Barry Banther's Blog

"How's business?" Have you been asked that lately? Chances are that even your employees are curious about how you see things. If you are positive then it gives them reason to relax.

But we live in a world where predicting the future has become tough. Instead, talk about "today's business". What customers (or clients) will we serve today? How can we do more than they expect? How can we make a profit on today's work?

Your employees will be more encouraged. Your customers will be more pleased. And string together a week of these and you just might have a good answer to "How's business?"

Be encouraged,
Barry

I can't believe I actually wrote that. But wait, I am serious. Your manners matter now more than ever. Few, if any, of your employees jump out of bed like it's Christmas morning and head to work. In fact, by the time they get to work they have had to deal with all sorts of problems - child care, illness, juggling bills, checking on a parent, figuring out a schedule, etc.

The mood you set at work can either push them up or push them overboard! Do these three things everyday: first, personally greet every employee. Don't wait for them to come by your office. Go to them. Say good morning and engage them in a brief and encouraging conversation. Save the work orders for a little later.

Second, throughout the day make sure you thank them at every opportunity. And no, they should not be thanking you that they have a job. It actually costs you about $12,000 out of pocket to replace a good employee. You can't afford for them to feel ignored and unappreciated.

And third, try to catch them at the end of the day and wish them well for the rest of the evening. You will probably be the only person in their life saying good morning, thank you and hope you have a good evening. The payoff? Well, no team ever performed at a high level for a boss they detested!  

Be encouraged,
Barry

There is often a debate over whether to set specific goals or stay nimble and just respond to market forces. Behind the debate is the pursuit of perfection - a foolish effort. 

Of course you want your team to set measurable goals that will help direct their daily effort. But you also want them to be ready to come off the goal and pursue a new opportunity when it appears. 

This is where you come in. As their manager, you should be the first to call an audible. And if the play fails, be the first to shout "No problem! We'll get 'em next time!" This is the reason coaches are on the sidelines, where they can see the field, and captains are at the helm to see the horizon. 
By the way, where are you positioned today? 

Be encouraged,

Barry

Believe or not, it's possible! In my professional association are two guys known as "The Passing Zone" and they even juggle chain saws! But c'mon, how can a manager plan, lead, and do all in the same breath?

Well, it's the new normal so accept it. Remember when schoolteachers had a planning period during the day? That's your cue. Try to block out an hour a day, with the door shut, to do nothing but plan and prioritize. And if nothing else, thirty minutes.

Don't try to put it off until once a week. The tyranny of the urgent will consume you and your planning and prioritizing will be on the fly. Make it incremental and make it daily.

Now that I think about it - you are attempting the most difficult juggling act everyday - people!

Be encouraged,

Barry

Do you expect the team you manage to just "get the job done" (compliance) or do you expect a lot of "cross functional communication" to get the job done right every time (collaboration)?

Your customer or clients expectations have become diverse and demanding. Every team member in the process needs to be aware of how their work is impacting everyone else and what they must do if your team is to score.

So, coach, what will you do today to move your team from compliance to collaboration?

Be encouraged,

Barry

Everyone likes to brag that they have a lean team. Over the past few years this has come to mean that when someone leaves, their work is absorbed by the rest of the team. But a closer look often reveals a different reality. A lot of employees have become so overloaded that instead of being lean, their leaning and in danger of falling over!

First, do you have a comprehensive list of what is essential for each job on your team? Do you really know what work is essential for customer/client delight and what is simply the routine that has always been done?

Second, is every associate on your team able to complete their essential tasks for the day - every day? Or, are they taking work home or scrambling to make it up first thing the next morning? What is the work to results ratio that you expect and your team shoots for?

Third, do your associates have to put off training or other essential planning activities because they are too busy? Just being busy is not productive or profitable.  Take a deep breath and ask your team to evaluate the current workload. Are they lean - getting all essential customer tasks completed on time and within budget? Or are they leaning - constantly having to shift something to get something else done because it is the biggest fire of the day?

Be encouraged,

Barry

It's time to make the switch. It's time to stop pretending that you as the manager know better than anyone else what needs to be done and when. And it's time to stop creating a workforce that waits for your signal on what to do next.

The key to being profitable in today's climate is to invest your time developing the talent of your team. First, do an exhaustive inventory of each team member's strengths and opportunities for improvement. 
Just like the NFL, combine before the draft - know everything about your team's talent.

Second, deploy each person according to their individual strengths. Show them how to succeed at their job from what they do well and not just in the way you want it done.

Third, don't expect them to completely overcome weaknesses. Instead look for and reward incremental improvement and encourage partnering with other teammates to make improvements together.

Bonus - when recruiting new associates do so from their talent and not their "likability." So, which will build a high performance team - managing the tasks or managing the talent?

Be encouraged,

Barry

We all want certainty. We want our plans to meet our expectations. We want our team to perform according to schedule. We want our suppliers and our customers to do exactly as we want. And then we wake up and realize we're dreaming!

The advent of continuous communication, via the net, forever changed the notion of certainty. The market disruption that has become the norm requires us to always be facing a foggy future. So, how do you develop a "high tolerance for ambiguity"?

First, admit the obvious - everything is changing constantly. Let yourself off the hook that there is something wrong with your management if things aren't perfect. Second, learn how to move quickly from side-to-side. If one task is late, then how can you move over and tackle another one? If someone else makes a big mistake how can you take immediate small steps to recover?

Third, find a way to use your skills, and that of your team, to help others handle their ambiguity. You can be a sounding board, you can help brainstorm solutions, and you can help redeploy resources to keep their schedule on track. When all around you people are bailing water as fast as they can, you want to be the guy selling bigger buckets!

Be encouraged,

Barry

Francis Bacon, one of the greatest thinkers in history, wrote these insightful words, "Old wood is best to burn, old wine best to drink, old friends best to trust and old authors best to read."

How can you claim to be a competent manager and not be continuously reading something by Peter Drucker?

Drucker is gone now but his influence grows. He was the father of modern management and the first genuine leadership mentor in the western world.

Google him. Click on anything he has written. Read it. You will be a better manager in days and a better person immediately.

Be encouraged,
Barry

When was the last time you had an honest talk with your boss? A talk where you shared a well thought out projection on where your team was headed and what it would take to get there? 

When is the last time you revealed a mistake she hadn't caught yet but you wanted to be out in front and minimize the damage?

When are you going to tell him those concerns that keep bothering you and you try to ignore? On this issue I have met two kinds of managers: those who are transparent and talented, and those who are hiding and hopeful.

Which one are you?
Be encouraged,
Barry