How do people shift from being a manager or supervisor into becoming a leader? - part #3

Here are two important questions you need to ask yourself as a leader:

- What are we talking about in our weekly meetings other than COVID-19 related stuff?

- What is the ratio between internal issues, reports, problem solving and external market place issues?

First, people who successfully make the shift from manger or supervisor to leader know one thing. They need to listen to their customers, clients, members, guests, etc. Whatever is the name you choose to describe the person you serve, we need to make them the focus of all we do. Furthermore, we need to dig deeply into the following set of questions with them:

- How are you doing during COVID-19?

- What’s going on in your neighborhood? Your community?

- How are we doing as an organization in serving you?

The challenge for us as leaders is to get our head into the market place more than just into the supply chain. If we are vision led and mission driven as a company, the customer is the focus of all we do. We are creating solutions for them, not just for the supply chain.

Second, we need to listen to the front line employees. They are the ones who interact with the customer on a daily basis. And with these important people, we need to ask the following questions:

- How are you doing during COVID-19?

- What’s going on in your team? Your division?

- How are we doing as leaders?

Hal Gregersen in his article called “Bursting the CEO Bubble: Why Executives Should Talk Less and Ask More Questions” in the March - April 2017 issue of the Harvard Business Review, writes that leaders need to be “uncharacteristically quiet”. This goal is “.. to increase your chances of encountering novel ideas and information and discerning weak signals: being quiet.” We need to understand that this is not normal leader behavior. Normally we are in send mode, broadcasting information in all directions. We want to answer the question rather than ask the question. We want to inspire people rather than be inspired by people. We want to explain things to people rather than listen to explanations. 

Being quiet as a leader is to switch into receiving mode. Our challenge is to “Ask questions. Don’t tell.” The hardest part of listening is to learn not to fill the space with comments. Instead, we need to embrace the power of the pause and listen.

This week practice asking more questions and being uncharacteristically quiet. You will learn a great deal if you do this on a regular basis.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Discover the Guiding Principals - part #3

In her delightful book called Dare To Lead: Brave Work, Tough Conversations, Whole Hearts (Random House, 2018), Brene’ Brown asked a marvelous question: “What does “done” look like?” It is my new, most favorite question.

When helping people and organizations plan for the future so they can become more nimble, flexible and agile, I now ask them similar questions. In particular, if they are seeking to unify quality, empowerment and principle-centered leadership, I want them to describe the vision they are seeking. Here are those questions:

When it is done well, what will it look like?

When you fulfill your new strategic plan, what outcomes will be the new normal?

When you and your team execute consistently over time, what will happen inside the organization and to your relationship with your clients or customers?

As we know, some people will set the bench mark by which all others will measure their performance. Others will follow the bench mark. The ones who set the mark always have a clear vision of how good they could be and are consistently working towards this mark. For them, the answers to the above questions are not a wish list but instead a concrete description of how well their company can serve its customers and its staff. 

This week, set down and figure out what done looks like. Then do the exact same exercise with your team.  The process will be empowering for you and an extremely insightful exercise with your team.

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Commit To Service

We were sitting in pre-op that early morning at the hospital, a regional teaching center, waiting for the anesthesiologist to come. The room was full of patients quietly waiting and talking. Our youngest son was going to have minor surgery, and we had decided that I would be with him in the surgery room until he was asleep. So, wearing a gown and mask, I waited with my wife and our young son.

Into the pre-op room came an entourage: doctors, anesthesiologists, and their students ready to begin the morning. One by one they visited each bed in the room. But no one came over to us. At first, I was a bit worried. Finally, an older gentleman came into the room. White-haired and slightly bent, he had a noticeable tremor in his hands as he carried a tray of small plastic cups straight over to us.

"Would you like some soda before breakfast?" he asked our young son. Little did he know that in this four-year-old boy's household, soda wasn't necessarily the drink of choice. Therefore, he didn't fully understand the appeal of "pop before breakfast" and declined.

"Too bad," said the doctor, as he reached over and downed the first cup. "How about you, Dad? Want some pop for breakfast?" I looked at him, knowing that one of the cups had the preoperative sedative; but I wasn't sure which one. And playing Russian roulette with soda was not my favorite thing to do at 6:45 a.m.!

