Joe and Wanda - on Management

In his book, The Wisdom of the Flying Pig, Jack Hayhow has a few thoughts on recognition. Here’s one of them.

So be on the lookout for positive behavior. When you see it – say something, do something. It doesn’t have to be a parade (although that’s not a bad idea). It can be a simple word of thanks, appreciation scribbled on a sticky note, a cookie or a star sticker like you got in grade school. If you haven’t praised each of your staff at least once in the last week, you have an inadequate staff, OR you performance as a manager is deficient.

How about you Joe and Wanda? Have you praised each of your staff in the last week?

Joe Kerr: Just yesterday I let my admin know she makes a kick-@ss chocolate chip cookie! It really is one of the best I’ve ever had – truly exceptional - and one of a select few things worthy of Joe Kerr’s seal of approval.

Wanda B. Goode: My answer is no, I have not, and I must admit that I don’t recognize team members nearly as much as I should. It seems like such a simple thing, but it’s definitely not easy. It takes conscious thought and effort. This may sound too scripted, but I think I’m going to start by setting a recurring appointment in my calendar for addressing recognition until I develop the habit.

How about all of you managers out there? Have you praised each of your staff in the last week?

For more on recognition, check out the following posts…

Make Their Day
Awards Guru

and check out some of the other Joe and Wanda posts…

Recognition Flop
Recognition

Shawn Doyle, of New Light Learning, is a master motivational speaker.

“Passion makes all the difference in the world. All obstacles fall out of the way… If you don’t have a passion for what you do, get out. Go do something you do have a passion for…”

Check out this video on one of his 10 Foundations of Motivation - The Power of Passion.

Joe and Wanda, are you passionate about what you do?

Joe Kerr: Listen choir boy, I work for a living. I bust my butt molding riff-raff into serviceable and productive employees. I’m a babysitter for grown children who are gold-medal whiners. It’s a grind. I’m overworked, underappreciated, and underpaid. I guess someone’s got to do it though, right? Five more years of lying low and avoiding the chopping and I’m out. Adios!

Wanda B. Goode: I’ve got to be honest; I’m not always passionate about what I do. There are days when I wonder if being in management is worth it. At times I long for the days I only had responsibility for myself. Those were much simpler times.

When I do start feeling that way, listening to people like Shawn helps. I also find it important to remind myself that my job is really all about the people. When I can focus my time on helping others improve, it brings tremendous gratification. That usually gets me charged up again.

In his book, The Manager’s Survival Guide, Morey Stettner has a “Before You Ask” checklist. He advises managers to…

Use this checklist to ensure you’re seeking wise counsel and you’re ready to digest what you hear:

• You’re curious to hear what the person says.
• You respect the person whom you’re asking.
• You disclose all relevant information so the person can respond knowledgeably.
• You withhold your editorial comments (e.g. who’s to blame for the problem, what solution you prefer, etc) to invite unbiased feedback.
• You listen to advice without rushing to judge it.
• You expect to learn something new.

Care to comment Joe and Wanda?

Joe Kerr: First, why would I ask for someone else’s advice when I already know the answer? I’m not just a pretty face! Second, if I spent all my time getting feedback I’d never get anything done… and for what? To make some insecure people feel good? I don’t think so.

Wanda B. Goode: Sage advice from Mr. Stettner. Of course once you gain the counsel, you must act. If you don’t act, people will be unwilling to waste their time providing feedback in the future.

Now that you are open to listening, here are some additional posts that can help.

http://greatleadershipbydan.blogspot.com/2008/06/listening-tips-for-leaders.html
http://zadook.com/60/six-active-listening-tips.html

Below are some prior Joe and Wanda posts on listening.

http://begoodventures.com/joeandwanda/?p=28
http://begoodventures.com/joeandwanda/?p=46

In his book, The Wisdom of the Flying Pig, Jack Hayhow mentions that there are two criteria by which managers are judged…

The first criterion is the productivity of the manager’s workgroup. How much work gets done, and what is the quality of that work?

The second criterion is about the people. Are they learning and growing and becoming more valuable to the organization? And just as important, how long are they staying? Turnover is crippling to productivity, and it’s expensive.

