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Preparing for the Future

Joint FMI-CGA-CMA Workshop

February 13-15, 2007

Hotel Grand Pacific

Victoria, BC

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Michael Berman

bermanmj@comcast.net

253-514-9421

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The BCOM Staff

FISH’n

With

Mike Berman

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Welcome…

Why are we here?

What we already know

• Chopping wood

• Diet and exercise

What is my role?

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Teamwork

• What evidence do you see of teamwork at the fish market?

• How important is teamwork at the fish market?

• Southwest Airlines

• Assembly line/Orchestra

• Desk reference manual

• How do you develop teamwork?

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Choose Your Attitude

• What does “attitude” mean?• How does attitude affect action? • How does your attitude affect other people?• What is an attitude “set point?”• A positive attitude is necessary to “Be

There,” “Make Their Day” or have “Fun”• Choose your attitude; accept the

consequences

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More Attitude…

• What are some words to describe working conditions at the fish market before the current FISH philosophy?

• After the introduction of the FISH Philosophy are these conditions still present?

• What changed?

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Be There

• Shawn said that “being there” is like being with your best friend

• What does “not being there” say to others?• What are the costs of not being fully

present?• Be there; After it becomes a habit, it takes no

more time or energy; it connects you with others, offers support and allows you to learn and grow

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Additional ‘Be There’

• If you choose to BE THERE with a difficult person how would that person know that you were, “being there?”

• How does choosing your attitude help your being there?

• Have you ever needed someone to be there for you and they weren’t?

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Make Their Day

• It can be a new house or car; it can also be a smile, a compliment or an interested question

• It’s that next step beyond just being pleasant• It begins with focusing on the other person• It often costs nothing, takes little time and

makes your day as well• “If you love your job, it’s going to show.” –

Sammy How could that make someone’s day?

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Play!!!• The most misunderstood of the four

principles• The all business approach is uninspiring,

boring and stifles creativity• Throwing a fish is productive play• No one can tell you how to play at work; you

need to think about it and find ways• Play does not consist of put-downs or jokes• Play requires mutual trust, permission and

perhaps, boundaries

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More Play

• People play in their own way, some quietly, some not at all

• Play should not be intimidating• As J.P. said, “There are a million different

ways of playing. It doesn’t have to be throwing a fish.”

• What’s fun in your job now? How do you play? How do you feel when you play and have fun?

• If you give people permission to play and you don’t play, will they?

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Play Possibilities

• Decorate your office with FISH décor and quotes from the video.

• Ride a scooter through the office to deliver messages

• Play five minutes of up-beat music before the office opens

• Have an office potluck once a month• Give silly prizes for no reason• Let someone ring a gong when they

successfully help a person

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FISH in Action

• O Canada

• The wrong shoes

• The big yellow bus

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Elements of a Successful Business

• A product of service that is valued

• Core values

• Employees to make it work

• Others

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Components of a Company

• Sales/marketing

• R&D

• Management

• Human Resources

• Finance

• Engineering

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Physical Equipment

• Office equipment

• Vehicles; truck, cars, airplanes, tractors, etc.

• Buildings

• Other

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Equipment or People

• Most competing companies have the same types of equipment

• Companies may draw from the same employee pool

• Machines do not have personalities, egos and feeling

• Machines do not have to be motivated• Machines perform at the same level

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Employees

• What % of total budget is for wages and benefits?

• Turnover – How much does it cost to replace an employee?

• What is the effect of poor employee performance?

• “Poisoning the well”

• Not being an employer of choice

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The Power of Consumers

• As consumers we usually have choices to make regarding where we spend our money.

• What do we base these choices on?

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Monopolies

• In some cases we do not have choices available to us:

• Police

• Fire

• Other governmental agencies

• The only game in town….Wal-Mart

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Relationships

• All relationships, business or personal, are based on the same factors:

• Mutual trust and respect

• Shared values

• Shared goals

• Open and timely communications

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What are some examples where a favorable or unfavorable

impression of someone determined if you did business

with a company?

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What employers have succeeded largely because of the personal relationships established by their employees?

West JetSouthwest AirlinesWalmartStarbucks

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Key Areas in Building Success

• The hiring process• The “dead zone”• Orientation• Initial employment period – probation• Management styles• Empowering employees• Communications• Customer service• Employee Performance Levels• Leadership

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Where to find candidates

Current employees, promotions, postings, word of mouth

Competitors

Newspaper ads

Trade journals

Search firms

Walk-ins

New graduates

Others?

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Interviewing Candidates

• One interviewer• Panel interviews• Multiple interviews• It’s all about them• Don’t talk too much• Use silence• Ask open ended questions• Learn about them

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Hiring Guidelines

• Hire for attitude; train for skills

• You don’t have to hire a grouch

• Find a good fit for the company culture

• Don’t hire by a three to two vote; it’s not fair to anyone

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The Dead Zone

• The time between offer and acceptance and the first day on the job is a critical time.

• Buyer’s remorse

• Keep in touch; send a letter, newsletter, annual report, etc

• Keep excitement up

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First Day on the Job

• Be prepared for the new employee

• Greet the new employ with enthusiasm

• Be sure his/her office or work space is ready

• Have business cards ready

• Introduce new hire to co-workers

• Have someone take new hire to lunch

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Orientation

The purpose of orientation is to help the new employee develop a sense of commitment to the company, his/her particular job and a feeling of belonging and being needed.

