Category: Leadership

I Should Have Dared to be More Different

As many of you know, I had a big hand in co-creating the Engaging for Growth conference earlier this year. I came up with the name, wrote nearly all the online content, compiled a special newspaper for the event, convinced all (bar one) of our great speakers to join us, and convinced the good people at TED to let us show Dan Pink’s Science of Motivation video (as far as I know this was a world first). And though I say so myself, the event was largely successful. It was good fun, we created a buzz, a sense of community. We got lots of lovely feedback about how we’d managed to make the day a little different from the normal, run of the mill event. Most importantly we met lots of great new people.

But still I was disappointed. I don’t think we delivered to our full potential and though I learned a lot from the event management company I worked with, too often I made compromises to suit a rather staid formula. You know, the kind of formula that results in event fatigue. People feeling, it was OK, at best. We did much better than that but still not good enough. I don’t blame the event management company. I’m responsible. I should have had the courage to stand up fully for what I believe in. So today, I’m closing the Engaging for Growth chapter.

Tomorrow I will write about the next stage. Engaging Leadership 2010. This time there will be no event management company. Just me and my associate Ian Price, and a whole bunch of friends and genuine experts in support. This time we will dare to be different. And I can hardly wait to tell you more about it.

Courtesy at Work…Works!

A recent article on HRzone about rudeness at work sparked a big debate over at the Bad Behaviour LinkedIn group. We were drawn to a piece by Philip Broughton in last October’s (2009) Management Today called “Manners Maketh Management”, also drawing on Christine Pearson and Christine Porath’s research, “The Cost of Bad Behaviour”. Here are a few key findings.

After a single incident of incivility, 48% said they reduced their effort at work; 80% spent time worrying about it; 78% said their commitment declined; 66% felt their performance declined; 38% intentionally reduced their effort and 12% quit because of uncivil treatment.

Over 60% blame bad behaviour on an excessive workload. 4% say they do it because they like it.

83% of customers who witness incivility tell a friend, 55% take a less favourable attitude and 50% were less willing to use the company’s products or services.

Pretty powerful stuff eh?

And then a ray of light from Jonathan Wilson who suggested “The article suggests some of the least civil managers include Michael Leary, Gordon Ramsay, and Alan Sugar. Unfortunately, viewers seem to enjoy TV programmes featuring these people. I wonder how much these programmes encourage people to think that this behaviour is a part of leading high performance, or even worse, necessary?

I have had the pleasure of working for some very successful businessmen who were always courteous, including Michael Bishop, Richard Branson, Peter Drew and Frank Hope. Can others names leaders with whom they have worked who have paired politeness and profit successfully, please? I’m sure you can! I look forward to reading what made them special.”

Well I can’t claim the level of “brand” awareness Jonathan does with his leaders. But – I will always remember Mark Brinicombe. In 1994/5 I spent a whirlwind two years carrying out a number of interesting roles with Dixons Stores Group. I was fortunate to be part of the leadership team which set up, opened and ran the Guildford branch of PC World. Mark was the boss. He was quite a round guy, and was full of energy, good humour, enthusiasm and a desire to succeed. And he knew very well he couldn’t achieve that success alone.

I worked very closely with Mark as we recruited all the staff for the opening and began their training. We got involved with fitting the place out, stocking it, all kinds of things. Mark participated and led. We had to let people go in the induction period and he was always, and I mean always, polite, gentle and supportive when doing this. He would often as a member of the management team to sit in and observe so I witnessed this process first hand a few times.

Mark was able to motivate all the staff, everyone knew what they had to do to make the place buzz. He did this mostly through basic kindness. And enthusiasm and encouragement. I never saw him tell anyone off, and that was a unique experience in my time with this retailer.

There’s lots more I could say about Mark but what was the icing on the cake? Whilst busy at work one day I got a call from my Dad telling me my Grandpa had died. I wasn’t getting on well with my Dad at the time and he was calling me from Scotland on the day of the funeral. Gran had been too upset to call – I found out later. And Dad had just headed off without thinking to contact anyone. I was very upset at missing the chance to pay my last respects to someone I’d been very close to. The next couple of minutes were a little blurry but Mark spotted me and saw immediately something was not right. I was spoken to calmly by him as he guided me outside and we walked along for a little while. Mark was gentle and reassuring as we strolled around, and when back at the car park he walked me to my car and just said; see you when you’re ready. The store was busy at the time and he was needed by many more people than me. Yet he trusted his team, left them to it and gave me some focussed attention. I took the following day off then returned to work. He welcomed me back and we got back to the business of enjoying working together.

