My account of Ann and I acting out our curiosity about to what level an evening out might have driven our blood alcohol (blog post of 13 October) drew much banter at my expense along with some serious chastisements from the worldly-wise. Still curious and now defensive, I found a blood alcohol calculator on the web (www.bloodalcoholcalculator.org) which illuminates some important data. First, notwithstanding my friend's assumption that driving to the police station for a check was prima facie evidence of being over the legal limit -- 0.08% -- it turns out I was legal: 0.066. Aha!
But Ann was not: 0.128. We each had enjoyed a martini at 6:30 and shared a bottle of wine from 8:30 to near 10. It was somewhat after ten when we pulled into City Hall.
The difference is important to keep in mind this holiday season of exceeding good cheer. Women don't metabolize alcohol as rapidly as do men. And yes, body weight makes a difference. Had I been a female at my body mass, my blood would have registered 0.08 -- BUZZER! Had I, as male, been at Ann's svelte body mass, my blood would have hit 0.109 -- BUZZER again, though not as far off as her 0.128.
The moral of this tale for slight, young women: don't try to keep up with the boys as they assail the wassail bowl, or else plan on taking a cab home from the party. Dads of lasses, take note.
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Eight Lessons From the Front #8 Find Ways to Serve
This is the final section of a commencement address I have serialized here. I was honored to address the graduating classes of University Center Cesar Ritz, a group of international hospitality colleges in Brig, CH, where I taught managerial marketing for several summers. The speech was entitled Eight Lessons From the Front, summarizing some principles I believe, having learned them the hard way.
#8 Find Ways to Serve
One of the things I have done right in my career is carving out time to be involved with my communities. In General Mills days, I worked in county politics; was active in the Citizens’ League, a non-partisan public policy group; served on the board of the public broadcasting station and, briefly, on the board of the Boys and Girls Clubs. I was a founding board member of the National Council on Children and Television. When I moved to Washington to join Marriott, I served on Sharon Rockefeller’s Corporation for Public Broadcasting task force on alternative ways to fund public broadcasting. In Seattle, I have served on the board of the Pacific Northwest Ballet, was director of adult education at my church, and serve as trustee of a public land trust and a jazz orchestra.
My purpose in naming these is not to pat myself on the back, but to suggest that it is easy to become involved, to contribute your time and talents to your community. But more to the point – it is of value to you to do so. I meet people from very different walks of life, people with whom I would never rub elbows in my corporate world, very unlike in views and values my associates or my clients. To hear their thoughts and perspectives stimulate my thoughts and broaden my perspectives. And that helps me look ahead, be a better and more empathetic boss, grasp what trends and issues are shaping our environment.
Get out of your offices each week or once each month at least, and be of service to some group or organization different from your own. Four Seasons knows that this is important; they expect each member of their hotel executive committees to serve on the board of a community non-profit organization – not for pr or leads to business (yes, there’s that, too) but to develop and broaden their managers.
Of course, the most important group to serve, to devote time to, is your family. Whether spouse or companion or kids or parents, we all have someone to serve who deserves our attention, time and concern. Don’t let work demands, and they are heaviest in the early days of your career, short-change the time and love your family needs and deserves. Tolstoy said happiness is loving your work and loving those for whom you work (and he was not talking about your boss.) I wish I had done a better job of balancing my work, my service and my family – but that’s a very different story.
Serving and loving: this brings us full circle, doesn’t it -- back to the first of my Eight Lessons From the Front --Find Work You Love. Then, Choose the Right People to Associate With; Don’t Manage – Lead; Be Forward Looking; Think Small; Empathize; Execute Relentlessly; and Find Ways to Serve. I hope recalling one or another of these when you are on the brink of a mistake proves of help. And I hope you find in this hospitality industry the satisfactions, the challenges, and the rewards that have so enriched my life. Go forth and make good luck happen.
Monday, December 6, 2010
Eight Lessons From the Front. #7 Execute Relentlessly
This is a serialization of a commencement address I was honored to give to the graduating classes of University Center Cesar Ritz, Brig, CH. It's almost over....
7. Execute Relentlessly
You, especially those of you in master’s programs, have been studying and writing about strategy – strategic planning, competitive positioning, theory of the firm – all that grand stuff. Well, know this: execution trumps strategy. Operation is what counts.
The STP gas turbine race car was a technological strategic advance that would have revolutionized racing. The multi-million dollar STP ran away from the field at the Indianapolis 500, a sure winner -- until it was brought to a halt a lap and a half shy of the checkered flag by failure of a 12 cent rubber gasket in its rear differential. (Then the Luddites of auto racing banned turbines from the track.) Thus ended a brilliant, breakout technical strategy.
At General Mills, we empirically demonstrated to ourselves that in advertising, execution can trump strategy. We tested positioning strategies against one another and could measure relative attractiveness of alternative strategic positions. Then we tested advertising executions of the better alternative positions. What we found is that a great execution of a lesser strategy beats an OK execution of the superior strategy. In effect, the width of variation around strategies is narrower than the variation between poor and outsanding executions.
