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Editor: Dr. Wolf J. Rinke
Publisher: Wolf Rinke Associates, Inc.
(c) 2006 Wolf J. Rinke
Vol. 9 No. 1, February/March 2006
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Feel free to forward this eNewsletter to others.
To get your own FREE subscription go to the end of this eNL
IN THIS ISSUE
1. NEWS YOU CAN USE
2. DON'T HAVE PEOPLE WORK FOR YOU--Part I
3. MONEY SAVING OFFER--FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY
4. HUMOR BREAK
5. HEAR WOLF HOWL--I MEAN SPEAK
6. ABOUT THE EDITOR
7. PRIVACY STATEMENT AND SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
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REALITY CHECK
"The most powerful leadership strategy of all times:
Treat all employees as if they are volunteers."
--Wolf J. Rinke
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1. NEWS YOU CAN USE
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The proof is in: Employee satisfaction translates directly to the bottom
line. The annual returns of the Fortune "100 Best Companies to
Work For" in 2005 consistently beat the S&P 500 by an average
of 6-7% depending on how you calculate it--1 year vs. 10 years. The
Best Company to Work for in 2005--Genentech--beat the S&P by a whopping
70%.
ACTION STEPS
Treat everyone of your team members as if he or she is a volunteer.
(For specifics see below or read "Don't Oil the Squeaky Wheel and
19 Other Contrarian Ways to Improve Your Leadership Effectiveness."
http://www.WolfRinke.com
Source: M. Boyle, "Happy People, Happy Returns," Fortune,
Jan. 23, 2006, p. 100.
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2. DON'T HAVE PEOPLE WORK FOR YOU--Part I
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Watch your mouth! People don't work for you, they certainly don't work
under you--that's outright stupid, unless you are an inspector at a
brothel in Nevada--and they are not your subordinates! All of us work
for only one person--ourselves. The reason you want to watch your language
is that it gives people a look into your soul and lets them know what
you are really all about.
However that is a minor point. I want to take you to another level
by sharing the single most important event that has enabled me to transform
myself from an "it's-my-way-or-the-highway" autocratic manager
to becoming a Contrarian Leader.
How I Saw the Light
Having served in the Army Medical Specialist Corps for some twelve years
I found myself coasting. The challenge was waning, I was not stretched
to the max and so I was no longer juiced. I knew that I could "retire"
in eight years and so I did not want to throw 12 years of service down
the drain. Besides I had a three year commitment to pay the military
back for supporting my PhD. So I got heavily involved in my professional
organization. Within several years I was a Board member and the Chair
for one of the divisions--the Council on Education. In that role the
Board looked to me to implement new Standards of Education, which had
been in limbo for countless years. A team of 12 professionals was on
my committee. All highly educated, all volunteers, all having their
own agenda. I quickly became aware that all the "crutches"
that I relied on as an autocratic manager did not work. For example,
one of my committee members, lets call her Julie, was really gung-ho.
Any time there was a project to be done she was the first one to volunteer.
There was only one minor problem--Julie seldom delivered. Forget delivering
on time, she just did not deliver. At work, when any of my employees
did that, I could counsel them and if that did not work I could use
the ultimate "crutch"--I could fire them. Trying that with
Julie however produced just the opposite results. Her response: "Hey
I don't need this, I'm outa here--more time with the family." One
of my most powerful crutches was gone.
But as an autocratic manager I had others. I could withhold pay raises
and other benefits such as going to training, getting a corner office
etc. In any event Andre, another of my committee members, had this inconsiderate
habit of showing up late or not at all for our committee meetings. So
I used my other big "crutch." I told Andre that I was going
to cut his pay. Andre's response: "Now let's see, zero from zero
is still zero pay." And then it hit me--my autocratic crutches
simply did not work with volunteers. I had to develop an entirely different
skill set to motivate these people to get things done. (See the steps
below.) And after I had mastered them, a really big light went on for
me. This was not just a light, it was a defining moment that enabled
me to transform myself from an autocratic manager to a Contrarian Leader.
Are you ready for it? This is BIG! Drum roll please!
Treat all employees as if they are volunteers.
Now, stop and think, what would you say to your team members if indeed
they were volunteers? How about: "Please." "Thank you!"
"Can I count on you?" "I need your help." "I
really appreciate what you've done." "Thanks for being on
my team!" "Thanks for showing up." And now the one that
blows the autocratic managers away: "Could you do me a favor?"
That one I can tell you just doesn't sit well with lots of managers.
Here are some of the things they have said to me: "What are you
talking about? You're paying them, they owe you a good job." Or
"You've got to be nuts. They are not doing you any favor, it's
their job," and so on, and on. All really good arguments, and all
really, really incorrect. (If you agree with any of these, its time
to wake up and smell the coffee because the only thing pay will do is
get people to show up, and stay with you. Not bad, but certainly not
peak performance.) And the fastest way to achieve peak performance is
to treat all employees as if they are volunteers.
How to Treat Employees Like Volunteers
Give people something to be passionate about
People volunteer and devote inordinate amounts of energy, time and resources
if they are passionate about a cause they believe in. You can engage
the same passion in your employees by having them align themselves with
the passion of the founder--think Jeff Bezos at Amazon--or the passion
of the culture of the organization-- think Recreational Equipment Incorporated
better known as REI-- or the passion driven by the corporate philosophy--think
Johnson & Johnson. (By the way the latter two are preferred ways
of stimulating internal motivation since sooner or later the CEO retires
or departs for less positive reasons, think Martha Stewart, Bernie Ebbers
of Worldcom, or Samual Waksal of Imclone. And the way to institutionalize
this is to build a positive organizational culture.