Best boss I ever had. One of, if not the very best leader I have worked for.

Thanks Mark.

Destroy

In 1977 my love affair with anger began. The Clash released three singles. White Riot, Remote Control (released without the band’s permission – and you can bet that made ‘em mad) and Complete Control – three minutes ten seconds of blistering fury. Like many kids caught up in this exciting edgy time I argued with pretty much everyone about pretty much everything. In the coming few years my Mum died oh too early by far, my first serious girlfriend left me and I resigned from my first so called proper job. Was I angry? Too fucking right I was.

Life rolled on. I saw fit to dial out the anger so that it became something akin to a passion. Eighteen years ago I married Carole (she still puts up with me) and I’m an extremely proud dad. Far less angers me than before. On some days I enjoy feeling quite relaxed, happy and peaceful.

Not today. Today, it feels like 1977.

Just as I and others crawled from the punk rock wreckage all those years ago, we now crawl from another wreckage. The financial wreckage caused by a culture of bad behaviour, and driven from the heart by the dreaded bonus payment. How folks railed against the short termism and greed that drove us into the banking crisis and subsequent market collapse. Like a two chord punk chorus I hear:

Hands were wrung

Heads were bowed

We will learn from this

We MUST learn from this…(to fade)

This month I read an article in HR Magazine. It’s titled “Restructuring of bonuses will mean they will be harder to earn”. Huh? The article starts:

“UK firms are putting more emphasis on bonuses as the economy emerges from the downturn, but bonus structures are changing, meaning staff have to work harder to get them. According to a new report from the Hay Group, employers are making short-term incentives harder for employees to earn, and subjecting them to greater scrutiny at the highest level.”

OK, so having seen first hand the value destroying, anti-collaborative behaviour that short term financial incentives drive, we’re gonna do it all over again. With a twist. We’ll let these sweet bonus carrots dangle a little further away. That way folks will have to focus even harder on the carrot, and from there I put it to you a stronger focus on the value destroying behaviour necessary to bag the carrot will emerge. Not happy? Furious more like!

The case to ban financial incentives was one I first became really active on back in December 2008. We ran a workshop with some bright enthusiastic minds in and around BT. The purpose of coming together was to uncover the most effective ideas needed to improve customer service. Banning financial incentives was an idea agreed on by all in attendance. There were other exciting ideas around clearer dialogue and communication but it was the “don’t incentivise me, just pay me” discussion that flared. Since then I’ve looked in all kinds of corners (University of Miami, Harvard, the studies of Dan Pink to name a few), and discussed with all kinds of folk. And I find lots of useful practical examples of why these bonuses don’t work. I’ve pulled this journey together into a white paper (not a white riot) which you are welcome to take, read, argue with, whatever you like. As well as examples, it cites behavioural references which you may find useful. Or in true punk style, you may not give a damn. If you really like, we can have a “who can swear the loudest?” competition to decide whether there’s anything in this bonus = bad behaviour lark. What do you think? Joe Strummer must be pogoing in his grave!

So how the hell am I gonna calm down now? Well I kept on reading and looking and I found two further interesting conversations. The first, called “You’re Getting a Bonus so Why Aren’t You Motivated?” was started on the Harvard Business Review by Eric Mosley, CEO and co-founder of Globoforce. I don’t know Eric but I know one of his colleagues, Derek Irvine. Derek talks a lot of sense, and crafts interesting arguments. One of the places he writes is at HRzone and I recommend you catch up with what he has to say about recognition. Back in the room, the article Eric wrote generated an interesting discussion on the subject and it’s well worth a read. The other interesting conversation is emerging on a LinkedIn discussion group called Employee Communications and Engagement.It’s called “How Do You Recognise Your Employees Besides Giving Them an Award?”  There’s some simple, honest and powerful suggestions about how to do recognition sincerely. If you’re on LinkedIn track it down and take a look.

So, I’m calmer now. The perma-rage of the late 70s and early 80s doesn’t cling like it used to. I’ve just seen my daughter leave for her last day at infant’s school. Before she left, Keira kissed me and told me she loves me. She’s excited. I’m proud and humbled, like so many dads, by their daughter’s kindness. And I haven’t had to buy it.