Saturday, February 28, 2009

Great Managers Reject Average

Great managers reject average because they know that it comes at the cost of excellence. Average does just enough to get by. It requires little effort or thought. It achieves average results. It settles for second best and even third best. Average doesn't impress customers, but it also doesn't bother them too much. It doesn't look for better ways to do things and it doesn't identify problems to be fixed. Average clocks in and clocks out and works just for a pay check. It is not invested in the company, the customers, or even in itself.

Despite its rejection by great managers, average is widely accepted by most of the public. Is anyone really ever surprised anymore when someone doesn't address them by name? Do we ever really complain when service is average or substandard? At restaurants, don't we see mistakes with the meal as just part of the experience?

I recently had an experience with a major delivery carrier that actually caused me to write this blog. After the delivery agency promised to have my package to my home after 5pm, the delivery attempt actually happened at 3:15pm. I was home by 4:15pm (early considering the promised delivery time), so I called the carrier and asked them to send the delivery man back to my house before the end of his shift. Fortunately, he was still in town, so I thought I was in luck. However, despite being just 10 minutes from my house, I was told that he couldn't make it back, but that I could meet him on the other side of town. I could drive 10 minutes to receive my home delivery, after the delivery time was not honored, but the driver could not spare those 10 minutes for me - the customer. When I questioned this decision to the telephone "service" agent, she actually told me that this decision was based on "driver discretion".

Driver discretion! But, what about the customer? It was too much for me to expect a promised delivery time, or an additional 10 minutes of drive time to just satisfy a customer. Don't these average companies know that they have competitors who will earn these customers right away from them? And guess what - it will take a just-better-than-average effort.

Now, as an example, here's how that delivery experience could have gone:

Telephone Service Agent - "Mr. Helms, please accept my apology for the mix-up. I am going to call the driver right away and re-route him directly back to your house. Can you hold the line for just a short moment please sir?" When she comes back on the line: "Mr. Helms, the driver wanted me to convey his sincere apologies as well. He understands that you left work early to receive this package on-time and he is going to be back at your house in 10 minutes. Will that be OK with you Mr. Helms? Also, the next time you need to ship a package Mr. Helms, please give the attendant the following reference number and receive 50% off of your delivery. We really appreciate your confidence in our ability to delivery your package on-time and with great accuracy Mr. Helms. Have a great day and enjoy your package!"

Mr. Helms - "Wow!"

Directive to all Managers: DO NOT ACCEPT OR TOLERATE AVERAGE!

Expect excellence in everything you do, and in everything your company does. Train your staff to be excellent. Recruit and hire only those people who have a history of and desire for excellence. Make your customers say, "WOW!" Achieve excellent results. Set high targets and exceed them. Reward your employees for achieving excellent results. Never reward average, as these are not results - these are the things that happen naturally just for getting out of bed in the morning. When you shoot for excellence, your company will be the sacred "Purple Cow" in your industry and certainly in your town.

Yes, great managers reject average because they know that average comes at the expense of the only acceptable outcome - EXCELLENCE.

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