Category Archives: Strategy

are you setting your front line people up for success?

Are you setting your front line people up for success?

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It was a long flight, so I got up to stretch my legs for a minute. The flight attendant was nice and not in the middle of anything, so I stopped to chat for a minute. She was having a tough day. The coffee had exploded on her three times, leaving spots across her uniform at the start of the flight. Catering did not stock about half the food they should have. She expected to spend the entire flight apologizing. After all, she had 26 years of experience and did not relish being in the position of looking incompetent.

Being on the front line is tough. Especially if the business is not run well. Front line people are left to apologize and take heat for something they have no control over. At the same time, the customer expects a certain level of experience and don’t really care who is to blame. Having a cohesive experience is important. How are you ensuring you meet customer expectations, while not leaving your front line people to flap in the wind?

is there a third option you haven't considered?

Is there a third option you haven’t thought about?

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My dog was at the doggy hotel. Being a rescue dog, she always struggles when I’m out of town. So, I do my best to minimize the time she is there. I was debating the merits of driving back and forth twice in traffic to pick her up, drop her at home, then back into town versus leaving her for a few extra hours at the doggy hotel and making just one trip.

Then it struck me, my plane was getting in early enough and I could pick her up tonight rather than tomorrow. I usually get in too late, so the option didn’t immediately occur to me. But once it did, it was obvious and the best choice—and I couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought about it earlier.

Many times there are better options that don’t present themselves because you are so focused on the choices in front of you. It is only when you step back that other better options present themselves. How are you making space to invite better options to reveal themselves?

what happened to the barf bag?

What happened to the barf bag?

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The flight was relatively smooth and uneventful. So it was a surprise when five people got sick. The flight attendants scrambled to get plastic bags and paper towels to clean up the mess. One of them remarked to me that he felt badly for the people, but was surprised since there was no turbulence. The incident left me thinking it has been some time since I saw the bag in the seat pocket. I checked, and sure enough, there was nothing there. The thing is, the bag isn’t needed most of the time. But when it is needed, it is needed immediately.

In business, there are tools put into place to mitigate risks. But if you take away those tools, you may find a little mess becomes a big mess. Just like turbulence and people getting sick can be predicted, you have situations in your business that can be too. What can you do to put tools in place to mitigate the mess before it happens?

missed sales

Are you missing opportunities that are right in front of you?

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There are several prime parking spots. They are a little wider than the others, nearly a guarantee that you won’t have to shimmy into your car when you come back due to someone parking too close to you. People hold up the line behind them just to get one of these spots. So, it was interesting to watch more than a dozen people drive right by an empty spot. People were looking left to go up the ramp and missed looking right to see the spot.

Achieving results in business is all about where you place your focus. Sometimes the focus is so narrow we miss opportunities right in front of us. How are you making sure you don’t miss opportunities in your business?

How do you make space for ideas?

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how do you make space for ideas?I’m in the final stretches of writing my book. And sometimes I’d get a little stuck. The same has happened in trying to think through problems and opportunities over the course of my career. The ideas come when I make space for them. Sometimes while walking my dog, sometimes in the shower, and other times while listening to the radio.

How do you make space for ideas? If you don’t, what is holding you back from getting started?

Are you building redundancy into your processes because they are broken?

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are you building in extra work because your processes are brokenI went to the bank to update a signature card. It seemed like it should be a straightforward process. But it wasn’t. The fellow on the front line asked me to sign on a little pad several times even though I couldn’t see what I was actually signing for. After a few signatures, he asked me to wait a minute while he printed out the document. He needed additional signatures there as the system automatically deletes the electronic signatures about half the time. Huh?

Imagine if this was your business. Would you want your peoples’ work load to be double because the system doesn’t work? Would you want your customers to experience this type of situation? Most businesses are trying to find a way to increase productivity and engagement. This one little instance indicates there is probably a lot of opportunity. How are you building mechanisms into your business to report and fix problems proactively?

Longevity and Customer Service-A lesson from the oldest business in the world

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longevity and customer serviceLast week, I was working on my book and got curious about the oldest business in the world. Founded in 705, Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan is a hot spring hotel with 37 rooms in Japan. It has been operated continuously by 52 generations of the same family. Known for its hospitality and hot springs, it is an a worldwide attraction. The pictures of the hot springs are stunning—and so is its longevity. Can you imagine running a business for 1,300 years? It is a great example of knowing what the customer values and delivering it. And that leads to longevity. How are you delivering what your customers value?

Take a deep breath and don’t panic

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Don't panic and take a deep breathAs I write this, the Dow just dropped more than 1,500 points and it is happening quickly. This following significant declines last week—on good news (jobs growth and higher wages). Concerns about inflation and the impact of a new Fed chair are getting a lot of focus, as is the impact of electronic trading. Opinions vary between “there is a lot of upside in the year” to “a correction is overdue.” Sometimes it is better not to panic and just take a deep breath. The thing is, it will eventually go back up. And there may be a few opportunities along the way.

In your business there will be times when panic and inertia take hold. The key is to keep focused on the fundamentals and not to panic. As a leader, you can bring calm. And in that calm, you may find a few opportunities. How are you making sure panic doesn’t gain hold in your organization?

Finding Success in a Belly Flop

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the belly flopIt was one of those moments where you watch in slow motion, make a face and think “that must have hurt.” My 75 pound yellow lab was running full speed toward the stairs to take a flying leap. She hit the rug at the bottom of the stairs just wrong enough to make the rug slide. Her legs slid sideways and she hit the stairs on her chest and belly at full speed. She stood up, took a few deep breaths, looked me in the eye then took another run at full speed and accomplished her mission.

Launches don’t always go right. Sometimes there is something that goes a bit sideways the first time. If you take a look at your approach, you may just find that course correction that is necessary to make it a success. How are you creating the conditions in your business to drive success?

Clarity

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Are you clear?I was having coffee with a new acquaintance when she asked about what makes the difference between companies with a good strategy and those that don’t have one.  It comes down to clarity.  It starts with leadership. They are clear about the purpose of the business. There is an alignment of values, both personal and professional.  That guides who business is conducted with, how people are treated, what the business does, etc.  It shows up in the passion and energy in the people at every level. With clarity, everything becomes simple and people get it.  Unnecessary complexity falls away and the business runs well. Do you have clarity in your business?