The Enlightened Manager

Thoughts on a Disrupted Holiday

Friends and Enlightened Managers,

Boy am I tired friends.  It's been a nice Christmas however.  We're not so used to snow here in Seattle, and getting about three feet of it in my neighborhood has put some cramps in our plans.  So although we have had to cancel quite a few gatherings, we (my husband and I) have also had almost a full week of relaxing indoors, shoveling snow, and catching up on our down time.  We still have a trunk full of gifts, which we hope to distribute next week after the snow has finished turning into urban floods. :)

The local news has been interesting.  In addition to the typical stories of good cheer and charitable acts you see around the holidays, there has also been a big whack of news stories about angry people.  People are angry about the snow, angry at the city for not having a bigger army of snowplows, angry at the post office for not getting every single package delivered through waist high drifts, angry that stores don't have the items they wanted.

I wonder if the world (and indeed Seattle) is really full of so many angry people, or if the few grouches become illuminated for the sake of news.  I suspect the latter is true.

This last week I've been trapped indoors for days at a time, have had to cancel my holiday visit to see my mother, been stuck in a frozen house without power, have experienced mail and trash delays, and have had to shovel my car out when it got stuck in a snow drift on the way home.  And I, like everyone I've seen who is not on the news, have managed to not be angry about it.

Angry people are the exception, not the rule.  Like most of my neighbors  I just know that it's better to cancel a trip to Mom's when the roads get too icy, the mail workers are doing the best they can, the power crews are doing the best they can, the trash can wait a week, and that a frozen house gives us an excuse to huddle around a roaring fire.     I also know that when we are all gracious that life goes a bit more smoothly.  My coaching client for today who has agreed to conduct our meeting by phone so I can avoid a snowy drive is being gracious.  And so when my packages arrive late or the snow plows haven't made it too our street, I try to be gracious too. 

This morning, I'm thinking of all of the examples of gratitude and giving I've seen over the last few days.  The grocery store employee who told me that since the snow separated her and her family, she was going to paint her bathroom on Christmas and "pretend Jesus was born on December 28th."  She wore felt antlers, and had a ready smile for every customer.  The good Samaritans I saw by the side of the road, helping stranded motorists.  My neighbor, using his ATV to shuttle people up the big hill in our neighborhood when cars couldn't make it up.  The employees of Puget Sound Energy, who worked through the night to restore power to those of us in the dark.  And of course every person who has given up a vacation or some other treat to increase donations to local food banks, animal shelters, and holiday charities. 

Friends - all signs indicate that we still have a fairly rough 2009 ahead of us.  We can be angry and feel entitled to all that we don't have, or we can be gracious and just realize that if everyone does the best they can we'll all muddle through.  I choose gratitude, and from all that I've seen I believe most of those in my community will do the same.  This is a wonderful thing.

All my best for a happy new year - wherever you are!

It's OK to Be the Boss - Notes on a Phone Call

I recieved a call the other night from a dear friend of mine asking for some management advice. I think the conversation has some relevance to our learning about leadership, so I'm posting the story here at the Enlightened Manager.

To start with , my friend has a tough job, she is the leader of a complex government-nonprofit-educational institution, and the organization is in transition.  She also happens to be one of the kindest, most honest, and most collaborative people I've ever known.  Like many kindhearted people, she leads from a perspective of "lets work this out together" whenever possible.  Because collaboration is such a powerful way to lead teams, I have no doubt that this strength of hers will serve her well. However, there are also times when a soft approach will fail to get you where you need to go.  That is the situation she was facing when she called me.

Without being too specific (I want to maintain her privacy), let's just say that my friend is managing a well-intentioned employee who has a behavior problem.  And no amount of "lets work this out together" was going to fix the issue.  My friend remained compassionate, kind, and gentle with her employee, and the employee continued to exhibit inappropriate behavior at work.  Plenty of deep conversations about the issue lead to only very temporary changes in behavior.

I asked my friend how she planned to address the issue with the employee, and she described a very gentle conversation consisting of the following kinds of phrases.

"It's important to give others the benefit of the doubt...."   "How do you think we can come to an agreement on this...?"

My advice to her was to take a more direct approach and lay out the expectations at the start of the conversation. Here is an example:

"I've noticed that you tend to (list behaviors) at work.   I need you to stop doing this because (list impact).  It's my expectation that you will (list expected behavior). 

Once that clear and unmistakable set of expectations were out in the open, THEN it would be a good time to bring the conversation back to "How can I help you make this happen?" and "What do you think?" to add a supportive and collaborative element.

