April 12, 2013

This column marks a milestone for me. This is my 250th column for the family of Business Journals under the American City Business Journals banner. My first column was published in the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal on April 18, 1997; sixteen years ago. If any of you have a copy of the original column, please keep the accompanying photo of me to yourself, I get enough grief from my nine-year old stepdaughter as it is. It is typical for an anniversary like this to hold greater importance for the person experiencing it than for those reading about it. Garrison Keillor, author and creator of the radio show, A Prairie Home Companion, said it best when he noted that longevity is less about quality than it is about length.

Be that as it may, milestones are a good reminder to stop and reflect. Moments of reflection keep us from focusing so much on the day-to-day that we forget why we even get up in the morning. Since my work puts me in contact with such a wide variety of businesses, business leaders, and front-line employees, I thought I would take this opportunity to think about what business people have tried to teach me over the past sixteen years while I stuck my nose into their offices.

If you don't truly love your customers, you won't have any. There is a joke, "There are two kinds of people in this world; those who put people into categories, and those who don't." I believe there are two kinds of business people in the world; those who truly love the people they serve, and those who see them as an obstacle to a stress-free day or a necessary evil that must be endured while in pursuit of revenue. The people who truly love their customers do better. They might not always outdo their competition, they might even fail, but they always, eventually, do better. The desire to serve people, fulfill a need, and provide good jobs ensures that these types of people bounce back from challenges better than those who are simply out for a buck. The jails are filled with men and women whose profits were legendary, but whose disdain for humanity clouded the real reason to even own a company; to serve someone other than yourself. If you don't truly love your customers, as Lincoln said, "You can't fool all of the people all of the time."

Luckily, I have had the pleasure of working with companies that display a genuine caring; for those who work in the ranks as well as for those who walk up to the register. The feeling that a company actually cares creates more loyalty than any rewards program could accomplish.

If you listen, you will succeed. One company I worked for recently has spent years trying to engage the customer to gain feedback. They use phone surveys, online questionnaires, and written comment cards. The feedback has always been so-so. The comments are uninspiring and the suggestions aren't very helpful. The company's leaders vacillated between feeling like they were doing a great job ("No bad comments this week!"), to feeling like the customers just didn't care. Then they started listening. They listened to phone calls made to customer service, and they listened for more than whether proper procedure was being followed. They listened to the tone in the customer's voice. If the voice showed frustration, something had to change. They listened to (and observed) customers at the check-out line. If they looked like they were being shuffled through airport security, something had to change. They listened to every comment as if it was coming from the CEO.

I was working with the directors of the Mall of America a few months ago. They have started a new program of engaging the customer. With over 40 million visitors a year, this is no small task. While walking through the amusement park one day, one of the department heads approached a woman who was obviously watching her child riding one of the rides. He engaged her in friendly conversation and simply asked if she had any observations about the mall. After chatting for a few minutes, he came away with a page full of great ideas that would make a customer's visit easier and more enjoyable. And most of the ideas wouldn't cost the mall a dime. All from a simple face-to-face conversation.

Great companies also listen to employees. They realize that, "Oh...okay" translates into "I don't agree with you, but I don't have the power to say it to your face. I'll just subvert your efforts behind your back." These great companies have taught me that, while you might not ask the janitor's input on the five-year plan, you darned well better ask him what he observes when he is walking the floors.

Ask for input. Use it. Some companies spend oodles of time and money hearing what I have to say about their service. They also have oodles of excuses for why they can't implement my suggestions. We are all reasonable enough people to know that not every idea is a good one, just look at Zubas pants. We would at least like to see some change to make working with you easier. And please let us know what happens to our input. Not letting me know what happened to my suggestion is worse than not asking me for my opinion in the first place.

Don't teach your kids right from wrong if you don't plan to practice it yourself. A friend and colleague of mine ran a family business that ran into hard times. He told me, "My father taught me that you can go broke, but you cannot go bankrupt. Always pay your debts!" When my friend's business eventually failed, rather than declare bankruptcy he spent years paying back every creditor. He later started another business. His sense of honor and fair play is felt by everyone with whom he does business. He has recently doubled his staff just to handle the growth.

In bad companies, excuses outnumber results. Want to see real creativity? Watch people make excuses for why things aren't going well. Employees are getting rewarded for their efforts? Bad economy. The website is too confusing for customers? We just re-designed it a year ago and can't make any changes right now. Parking sucks? Blame the city planning department. Customers have to wade through a phone menu more complicated than the launch of the space shuttle? Well, we have to do that to handle our call volume. Poor product quality? Bad vendor. Sullen and disrespectful employees? You can't get good help these days. Bad blood between management and employees? Rotten worker's union.

An old friend of mine once said, "It's not the quality of your excuses I mind..." For every company that falls back on one of these old tried-and-trues, there is another company in the same boat who is making it work. They find ways of rewarding employees that don't cost money. They ask for comments about the website from people who actually hate using the internet. They instruct employees to direct customers so finding the company and parking is simple. They cut phone menus down to one or two options, and get a live person on the line quickly.

Great companies know that people don't work for unions or for management. They work with each other. And they either treat each other well, or they don't. And no matter how strict union or management regulations are, nowhere is it written "Treat each other like crap." Quite simply, great companies take responsibility. If something isn't right, they fix it. If something goes well, they figure out why and repeat it.

That's it; 250 columns condensed into 1300 words. If only everything was that simple. Thanks Business Journals for allowing me sixteen years to rant. Can't wait to see what I learn in the next sixteen.

Stevie Ray is a nationally recognized corporate speaker and trainer, helping companies improve communication skills, customer service, leadership, and team management.  He can be reached at www.stevierays.org or stevie@stevierays.org.

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