All talk, no action
Keeping cynicism out of the workplace
By Terry McKenna
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Terry McKenna is principal and co-founder of Employee Performance Strategies Inc. (EPS), based in Chantilly, Va. You can contact him at (888) 788-9090 or
perform@eps-i.com |
You hear a lot of companies throwing around phrases like: “our people are our greatest asset,” “employer of choice” and “customer-focused.” Some companies even print these phrases on things like coffee cups, baseball caps, t-shirts and wall plaques neatly displayed throughout their corporate offices. And, of course, you’ll find these same phrases in company PowerPoint presentations and speeches given by top management.
These phrases are certainly important, but here’s my beef. Too many companies would rather “talk” about these business issues than take meaningful action to turn them into realities for their companies. I believe many thoughtful managers actually believe that if they are talking about these issues, someone within the organization is working hard to make it all happen. Problem is, for many companies, nothing is happening — except the talk, of course. And this is how cynicism creeps into the company. At the end of the day people believe what they see, not what they hear. So the question you have to ask of yourself and your company is this: “Are we walking our talk?”
Survey Says
We recently conducted a survey of 1,700 store managers representing some very well-known oil companies and regional convenience chains. These are good companies that produce great results and have a solid reputation within the petroleum/convenience industry. It was a simple survey that asked a simple question: “What are your three biggest challenges in operating your store?”
Ninety-six percent of the challenges these store managers are struggling with are people challenges. The majority of these challenges fell into the following categories:
- Finding and keeping high-quality, dependable employees.
- Motivating and disciplining employees.
- Training employees.
- Lack of training and tools to help deal with employee issues.
- Getting employees to care about their customers by delivering good customer service.
The remaining challenges (4 percent) covered a wide spectrum from customer frustrations over the price of gasoline, drive-offs, faulty equipment, inventory control, staying within budget, etc.
I bet if you were to conduct your own in-house survey among the retailers who represent your brand, the results would be very similar: people issues would be at the top of the list. And this is what is so frustrating to so many people. With all the talk over the years about customer service, employees and company culture, not a lot has changed. Except the “talk” has increased and in some cases has gotten louder. You can’t talk your way to results.
Solution
The solution is really quite simple: Either do something, meaning align your actions to your words, or simply quit talking. When management starts talking about issues like customer service, employee and retailer training and development, the people the message is aimed at — largely store personnel — get their hopes up that something good is going to happen; changes are on the way to make their situation better.
When nothing happens, which is the case all too often, trust becomes an issue. And in any relationship, be it professional or personal, trust is the foundation. And when that foundation is broke, you’ll quickly find yourself in a downward spiral to failure. Max DuPree, the former CEO of Herman Miller, the furniture manufacturer, said it best: “The only thing the world believes is behavior, because we all see it instantaneously. None of us may preach anymore. We must behave!”
I can’t say I was completely surprised by our survey results, because I knew people issues would be the primary challenge facing retailers today. What was surprising was the high percentage (96 percent) that these people challenges represented. I was hoping after all the years of talk, speeches, slogans, PowerPoint presentations, missions, visions and value statements, and yes, even baseball caps, that these words would finally translate into action.
I guess the more things change, the more they stay the same.
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