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By
Greg Smith
Management
consultant Greg Smith says the way you TAKE CHARGE of your employees
in these difficult times could shape the future of your company.
In the days and weeks since the terrorist attacks, the American
workforce has been on an emotional roller coaster. People have fallen
to terrible lows of fear, grief and depression, risen to mountain
top experiences of national patriotism, and fallen again. On and
on it goes. While no one knows the outcome of our current situation,
one fact is indisputable: the out-of-control emotions of our employees
will have an impact on our organizations. How can business leaders
lead in the wake of this tragedy? That is the question that management
consultant Gregory P. Smiththe president of Chart Your Course International
has been pondering.
No two people will respond to these events in exactly the same way,
says Smith, a military veteran who truly speaks from experience.
Some may seem unaffected, others may exhibit out-of-the-ordinary
behavior, still others may react in dramatic ways. In offices across
the United States, employees have walked off the job out of fear.
One person e-mailed me and said his employer fired him because he
failed to show up for work the day after the attack. The employee's
excuse? He was depressed. What a terrible thing for an employer
to do!
Smith believes managers have a critical role to play in these uncertain
times; indeed, how managers treat their employees today will continue
to resonate tomorrow. Just as the United States is forming a strategy
to combat terrorism, he says, managers need a strategy for helping
their companies get through the current crisis. He offers the following
10 steps which he has organized under the acronym, TAKE CHARGE for
managing, motivating and leading your employees in a radically changed
work environment:
T - Target fears and anxiety.
Employers who act appropriately and provide a supportive workplace
will go a long way toward improving retention and loyalty after
life begins to return to normal. People traverse a span of emotions
during crisis situations, beginning with their individual safety
and that of their family, moving on to the safety of their friends,
and finally experiencing concern about their job and their financial
security. Managers should have plans to address each of these concerns
in order of importance.
A - Accept the fact that performance and productivity will drop.
People respond differently in crisis situations. Expect to see difficulty
concentrating, forgetfulness, requests for sick leave and increased
absenteeism all normal responses. People will need to talk more,
a natural aspect of dealing with tragedy. The more they talk, the
healthier the organization becomes. Sincere expressions of concern
and help with simple, daily tasks will go a long way toward improving
productivity.
K - Keep communication open.
Information is powerful an energy source. Meet with staff members
at all levels to express grief, as well as to promote available
resources and other services. By using grief focus groups and town
hall meetings, you can go a long way toward helping people deal
with the crisis. Keep Web sites updated and provide a place for
people to watch or listen to the news at the workplace.
E - Educate managers and supervisors.
Front-line supervisors and managers should be equipped with the
resources, information and authority to assist employees as close
to the front-line as possible. Unless you work in a small organization,
avoid centralizing this responsibility. Many companies have alienated
their workforce by giving one person the sole responsibility to
approve schedule changes and sick leaves. Centralizing causes employees
to face long lines, unreturned voice mails and greater frustration,
alienation and anger.
C - Calm, confident and reassuring leadership style.
Dont underestimate the importance of your personal leadership style.
In times of crisis, a heroic style of leadership becomes important.
Managers should attempt to compartmentalize their personal fears
and feelings. Follow the examples of Mayor Giuliani and President
Bush, both of whom have done much to gain the confidence of the
American people.
H - Help those in need first.
First and foremost, make no assumptions on how people feel in a
time of crisis. Some individuals may need professional assistance
so be sure they understand how to access the employee assistance
program (EAP). Family members and employees activated for military
service are particularly vulnerable. Identify employees who have
family members in the military and know which employees are in the
reserve and National Guard. Insure that they know that, by law,
employees activated for military service will be guaranteed a job
when they return from active duty.
A - Allow people to display their emotions.
People are as diverse as their emotions and they display them in
different ways. Allow them to display flags, momentos and other
forms of patriotism. Let them know it is OK to cry and that anger
is a natural part of acceptance and recovery. Some truly caring
companies always make provisions for their employees spiritual and
emotional health. In Smiths new book, he tells about Interstate
Battery Companys employment of a full-time chaplain to assist people
with grief and other emotional issues.
R - Restrict negative behavior.
Even though anger is a natural part of this process, make sure you
draw the line to prevent actual abuse, harassment and verbal venting
toward other people. Make it clear, in no uncertain terms, that
behavior of this sort will not be tolerated and will be dealt with
in the strictest terms.
G - Get people to focus on a higher calling.
The purpose of terrorism is to have an impact on the greatest number
of people. Terrorism inflicts psychological damage on peoples self-worth,
it violates them and attempts to rob them of control over their
life. Managements role is to give control back to people in order
to focus, to motivate them toward a cause where they can feel they
can make a difference. Therefore, getting employees to help with
a charity, donate blood or to focus on something that gives them
a feeling of control will motivate people to move on.
E - Expect and plan for recurrences.
Most terrorist attacks and crisis are over and done with quickly.
This wont be true here. With military deployments and the possibility
of war facing Americans, the psychological trauma will be with us
for a long time to come. Keep your disaster plans and emergency
notification rosters updated. Prepare yourself for what could be
a long and emotional campaign facing America. Embracing these ten
steps is not only the right thing to do, says Smith, it is the smart
thing to do from a business standpoint.
