you have the opportunity to 'pay forward' when your leave your place of business and be on 'the other side of the counter'. But do you have to wait until you have a good experience? Or might, just might you overcome bad experiences by reacting differently.
How does it feel when you give praise, say thank you, show gratitude? How much control have you over the warm glow it gives you inside when you do this?
The answer is that you have complete control over your behaviour to others, whatever the temptation to be harsh. And, the key here is that you can decide to be nasty or nice, whatever the provocation.
And you can move on and have a good day.
February 11, 2005 16:11 - Budgets that Damage - The Downsides of Making the Numbers
In the January 2005 copy of the UK's leading management journal, 'Management Today', there is a great article about how budgets have taken over corporate life. In fact some organisations spend months and huge financial resources just creating their budgeting... (Read Article)
February 12, 2005 23:04 - There is Definitely an 'I' in Team
'Apollo 13'. The movie about that near disaster on a moon mission, was about three men,who very nearly didn't make it back to earth - one of the most exceptionally scary possibilities that could happen to us humans - and a big, big team of resource 'back at the ranch' or actually, back on earth.. As in David Bowie's 'Space Oddity',
'Planet Earth is blue
And there's nothing I can do'.
Yet they were rescued. Magnificently.
And if there were ever a need to doubt the incredible value of working coherently, constructively and in collaboration with other people, in a team, then surely this dispels it.
But, it is vital to understand the complexities of team working. That teams without individuals in them are nothing. Popular mangement and leadership comment suggests that 'There is no 'I' in team', yet there is. Indeed the individuals, who that 'I' represents, make the team what it is.
As the Apollo 13 team, the ground teams in Houston, and in Florida showed, the generative qualities of great teamworking unleash the power of the individual. And their ability to achieve miraculous achivements cannot be underestimated, whether you are trying to land on earth, or deliver wonderful results in your business, whatever it may be.
February 13, 2005 17:33 - Why Saying 'Thank You Works...Question of the Week
Each Sunday from now on, we will pose you a single question (or two :-))that you can use in your business, with your people, this week. This is for you to consider for yourself and work through, either on your own, or with those in your team. It may be your management team or a whole bunch of folks. Why Sunday?
Great question!
Well from our previous experience with a weekly thought or tip, we've found that some people read information on a Sunday evening as they prepare for the next working week, and they might want to ponder on the question on their way in on Monday. The question lingers and gets into their subconscious!
Other readers just pick this up when they get into work and find it's a brilliant way to do something with their week to make real progress, rather than the usual grind.
If you want to give feedback, or ask other related questions, place it right here (see 'Comment' below this piece?) and leave an opportunity for us to reply, or for others to chip in as well! Bear in mind that as coaches, we are going to challenge you to stretch yourselves. This can be the start of a great week's worth of generated information, free for us all to learn from.
As far as we know, this is the only interactive blog about people skills management!
After this week, where won't be as much preamble!
This week's question...
"Why does saying 'Thank You' to your people, make such a difference - and how many times a day would generate the best results?"
February 14, 2005 17:05 - Customer Service eh? A Nightmare for Some
Not long ago, I wrote a piece about changing banks. I was having a mare of a time with my bank, as they'd reorganised and since it was in order to make more profits, customer service had disintegrated.
So what - the systems were much better!
So I was thinking of changing banks. In the end I didn't do so, but I did swap a credit card account to a new bank (HSBC), because of one of the freebies they were offering (rate tart - moi?).
Anyway, because it was a new card, I tried today to set up a direct debit, just so that I wouldn't forget to make the minimum payments. Firstly and after a few minutes, I ended up in India, with a very nice lady, who eventually told me that she couldn't deal with me and that the department I wanted was currently enjoying a 9 minute queue. But she could give me a direct dial in number for my convenience (and to meet her call time target, no doubt). She was very nice and quite helpful.
I rang, being politely told from time to time how valued a customer I was - I guess I already knew that, didn't I? I waited, got on with my work at my desk (cleared quite a backlog of e-mail, I can tell you) and waited and waited...Even the music ran out!
In the end I got through after 23 minutes! It would have been easy to be furious and give the call reciepent a really hard time. Know what I said? "Hey, you must be busy today, I bet you're really fed-up" I empathised. "We've had new systems put in today and they're a nightmare", I was told. "Progress eh?" I said as we finished our transaction, "Hope your day gets better".
Instead of feeling my blood pressure rise, I was able to feel I'd made a bit of a positive difference to her - after all, she was under stress from two places. Her organisation had put a huge strain on her to learn a new system live and that must not have been helping the attitudes and behaviours of her customers. It wasn't her fault.
I felt pretty good too.
