Achieve 2% more !

A guy called Benjamin Schneider found for every 1% improvement in service there is a 2% increase in revenue ! So today I have 5 tips on how to achieve that focus

1. Does everyone in your team absolutely understand your expectations of them and their service level ? Check and spend time ensuring even your internal customers understand them.
2. Everyone in your team has different strengths - alot of people concentrate on their weaknesses, well for the next few weeks live with their weaknesses and instead build on their strengths and see them flourish.
3. Encourage people in your teams to recognise each other..peer recognition is superb for building team spirit
4. Celebrate success along the way. We often post a target that will take a while to achieve, so it feels to far away for people....have a few milestones along the way and take time to recognise that achievement. It also helps to build momentum.
5. Make recognition specific to the individual - not a standard prize. A working single mum might appreciate an hour off, someone else might want concert tickets, it only acts as a motivator if people will use it and enjoy it.

Remember as well, this works just as well in your private life !

Ideas to Inspire

I love a book called Lovemarks by Kevin Roberts. In there he gives you 5 ideas to do today so here you are:

• Reward people who ask tough questions: - you respect them they will respect you
• Make innovation/creativity part of your thinking by putting 30mins aside for ideas each day and allow your team the same
• Make quality a fetish..there is no such thing as perfect but we should aim for continuous improvement
• Think design and how you interact with your customers both internal and external...does your paperwork grab peoples attention, make them interested in what you have to say
• Do a secrets audit - why are you keeping them and what is the potential risk..be truthful

Try a couple of these and tell me how they work....

If something does not turn out as you expected it would - then ask yourself these questions

1. Was the idea/project designed right ?
2. Did we need more consultation with the teams ?
3. Did we need to understand more - some more background work ?
4. Was the work true to what it set out to achieve ?
5. Did we set the goals honestly - think about costs, benefits, timing were we realistic ?

Someone once said to me don't get consumed by failure and don't get overwhelmed by success and then you will be ok.....companies often don't keep this in mind but if you do then you will succeed, but most importantly so will your team. Anyone any thoughts...

Mabel and Harry

People often struggle with the difference between leadership and management. When you are responsible for a team there is no doubt that you need both. Leadership for me is not being constrained by reality. Asking yourself what if there were no boundaries, what if there were no restrictions - what would we do. Leadership is all about asking those questions not just to your yourself but also to the people around you and listening. Really listening to the answers, understanding what you really could achieve if you pushed those boundaries and then help make it happen.Management is then about making it happen and patrolling the boundaries ! As a senior person you cannot split the two attributes. People with more of a left brain orientation will love the management - lists, projects, timescales, KPI's. People with a more people and creative right brain approach will love the visionary part. But to be the true leader you need to work on both. Do you drift into your comfort zone and concentrate upon what makes you comfortable ?