I think that people who are naturally collaborative and empathetic tend to shy away from these very direct conversations because directness can feel like a lack of respect, or a tendency to be bossy.  The risk of never saying "Look employee, this is what I need you to do.." is that there can be a lack of clarity on the part of your team.   You can be clear AND kind, you can be direct AND empathetic.   It's taken me a lot of years to be comfortable with that idea, because when I was a new manager I was afraid to be direct too.  It takes practice to realize that it's OK to be direct, and that people will appreciate you for it, not hate you for it, if you do it well.

It's OK to be the boss.  Directness can be a gift, when it is for the purpose of clarity and not ego.   I wish I had known this when I first started out in management.  It would have saved my team a lot of confusion and it would have saved me a lot of anxiety about performance discussions!

Assess Your Personality using the "Big Five" traits.

I've been reading a bit about personality theory, which is something we covered in grad school but mostly as it pertained to group dynamics.  One theory of personality is what is called the "Big Five" Theory which looks at personality across five factors:

Openness, Conscientiousness, Extroversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism

You can read an overview of the Big 5 Personality factors here, or take a test to look at your own scores here.

Here is my score from the web based test>

I found the process interesting, but I'm not sure how much store to put in the range of results.  It seems to would be easy to assign a value judgment here, to distinguish between "desirable" and "undesirable" personality traits.  I like to think that there are a great variety of personalities that fall into the "desirable" category.

A Lesson in Customer Service, Courtesy of my Bank

Wow, life can be educational can't it?  Take this story from my bank.  It's a lesson in what not to do.

I've been thinking about looking for a new bank (I won't name them here) lately.  Along with this, I got a call one evening from a "business specialist" inviting me to come in for a review of my accounts.  I figured hey, let's give the old bank one more chance, and I made an appointment to come by.  That is the background.

Here is what happened:

1. I arrived, and told the branch manager who I was there to see.  She looked me up and down and seemed quite perplexed.  "Do you have an appointment?"  "Yes."  "She just stepped out."  "I am a few minutes early."  "Is this for a business account?"  "Yes"   "A new account?"  "No."  "Oh."

I found myself wondering why I was such a source of bafflement.  She seemed genuinely confused as to why I was there.  If I was more paranoid, I would have assumed that she felt I was too young to be a business owner, or that I didn't fit her mental picture somehow.

Customer service tip:  Greet your customers like welcome friends, not like an alien species.

2. The woman I was supposed to meet with greeted me and shook my hand.  Then as she directed me to her desk (in the middle of the bank, right in the flow of traffic) it became apparent that she was unwell.  Her voice was uneven and scratchy.  I asked her if she had a cold and she said yes, she was sick.

Customer service tip:  Don't infect your customers with laryngitis.  It's viral, and a real pain in the rear to consultants who speak & teach for a living.  If you are foolish enough to come to work sick, don't shake hands.  When you are dealing with sensitive issues, don't put your desk in the flow of traffic.

3. She proceeded to review my accounts (stuff I already knew), told me that she was a personal banker but there was a different small business specialist (I thought I was meeting with a business specialist - I'm still unclear on why I would need a personal banker.) and then made a couple suggestions which were mildly informative.  We agreed to open a second account to store tax liabilities.

Customer service tip: when you invite a client to meet you, have a clear agenda for the meeting.  Be clear about who you are and why you've requested their time.

4. I had a question about my business credit card.  She didn't know the answer, and spent a few minutes calling an 800 number and going through menu options to find someone who told me that the service I was requesting was unavailable.

Customer service tip:  Know your stuff.  Also, don't get your key customer service staff mired in a phone tree - allow for instant access to troubleshoot customer issues.

5. To open the second account, she needed to access a checklist on the business server.  We spent twenty minutes waiting with her on another "help line" to get the checklist because the new computer system was broken.

Customer service tip: Again, know your stuff.  Don't change systems until you know people have been educated on how to use them.  Never leave a customer waiting for 20 minutes because your stuff is broken.  Always offer them the option to come back another day.

6. While we were waiting, we made small talk.  The banker filled me in on what she viewed as some of the negative aspects of working in the banking industry.  Meanwhile, the branch manager walked around and complained about the lack of heat in the building.

Customer service tip:  Every workplace has it's warts.  Don't share them in a customer facing situation.  Gripes are natural, sharing them with customers is embarrassing.  Don't mistake customer questions or politeness as an invitation to bash your company or industry.