He smiled, offered one to my wife and took another for himself. There was only one cup left. He turned to our son and said, "Join us, won't you?" At that point, he picked up the last cup. We all lifted up our cups together, said "bottoms up," and downed them. "See you in a bit," he commented, as our son slowly settled down, ready now for surgery.

Soon, I was carrying our now drowsy son in my arms down the hallway to surgery. When we entered ‚ surgical trays were being set up. Doctors, residents, and nurses were all going about their tasks. Then, in walked the older anesthesiologist with a couple of students. He greeted us and picked up the mask that would go over our son's face.

I remembered that mask from when I had my tonsils out as a very young boy. When it was placed over my mouth, I remember feeling as if I was suffocating before I lost consciousness. During our pre-surgery orientation, the resident had warned us that it was not uncommon for children to fight and flail while the mask was being put on.

This older gentleman simply held the mask above our son's head and talked to him about preschool and soccer. Occasionally, he would call out a number to his assistant who was running the controls. Slowly, our son slipped over the edge.

Once he was unconscious, the anesthesiologist gently slipped the mask on, turned to me and said, "He's ready. You can go now. " Suddenly, I realized that the entire surgical suite was quiet. All of the nurses and residents had watched him interact with our son in this peaceful way. Once the mask was on, the hustle and bustle of surgery started up again, and I went back down the hall to pre-op to meet my wife and begin our waiting.

A couple of hours later, we were in the post-surgery suite, as our son came to. With monitors beeping quietly and nurses attending to him, the anesthesiologist returned to check on his patient. I thanked him for his kindness. Then, before leaving, he turned and said, "When I was a younger doctor, I would typically just put the mask on and get the ball rolling. But since I became a grandfather, every child looks like my grandson. I can't work in that manner any more. Kindness and compassion are vital to this service." Through this experience, I realized what a difference this grandfather's "commitment to service" had made in the lives of our own family.

Our commitment to those we serve is vital to our success. When transforming a challenge into an achievement, we must realize that there is a fundamental difference between helping customers or employees, and serving them. "Helping" is based on inequality. We are aware of our own strengths, opinions, and options, as well as what we think needs to be done. Often, those who are "being helped" can feel diminished in the process.

On the other hand, service and servant leadership involve a relationship between equals; the feeling is one of mutual exchange. The difference is in the commitment. Many organizations say they are committed to the customer but truly do not care for them. These organizations will repeat whatever they are currently doing, until time stops and the world ceases to turn. Unfortunately, their commitment is really to themselves.

Other corporations will attempt to listen and respond to the articulated needs, wants, and desires of the customers, but paralyze themselves with policy-and-procedure manuals that are three feet thick. The result is frustration, made even worse through limited feedback. The staff members of these corporations are attempting to leap tall buildings in a single bound with concrete shoes!

Yet, many leaders create organizational cultures where a commitment to customers and to one another carries an ethic of true service. These organizations guide and lead their customers to services and products they had not even envisioned, and they do it in a manner whereby both experience satisfaction and mutual respect.

The doctor who cared for my son was just such a person. While proficiently attending to the medical details of preparing a child for surgery, he was simultaneously aware of the psychological aspects of how to serve the child, so that the experience would not be a traumatic one for the child -- or for the parents.

The ultimate question of service is simple: Am I acting to fulfill my own needs, or am I acting to serve others? The greatest action we can take is to serve another in a respectful and healthy manner. At that moment, we live our commitments. As Calvin Coolidge noted, "No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave."

Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

The Red Queen Lives On!

We were sitting in his newly remodeled, corner office with lots of sun light pouring in through the windows. The entire layout had changed since my last visit, including a new desk, conference table, decorations on the wall, photos and even a nice big plant. Stylish and modern, it was impressive.

Once I had been shown around, I settled into a new chair at the conference table and pulled out my blue notebook and a pen. It was time to get down to business. My first question during this executive coaching session was an important one, namely “What do you do that really matters the most?”

