Friday, January 25, 2008
Putting Out Fires
During an out-of-town supplier visit, I was offered use of an unoccupied cubicle for the better part of an afternoon between appointments. I was somewhat shocked to witness the bedlam within a particular department. In a nutshell,
* employees were beyond frustrated—highly stressed—and shouting at each other across cubicle walls
* no one listened to the others creating confusion
* gossip and rumors were prevalent
* every customer request was met with panic and paranoia
Now, you would think the company would put on its best face while a potential customer was in the area but that wasn’t the case here. In fact, the team leader was in the midst of the fray - causing much of the anxiety and constantly changing decisions.
Your team will experience those crisis times when everything turns into chaos despite well-laid plans. Crisis is not avoidable and you can create contingency plans to counter them. Gather your team together when they are calm and functioning well. Use this state-of-mind to tap into their collective wisdom and brain power to setup procedures and systems to cover potential problems.
Reality check: Take some time this week to observe your team in action. Are they constantly putting out fires and blaming others? Or, pulling together and creating an environment that serves customers and each other with respect during problem situations?
Develop your team plans to eliminate confusion when the crisis does occur. From a customer perspective, it raises your care and concern for the relationship. From a team perspective, it shows your leadership ability and builds loyalty.
Until next time...live like you mean it!
Marjorie