Old ane new: Employee (and employer) accountability and communication

Last night, I reviewed the departing memo from our former administrative employee. She described the woeful inadequacies of our computer systems and the horrible state of our office. She also had a few less-than-enthusiastic words about my own behaviour. Ouch.

Her complaints are well taken, and I appreciate the initiative of another of the company's senior employees in co-ordinating the exit interview/report (to be given to me only after the departing employee left). After all, as company president/owner, I am truly accountable and responsible for everything that happens here, and it is important for me to learn what is really happening, not what people simply tell me because I am signing their paycheques. (Spelling here is Canadian.)

Nevertheless, what should I do with this information, and why do we have these problems?

Part of the issue of course is the recession's lingering austerity. Systems/office maintenance and upgrading are expenses that can be deferred, at least short term, and when cash is in short supply, they are. Another issue is the communications dynamics between me and the former employee; our business operates on a fairly loose and entrepreneurial manner, employees are encouraged to speak their mind, advocate for change where appropriate, and then, where possible, to take action themselves to solve problems.

(In earlier years, I interpreted this philosophy far too loosely, causing employees to act from self interest rather than the company's best interests -- now, these are aligned through the business planning and meeting system.)

I've forwarded memos and discussion papers to the new employee and explained straightforwardly the negative reviews of the previous employee (though of course respect confidentiality and haven't sent the actual review to anyone else). My goal is to allow the new employee to know exactly what she is taking on and give her time, as she works out her notice at her current employer's place, to think about strategies she might want to implement to solve the problems.

Next week will be interesting, in that word's bigger sense. As we wait for our new administrative employee to arrive, we are evaluating a new sales candidate in the office, and a temporary employee must fill the administrator's desk -- as we conclude production of our January issues in time for the Christmas deadline. I hope things won't be too chaotic. On the other hand, I'm excited about the energy this change brings to the business, allowing us to set the stage for a dynamic New Year with much growth and progress.

The human (and personal) connection

This afternoon, my wife provided one of those insightful wake-up calls. I was explaining to her how we were starting to think about improving our methodologies in communicating within the inbound communications and requests for the Construction Marketing Ideas newsletter. I told her about my work with Clay Posey.

She gave me one of those looks that only someone who has lived with you for 16 years and knows you inside and out could get away with. "Why don't you just call them yourself?"

Gulp. Shucks, yes, this blog is receiving upwards of five leads a day, and many only provide email address contact information, but how long does it really take to respond with a personal, thoughtful email instead of just an autoresponder reply? And why do I need to pass these initial leads on to a sales representative within my organization when they are, indeed, responding to me, personally?

Tim Klabunde made something of a similar point last week when he suggested that I not use Constant Contact to communicate my offer of editorial profiles in the Design and Construction Report to people who attended the Design and Construction Network Happy Hour in Washington on June 30.

"My only comment would be that I think you will get a better response if you don't use constant contact as it would be much more personal. In the office I use eMail Merge from Outlook," he wrote.

I have some fear that my "individualized responses" to people who respond to the blog/eletter invitation will start turning out to be a little bit canned -- and that may be the case, but does it hurt to communicate directly?

I think not. For the next month, I'll keep track of the number of leads who received a personal communication from me, and the results. We'll see what happens.

The cost of carelessness and haste

This morning, I distributed the Construction Marketing Ideas newsletter in haste.

This has proven costly and embarrassing, with my announcing an ill-designed "course" in construction marketing before it really is ready for prime time, and (worse) my decision to post a link to someone else's worthy contribution without giving the contributor a heads up and verifying it would be okay to publicize the news. (I won't add to the problem here by identifying this person, whose intents are honorable and who I will do my best to make up the damage in the days ahead.)

The newsletter had other stylistic and systematic problems, which I burdened on 5,000 or so readers. I could have avoided these problems by simply allowing an extra day to review the newsletter, "sleep on it" and verify essential information.

