By Richard Hadden and Bill Catlette
It’s been a long summer. We, for two, are ready for
some cooler days, better news, and our respective
hometown NFL teams to have a winning season. On
the assumption that after the events of the last few
weeks and months, you, and many of those you work
with, could use a little lift about now, we’re going to
stray from our usual narrative format, and simply
offer some ideas – things we’ve seen done, with good
effect, to make the place you work a little better for
yourself and the people who come in to work there
every day.
1. To begin with, go and say a word of
encouragement and thanks to those who have helped
the victims of hurricane Katrina. Wherever you may
be. In the U.S., or in one of the many countries
abroad where our friends have shown their
generosity. Here’s just one story, out of hundreds,
perhaps thousands just like it. Members of one
department in one company we know in Florida
decided on the day that New Orleans’s flood’s
magnitude became apparent, to take up a collection
just among themselves. Nothing organized. That
would take too much time, and besides, the company
was making a sizeable donation of its own. Within one
hour, the spearheader of the movement had collected
more than $650 Then he went to Costco, spent all
the money on water, diapers, baby formula, clothing,
and nonperishable food items, and took everything, in
his truck, to a Red Cross collection point. The next
day, what started as an idea in the mind of one
employee was unloaded from trucks at the
Superdome. The group’s manager, who merely
contributed, and had nothing to do with organizing
the relief – told her group she couldn’t have been
prouder of them.
2. While you’re at it, go and thank someone in
your organization who has served in Afghanistan,
Iraq, or some other distant field of battle. You don’t
have to agree with the reason they were sent there.
Just thank them for their contribution.
3. Don’t stop with those who’ve actually gone
and returned. Find a spouse, or other family member
of someone currently serving abroad. Or perhaps you
know someone who’s family member went to serve,
but isn’t coming back. Either way, thank them for
their sacrifice. And then go out of your way to do
something for them, anonymously if you can. Scrape
the ice off their car someday this winter. Get them
an encouraging book and put it on their desk. Better
yet, go online
(https:
//thor.aafes.com/scs/default.aspx) and buy
some prepaid military telephone cards so their soldier
can call them from the desert. Leave the cards on
their desk when they’re not looking. They’ll know
what to do with them.
4. Stop what you’re doing right now, and go
tell someone on your team how they’re doing. Make
that two someones. We’re not talking about doing
their performance evaluation. You’re four months
behind on those anyway. Start with someone who’s
not performing up to what the two of you agreed on
during your last goal-setting discussion (you have
had those, haven’t you?). Give it to them straight,
and then pledge your support to get them back on
track before their performance means they can’t work
here anymore. Once you’ve got that unpleasant task
out of the way (if it’s not unpleasant to you, find
something else to do besides managing people), go
and find someone who’s doing a great job and tell
them so.
5. Find one of your newer employees –
someone who’s been with the company for less than,
say, thirty days. Tell them that you know that
sometimes important things get overlooked when
people first get onboard, and then ask them if there’s
anything they need that hasn’t been provided to
them yet. Anything at all. Information, some piece of
equipment, the combination to the restroom door,
how to access their benefits account online – let
them name it – and then help them get what they
need.
6. Suppose you see someone who appears to
be unaware of one or more of the “unwritten rules”
for success in your organization. What to wear to a
client meeting, how to talk to the Senior VP of
Whatever, chitchat etiquette, or how many drinks to
order at a business dinner. Take that person aside
and help them out. Warn them of potential minefields,
or cow patties, they might be about to step in.
7. What’s the one thing your people complain
about the most? The one single thing? Maybe it’s the
same thing that got dinged the hardest on your last
employee survey? Can you do something to provide
relief where that one thing is concerned? If so, do it.
Now. Forget the task force, the bureaucracy, or all
the reasons it can’t be done. If it’s a problem, and it’s
interfering with your employees accomplishing your
mission, and you have the power to fix it, fix it.
8. The next time you get ready to make a
pronouncement about something, ask yourself if you
know what you’re talking about before proceeding. If
your people know more about the thing you’re
preparing to opine on, maybe you should get their
input first.
9. The next time you’re flying with a member
of your team, and you get upgraded to first class,
and they don’t, trade seats with them.
10. The next time you want to chew out one of
your people, stop and think better of it. Compose
yourself. Then compose your message. Then have a
constructive discussion with them about what went
wrong. To be sure, you shouldn’t cloud the message.
But bloviating only rarely produces the desired
results. Take a more reasoned approach, and you’ll
feel better, your blood pressure will remain lower,
they’ll feel better, and there’ll be a better chance for
change than if you blow up all over them.
11. The next time you’re tempted to send an
email to an employee who is in the same building as
you, don’t. Get up and deliver the message in person.
12. Fire a nonperformer. But wait! Everything
heretofore has been so kind and affirming. This
suggestion is no different. The longer you wait to do
what will have to be done, and which you should
have done months (years?) ago, the more cruel it is
to the nonperformer, everyone around them, your
customers, and your shareholders. If you feel you
need permission to say goodbye to someone who
needs to go, consider this your permission.
13. This one is for CEO’s, VP’s, Directors, and
other managers who manage managers. Suppose you
lead your organization according to what we’ve come
to know as Contented Cow principles – you know –
treat people right – make more money. BUT, you’ve
got a manager in your downline that manages by
running roughshod over his or her people. We don’t
care if they’re bringing home the bacon in the short-
term. As good as you may be, if you continue to
tolerate a habitual morale-breaker, your credibility is
out the window. Bottom line? If that person’s a
manager, but a lousy leader, then he or she is a
nonperformer. See item # 12 above.
14. After, and only after, you’ve accomplished
half of the items on this list, reward yourself with
something you enjoy. When you finish the whole list,
reward yourself again. You need a little positive
reinforcement for doing a great job, too.
