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| Fix Them! by Steve Vaught |
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We were seated in the boardroom with the company president and his director of human resources. He had gone into some detail regarding the problems he’d been 
having with his department managers.
“They can’t make decisions on their own. They avoid problems, or take forever considering options until they finally come to me to tell them what to do. What kind of training can you provide to fix this?”
Seeing this situation was much more complicated than the president’s short summation, I reviewed a variety of training options all leading back to Performance Branding as a decision-making tool. Then, it was time to pose the question I had been dying to ask…
“Let’s say we conduct an off-site training session on decision making and empowerment for your managers. When they come back to the office, what systems are in place to support the decisions they make?”
The silence was deafening. After a long pause, the president admitted, “Yeah, we don’t do that very well around here.”
Unfortunately, we often hear similar comments from leaders of various organizations, “Fix (insert department, task, or person here).” These leaders are reluctant to admit they have “created the monster” about which they are complaining. Likewise, the solution must begin at the top – with you.
Substantial, sustainable change must begin with the top leaders of an organization. When they agree upon the customers they must have to grow the company and the relevant promises they will make to those customers, now they have a starting point - a point around which to focus and align all areas of your company.
Performance Branding isn't for every organization. For many it involves subtle, but substantial change – in the way you focus on the customer, in the way you make decisions, in what you expect from employees, and most importantly, in the way you lead. Some leaders aren't up to that level of disruption. They like things to stay the same - and so they will.
The next time you feel like complaining about that company situation or problem employee, first take a look in the mirror. Fixing “them” starts with an honest look at you.