Remember, in the opening scene of the movie Gladiator, how Maximus
rallies his soldiers with the words “What we do in life “echoes
in eternity? he says. Well, the same is true in the workplace. Your
employees will remember how you treated them during this highly
emotional time. If you want your company to be a place the best
and the brightest will want to work in the future, you must be very
careful what you do in the here and now. Just be aware that this
crisis could be a test not only for our nation, but for many of
our companies and careers.
Greg Smith is the founder and president of Chart Your Course International,
a management development firm located in Atlanta. He is the author
of Here Today, Here Tomorrow: Transforming Your Workforce from High-Turnover
to High-Retention and the publisher of the Navigator newsletter.
He is formerly a Lieutenant Colonel in the Army and was a consultant
to the Army Surgeon General. He served during Operation Desert Storm
and was involved with managing the aftermath of other terrorist
attacks involving military forces overseas.
A
strong Unique Selling Proposition helps you to stand out in a crowded
field.
How do you judge the effectiveness of your start-up marketing efforts?
Easy...does it produce results? Great looking ads, fancy logos and
flashy web sites are worthless if they don't bring business to your
door. This list of 10 common marketing mistakes can help you produce
better results.
1. Not Having a Clearly Defined USP.
Do you want to fit in or stand out? In order to thrive in today's
cluttered marketplace, every business owner must be able to clearly
articulate an answer to the question, "Why should someone do
business with you rather than your competitor?" "What
makes you unique? Your answer to these questions constitutes your
Unique Selling Proposition. Do you offer the lowest price? Do you
offer a no risk guarantee? A strong USP helps you to stand out in
a crowded field.
2. Selling Features Rather than Benefits.
Someone once said, "No one ever bought a drill bit. Millions
of people have bought a hole" People don't buy features, they
buy benefits. They are tuned into Radio Station W.I.I.F.M. (What's
in it for me?) Tell them clearly how the features of your product/service
will help them, make their life easier, etc.
3. Not using headlines in print advertisements.
You have at most a couple of seconds to grab someone's attention
when they read a newspaper, magazine etc. Using an attention-grabbing
headline ensures that the reader will continue to read the rest
of the advertisement. The headline is an ad for the ad. Take a look
at some
newspaper ads. Which ones attract your attention? You will probably
find they have utilized an effective headline.
4. Not testing headlines, price points, packages, pitches, everything.
How do you know what ad, what price, what offer most appeals to
customers? By putting them to a vote. Test everything. Rather than
running one newspaper ad for three weeks, why not run three different
ads for three weeks and measure which draws better? Rather than
putting all your advertising into newspaper, why not split between
three magazines and measure the results? Why not price your products/services
at different points and see which sells more? Is cheaper always
better? Not necessarily. Each situation is unique. One price may
outperform another for a myriad of reasons. Your job is not to know
why, but to find what works. Test, test, test.
5. Making it difficult to do business with you.
Are your sales staff knowledgeable about your products? Put yourselves
in your customer's shoes. Don't make them work-they won't. I've
seen a web site that undoubtedly cost the company thousands of dollars
and NOWHERE could I find a phone number or email address. Your customer
has better things to do than struggle to do business with you.
6. Not finding out what your customer's needs are.
What is the first step in filling your customer's needs? Discovering
what they are. What's most important to them? Don't even try to
guess. You may think price is most important when what they really
want is fast service. You may believe fast service is what they
want when what they desperately want is a friendly, personal touch.
How do you find out? People won't tell you unless you ask. So ask.
7. Not maintaining an up to date customer database.
Your customer list is pure gold. Rather than always working to bring
new customers in the door, why not take advantage of the goodwill
you have already built with your existing clientele? Experiment
with extending special offers to your customer base. Ask for referrals.
Send them a card on their birthday. Call and ask what they most
enjoyed about doing business with you (or what they disliked doing
business with you). You worked hard to develop these relationships.
Recognize their value and work hard to "re-delight" them.
8. Not eliminating the risk.
What stops a customer from buying from you? Are they unsure that
your offer is worth their hard-earned money? Make it easy to decide
to buy from you. How can you reduce their risk? If you are in a
service business, let them try your service at no cost. If you are
a consultant offer them a free consultation. Offer them a money
back, no questions asked guarantee on any product they buy. Why
not? Are you afraid people will take advantage of you? Give it a
try for a month. You may be very pleasantly surprised. Not confident
in your product or service? Then go to work on improving your service.
9. Not educating your customers
Don't just claim that your service is better. Explain why. Are your
staff better trained? Do you utilize a technology that increases
service turnaround or quality? Don't expect people to just take
your word for things. Quality, Service and Value mean nothing. Everyone
claims to offer these. Make these claims real for the customer by
offering credible explanations why they should do business with
you.
10. Not knowing what works, and sticking with it.
Do you know which ads are effective? What media pulls best? What
offer gets the best reaction? By testing (see above) you will. When
you find something that works, don't change it until you find something
that works better. Just because you're sick of an ad/offer isn't
a good enough reason to change it. You can supplement with other
ads and offers. If it works, keep it.Article by Meir Liraz, president
of BizMove.com (http://www.bizmove.com/), a free informational web
site for entrepreneurs that provides free guides and tips for starting,
growing and managing a start-up. Visit the site at: http://www.bizmove.com.
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