His answer wandered for the most part and indicated that he had not studied successful companies much. It also pointed out that he did not fully understand his role as a Senior Manager in the company. Referencing the work of Jim Collins in his book, Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap. . . and Others Don't. HarperBusiness, 2001, this person was a Level 3 Leader, namely a “Competent Manager” who “organizes people and resources toward the effective and efficient pursuit of predetermined objectives.”

Not being afraid of asking the hard questions, I asked him another important question, namely “What is strategy?” He replied, “It is a place we need to get to.” And I thought to myself, “The Red Queen lives on.”

In the natural world, the predator and the prey must constantly change or go extinct. Companies and their competitors are also in a constant evolutionary dance, too. When one evolves a slight edge over another, the other responds by developing it’s own edge. For example, some McDonalds are serving expresso coffee. In turn, some Starbucks are offering a dollar cup of coffee.

Evolutionary ecologists call this the “Red Queen Principle.” Named in 1973 by Leigh Van Valen after the Red Queen in Through the Looking Glass, who observed to Alice: “In this place, it takes all the running you can do to keep in the same place.”

We have not explored this concept in much depth since we talked about it at the Spring 2008 From Vision to Action Executive Roundtable. However, given current events within many companies, the status of the world economy and the threat of a double dip recession within the United States, it is time to re-examine this concept again. Right now more and more executives report to me that they and their companies are working as hard as they can to be profitable and they feel like they are running in place. For some, their strategy is clear but not being implemented effectively. Others have the opposite problem with daily operations trumping strategy. Still, the Red Queen Principle does not go away.

While there are no simple solutions to such complex challenges, there are specific actions that a senior team can take when confronting such a situation.

First, initiate a complete and in-depth strategic review to make sure the company has the right strategy for the right environment. If it does, then move to improving the quality of strategic execution. If not, then engage in developing a new and more focused strategy. Selective abandonment of misaligned strategies can be an effective solutions.

Second, clarify what is the company’s brand and competitive advantage. Then, proactively cascade this information deep into the organization in order to help everyone to remain focused on what is most important. Empower key people to act with this in mind.

Third, communicate the importance of customer service and focus on this element at the qualitative and quantitative levels. Remember the research by William J. McEwen in his book, Married To The Brand: Why Consumers Bond With Some Brands For Life, Gallup Press, 2005. As he writes, “every time a customer comes in contact with a company ... the brand relationship can be enhanced. Or it can be diminished. Brand marriages aren’t static; they continue to evolve.” Therefore, he reminds us that “successful marriage management can be achieved only by company-wide commitment and aligned, integrated efforts.” When we work on making sure we have the right strategy, brand clarity and consistent high-quality customer service, then we are working on alignment and integration across the whole company.

In the constant evolutionary dance, there are strategic level changes that need to be made and the operational level changes that need to be made. Dealing with the Red Queen requires both.

Geery Howe, M.A.Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer inLeadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational ChangeMorning Star Associates319 - 643 - 2257

Making the Right Choices

When I first started out as a consultant and a trainer, I got invited to teach a stress management workshop to carpet sales men and women. The audience was polite but not overly responsive. Halfway through I realized that the sales people just wanted to sell carpet, and the seminar was mostly for their boss. She was totally overwhelmed and really needed one to one coaching. Nevertheless, when it was all done, a nice older sales person came up to me and shared that the essence of successful work and living was to “plan your work and then work your plan.” It was good advice 20+ years ago and it is still applicable today. The challenge for many this month is that they do not know the plan for 2011, or even have a plan for the next 90 days. The other challenge is that they are not making the right choices.

Having begun my career in the world of non-profits and education rather than sales, working with small and then larger for-profit companies was a steep learning curve. One day during my early adventures, I was talking with a woman sales executive about why her teams were struggling (mostly a problem with trust and role modeling related to conflict resolution) when she gave me a lecture on sales. “There are three initial variables to sales,” she explained. “They are price, time and quality. You, as the customer, only get to pick two of them. We as the sales organization control the third one. For example, if you pick low price and high quality, then we both know that I control the time element. If you choose fast and cheap, then quality may not be the best. If you want high quality and fast, then you will have to pay the price. They key is to know which variables the customer wants and which variables you can control. After that, the rest of the sales business is about building and maintaining a healthy relationship with the customer.”