Jack then asks the question, “Are your people more productive working for you than they would be working for someone else? Are they growing more?”

Care to answer that one Joe and Wanda?

Joe Kerr: I’d love to see somebody try and get more out of my people than I do! As for growing, they have one hell of a mentor in Yours Truly.

Wanda B. Goode: Sometimes I’m not too sure. I can get so wrapped up in my own activity that I forget that I’m really supposed to be helping the team. Sometimes team members don’t even want my help. It takes time and effort to convince them that growing is not only in the company’s interest but theirs as well. I definitely need to carve off more time for the team. We’ll all benefit in the long run.

How about all of you managers out there? Can you answer Yes to Jack’s two questions?

For more of Jack’s views, check out this interview.

Just came across a story about Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik by Victor Parachin in July’s Toastmaster Magazine…

During the 20th century a devastating fire broke out in the Russian town of Brisk. Many homes were completely destroyed. Hard hit were shacks belonging to the poor. Although the Rabbi’s home was not damaged, he slept that night in the synagogue with the many others who lost their homes. When the town’s citizens asked him why he was doing so, he told them he would continue sleeping in the synagogue “until everyone has a roof over his head. If I remain in my own house, who knows how long it will take the community to raise the necessary funds to rebuild the homes of all the poor, the widows and the orphans? But if it is known that I too will sleep here until the work is completed, the fund-raising will go much faster.” Finally, when the last house was rebuilt, Rabbi Chaim returned to his own home.

Thoughts Joe and Wanda?

Joe Kerr: Listen, I paid my dues. 15 years ago I was the one working weekends while the fat cat drank his wine and smoked cigars and called me up to ask me if I was done yet. Now it’s my turn. The way I see it, the less people inconvenienced the better. If the young bucks work hard, they’ll get the opportunity to sit it out some day as well.

Wanda B. Goode: That’s an example of leadership in action. I’d imagine the members of the Rabbi’s congregation were willing to run through walls for him.

Do you have any leadership stories you’d like to share?

Click here for another one.

The following is an excerpt from Jack Hayhow’s book, The Wisdom of the Flying Pig.

“On boss’ day, 1994 the employees of Southwest Airlines bought and paid for this ad in USA Today…”

Thanks Herb

• For remembering every one of our names.
• For supporting the Ronald McDonald House.
• For helping load baggage on Thanksgiving.
• For giving everyone a kiss (and we mean everyone).
• For listening.
• For running the only profitable major airline.
• For singing at our holiday party.
• For singing only once a year.
• For letting us wear shorts and sneakers to work.
• For golfing at the LUV Classic with only one club.
• For outtalking Sam Donaldson.
• For riding your Harley Davidson into Southwest Headquarters.
• For being a friend, not just a boss.

Happy Boss’ Day from Each One of Your 16,000 Employees.

I had never seen that before. It certainly speaks volumes about Herb Kelleher’s leadership of Southwest.

Thoughts Joe and Wanda?

Joe Kerr: Sweet. On my birthday my admin got me a GPS. Not bad, huh? And that’s from a gal that make one tenth what I do.

Wanda B. Goode: It’s obvious that Herb cares about the employees of Southwest and that they in turn care about him, which, no doubt, has contributed to Southwest’s success over the years. Unfortunately, it’s an approach that few have embraced.

For a very interesting post on Southwest and its approach to customers and its employees, click here.

… and here is a post that focuses on HR, and is all about the importance of caring for the people. It references the following Herb Kelleher quote.

We all have our customer service horror stories. It seems like they’ve become more and more commonplace. To counter this disturbing trend, I believe it is important to share positive customer service experiences and tout their benefits.

To that end, here’s my story…

I bought a new home about 7 years ago. The builder used Delta faucets in all the sinks and bathtubs. The caps on the faucet handles were fading – normal wear and tear from my perspective. I called up Delta customer service and asked them if I could purchase some new caps. They took my home address and said they’d ship 8 of them out that day. I asked how much I owed. The answer - No charge. What kind of faucet do you think I’m going to get next time I need one? How many prospective customers are now aware of this story?

Joe and Wanda, can you share any positive customer service stories – things that your team members have done for either internal or external customer?