I believe this principle applies throughout business, especially in our service business that so depends on interactions between people – great execution can outperform a superior strategy competently executed. A poorly located restaurant offering superior quality and service can out-pull a competitor in a superb location. A higher priced offering, within reason, can prevail over low-priced competitors through flawless performance.
Our business depends upon consistent delivery of what the customer wants and needs -- and what your employees want and need to play their part in that delivery. But humans are anything but consistent – right? We all change -- weekly, daily, hourly. You mustn’t assume that once you get it right, it will stay right. Don’t assume that if you have the best idea – the turbine race car or Courtyard by Marriott – that you will prevail. Your job as operator is to execute. Your job as manager is to select the right people and lead them, giving them the vision, the tools, and the motivation so they can and will execute.
Customers change, competitors change, employees change. You must execute and improve continuously. Inspect what you expect and adapt and refine – continuously. Execute, execute, execute relentlessly.
7. Execute Relentlessly
You, especially those of you in master’s programs, have been studying and writing about strategy – strategic planning, competitive positioning, theory of the firm – all that grand stuff. Well, know this: execution trumps strategy. Operation is what counts.
The STP gas turbine race car was a technological strategic advance that would have revolutionized racing. The multi-million dollar STP ran away from the field at the Indianapolis 500, a sure winner -- until it was brought to a halt a lap and a half shy of the checkered flag by failure of a 12 cent rubber gasket in its rear differential. (Then the Luddites of auto racing banned turbines from the track.) Thus ended a brilliant, breakout technical strategy.
At General Mills, we empirically demonstrated to ourselves that in advertising, execution can trump strategy. We tested positioning strategies against one another and could measure relative attractiveness of alternative strategic positions. Then we tested advertising executions of the better alternative positions. What we found is that a great execution of a lesser strategy beats an OK execution of the superior strategy. In effect, the width of variation around strategies is narrower than the variation between poor and outsanding executions.
I believe this principle applies throughout business, especially in our service business that so depends on interactions between people – great execution can outperform a superior strategy competently executed. A poorly located restaurant offering superior quality and service can out-pull a competitor in a superb location. A higher priced offering, within reason, can prevail over low-priced competitors through flawless performance.
Our business depends upon consistent delivery of what the customer wants and needs -- and what your employees want and need to play their part in that delivery. But humans are anything but consistent – right? We all change -- weekly, daily, hourly. You mustn’t assume that once you get it right, it will stay right. Don’t assume that if you have the best idea – the turbine race car or Courtyard by Marriott – that you will prevail. Your job as operator is to execute. Your job as manager is to select the right people and lead them, giving them the vision, the tools, and the motivation so they can and will execute.
Customers change, competitors change, employees change. You must execute and improve continuously. Inspect what you expect and adapt and refine – continuously. Execute, execute, execute relentlessly.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Eight Lessons From the Front -- #6 Empathize
This is the sixth part of a serialization of a commencement address I was honored to deliver to the graduating classes of University Center Cesar Ritz, in Brig, CH. They are best read from the bottom up, part 1: Find Work You Love.
#6: Empathize
Empathy is the glue that binds. That binds families, clans, tribes, communities. It is also the key to serving well the needs and wants of customers and employees – that vital ingredient that makes the difference between giving OK service or that memorable experience that creates customer loyalty.
Empathy is more than understanding the wants and needs of others. It is not sympathy, which is merely understanding another’s plight. And it’s not sacrificing yourself, losing yourself in another’s feelings or needs to the exclusion of your own. To empathize is to understand and feel what the other is going through while retaining your own sense of self and purpose. Empathy is wholly walking in the other’s shoes – feeling their separation anxiety, their tension, their travel exhaustion – whatever is the emotional condition of the interaction with them. When you empathize, you make judgments and take actions appropriate to the feelings and needs of the other and to your responsibilities.
The ability to empathize is natural -- all humans can empathize, but not all of us do. We may wall off our feelings for others, we may become desensitized by pressure of the job or tensions we bring with us, or simply by the nature of our upbringing. We may not be confident enough to empathize with strangers. But you can change that. You can improve your ability to empathize. You can do it consciously, practicing and training to empathize. Ask yourself “what is person is feeling? What kind of experience is it for this person – what are the clues I’m picking up? How can I show them I understand and can relate?” Don’t view that next customer as just another transaction; make a game of putting yourself in their shoes and sharing their feelings. Then you will be able to give the service that distinguishes you from the merely competent person who remains faceless to customers.
Empathy is a key ingredient in effective leadership. When you empathize with each team member, you will be more likely to find the key to motivate them, to unlock their energy, and to lead. And, in turn, encourage and train them to empathize. And consciously empathize with those unknown employees for whom you are developing policies and procedures. Use small think and try to imagine and empathize.
