Tag: innovation

Many years ago, Sally Field famously accepted her Oscar saying, “You like me,” she declared. “You really like me.” With the strong emphasis on the word really.  Turns out what she actually said was, “I can’t deny the fact that you like me, right now, you like me.” We probably misremember or misheard the quote, because it isn’t just actors who are primarily motivated by being liked, we all are. Psychologists say this misquote is so sticky because it exemplifies a central human need.

And, whether we are liked, impacts our ability to have long term, lasting, success. Likability is an essential component of EQ. Likability impacts the legacy we leave.

I am fascinated, particularly lately, with how this shows up in politics. Here in Chicago, our mayor nearly lost the last election, despite what he has accomplished, because lots of people, don’t like him. Our previous mayor was extremely popular. As a result, he could do things that people didn’t like (like swoop in and close an airport in the middle of the night, without any authority to do so), because people liked him, even if they didn’t always like what he did. The airport closing, by the way, turned out to be something the citizens of Chicago ended up liking because it became a lovely park and concert venue. And, our parks and the overall beauty of the city is part of Mayor Daley’s legacy.

Working with CEOs and executives, I observe the same phenomenon. The CEOs who, like Sally Field, are really liked, by their teams, get results. They get a pass when they make a mistake, especially when they own it and admit it. And more importantly, they get support when they want something to happen.

As we think about our own leadership, a question worth asking ourselves, perhaps daily:

What can I do today, to hone my EQ skills and increase my likability?

Why Vistage Works

Elisa K. Spain

The further along we get in our careers, the more we know and the more we are challenged to stay curious.

Every now and then I meet a leader that knows it all. They have “the way” they do things that worked for them in the past and as leaders, they are certain it will work today.

They share “the way” with their team, expecting them to accept “the way” and to become successful because of it. They do this with the best of intentions, and yet, the results don’t come. Frustrated, they try again. If only folks would simply execute “the way”, they will be successful and so will our company.

Alas, they discover, it doesn’t work the way it once did. This leader has two choices, s/he can continue to lead as s/he has always done, or… s/he can become curious.

What I have noticed is businesses, like ourselves, are living beings. And, like a plant, if I am not willing, and able, to be green and growing, the result is, I, and my company, become ripe and eventually rotting.

Why Vistage Works

Elisa K. Spain

During my career I have been fortunate to be a mentor to several talented individuals, and to have had wonderful mentors myself.

For me, there are few rewards in leadership that are as good as those that come from mentoring someone and watching them grow into successful leaders themselves. Similarly, I can attribute much of what I have accomplished to the mentorship I have received throughout my career. Mentors who generously gave their time and wisdom to me and modeled behavior I wanted to emulate.

And at the same time, I have discovered some unintended consequences of both being a mentor and having a mentor.

Occasionally, we are seen as mentors without realizing it. We become role models for others sometimes without knowing it. So what’s the issue? Being a role model equates with expectations. When we don’t meet those expectations, the impact can be crushing. After all, we are supposed to be wise and set a good example, and, know what to do, and, do it right… and guess what? We all fail sometimes; we all do things we aren’t proud of sometimes. In short, mentors are humans and if we expect our mentors to always do the right thing, the best thing, we will always be disappointed.

And as mentors, we forget sometimes that mentorship is not forever. We must recognize when it is time to evolve the relationship and recognize when our mentee grows beyond their mentor. It’s not that we don’t benefit from mentoring at every point in our lives; rather it is that a single mentor fulfills a role at a point in time. And then it gets sticky. What happens next? The relationship was uneven. Can it move to a peer relationship? Or does it end? Endings are sad, and sometimes necessary. In my experience, it is delightful when a mentor becomes a friend and peer. For this to happen, it takes awareness, intention and ego set aside by both people. Not easy.

So, the next time you become a mentor or seek a mentor, ask yourself, and even better ask your mentor/mentee:

• What do I expect from me in this relationship?
• What do you expect from me in this relationship?

Why Vistage Works

Elisa K. Spain

I recently had a small remodeling job in my home that, despite excellent intentions on the part of the provider, did not go well. This project failure got me thinking about service recovery and what exactly that means. I have also come to realize that the definition may be different, depending on whether you sit on the customer side or on the provider side. After all, where we stand is always based on where we sit.

Most of us, as leaders, focus our attention on getting things done right the first time. In manufacturing, error rates are measured down to the level of “six sigma”. While excellence in delivery is an appropriate goal for high performing companies, even high performing companies make mistakes. And for me, true excellence is reflected in what happens next. In short, true excellence shows up when service recovery is required.

In my experience, what the customer wants falls into two parts, acknowledgement of the error and assurance that the provider will find a solution to the problem.

What often happens looks more like this…

• Instead of acknowledging there was an error, the customer contact person seeks to explain the problem. Sometimes this effort to explain may appear to the customer as avoidance or worst case, blaming the customer.

• Instead of seeking to find a solution to the problem, the customer contact person may simply abdicate. Sometimes, in a true effort to please the customer, the rep leaves the problem solving to the customer, and simply says, “tell me what you want and I will do it”.

Our folks who are in front of customers all the time are faced with service recovery situations frequently. Most excellent companies train their people to do it right, and employ good quality control measures to ensure this outcome. These same companies also train their people to “give good customer service” when a problem arises. As a result, when there is a small product or service failure, the contact person can successfully diffuse and handle the situation themselves. In fact, lots has been written about empowering customer facing staff to recover, and many companies employ these techniques. Examples include “try me” items at Whole Foods, to the much quoted “Ritz Carlton way”.

Sometimes though, the failure to perform is significant both in terms of dollars and customer satisfaction. It is in these situations that excellent companies have an escalation process, perhaps even a task force to resolve the situations. For me, this represents true excellence for two reasons. First, the customer feels valued and feels assured that the problem will be solved. And, equally important, the line person has support in resolving the problem.

I leave you with these two questions:

• What is your escalation process when a significant failure to deliver happens? Are you or someone from your leadership team notified immediately?
• Have you defined “significant” so that your line folks know the situations they can and should handle themselves and the ones that they need to escalate?

Why Vistage Works

Elisa K. Spain