Decades later and I still smile when I remember her comments. She was right then and she is right now. Knowing the variables and understanding the importance of maintaining healthy relationships with customers is pretty simple and very basic, but profoundly astute.

Based on my own experiences over the years, I would add to her formula one other element, the quality of the people who work for the company. William J. McEwen in his book, Married To The Brand: Why Consumers Bond With Some Brands For Life, Gallup Press, 2005, states that the initial relationship between a customer and a brand are typically influenced by the quality of the product plus the place, promotion and price. McEwen also notes, based on his research at the Gallup Organization, that the number one driver of customer intent to return to a specific brand is the level of employee engagement. As he writes, “engaged employees help produce engaged customers.”

Yet, if we dig deep into the subject of employee engagement, we always come back to the quality of the people in executive, management and front line supervisory positions. As Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman wrote so many years ago in their book First, Break All The Rules: What The World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently, Simon & Schuster, 1999, people join companies for what they represent but they stay or leave based on their relationship with their supervisor. Healthy relationships between employees and their employers makes a profound impact on customer service and sales.

However, I am now seeing one problem start to surface in multiple organizations which worries me. Many people in these influential leadership positions do not know about the key variables related to sales and even fewer know what the plan is for 2011. And paraphrasing the carpet sales man I met many years ago, if you do not know the plan, it is hard to work the plan. Therefore, if we want to position our organizations for a strong first quarter in 2011, I recommend we spend the next couple of weeks helping people understand the variables, know what the plan is for 2011, and help them to build and maintain relationships with each other and their customers.

Thinking ahead,

Geery

P.S. Thanks to all of you who recently signed up as followers of this blog. I appreciate your doing this. I also appreciate those of you who are sharing these blog entries with others. Again, thanks.

Geery Howe, M.A.Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer inLeadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational ChangeMorning Star Associates319 - 643 - 2257

Customer Service

THEME: Transformation in the Midst of 2009

FOCUS: Customer Service

Tuesday morning: September 8, 2009

Dear friends,

As we approach the one year anniversary of this current recession, some organizations are still lost and struggling. Like deer in the proverbial headlights, they are close to panic. Fear abounds and clarity is lacking.

Other companies are beginning to see some light at the end of the tunnel and praying it is not the arrival of another train. They are entering this fall with a touch of hope and optimism. For them, flat is the new up and they are delighted to still be in existence.

As all of this is taking place, I am invariably curious about the companies who are doing well in spite of all that has happened. These organizations and their exceptional leadership teams are focused, and on track to meet their short and long term goals. They understand what is happening and yet remain dedicated to being successful. As John Roederer and David Christensen reminded me when I spoke last week to all of the teachers and staff at the

Mount Pleasant Community School District, their motto is simple: “high expectations, no excuses.” I like this statement because it is so direct and clear.

When I look at the successful, high expectations and no excuses companies and organizations at this time period, I note that their success revolves around the quality of their customer service. Now for decades we have known that quality customer service is a key factor in organizational success. And there have been endless seminars, consultations, workshops and books printed to prove or sell this point. But I believe there is a difference that is critical to the current success that some companies are experiencing.

The best companies now have moved beyond providing good customer service and are instead partnering with customers and their social networks. While this may seem like I am playing with words, I believe there is a profound difference between providing good customer service and partnering with a customer. In the former, the focus is on what we offer and what we do. We think up what is best and they follow us. The customer is the recipient of our efforts and actions. In the later, the focus is on how we mutually create the right solutions given their challenges or problems. Rather than assume that all intelligence is centralized with the provider, a partnership is a based on respect and understanding. In a partnership, we co-create the solution and then co-create the implementation. Through partnership, we generate more sustainable and less transactional solutions and interactions.

This week, step back from the piles of paperwork, meetings and e-mail. Reflect on what partnering with consumers and customers plus their social networks would look like in your circle of influence.

Have a fantastic week,

Geery

Geery Howe, M.A.
Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in
Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change

Morning Star Associates
319 - 643 - 2257