Penny-wise or Penny-foolish?

I went into McDonald’s yesterday to pick up one of the franchises recent new offerings, sweet ice tea for one dollar. I’ve been going there strictly for this product a couple of times a week as it reminds me of my eight years in North and South Carolina where the sweet sun tea is a staple. It’s one of the things I miss about living down there.

The large 32 oz. ice cubed filled drink is on their $1 menu, which with tax comes out to $1.08 in our area. I gave the young, teenage attendant taking my order and collecting my money the dollar bill and dime I brought in to the restaurant with me. 

She replied, “is it okay if I don’t give you change as I don’t have any pennies in my drawer?”

Despite my recent venture into the land of Improv comedy I was speechless, as she turned around and went to fill my order.

Upon here return, I said, “I’m just wondering, what if I had told you I didn’t have any pennies and only gave you one dollar and a nickel?”  The young girl, just smiled and shrugged.

Convenience stores have figured this thing out in most areas, with the “take a penny, leave a penny” cup near the check out counter. Why can’t fast food restaurant franchises do the same, or at least empower their front line personnel to make pennywise customer service decisions?

Is Your Company or Non-Profit a Champion Organization?

I’ve found there are three distinct strategies that champion teams in athletics consistently implement well that leads to the winning of their championships.

The three strategies are:
(to order a Free (limited time) version of the full White Paper & companion audio CD click here):

1) A Compelling Vision & Strategy - this is something all team members are excited to buy-into and are committed to working towards.

2) Leadership Developed throughout the Organization - this is necessary because the coaches and team general manager can not make decisions on the field of play and need captains. Likewise businesses need to develop leaders they can trust to make effective decisions in the best interest of the company.

3) Personnel Management - In athletics teams consistently hold their athletes accountable for the results they achieve and are usually specific with regard to the expectations. Businesses need  to do the same.

How does your organization stack up against those three power strategies to create a Champion Culture?

There are also specific characteristics and traits that Champion Organizations look for when hiring team members. But, those are for another post!

Champion Organization exercise:
On a scale of 1-10 (10=Champion) grade your organization in each of the three power strategies identified above and see how you score.

0-7 =Loser
8-15 = Winner
16-24 = Playoff Team
25-30 = Champion

Have Fun and let me know how you scored with a comment below!

Skip

I've Found My Inspiration, What Inspires You?

I’ve Found My Inspiration, What Inspires You?

Why Communication Issues Always Seem to Cause Low Employee Morale

 I would be able to retire if I received a dime for every time one of my workshop participants told me one of the biggest challenges throughout their company culture was “communication.” Today, in a workshop, if I heard it once I heard it a hundred times within three hours.

What does that mean?

How do you fix a “communication problem?”

It’s actually relatively easy once the “communiation problem” is defined. A lack of specificity regarding the communication problems within a company culture is the primary issue causing low employee morale surrounding that particular issue.

Gaining clarity on fixing the problem requires the answering of two relatively simple questions:

1) If the communication problem were to be fixed how would you know it?

2) What would have to happen in order for the communication problem to go away?

One woman in my workshop today had a breakthrough after I continued to harp on this issue. She raised her hand and said, “I get it, I finally get it! How can I expect other people to do what I want them to do, if I can’t even define it so that I can specifically communicate what I want to them. No wonder I’m having such problems.”

I love seeing that light bulb go on in moments like that.

Get clear on what would be different and how people would communicate more effectively if they were communicating as you would like ‘em to be, and you will be well on your way to fixing your communication problems in your company’s culture and the morale of your employees will gradually begin to improve in direct proportion to the level of specificity in communications throughout the organization.

Why Communication Issues Always Seem to Cause Low Employee Morale

 I would be able to retire if I received a dime for every time one of my workshop participants told me one of the biggest challenges throughout their company culture was “communication.” Today, in a workshop, if I heard it once I heard it two dozen times within three hours.

What does that mean?

How do you fix a “communication problem?”

It’s actually relatively easy once the “communiation problem” is defined. A lack of specificity regarding the communication problems within a company culture is the primary issue causing low employee morale surrounding that particular issue.

Gaining clarity on fixing the problem requires the answering of two relatively simple questions:

1) If the communication problem were to be fixed how would you know it?

2) What would have to happen in order for the communication problem to go away?

One woman in my workshop today had a breakthrough after I continued to harp on this issue. She raised her hand and said, “I get it, I finally get it! How can I expect other people to do what I want them to do, if I can’t even define it so that I can specifically communicate what I want to them. No wonder I’m having such problems.”

I love seeing that light bulb go on in moments like that.

Get clear on what would be different and how people would communicate more effectively if they were communicating as you would like ‘em to be. Do that and you will be well on your way to fixing your communication problems in your company’s culture and the morale of your employees will gradually begin to improve in direct proportion to the level of specificity in communications throughout the organization.

NOTE:
Next blog post will be on “Why there is a lack of specificity in our communications and what to do about it.” Stay tuned. You are always welcome to subscribe to this blog so you can be updated on the most recent blog posts.

Let's Model Companies With Outstanding Company Cultures

Let’s Model Companies With Outstanding Company Cultures

Moving forward, I am dedicating this blog to discussing the characteristics of Champion Organizations, thus the new official URL of the same title.

I am in search of anecdotal real life stories of outstanding company and organizational cultures so that subscribers of this blog can believe that enjoyable working environments do exist.

Each year Fortune Magazine identifies the best companies to work for. Much of the criteria for making the Fortune list is centered around employee satisfaction and employee engagement.

Check out the 2009 Top 100 List which comes out every January.

One company you won’t see on that list, as it is strictly for U.S. companies, is U.K. based restaurant chain Pret a Manger. Pret prides itself on offering its customers a unique dining experience serving only fresh food, with absolutely no preservatives. It is privately owned and has a conservative growth strategy.

I was recently exposed to Pret’s corporate philosophy by my former business coach who is based in the U.K., Chris Barrow.

After reviewing Pret’s website and reading their employee guide, I was impressed with the standard they set for their work culture.  I encourage all business leaders to take a look at what Pret expects from the people who create their employee and customer experience. It’s impressive and could be a model for other companies that want to improve their company culture.

You can read more at www.Pret.com/jobs .

The Values & Behaviors list outlined at the above link I have encouraged one of my clients to model in a present project. We’re unveiling the results of the work done by the entire 25 person workforce next week. Can’t wait!

If you know of a company with an outstanding work environment and commitment to providing a unique customer experience, please leave a comment or e-mail me at Info@SkipWeisman.com

50 Hours ‘Til New Site Launch

In just 50 hours my new website will be launched. Everyone who visits the website will have an opportunity to order a FREE CD “The 3 Strategies of Champion Organizations!”

This site is dedicated to business leaders and leaders on non-profits who want to create a motivated, engaged, and enthusiastic workforce. It’s been proven by research that companies with highly engaged employees outperform those with low morale staffs by at least 20%. You can learn more about that research and strategies to help businesses achieve that difference when you listen to the CD and read the accompanying White Paper on which the CD is based.

CD available when the new website launches Monday, April 20th!

New “Champion Organization” Website on the way

I’m just days away from going live with my new website. This one is totally geared towards helping business and non-profit leaders create Champion Organizations. What does that mean, stay tuned for my take, but really its more about your take.

In the coming days/weeks/months/years I’ll be posting my thoughts on the subject while giving real life examples and case studies that I come across

But for now let’s get the discussion started, please leave a comment with your answers:

What does a “Champion Organization” look like?  

What organizations (for profit or non-profit) would you consider “Champion” caliber?

What makes an organization or business a “Champion”?

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