February 15, 2005 17:59 - Whaddya Want - Blood?
OK, so today it's not about management or business or team-building or managing meetings. Today is my encouragement to give back - it's a bit about Balance, I guess.
Ever since I was about 19, I've given blood. I have to admit that it's not something I've done very consistently (it might have been that fainting experience in 1981 - mind you, I'd been so busy being a manager, that I hadn't eaten for most of the day - not something that those of you who know me at all will attest, that happens too often!).
In fact in giving over 30 years, I've just managed to get to 30 pints of blood. TODAY!
And I've set myself a personal goal of getting to 60 by the time I'm 60. And since here in the UK we are only allowed to give three times a year, I'm on 3 trips each and every year, or I'll miss the target. But I can do it. I can.
So, sometimes it's good to bang on about something else than work and stuff like that.
Thank you for reading today and I hope and feel, that even if one of you decides to give it a try, then it might have been worthwhile. It really doesn't hurt :-)
February 16, 2005 22:35 - Build a Dynamic Business - 10 Steps to Start You Off
What does it take to make businesses perform extremely well? Such that they do above and beyond expectations. It's when your people work together in incredible ways, to create far more than you might expect. It's where they are in a special place when they... (Read Article)
February 17, 2005 18:21 - Managers Really Do Make The Difference
In an article by Kathy Gurchiek in the US Society for Human Resource Management - 'Better management would improve productivity, survey finds', she quotes their 2005 Workplace Productivity Survey.
The top line is that poor quality management is adversely affecting business big-time. Over 1000 employees and HR professionals were polled last August.
Poor management was most often cited by employees and HR professionals at medium-sized and large organisations, than small organisations the survey found.
Why is this?
Perhaps in larger organisations there is a remoteness which enhances the feelings that no-one cares and no-one is listening. One of the biggest causes in stress, according to surveys done in the 70's in the UK Civil Service, was being 'done to' rather than being at the top. And for someone who worked mostly as a manager and then subsequently did some work way, way beneath, I can attest to that.
As a manager, though the challenges are bigger, you can always bunk off back to the office to do some paperwork - you have the choice. When you can't make the decisions, if gets much, much harder.
Interestingly, the HR manager population who took part in the survey, were far more disillusioned than the rest of the workforce.
Interesting eh?
Oh yeah, and the website is quite interesting too!
February 17, 2005 19:11 - Business Opportunity - Leverage Your Employees!
For business to be successful, you have to take every step possible to make sales, control costs, be profitable. Yet there is an asset that so often gets looked over. The very people you employ. And if you work it right, they can bring in rewards like you never... (Read Article)
February 19, 2005 07:21 - Manage Your Business from the Rockies, not the Prairies
The day job as a manager is all about managing your people to deliver, to meet the needs of your customers or clients and generating success after success! Right? And you have consequences if that doesn't happen.
Worst case scenario is that you lose your... (Read Article)
February 20, 2005 17:03 - Managing with Passion - Question of the Week
Some of you will know that I am a very keen football supporter. I have a team I watch who have had a sequence of more downs than ups in their recent history, yet I go on!
Today saw a big cup match, televised on the BBC and all. It wasn''t the best of games, though it was passionate - very passionate!
Both managers paced the touchline animatedly and showed the very same passion as their players, gesticulating where it was needed (and sometimes when it wasn't), shouting and (though I didn't see it), with the occasional smile.
These managers were as 'in the thick of it' as their players, even though they weren't on the pitch.
So, this weeks questions of the week are:-
How passionate are you about the business you're in?
How would you describe that passion to others?
Share back any thoughts you have via 'Comments', below and we will, where possible, help you with them!
February 21, 2005 20:50 - Snow!
For many of us here in the UK, snow happens fairly rarely. And of course it causes chaos! We try to be ready for it, but because we have it so infrequently, we can't handle it! When I was a kid we used to, but not any more. In fact, my kids had a sledge for 8 years before we used it. I could start off about global warming, but then I could also go on about world poverty, but this isn't the purpose of this site.
I did start thinking, after the snow/chaos thing, about how often leaders have to face 'chaos' in their businesses. It's to do with some work I've been doing recently on Succession Planning, and how challenging it is if we haven't prepared properly, or sufficiently in advance. Succession Planning is all about a process, building good relationships and thinking creatively.
More on this to follow, as I rev. up for the launch of the new e-book, Succession Planning Toolkit over the next couple of weeks.
Are you ready for it? :-)
February 22, 2005 08:11 - Business and Management Articles - 5000 Reads Up!
Hi everyone.
I just wanted to know that the 50 articles I now have published at EzineArticles.com, have now hit a total of 5000 readers!
