Category: impact

leadership dot #3399: superstar

October 5, 2021October 2, 2021by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

My car dealership allows you to choose “your” service advisor and request that person when you schedule appointments. My guy is Nate. My car had a warning light come on so I called him. He was his usual delightful self, arranged the appointment around my schedule, and provided a loaner for my convenience. Only when I arrived, I learned he was home with a sick child.

The gentlemen who took care of me were polite and helpful, but they weren’t anything special. It created a whole different experience. They were good, but they weren’t great, and it caused me to ponder why.

Nate makes me feel like he knows me, my car, and will take care of me. He calls me by my preferred name instead of the formal name in their system. I trust him to be a straight-shooter and to only do what repairs are necessary because there have been times when he did a quick fix to see if we really needed a full replacement. And he explains the work without making me feel stupid — a rarity in the car repair world.

None of this is rocket science but it makes a world of difference in the service experience. I bought my car at this dealership because of Nate, and drive two hours each time I need a repair. It’s all worth it to me.

There are people who can do the job and others who shine at their work. If you find yourself with a superstar, especially one in a front-facing position, never minimize the impact that one person can have on your organization. Reward them, appreciate them, and cherish them as your key organizational differentiator.

leadership dot #3351: home run

August 18, 2021August 17, 2021by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

I can’t even begin to conceive the logistical challenges that faced the organizers of the MLB game at the Field of Dreams. While it may have looked like a regular stadium on television, this was a professional-grade, temporary structure built literally in the middle of a cornfield in a town of 4000, over 30 miles from the nearest “big city” of 50,000. There was no electricity, let alone the power necessary for massive outdoor lighting, a press box, Jumbotron, and concessions. There was no water. No restrooms. Heck, there wasn’t even a road to the field beyond a rickety one-lane bridge across the creek.

Yet, last week, 8000 fans watched two major league teams play there on a night that made you forget all of that. And I was lucky enough to be there as one of the workers.

I have been involved in many major events in my career but this one triumphs as the most well-run. They thought of almost every detail: a med-vac helicopter on the grounds in case of a medical emergency, an entire severe weather shelter constructed to protect the crowds if necessary, rows of dump trucks full of wood chips making aisles in the parking lots (aka plowed-under fields) after heavy rain the night before.

Through it all, two people remained at a command base to handle radio requests from staff and deploy the resources necessary to meet the demands that arose. There was no chaos or running around, rather they had people on standby to address whatever came up. The event ran like it was a recurring production in an established facility.

There are lessons every organization can learn from the game in the corn. 1) pre-planning is golden. They pulled off an MLB game in a field with nary a hitch. The more you can visualize the event, anticipate the needs and address them in advance, the more smoothly the day will run. 2) Having a central person that handles questions, delegates, and triages also contributes to event success. A calm leader can transfer that confidence to the entire staff and tend to the issues without adding any additional drama. 3) Ambiance changes everything. It’s worth investing to create a unique environment and it’s possible to accomplish just about anywhere.

The mantra of the Field of Dreams movie applied to MLB: “If you build it, they will come” but the real trick is building it in such a way that they want to come again. Follow these three lessons to make your next event a home run.

leadership dot #3312: Isabel

July 10, 2021July 9, 2021by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

While on vacation, we stopped at Isabel’s Market + Eatery. I assumed that the name came either from the owner or someone special in the owner’s life, but I was wrong. Isabel was long gone before the market opened but her life’s story epitomized the community-centric mission the owners were trying to achieve so they adopted the name to inspire them.

Isabel Graham was a teacher and principal in Chicago for her career, but when she died in 1954 she gave $5,000 to the church her father built in Michigan where she was born. Today, the gift is valued at over $1 million and funds many charities every year.

The Market + Eatery dedication reads: “We chose the name Isabel because of our deep respect for her commitment to our community. We will continue to try and honor her by setting a good example, teaching those who want to learn, ‘planting seeds’ in the community she loved, bringing people together, creating memories, and always expressing gratitude for where we live.”