Joe Kerr: Our customers are pains in the @ss. Regardless, we bend over backwards for them! One time last year I had one of my guys pull an all-nighter to redo a customer report. I remember it well, because I was at party for game six of the World Series and got a call from Mary in bottom of the ninth with an update. I almost missed the game-winning hit! Yes, we routinely sacrifice for the customers. They don’t appreciate it though.

Wanda B. Goode: We mainly have internal customers. I find I really need to train new team members to understand that our job is to help them, not to throw up roadblocks or make things difficult. Sometimes we come up with processes that work great for us, but cause frustration for those that use our services. Not good.

Recently we got a nice email from a new employee outside our group. She was thankful for the way a team member thoroughly explained and then walked her through our processes. A week later we needed help from her group, and although she was very busy, guess who was thrilled to make the time to help us out? And guess who wrote a thank you note to her supervisor?

Good customer service, both internal and external, truly does pay. It seems to be a well kept secret. No reason for that. Let’s spread the word.

Here are a couple other posts on the value of customer service:

http://simonpayn.typepad.com/simon_payns_blog

http://righttolead.com/blog

I just listened to a podcast with Adrian Gostick over at the Cranky Middle Manager. It’s about his book, The Levity Effect: Why it Pays to Lighten Up, which stresses the importance of having fun in the work place.

According to Adrian’s research, those that have more fun at work are more successful. Companies with cultures that embrace fun achieve better results as well. Unfortunately, too many companies don’t buy into the fun thing. They believe that being serious is necessary to maintain credibility.

For more discussion on when fun is not fun, quick suggestions for snapping people out of a funk at work, and other interesting tidbits, tune in to the podcast. Those of you familiar with Wayne Turmel’s podcasts are aware that he is no stranger to humor.

Joe and Wanda, are you advocates of fun at work?

Joe Kerr: Absolutely! Everyone knows I like a good laugh. First time I meet with a new employee I end the meeting with a knock-knock joke. It’s really a mix of humor and a pep talk. It goes like this…

Knock-knock.
Who’s there?
Joe
Joe Who?
Joe Kerr will pound the living hell out of you if you screw up! Now get out there and start earning your salary.

Wanda B. Goode: I agree that we could all use a bit more levity in our lives. We spend a lot of time at work, so why not there?

Like anything else, though, it takes time and effort to come up with creative things to do. Adrian’s book can help with that. The benefits in the way of productivity improvements are worth the time spent. I also think humor and fun are a great way to enhance learning.

Here’s a post on a University of Florida study concluding that fun at work does lead to productivity improvements.

Would anyone like to volunteer any positive examples of fun or negative attempts at fun in the workplace?

In his book, Out of the Crisis, W. Edwards Deming describes the aim of leadership as follows…

The aim of leadership should be to improve the performance of man and machine, to improve quality, to increase output, and simultaneously to bring pride of workmanship to people. Put in a negative way, the aim of leadership is not merely to find a record of failures of men, but to remove the causes of failure: to help people do a better job with less effort.

Joe and Wanda?

Joe Kerr: You’re preaching to the choir, bud. That’s what I’m all about. I take it a few steps further, though. Deming’s definition is just the beginning. It’s child’s play really - management 101. What I’m all about is inspiring my people to do bigger and better things…to realize, and even exceed their potential… operate at 150%!!!

Wanda B. Goode: Too often we as managers and leaders get caught up in the day-to-day, or just the opposite, in some lofty ideas of what we should be doing, and we forget our true purpose. It’s good to have a reminder to bring clarity to our role.

A co-worker sent me the following from one of those quote-of-the-day sites. I just had to pass it along.

“People of character do the right thing, not because they think it will change the world but because they refuse to be changed by the world.”
– Michael Josephson

Joe Kerr: That’s just beautiful Pollyanna!

Wanda B. Goode: Great quote. There is constant temptation to take the short cut or to choose the self-serving path. It’s so very easy to lose one’s character and so difficult to get it back.

For more, check out ch 9 - Do the Right thing in Lead Well and Prosper and/or take a look at the posts below.

Leaders Resource
The Practice of Leadership
Leadership Character
Leadership Secrets