7.  The banker pulled a packet of information for me.   In her rush to run around and pull the different pieces together, I ended up with duplicate flyers. 

Customer service tip:  Prepare your materials/collateral in advance. Be organized.

8.  I left the bank, even more committed to looking for another financial institution than when I had arrived!

If you read this post you might infer that I was pretty annoyed with my bank.  Not so much.  Despite the low quality of my interaction with the bank, I could see that the banker and other employees were nice people, intending no harm.  They were friendly, and yet ineffective.  I'm not annoyed, but I am shopping for a new bank.

I want both.  Friendly AND Effective.  I bet your customers do too.  Are they getting it?

Building the LEAN Consulting Practice - Part 1

Any fellow LEAN enthusiasts out there?  If you're interested in organizational improvement and you haven't yet educated yourself on the LEAN philosophy, I recommend you check out the book the Toyota Way.

This blog isn't about LEAN, but the core philosophies developed by Toyota are so well integrated with good OD practices that I'd like to share a bit of my journey in implementing the LEAN philosophy throughout Emergence Consulting.

One of the core LEAN concepts is 5S, which is about the physical organization of your space to minimize waste.  There has been a lot written about this elsewhere, so I'll just summarize by saying that the 5S's in Japanese can be roughly translated into:

• Sort
• Straighten
• Shine
• Standardize
• Sustain

Now 5S is probably one of the more "surfacey" elements of LEAN, because it is often implemented without much thought to the broader philosophies of eliminating waste and continuous improvement.  But I decided to start with applying 5S to my office as a simple first step.

I'm a naturally "messy" person, often juggling big piles of paper in my office.  Here is a list of some of the changes that I made to begin to develop a LEAN office.   Remember, the big idea behind this is eliminating waste, both physical materials waste and time waste.

1. I moved my desk to make it easier for me to reach my filing cabinets without walking around the room.  (less wasted time.)
2. I have a modular bookcase consisting of many squares.  I grouped materials in each square by topic and labeled each grouping. (less wasted time looking for the right book)
3. I cleared my desk of all materials except for those items I use every day.  Those items each have a "place" marked out by blue painters tape.  At the end of each day I re-clear my desk, replacing all items where they belong.  (This sounds corny, but the blue tape really motivates me to put things in order.)
4. I purchased software (One Note) to begin storing all of my "notes" online instead of on paper.  I entered the notes I wanted to keep on my computer, and recycled the piles of paper.  Now, each day any "notes" get entered, and the paper gets recycled.  (Less clutter, things are easier to find.)
5. I eliminated all of the places where paper gets stored, such as my 3 level paper sorter.  (Clutter has no place to hide.)
6. I revamped my filing system.  I now have one small cabinet for essential paper files, listed by topic, and a small "tickler" file with one folder for each day of the month.    The ticker file is stored in my desk right next to my knee, and each day I pull out the file for that day, attend to the contents, and refile or recycle the remainder.  (No lost papers, everything for the day is at my fingertips.)
7. Office supplies are now in boxes with large labels.  Everything is easy to find.  (less clutter, less time searching for things.)

These actions seem pretty simple, but it was really the LEAN philosophy that drove the changes.  Clearing my desk at the end of each day doesn't just save me time, it also clears my mind of the excess "noise" that clutter can create.  Having a blue square marked out for my stapler makes it easy to see when my stapler is missing and needs to be put back.  Eliminating my old trays for stacks of paper forces me to deal with information "in the moment," either typing the notes into my computer or putting the page in my tickler file to be dealt with the next day.

Because I'm "messy" I also adapted the following to suit my personality:

I've turned my office wall into a "idea wall" where I can post sticky notes, poems, quotes, doodles, and anything else that I want to see.  (I love taping the best fortune cookie fortunes up there.)   This gives me a "messy" space to be creative without cluttering the office or my mind.

This is just the start of course.  I'm also revamping my processes, re-examining my business philosophies, and so on.  It's actually been quite enjoyable to go through this process, especially as it's already saving me time and reducing my stress level.  I think down the road there will be an opportunity for me to look at how the work I do can assist organizations that use LEAN philosophies develop their employees, but for now I'll simply learn by doing, and by reading.

Youtube has an interesting video on the LEAN office, although it focuses more on policing that philosophy.

I'm also enclosing a few photos of my recent efforts.

 

The interior of my desk, with the portable tickler file and other items all labeled clearly.

My bookcase, organized by topic.  (I've since added labels for each cube.)