Who can you look to for inspiration? We often think of people we know personally or those who are famous and known by many, but maybe the best role models are the “Isabels” in your orbit. Think about the values you wish to preserve and find someone who lived them to bring your story to life. Remaining true to your “Isabel” is much more tangible and likely to occur than if the values you aspire to follow are only from a nameless poster on the wall.

leadership dot #3307: cop-out

July 5, 2021June 27, 2021by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

If you know Chicago, you know the iconic Lake Shore Drive that snakes along the shores of Lake Michigan through the heart of downtown. So, if you were a city council member who wanted to bestow recognition on someone, renaming that particular road would be among the highest honors you could bestow.

And the City Council proposed doing just that: renaming Lake Shore Drive to Jean Baptiste Point DuSable to acknowledge the Haitian settler who opened a trading post in the city and is considered to be the first permanent, non-indigenous resident. So far, so good.

But in what is being reported as “a compromise”, council members voted to rename the road Jean Baptiste Point DuSable Lake Shore Drive instead. To me, that isn’t a compromise, it is a cop-out. By leaving Lake Shore Drive as part of the name, it almost guarantees that that reference will remain the common vernacular. Including the entire name of the honored settler (vs. making it DuSable Drive) also complicates the ease of use, even for those enthusiastic about the change.

As your organization grapples with how to recognize its history, work hard to achieve a worthy end. Not everything needs to be all-or-nothing, but compromise recognition rings hollow to me. Better to have followed the mayor’s suggestion to rename the Riverwalk, name a park in his honor, or provide some acknowledgement that may actually serve to raise awareness about DuSable and his legacy than to settle on an unwieldy name that will be overshadowed by its attachment to the current designation.

leadership dot #3291: impact

June 21, 2021by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

As you no doubt have heard, Juneteenth has been designated as a new Federal Holiday to commemorate the day the last enslaved Black people learned that they were free. I wrote about its meaning last year (dot 2926) so this year I turn to consider the yet-to-be-understood implications of designating another Federal holiday.

I wonder what changes the official action will inspire. Will children (and adults!) learn more about the events surrounding this date since it is an official holiday? How will this new-day-off for millions impact future summer calendars? With only two weeks between Juneteenth and Independence Day, will that period become a collective holiday — full of vacations and downtime? Will mid-June now be favored — or avoided — for weddings and other celebrations as people seek to plan other events around what has become a holiday weekend? Will Juneteenth now spur on a host of new festivals and cultural events? How many other employers will add Juneteenth to their employee benefit plans, creating economic ripples throughout the country? Will the designation help tell America’s story to future generations? Such significant legislation spurs so many questions and possibilities!

Consider what Juneteenth could mean for your organization and plan now for how you can leverage or capitalize on the recognition it will receive next year to contribute your portion of the messaging beyond the inevitable holiday sales. Prepare to educate yourself and your team about why the date has significance and what lessons can be learned from it. Just as no one knew the impact of that day 156 years ago in Texas, neither do we know the ripple effect of commemorating Juneteenth as a Federal holiday. Don’t waste the window to do something new as a result of this action.

leadership dot #3275: limbo

June 3, 2021June 2, 2021by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

As mask mandates have been lifted and phasing out of pandemic precautionary behavior has begun, I am reminded of a change theory I wrote about in 2018 (dot 2301) in which I shared a model used by nonprofit Alia. The diagram represents the “old way” on the left being phased out as the organization heads toward the “new way” on the right. However, in the middle there is an overlap of the two ways of operating, lovingly referred to as “crazytown” because some processes are the old way and some reflect the new way, often making for crazy times as people attempt to figure out how to behave.

I feel like we are all living in crazytown lately. I went to one store that required masks and across town the same franchise did not. One store has its dressing rooms open while those at the adjoining store remain closed. Some establishments have reverted to extended hours and others remain on condensed schedules. Some dine-in options are available while others continue to operate as drive-through only. A commercial on the radio today promoted a product for when you’re “stuck at home baking” followed by another ad for entertainment options that now exist. I flew on planes at full capacity, yet there was hardly any place open in the terminals.

The old and the new are intersecting at a slower pace than when we shut down. But before you rush back into doing things “as they were” reflect on what practices from the new way you wish to preserve. Our school district is continuing remote learning as an option. My salon has loosened some of its protocols but will continue bringing dryers to the individual chairs instead of in a central location. I think sanitizer has become a permanent fixture in my car. My pre-ordering of food via an app will continue as it eliminates waiting in line.

What will you add? What will you let go of? Take advantage of this rare period of system-wide limbo to make choices that will benefit you long after social distancing has been forgotten.