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More Orientation

• Orient the new employee to the entire company

• Where does the new employee fit in and why his/her job is important

• Tell the company history, with pride and passion. Let him/her know that he/she is following in the footsteps of some fine people who set high standards

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Even More Orientation

• Reinforce the notion that they were the best of the candidates and you are happy to have them there

• If possible ask senior level management to say, “Hello”

• Give new employees a tour with introductions

• Set the bar high so he/she has something to strive for

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Employee Needs

Financial needs (extrinsic)

• salary and benefits “Money isn’t a satisfier, but lack of

money is a dissatisfier” Hertzberg

Sustaining needs (intrinsic)

• Meaningful work – A purpose/importance

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Employee Needs Cont’d

• Shared values• Trust• Shared (reciprocal) Values• Clear expectations• Challenge • Communication – Feedback, praise,

supportive criticism

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A Thought to Consider

“They don’t care how much you know

until they know how much you care.”

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Initial Employment Period

• Provide continuous feedback

• Use “buddy” system

• Be aware of signs of problems or difficulties

• Be alert to new employees motivation

• Let employee know that he/she is vital to the company; “I’m just the receptionist (secretary)”

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More Initial Employment Period

• Establish realistic goals

• Is employee a good fit?

• Work to resolve any emerging problems and if that doesn’t work –

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Made a Hiring Mistake?

If you have followed all of the above and the employee demonstrates a poor attitude and/or job performance:

1. Meet with employee to assess attitude and provide training when needed

2. Document employee problems and help offered

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Hiring Mistake?

3. Release employee if problems cannot be resolved

4. Obtain legal advice if termination is indicated

5. Review situation to determine what went wrong and how to correct it

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The Training Process

Determine what they need to know, to be successful on the job, and….

TRAIN THEM!!! Train for current job, promotional

opportunities and entry into management

When opportunities open up, look first to your employees

Are your employees in the “right” job?

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Management Styles

• A successful management style is appropriate to the person and situation

• Leadership versus Management

• People prefer and respond to strong leaders

• Strength is flexibility –

Oak tree versus the palm

tree

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Great Lies of ManagementThe Dilbert Principle, Scott Adams

• Your input is important to us• Our people are the best• We’ll review your performance in six

months• I haven’t heard any rumors• Training is a high priority• We don’t shoot the messenger• Performance will be rewarded

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More From Dilbert…

• We reward risk takers

• The future is bright

• We’re reorganizing to better serve our customers

• You could earn more money under the new plan

• I have an open door policy…..and number 1….is

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No. 1 From Dilbert

Employees are our most valuable asset

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“So much of what we call management consists of making it

difficult for people to work.” Peter Drucker

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Management by Exclusion

• Managers push away those who disagree with them

• Dissidents band together depriving manager of input

• Gridlock develops• Manager is isolated• Dissidents become strong preventing

manager from accomplishing goals• Manager fails

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Management by Inclusion

Manager includes people in process; even those who disagree

Employee resistance dissolves; it’s difficult to disagree when you are a part of the process

Teamwork develops

Progress is made

Manager succeeds

Everyone succeeds

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Consider….

“When two partners always agree, one of them is unnecessary”

“Hold your allies close and your enemies even closer”

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Catch ‘em Doing Things Right

• Praise is a great motivator; employees tend to live up (or down) to our expectations

• A new employee’s mind is like a blank tablet; we write encouragement or criticism that influences him/her

• Thought precedes action; we do what we are thinking about

• Riding a bicycle or kicking a field goal

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Power v Empowerment

“Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely” Lord Acton

“Powerlessness corrupts. Absolute powerlessness corrupts absolutely” Rosabeth Moss Kanter

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Empower Employees

• Decisions should be made at the lowest level – that’s where the expertise is

- it fosters agreement and cooperation

• Employees not permitted to make decisions

feel incapable of doing so• Their self-confidence erodes• They give bad service• Productivity declines

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More Employee Empowerment

• If you don’t trust your employees to make decisions, either you failed to train them properly or you have the wrong employees

• Trust empowers employees to be creative

• Minimum – Current – Peak Performance

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Communication

• Employees need to know more than just their jobs

• They need to know the “big picture” and where they fit in

• Employees need to be in the “pipeline”• Being “in the know” creates trust and

commitment• Employees need to hear the good and

bad news…directly when possible

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Communication Tips…

Empathize, not criticize View the issue from the other

person’s perspective Express your desire to reach a

satisfactory result, not a victory

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“A man convinced against his will, is of the same opinion still”

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More Communication Tips…

Do not become defensive or angry Do look for areas of agreement Do not say, “You’re wrong,” but if you

are wrong, say so And/but

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Male/Female Communication

Male Female

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Neuro Linguistic Programming

Visual Audio Kinesthetic

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Underperforming Employees• It is critical to identify underperforming

employees as soon as possible• Reasons for underperforming:• They haven’t received proper training • They don’t have the right equipment• They don’t identify with the company or

its goals – “we” vs “they”

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More Underperforming Employees

• They do not see themselves as important to the success of the company

• They are experiencing personal or family problems

• They have lost interest in their jobs

• They lack ability

• They don’t like or want their job

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Disgruntled Employees

• Underperform

• Use more sick time

• Have more injuries

• “Poison the well”

• Others?

• Disgruntled employees must be identified, “turned around” or terminated

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Customer Service

• The employee providing customer service IS your company

• Examples of excellent customer service – how did it effect you?

• Example of poor customer service – how did it effect you?

• How important is excellent customer service?

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The Challenge of Leadership

• The success of your company is directly tied to the level of passion and commitment of your employees

• Virtually no significant achievement in history has been accomplished without passion and commitment

• The most important job of a manager, CEO or entrepreneur is the transference of passion and commitment to employees

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Employees Need to Know:

• What is the mission of the organization?

• What is my role?

• How important is my role?

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“Leadership is lifting a person’s vision to higher sights, the raising

of a person’s performance to a higher standard.” Peter Drucker

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And finally….