 

My paper sorter, which I gave away because it just became clutter storage.

 

The blue square where my stapler lives.  (The stapler is labeled only because I'm learning Spanish - I'm not that much of a fanatic.)

 

Part of my Idea Wall

Assertiveness vs. Arrogance

Good Morning Friends.  Sometimes I come here to write about things that I feel pretty clear on, and other days I come here to write about the things I'm still trying to figure out.  Today's post falls into one of those latter categories. This is my question: where is the line between assertiveness and arrogance? 

A friend of mine, who also happens to be a consultant, referred to me as being "assertive" last week.  It triggered some thinking in me, because I've had this conflict bubbling beneath the surface of my consciousness for some time now.  Where does confidence cross over into arrogance?  How can I be assertive in a positive way, without being bossy or too directive?

The Dictionary indicates that an assertive person is someone who asserts himself.  The word assert means "to state or declare positively and often forcefully or aggressively."     I like the positively part but I don't like the aggressively part.  Aggressive can sometimes be a positive term, defined as "marked by driving forceful energy or initiative."   On the negative side, aggressiveness can be equated with being combative or adversarial. I don't mind conflict, but I don't want to be combative for the sake of ego.

Consulting Guru Alan Weiss recently commented in a podcast (I'm paraphrasing here, but I believe I grasped the point.) that assertiveness is knowing you have something to offer and arrogance is believing you have nothing to learn.   I think he's on to something there.

So are the following actions assertive or arrogant?

*  Telling a client "Here is what you can expect from us.   Additionally, for this work to be successful, this is what we (the consultants) would expect from you."
*  Telling a customer "I believe that would be a mistake." when they ask you to take an action that you believe is counterproductive to their goals.
*  Turning down a well paying project because you believe the organization isn't serious about the required effort on their end.
*  Communicating your strengths.  "Here is what we can offer your organization..."

These are all things that I am working on right now with various clients and scenarios.  I feel good about these actions, but there is always that whisper in the back of my mind asking "Are you being too forward?  Are you being arrogant?"

I think for now the answer to that question is no, but I have been putting out the word to the people I trust to let me know if I ever cross that line.  I want to be strong and honest, but never to the point where I am shutting down dialog.  Just because I am confident in my views, it doesn't mean I don't want to learn from yours.  Besides, who wants to hire a wishy-washy doormat consultant, right?

So here is an invitation to you.  If you ever come here and think I'm being an arrogant fathead, let me know - OK?  Perhaps it' silly, but it continues to be something I worry about.  How to allow my confidence to grow without losing my humility.....

Just stuff I'm thinking about!

Strategies for Handling Employee Complaints

Hi all.  Here are some quick tips on a common question I get in management coaching - how to handle it when one employee complains about another employee's performance.

Two Good Options:

1.  Redirect the Feedback -  "What did John say when you talked to him about that?"  If the employee resists direct feedback, but it would be appropriate, use this as a teaching moment.

2.  Verify, then Correct - If Janet says that Mary is hanging up on customers, you may want to observe this behavior personally then speak to Mary yourself.   First hand knowledge is always better than hearsay.

Two Less Effective Options:

1. Triangulating.   "Mary, people are saying you hung up on a customer."    What people?  This is a good way to begin seeding distrust in the team.

2. General Announcements.  "I wanted to say that I know "some people" have been coming in late.  It's important that we all come in on time."  (You can use general announcements sparingly in some situations involving multiple "offenders", but they don't work well as an ongoing response to employee complaints.)

Any other tips you'd like to share? Leave a comment for us all to see.

Change gets harder after age 30

Or at least that's what some researchers are saying...

The current edition of Scientific American Mind has an interesting article on why change is hard, suggesting that most of us experience a reduction in our "openness" after our twenties.  The article is currently available for review here.

A snippet:

"Once a family and career are in place, novelty may no longer be as welcome. New experiences may bring innovation and awakening but also chaos and insecurity. And so most people dream of novelty but hold fast to the familiar. Over time we become creatures of habit: enjoying the same dishes when we eat out, vacationing in favorite spots and falling into daily routines."

The article is published in the December 2008 edition of Scientific American Mind, and was written by Nikolas Westerhoff.

Customer Service Excellence: Make the Connection

Let me ask you this, Enlightened Managers.  What creates excellent customer service?   A smile?  One person who handles your issue from start to finish?  Technical expertise?   A professional greeting when you walk in the door?

Or does it come down to being served by someone who simply gives a damn - about you and your issue?