Build a positive organizational culture
A culture where people want to come to work. (The emphasis is on the
words want to.) Virtually all of the successful companies I have ever
consulted with accomplish that by taking employee job satisfaction very
seriously. Most measure it at least once a year, several tie compensation
of managers to the level of employee satisfaction and virtually all
utilize a wide variety of informal systems, such as "breakfast
with the boss," employee "town hall meetings," schmoozing
with employees, functional suggestion boxes etc. In short, do whatever
you can to keep your finger on the pulse of how satisfied your employees
are. Lest you think this is frivolous, studies now show that there is
a positive correlation between level of employee satisfaction and customer
satisfaction. In other words if your employees are satisfied, your customers
will be satisfied, your sales with increase and your bottom line will
improve! Herb Kelleher, former CEO of Southwest Airline, said it best:
"If we ever lose our culture we will have lost our most valuable
competitive asset."
Case in point. Dennis Madson started as a part-time employee stocking
shelves 36 years ago at REI. Today he is the president and CEO of the
6,300-employee, $735 million cooperative that sells specialty gear to
avid campers, hikers, climbers and others with a passion of the great
outdoors. The same company that has shown up on the Fortune list of
the "100 best companies to work for" seven years in a row.
(In 2005 they were #9.)The secret, according to an interview with Dennis
Madsen in the May 2003 Harvard Business Review, is getting the culture
right. "Employees can get benefits and incentives anywhere, but
it's harder for them to find a place where they can totally immerse
themselves in the culture. We attract outdoors-oriented employees who
sustain the culture and attract even more like-minded employees. They
share the same interests and values, they're committed to the environment,
to the community, to work-life balance, and to having fun outside."
In the next issue of this eNewsletter (#9-2 www.WolfRinke.com) you
will discover eight other specific things you can do that will ensure
that you treat all of your team members as if they are volunteers.
SOURCE: Based in part on Chapter 10 of my book "Don't Oil the
Squeaky Wheel and 19 Other Contrarian Ways to Improve Your Leadership
Effectiveness," McGraw-Hill, 2004, (See the special offer below.)
http://www.WolfRinke.com
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3. MONEY SAVING OFFER--FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY
=================================================== My Latest Book Don't
Oil the Squeaky Wheel and 19 Other Contrarian Ways to Improve Your Leadership
Effectiveness,
by W. J. Rinke. McGraw Hill Price: $14.95.
"Tells you what you need to know to win in the game of leadership
in these turbulent times."
--J. W. Marriott, Jr., Chairman of the Board and President, Marriott
International, Inc.
POWERFUL CD: How to Motivate Employees to Achieve Peak Performance.
Publisher Price: $19.95.
This LIVE audio by yours truly (~60 mins.) will teach you how to build
a positive organizational culture that will achieve quantum leaps in
performance, productivity and profitability.
Both book and CD--$24.90 + s/h. SAVE $10.00!
------------------------- Offer expires 4/1/2006 -------------------------------
Log onto http://www.wolfrinke.com/SpeciaSW.htm or call 800-828-9653.
Mention this ad when ordering by phone! Offer expires 1/15/2006.
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4. HUMOR BREAK
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The boss was complaining in the all-hands meeting that he wasn't getting
any respect. Later he went to a local novelty shop and bought a decorative
sign that read, "I'm the Boss," which he taped to his office
door.
The next day he found that someone had stuck a "sticky-note"
to the sign that read. "Your wife called, she wants her sign back!"
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5. HEAR WOLF HOWL--I MEAN SPEAK
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These full day seminars maybe open to you, especially if your company
is a member of the Institute of Management Studies (IMS). Contact the
Chairperson for additional information.
Achieve Peak Performance by Increasing Your Personal Effectiveness
3/6/06 Amsterdam, Giep Franzen, Amsterdam@ims-online.com
3/9/06 Scotland, Graeme Crawford, Scotland@ims-online.com
8/1/06 Philadelphia, Joe Paesani, Philadelphia@ims-online.com
Don't Oil the Squeaky Wheel and Other Contrarian Ways to Improve Your
Leadership Effectiveness.
3/7/06 London, Mike Matthews, London@ims-online.com
3/10/06 Manchester, Gareth Morris, Manchester@ims-online.com
Winning Management: Building a Peak Performance Workplace
8/22/06 Hartford, CT, Robert Kravits, Connecticut@ims-online.com
10/18/06 Atlanta, GA, Dennis Piehl, Atlanta@ims-online.com
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6. ABOUT THE EDITOR
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Dr. Wolf J. Rinke, CSP is an internationally recognized keynote speaker
and seminar leader who delivers customized presentations that combine
story telling, humor and motivation with specific "how to"
action strategies that participants can apply immediately to improve
their management and personal effectiveness. He is also a highly effective
management consultant, executive coach and author of 13 books including
Don't Oil the Squeaky Wheel and 19 Other Contrarian Ways to Improve
Your Leadership Effectiveness and Winning Management: 6 Fail-Safe Strategies
for Building High-Performance Organizations available at www.WolfRinke.com
To take advantage of Dr. Rinke's services call 800-828-9653 or mailto:WolfRinke@aol.com
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7. PRIVACY STATEMENT AND SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION
===================================================
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