The Upside...positive, forward thinking

I really enjoyed reading this article:  The Upside of Down, published by Associations Now, the ASAE publication.  Given where we all are right now, a little perspective and focus on the ‘silver lining’ is where I’d rather be focusing.  And as these statements are true for Associations, they can also be applied to for-profit organizations as well.  In the article, a few ASAE folks talk about forward-thinking moves, and I agree (with my interpretations below):

1. Assess everything for true ROI (return on investment) and Results – tangible or intangible as they may be.  What’s working?  What’s not?  Hold onto the former, let go of the latter.

2. Recognize realities – black tie affairs are ‘out’, brown bag lunch-and-learns are ‘in’

3. Get creative, and ask your customers what they really need…

4. …Then give it to them.

 I would add one more, that is:

5.    Capture the knowledge and expertise of your customers (members) and convert that knowledge into tangible products that the rest of your customers (membership) will highly value. 

Of course, I’m always going to take the “learning” point of view – but truly, having customers continue to value you as a provider (and not consider dropping you this year) will pay dividends this year, and years to come, since a lost customer is a lot harder to re-engage.

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Do you have a project or focus like this underway for ’09?  Share your great story here for all our Leadership Headlights readers.

 

Screw It. Let's Ride.

What a great ad!  That was the first thought when getting knocked over by the full-page, back-cover ad on the Money section of USA TODAY on Friday.

Harley-Davidson Motor Cycles became a leader by figuring out what the customer experience was and turned it into a culture.  It's not about them.  It's all about you and the person you think you are, trying to bust free. 

There's a lot of reasons to love this ad.  First of all, we salute creativity and good writing.  Next, we realize that advertising is necessary to sell stuff and pay for things we like to have at lower costs, such as newspapers, magazines, websites, and trade shows. 

This ad is all about what is going on with the economy--the biggest thing on everyone's mind.  It's about how you feel about it and what it possibly means to you.  Look closely.  What do you notice about this ad that is different from most ads?  There is not one word about the product, the features, the benefits, specifications, the price, the location of dealers, or the great people and management of Harley-Davidson.  Not a peep.  It's all about what is in your head and because of that, it totally connects. .

It's mostly words and just the hint of a motorcycle with an illustration of a pair of hands on the handlebars.  It says:
The other side of fear is courage.
The other end of Wall Street connects with millions of better roads, all leading far from the stink of greed & billion dollar bankruptcies.
If it was all just a casino, where were the complimentary cocktails?
Metal is our currency. 
It''s value is on the rise, even as wealth on paper spontaneously combusts.
So we'll still lend to those putting in long days. 
The American ideal of work & reward does not diminish with the stock market.
Screw it. 
Let's ride.

The lesson for all who wish to have leading companies and leading associations is clear.  Become an expert at what your customers, members, constituents think, want, say about you and expect to see coming from you next.  Then talk about that--not your product, your service, your blah blah blah.

Leadership is about the courage and connection with what empowers those most important to you--the people who buy from you and refer others to you.

When we think of the leadership of Harley-Davidson, we also think of the association executives our firm has served, who look like really important, impressive leaders of prestigious national associations by day, in their three-piece suits.  These include Dr. Michael Jones (OD), Executive Director of the American Optometric Association and Linda Beverly, CAE, Vice President -Administration for the International Facility Management Association.  They love their Harleys and some weekends see them putting hundreds of miles on their respective odometers.  These leaders are all about courage and connection as well. 

Maybe that's what happens when you live the life of who you were really meant to be.

Training in a Down Economy

So we have all been watching the pundits and listening to the news bits, and many of our businesses are either forecasting or experiencing reduced activity for the current and coming months.  And in this atmosphere, I hear a lot of folks saying “I suppose training will be the first thing to go.”  In fact, this is the perfect time for training.  Think back to when your business was booming, or your members were frantic with activity.  Here were all the excuses for not getting ‘into the classroom’ (actual or virtual, as the case may be)…

1.)    Time away from work is too precious.  A little extra time on our hands, during this temporary slow down, is a perfect time to retool, train, and sharpen our skills.

2.)    What we’ve been doing has worked just fine. Some industries are quite obviously letting go of ‘the way they were,’ but others need to look at the new environment and consider how it impacts their business, and what changes can be made to get and stay ahead, with customers, employees, members and shareholders.  The right learning program can help you.

And then one for the current environment:

3.)    The investment is too great. There are many cost-effective ways to activate the ‘learning’ in your organization – from action learning teams and mentoring, to formalized external programs. Think like an investor – if time is not currently at a premium, now is the perfect opportunity to invest.

All this to say… now is the time. Business as we know it has not come to an end, things will start up again, even if right now feels like a holding pattern. On the other side of the current crisis, the wisest of us will be retooled, with a well-trained, re-invigorated work force, distribution channel, or volunteer base, ready to take on new challenges.   - SAC 

Did Learning Happen? (Part III)

Third quick tip on validating knowledge transfer - almost more of an 'after the fact training patch.'

3.      Build a Job Aid

No matter how good training is while it’s running, only 30% on average of what is learned in the classroom will be retained… unless you reinforce it somehow.  One of the easiest methods for doing this is to create a small reference.

Soft Skill Examples:  business card size reminder for wallet, bookmark with key points

Computer Skill Examples:  create a template for the keyboard for quick keys, or a step-by-step reference with icons that tucks under the keyboard or attaches to the side of the monitor.

- SAC

Breakthrough Learning

A recent book by a former professor of mine had me thinking – there really are only a handful of core learning experiences that make an indelible mark on one’s personal and professional development – particularly as an adult learner.  A coaching client once asked this very question:  What learning experiences generated the biggest leaps in your professional development? I was surprised to discover that my answer was a relatively short list.  I have always believed in lifelong learning, but the degree of poignancy you can glean from any given learning opportunity wanes over time, and the breakthroughs come fewer and further between. 

One of the core breakthrough learning opportunities I have benefited from in my personal and professional development has been Stew Friedman’s Total Leadership course, which is now a book of the same name, Total Leadership: Be a Better Leader, Have a Richer Life.  Stew’s approach of building your life and work into an integrated woven pattern, and live as a whole person with everything you do, changed my whole perspective on “life versus work.” And with his Total Leadership methodology, I have learned to make small changes in how I live and work, as he calls them “experiments,” to see what works for me and the important people in my life.

Wouldn’t it be great if you could live as a ‘whole person’ in all the parts of your life, rather than the ‘1/2 work person’ at work, ‘1/3 parent or spouse’ at home, ‘1/8 community member’ in your neighborhood, leaving whatever is left for your ‘self’? I encourage you to crack the binding on Total Leadership. If it’s not your time for a breakthrough, you’ll still benefit from its pages.

What’s on your list? It would be interesting to see the breakthrough learning experiences of Leadership Headlights’ readers. Post yours, and see what other readers say.

For my next post, perhaps a discussion is in order on how to create these types of breakthroughs with learners.  -SAC