Today I'd like to share a little bit about my customer service philosophy. What are the elements of customer service excellence?

10% - HOW to provide great service.  (Classic elements of this include greeting customers promptly with a smile, asking how you can help, practicing active listening, etc.)

25% - Technical Expertise.  (For example, I may talk to the nicest technical support employee on earth, but if they don't have the skills to resolve my technical issue, they can't help me.)

65% - WHY to provide great service.  (An emotional connection to the company, customer, and service or product.  A sense of meaning and purpose that permeates the work.)

What do companies spend most of their time on when it comes to training and development?  The first one!  While refresher training on the basics of customer communication can be helpful, most of us have been to this kind of training time and time again.  Let me ask you this though - why do we need so much refresher training on the basics of customer service.  Why doesn't customer service training "stick"?

Adult learners can follow rote orders if they are reminded often enough, but wouldn't it be great to create a culture where those customer service basics are second nature?   The way to do this is to set up a development structure (including management support and reinforcement) where the focus is on emotional connection to the customer.

*Why do we do this work?*     *What kind of a difference can we make each day?*   *What gift do we have to offer the world/our community?*    *What kind of experience do we want to offer our customers?*

Questions like these are a gateway to emotional connection.   I am always surprised (and a little saddened I admit) when I begin working with a team and they don't see the meaning or higher purpose in their work.   I've seen quite a few health care workers view their jobs as nothing more than a list of tasks to be completed when *I* know they're making an incredible difference in the lives of people every day.  I've seen manufacturing employees view themselves as "just unskilled workers" when they provide parts that contribute to human safety and security.

When I start a project that includes customer service training, I work with employees starting with the heart outwards.  First we discover why their work matters on a deeper level.  Each person has a gift to offer the world.  Next we nurture the mind - ensuring that they have sufficient knowledge to serve others.  Lastly we look at those externals - the customer service smile and correct phone greeting. 

After all, if your employees know they make a big difference in the world, and they find meaning and joy in it, do you think you really need to remind them to greet people, smile, and maintain a welcoming environment?  With the heart-work done, the externals tend to fall in place easily, and with fewer reminders.

That's my philosophy anyway, inside-out customer service.  What is your philosophy?  I'd love to hear about it.

And of course if you know of anyone interested in a deeper kind of customer service "training", I'd welcome the introduction.

The Manager with Two Faces

I had an interesting experience this week.  I was having dinner with a client of mine, someone that I know well and trust.   We were talking shop a little bit, and the name of a mutual business acquaintance came up.  This third party (I'll call him John to maintain his privacy) was someone that I had worked with on one project a few years ago, and I had been impressed with him at the time.  He was warm, intelligent, and passionate.  My friend had also worked on a project with him at another organization and described him as rude, calculating, and arrogant.  I couldn't believe it!  So what was going on here?  Was I wrong or was my friend wrong?

Turns out neither of us were.  I did a little delicate fact finding with some other contacts, and it turns out that "John" is well known for treating some people with warmth and respect, and others with indifference and coldness.  In other words, "John" is one of those managers with two faces.

Before we judge "John" too harshly here, let's remember that the nature of organizations is that they can often encourage double standards.  We are encouraged to be polite and deferential to our bosses, and "hold our vendors feet to the fire" in other scenarios.    High performers may get one kind of treatment while others get inconsiderate and sharp words. Many organizations support this kind of manager behavior.   So my point isn't that John is a bad person, but that it can be easy to get caught up in a double standard without trying too hard.

When you work with someone who is two faced, it can be easy to dismiss them as dishonest.  After all, doesn't treating one person with respect and another person without it indicate a moral code that is a bit wonky?  Possibly.  But let me tell you the next thing I plan to do when I meet John.  I plan to observe his actions very carefully.  Then, if I see some of that double standard behavior I've been missing, I'm going to gently ask him if he is aware of how that makes him look.  After all, I really do like John.  He's not only an client, he is also a friend.   I choose to believe his two-facedness is a product of ignorance, not malice. 

It's not always easy to give people you care about direct and honest feedback.  Whenever I'm tempted to protect myself from conflict at the expense of honesty, I remind myself of two things. First, that if I were walking around with my "fly unzipped" so to speak, I'd want someone to be honest with me.  Secondly, I remind myself that honest and unclouded relationships are the basis of a good business and a good life.  These reminders usually give me the courage to do what needs to be done.

I'm also asking myself tonight if I have two faces.  I don't think so, but it's a question worth asking I think.  How about you?