Download the diagram here.

leadership dot #3272: legislate

May 31, 2021May 23, 2021by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

At 11 minutes before midnight on the last night of the session, our state legislature passed a measure that went into effect immediately. Whether you agree with the bill or not, it signals how legislating has become reactionary — focused on the short-term political element rather than the long-term impacts any legislation imposes. No bill needed to be put in effect in the dark of night.

Politics has become volleyball — one side overturning the acts of the previous administration, only until the new administration can come in and do the same. With the loss of moderates in both parties, we have forfeited the middle, and along with it, the essential element of compromise.

On this Memorial Day, we honor those who died in the performance of their military duties while serving to protect democracy and the American way of life. Let us hope that those who are living will see clear to make those sacrifices worthwhile by focusing on the long-term health of the country instead of the just political gain of the moment.

leadership dot #3234: freely

April 23, 2021April 22, 2021by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

Yesterday, I wrote about a pivotal decision made by the early Earth Day movement to switch their focus from college to K-12 students (dot 3233). They made another key move in that first year that likely contributed to the organization now leading the “planet’s largest civic event.”

Earth Day was fortuitous enough to have advertising legend Julien Koenig volunteer to design the initial name and logo. (He also created the Volkswagen “Think Small” campaign that won a zillion awards.) But the true stroke of genius came when the director, Denis Hays, elected not to trademark it. He wanted Earth Day to be used liberally to tie together the various activities that were happening.

It worked. Earth Day events this year involved over a billion people in 193 countries — all linked together with the Earth Day name. By being generous, Hayes was able to build momentum and give prominence to the movement in ways he could have never achieved on his own.

Think about the benefits you could attain from freely sharing your resources. Allowing others to connect with your efforts might be the best way to realize your goals.

leadership dot #3233: reevaluate

April 22, 2021April 21, 2021by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

Early formal efforts to promote environmental sustainability began by encouraging teach-ins on college campuses. These lively events were popular programs to debate the Vietnam War, and after Senator Gaylord Nelson was moved by an oil slick large enough for him to see from an airplane, he proposed shifting the topic to the environment.

So, the infrastructure was created, a crew assembled and national efforts were made to promote environmental teach-ins on college campuses. It went nowhere. The war generated lots of emotions and diverse opinions, but no one was passionate about ruining the planet. The teach-in was the wrong format.

The advocacy could have ended there but the astute national director Denis Hays realized that college students were still intensely focused on war activism, so he turned instead to K-12 students. The organization shifted its focus, enlisted the help of the major education organizations, and for the first Earth Day in 1970, over 10,000 primary and secondary schools were involved. Today, over 95% of K-12 schools in the US will observe Earth Day, and educators in 149 countries participate in activities.

Keep the early Earth Day organizers in mind the next time your organization needs to pivot. The shift from college teach-ins to K-12 education was not an easy one, but it made all the difference. Be willing to reevaluate — even assumptions as fundamental as your target audience, format and focus — and remain focused on the ultimate goal rather than wed to the strategies to achieve it.

Source: Wikipedia and EarthDay.org

leadership dot #3210: synergy

March 30, 2021March 30, 2021by leadership dots by dr. beth triplettLeave a comment

President Biden said that he would use the “whole of government” to fight the pandemic and that saying has stuck with me. Put politics aside and consider the coordinated effort toward vaccinating 100 million people in two months. It involved mobilizing National Guard troops and members of the military, securing funding through Congress, engaging the Department of Defense in supply chain procurement, working with the CDC, Human Services, and OSHA; directing FEMA to set up community vaccination centers, mandating masks on public transportation, improving data dashboards and addressing health equity. No one person or entity could coordinate a project of this scope alone.

Think about what you could achieve if you directed the “whole of [your organization]” toward a singular effort. Universities could mobilize various factions toward a true push for student retention. Nonprofits could engage various constituent groups in a pervasive membership drive or fundraising campaign. Cities could coalesce around ending poverty or homelessness in their town.

Not only does “the whole” provide more labor and financial resources but bringing together diverse units provides the added bonus of new perspectives and solutions that would not be possible individually. We often are so busy being busy in our individual “cylinders of excellence” (Lisa Bender’s euphemism for silos) that we forget about the synergy and exponential gains that can be achieved by deep partnering toward a single goal.