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LESSONS FROM THE TIN HATS Chris Byrnes Why are more and more white collar executives falling from grace these days? Is it because the good guys are getting better at catching the bad guys, or could it be because the pressure to succeed is just so great that cooking the books or breaking the law seems the only solution? The military code of building respect by demonstrating character and integrity seems to be back in vogue as we hear almost daily of revelations about disgraced executives in the dock. It therefore comes as no surprise to hear that some of today's most sought after motivators and staff trainers learned their skills in the service.
More and more, the big companies are turning to ex-military types to help lead and inspire their staff. For example, NASA turned to ex Marine Bill Parsons in June 2002 when they needed someone to create a new culture and install a fresh sense of esprit de corps in the dispirited ranks of the shuttle program.
Today a team of ex-fighter pilots from a Memphis based company called Crew Training International travels the world showing doctors how to apply cockpit crisis training to prevent medical errors in the operating room.
Have you considered talking to your local military commander and putting together a training session for your staff? You may even be able to trade it out in return for some recruitment ads on the radio. Over the years we have been asked to run a number of "boot camps" for air staff as a way to effectively teach new skills and brush up on the basics. From one-day basic training to a complete series, we have developed programs that are proven and work. One of the most effective seminars we developed was designed to build team spirit by bringing in an improv theatre group to teach air staff how to think on their feet and how to listen. I'm sure you've seen the television show "Whose Line Is It Anyway" where the host, Drew Carey, takes suggestions from the audience and assigns roles and scenarios to the comedians. Comics Wayne Brady, Colin Mochrie and other guests must then improvise a skit on the spot. This is theatre at its best. Improvisation is taught in many industries these days for a variety of reasons. It is utilized in my son's school as a way to build self-confidence and esteem when dealing with others. By the way, the listening skills your air staff will develop from a session like this might be the most beneficial thing they will ever learn. How many times have you listened to a morning show that misses a great opportunity because the hosts are not listening to a guest or a caller? Often, they are so busy contemplating their next question that it doesn't even relate to what the guest has just said.
At the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, MBA students spend time at Quantico under the instruction of the Corps' toughest drill instructors. They are also exposed to the Marines' approach of "seat of your pants" problem solving. They are taught how to rapidly assess a situation and build a plan while the team is moving forward in the field. The Marines teach MBA students how to develop a 70% solution and then start executing that solution and make changes on the fly. In warfare things change so fast that a 100% solution can be hard to implement and might simply be too late. Too often radio stations take too long to reach a decision and by the time they develop a plan, the playing field has changed. With consolidation and corporate ownership the decision making process seems to have slowed to a crawl. There is something to be said for the single station owner who can make a decision immediately and move on.
When Second Lieutenant Charles Krulak was in charge of a platoon in Vietnam, he reserved time every day to talk to the soldiers under his command. He didn't always have a specific goal in mind, but he found that that kind of face time built respect and made his platoon a more effective fighting force when the bullets started to fly. Some 33 years later, this decorated soldier still spends part of his day talking to his troops. But today he is in charge of 5,000 workers at a major company based in Europe. And while the focus of all that training and team building has shifted from the battlefield to the boardroom, his old one-on-one approach is still the heart of his strategy. We are all busy these days with greater responsibilities and shorter deadlines. But as a manager of people do you block out time each day to meet one-on-one with your key staff?
It is worth taking a moment to study the military way of management. It is not the stereotypical top-down operation. Nor is it about typical cheerleading or bonuses or sales contests. Instead, the foundation is built on the very simple principles of leadership, courage, determination, honesty, communication and inspiration. Krulak said "In Vietnam there were no gimmicks. There were no incentive programs. People fought and hopefully were successful, because of two very simple things - they cared for their fellow marines and because they respected the person asking them to fight."
Both Parsons and Krulak say the secret to success is great communication, which is why Krulak blocks out two to three hours per day to meet with staff. He wants his staff to know that he cares and he wants to hear their ideas. He went on to say that military men spend a lot of time preparing for a war that may never happen. And while companies today may not deal with life and death situations, the hard tests keep coming like clockwork. In business, the bottom line shows up every month and the report card is called the P&L report. I know of a general manager who blocks out time each week for one-on-one meetings and he tells me he gets some great ideas and feedback from these sessions. From one such meeting came a simple idea to improve customer service. He gave every staff member the right to spend up to $250 instantly if it would either fix a problem or give the customer the level of service they were promised from the radio station, whether they be an advertiser or a listener. I know that the most this radio station has ever spent in a year on this initiative is $1,000, but every staff member knows he or she can put something right if required. Radio stations need to find ways to empower staff, motivate them, and get them more focused on providing better service to both sets of customers. I called a radio station this week to speak to the General Manager and three times the receptionist came back to me to ask my name and who I was trying to reach at the radio station! One thing I have noticed about Canadians is they seldom complain about poor customer service. They would rather not cause a fuss. Chances are they will never return to that establishment again and will likely tell their friends about their bad experience. That kind of reputation has a way of spreading faster than wildfire. In our company, we conduct periodic client satisfaction surveys to determine the opinions our customers have of our work and also to ask for suggestions on how we can improve. I'm happy to report that this year we have achieved a 90% satisfaction level among our growing client base. We're striving for 100% and we will continue to look at new ways to provide an even better service to our customers. Are you doing the same? |