Can lack of empathy lead to mistakes? Oh yes. When we introduced Marriott’s Marquis Club, we sought to build elite services into the program. One of my bright ideas was to create a Marquis Club position at the front desk; when a club member stepped up there to check in or out, they would receive immediate attention. We hung a fancy brass plaque above that position. But when I travelled from hotel to hotel, I would find a “closed” sign sitting under the Marquis Club plaque or a big, showy vase of flowers blocking the space. What was going on?
Well, I hadn’t applied small think, nor had I empathized with either our guests or our front desk agents. I was asking a 24 year old desk agent in her first year in the business to walk away from one, maybe two, maybe more business travelers waiting to check in or out and go over and give preference to some bloke who had just walked up to the Marquis position. And then … she was supposed to go back and now face a frustrated, irritated, sometimes irate 42 year old businessman waiting impatiently to get going. No way was she going to deal with that. And what’s more, she thought it was intrinsically unfair, un-democratic. I hadn’t thought small – about one guest and one employee dealing with one another, and I had suspended empathy for either of them.
As so often is the case, inadequately prepared employees with their own values and attitudes scuttled the grand plan from the brilliant pooh-bah at headquarters. You still see legacy airlines offering such preferential services – but at least their employees are seasoned and other travelers understand how gruesome it is to have amassed 100,000 miles and reached “premier” status. But you don’t see Southwest in the States or Ryan Air here in Europe playing those games. Do you suppose that has anything to do with their popularity and employee morale? You bet.
The organization whose employees consciously empathize with fellow employees and with customers is the organization that will provide truly distinctive service in this people business.
#6: Empathize
Empathy is the glue that binds. That binds families, clans, tribes, communities. It is also the key to serving well the needs and wants of customers and employees – that vital ingredient that makes the difference between giving OK service or that memorable experience that creates customer loyalty.
Empathy is more than understanding the wants and needs of others. It is not sympathy, which is merely understanding another’s plight. And it’s not sacrificing yourself, losing yourself in another’s feelings or needs to the exclusion of your own. To empathize is to understand and feel what the other is going through while retaining your own sense of self and purpose. Empathy is wholly walking in the other’s shoes – feeling their separation anxiety, their tension, their travel exhaustion – whatever is the emotional condition of the interaction with them. When you empathize, you make judgments and take actions appropriate to the feelings and needs of the other and to your responsibilities.
The ability to empathize is natural -- all humans can empathize, but not all of us do. We may wall off our feelings for others, we may become desensitized by pressure of the job or tensions we bring with us, or simply by the nature of our upbringing. We may not be confident enough to empathize with strangers. But you can change that. You can improve your ability to empathize. You can do it consciously, practicing and training to empathize. Ask yourself “what is person is feeling? What kind of experience is it for this person – what are the clues I’m picking up? How can I show them I understand and can relate?” Don’t view that next customer as just another transaction; make a game of putting yourself in their shoes and sharing their feelings. Then you will be able to give the service that distinguishes you from the merely competent person who remains faceless to customers.
Empathy is a key ingredient in effective leadership. When you empathize with each team member, you will be more likely to find the key to motivate them, to unlock their energy, and to lead. And, in turn, encourage and train them to empathize. And consciously empathize with those unknown employees for whom you are developing policies and procedures. Use small think and try to imagine and empathize.
Can lack of empathy lead to mistakes? Oh yes. When we introduced Marriott’s Marquis Club, we sought to build elite services into the program. One of my bright ideas was to create a Marquis Club position at the front desk; when a club member stepped up there to check in or out, they would receive immediate attention. We hung a fancy brass plaque above that position. But when I travelled from hotel to hotel, I would find a “closed” sign sitting under the Marquis Club plaque or a big, showy vase of flowers blocking the space. What was going on?
Well, I hadn’t applied small think, nor had I empathized with either our guests or our front desk agents. I was asking a 24 year old desk agent in her first year in the business to walk away from one, maybe two, maybe more business travelers waiting to check in or out and go over and give preference to some bloke who had just walked up to the Marquis position. And then … she was supposed to go back and now face a frustrated, irritated, sometimes irate 42 year old businessman waiting impatiently to get going. No way was she going to deal with that. And what’s more, she thought it was intrinsically unfair, un-democratic. I hadn’t thought small – about one guest and one employee dealing with one another, and I had suspended empathy for either of them.
As so often is the case, inadequately prepared employees with their own values and attitudes scuttled the grand plan from the brilliant pooh-bah at headquarters. You still see legacy airlines offering such preferential services – but at least their employees are seasoned and other travelers understand how gruesome it is to have amassed 100,000 miles and reached “premier” status. But you don’t see Southwest in the States or Ryan Air here in Europe playing those games. Do you suppose that has anything to do with their popularity and employee morale? You bet.
The organization whose employees consciously empathize with fellow employees and with customers is the organization that will provide truly distinctive service in this people business.
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