Since I only started publishing back in November, that is a fabulous response! Thank you to everyone who has supported me in this attempt to share my knowledge and experiences with a much wider audience!
Of the articles, the most read is one entitled Competency Based Interviews - 6 Steps to Success!, with 259 reads (and this only since the beginning of February!). At number 2 is Top Ten Tips for Outstanding Customer Service and at number 3 is 3 Simple Things the Best Managers Do - And You Can Too!
All have been read by over 200 people each - and this is just the start, with two new articles being added each week (you will see them here first!). As yet, not all the articles are on this website, but gradually, they will be entered here on the Articles page.
Feel free to take a look at any of them and, as long as you give me credit and a lovely link back to the website here, use them as often as you wish.There's much more to come!
For the full range of articles that I've currently written at EzineArticles.com, just click the link!
I'll be away for a couple of days on business.
February 25, 2005 23:12 - Job Satisfaction eh?
The truth is out. Following a piece of research by the City and Guilds in the UK, we now know the jobs that give the greatest job satisfaction in the workplace. It makes some interesting reading and I'm thinking of what we can take from it.
By far at the top of the list are Hairdressers, which I can vouch for - my own crimper, Vikki, is one of the happiest people I know - and I always come out of a session with her with a smile on my face (if you get my drift!). 40% are 'very happy'. Next up is the Clergy - but as I don't know any of these, I can't vouch for them, at 24%. Then, closely following are Chefs and Cooks at 23%; Beauticians at 22%; Plumbers/Mechanics and Builders at 20%
There's a whole raft of us who are pretty unhappy, with IT Specialists, Lawyers, Secretaries. Estate Agents, Civil Servants, Architects and Social Workers all with less than 5% of them 'very happy'.
So are there any conclusions?
It looks to me like people who work for themselves; people who work with other people and those who are able to be creative in their work top the list (not sure what happened to architects in that conclusion!).
At the other end of the scale are very focused and pressurised white collar workers, many of whom don't have much control in their work.
Perhaps the lesson we can take away is that if you give people more autonomy in what they do - more choice in the decision making process, then they will be happier - and happy staff make for good business. Now, every one one of use can enable this in our people.
So what can you pass on to your people right away that would help them feel a lot less done to - and more in control for themsleves and delivering a great job for you?
February 26, 2005 23:11 - Listening to Customers - It Works!
In a strange juxtapositioning of articles, this month's UK 'Management Today' has three pieces, relating to the importance of listening to customers.Susan Rice, CEO of Lloyds TSB makes it clear how vital it is for great leaders to listen and hear. She uses... (Read Article)
February 27, 2005 22:08 - Employee Motivation - I Don't Think So...Question(s!) of the Week
She is a very solid member of the team, works hard and is available to do extra when required. She has also saved up to do her degree five days a week, using weekends and holidays to pay her way through university.
So when the money fails to come though properly two months after her extra shifts at Christmas, despite needing the money - and reminding her bosses more times than she could care to remember, she runs out when a bill comes through which she pays monthly.
When she mentions it to her bosses, that she has had to pay £30 overdraft fee and £30+ for the letter to tell her that she has become overdrawn (like the banks need this money - you should all be bloody ashamed), they tell her she should have been better organised, it's not their fault.
So then, to rub salt into the wounds, they tell her that due to 'budget restraints' (and despite their staff being so stretched that morale is at an all time low), they won't need her at Easter, like they promised, she has a financial hole to fill. (see also Budgets that Damage (I know this article has come up before - but it is so relevant again here!)
This week's questions are as follows:-
How would you feel if you were an employee and treated like that?
Can you say, hand on heart, that you don't treat your people like that, nor do any of your managers?
Do you even know if it is happening in your business?
Employers get the people they deserve - and frankly, this organisation deserves less than it gets from it's people.
They deserve to fail - and there are no excuses. In fact the top directors with head-in-the-sand accountabilities deserve to fail. Sad thing is, that they will take down with them the solid, energetic, enthusiastic, in fact downright fabulous people they employ - or worse still grind them into the stressful work experiences that give some organisations the bad name they truly deserve.
February 28, 2005 11:56 - Excellent Customer Service
I just wanted to register here a big thank-you to two people in the Gloucester Office of the Land Registry.
Whilst I have been there before some time ago (and complimented the staff that time too), I was so delighted by Martin Ferris' manner, help and support in resolving a complicated query. In tandem with that was the expertise and speed that Karen Taylor pitched in as well, resolving something which was a bit tricky within an hour or so.
A big thank you to them and, as my experience is consistent, each time I go there, to their management, without whom, there wouldn't be a culture as customer focused as my experience.
Isn't it great to find something that works so well!
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