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By Debra Bulkeley, Executive Editor -- Electronic Business, 6/13/2006
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Jeff Gee knows what it takes to boost employee productivity and improve communications skills. Case in point: Motorola, one of his clients, enjoyed a 17 percent increase in its customer retention rate after going through one of Gee’s programs for a one-year period.
Although Gee’s approach may seem “touchy-feely” to some, his message is the stuff of executive management 101: Teach your managers how to be excellent communicators (by example) and empower them, and their positive attitude will trickle down to your employees. Possible reward: a profitable business. |
Gee, who has written several books on management and customer service techniques, co-authored his most recent one, The Winner’s Attitude, with his wife, Val Gee. They are founding partners of The McNeil & Johnson Learning Company, a 23-year-old corporate training firm. Among their other high- tech clients are Computer Associates, Siemens and Tellabs.
Here, Gee talks about some of the strategies executives can use to help improve employee performance.
Q: I read that you spoke to Motorola employees and then the company’s customer retention rate increased by 17%. How did you help the company achieve that?
Gee: We had about 200 Motorola customer service employees who serviced one of the company’s major distributors go through one of our programs over a one-year period.
The managers had our “manager’s toolkit” and had to go through the program with their employees for the year; they had to do specific tasks with their people. We had them “smile as you dial.” I know that sounds corny, but people can tell when you are smiling over the phone when you speak with them. We had a “10 ways to diffuse unhappy customers” list that we went over with them, as another example. We also took all the chairs out of meeting rooms; their meetings were much shorter as a result and much more productive.
Q: What is the message of The Winner’s Attitude?
Gee: We are talking about people’s taking responsibility in the workforce,; taking responsibility every day. The Winner’s Attitude is about bringing a winner’s attitude to the office every day.
What this means is that employees step up to the mark instead of getting upset.
I don’t know any corporation that doesn’t have change taking place. All of the things that upset people are going to keep happening. So what we talk about with the executives is how their employees can take responsibility for themselves every day.
Q: How do you coach the executives on how to do that?
Gee: We ask them if they’re out there communicating with their employees and how they handle the message to them so that they “get it.” The key for executives is the way they act and how they communicate this to their managers. We have an old saying in England—the message is, “Send reinforcements, we’re going to advance.” By the time the message gets to the front lines, it’s “We’re going to a dance.” Executives have to make it clear and understandable to the middle managers, so that it’s clear to the employees.
Q: Are executives communicating effectively with their employees?
Gee: We find that executives spend only about an hour a week with their employees—and that’s really not enough. Everyone is busy, but the time you invest up front is enormous as an investment for the future. Communication is the single most important factor in establishing relationships in the workplace. Productivity would zoom if we communicated more and effectively.
Q: What do managers tend to overlook when it comes to motivating employees?
Gee: You need to understand each individual and what motivates that person. What we need to look at and understand is that what motivates me won’t motivate you. For a lot of people, motivation is about self-worth and appreciation; it’s really about understanding the individual you are dealing with.
Q: What do you think is missing in today’s business world?
Gee: We’re missing that huge factor called the human touch.
Q: Any final advice?
Gee: If you manage your people in the true sense of being able to communicate, coach and motivate, you really can rule the world. If people are motivated and excited, they really will do anything for you.
| 3 golden rules of successful management
1. You must “walk the walk” you tell employees to walk. Everybody is watching everybody.
2. Test your message with your middle managers—and executives should observe their middle managers at their meetings. Do they understand the overall picture of the corporation and what you’re trying to achieve?
3. Give feedback to each other, with nobody taking it personally.
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Hope you enjoy the article.
Jeff |