The less-than-perfect newsletter, not surprisingly, attracted several "please remove from list" notifications through Constant Contact (these readers, indeed, will not be bothered again) and the less-than-warm and fuzzy email from Arthur T. House, who succinctly wrote: "You are an idiot."

House, of course, might have thought more carefully before sending the email to someone who publishes a blog with a relatively high Google search ranking. In follow-up correspondence, I told him his posting would remain in place. It is a reminder of my own folly -- and the dangers of acting in haste. (House was right, to some extent. In rushing the newsletter to distribution, I failed the basic test of thoughtfulness and organization -- so the word "idiot" is not entirely inappropriate.)

I realize sometimes we need to make decisions quickly, and procrastination in the name of perfection is rarely wise. But there is also something to be said for allowing enough time to think about what you are doing before doing anything, to build a little extra time in your schedule so you can review and practice your presentations and copy-read your marketing materials, and (most importantly) you will almost always be wisest to wait a day (or at least a few hours) before sending any emotional-laden emails.

The bumpy road

The previous blog posting reports on one of the biggest business challenges -- things never are as simple as you would like them to be; and sometimes you hit bumps in the road. These problems are enhanced by the very real need to do whatever you can to minimize the bumps for the people around you; your employees, your clients, and your market's perceptions of your stability and business health. The fact is, you don't want (usually) to go around broadcasting your difficulties, so you keep things under wraps, perhaps hoping by keeping things stable you won't scare off potential clients, and you can work your way through the problems.

These strategies indeed are common-sense business practices, but we've seen in the past few years what happens when things are just a little too smooth. Bernie Madoff seemed, for example, to be defying gravity, with steady, reliable, slightly above average returns, regardless of the economy. Trouble is, he had set up a ponzi.

Other businesses traded publicly have cooked their books to show stability and growth in their earnings -- resulting in horrendous losses for investors, and sometimes jail time for executives -- when the real books, well, burned in the fire of disastrous losses.

Nevertheless, blatant honesty can be costly as well. The U.S. auto industry is in deep trouble, and this trouble just adds to the problem -- who wants to buy a car from a business about to go bankrupt? For that matter, who will sign any kind of long-term prepaid contract or purchase any sort of service with forward expectations if you have reasonable doubt of it being around for you in the future.

So how do you deal with these matters?

The approach I've chosen to take may not be right for your business, but it feels right for me. I don't go about broadcasting every little detail and truly work to smooth the bumps for our employees, while ensuring reliable and consistent service for clients. But I've chosen to do this with an open book attitude. Employees -- even the most junior employee who signs a financial non-disclosure agreement -- see the numbers every week. In normal conditions, this information is background and doesn't affect their work; but when we hit snags or difficult situations, they know they have access to the same information as senior managers and no wool is being placed over their eyes.

This blog represents another avenue of openness. Yes, competitors and potential clients as well as employees and current clients can read this and see the story, good and bad. Does this help build trust, open communication, and mutual support? I think so, but equally, I know that there are points where too much truth can scare people away. You need to be responsible and thoughtful about your communications.

Communicating 24/7

How do you communicate these days?

Twitter seems a little beyond me -- how much do you need to know every thing anyone is doing every minute of the day (and how much do I need to know what you are doing every minute?)

Video messaging and blogs, well, are possible, so are services allowing you to broadcast live streaming video wherever you are. But what is your audience -- does anyone care to see you, that much?

Email is everywhere; certainly for me (and probably you) it has replaced the phone as the primary communications resource; in a busy day I might take or receive two or three phone calls, but handle upwards of 100 email messages.

Email has blurred work times. Our business has a policy that emails can be sent and received any time, but phone conversations must be handled (except in extreme emergency or by special arrangements) during daytime business hours. The reason: You can voluntarily turn off your email, or elect to respond at your convenience -- while the phone is, well, jarring.

So what can you do with all of this? In the last few weeks, I've started taking my Blackberry to bed with me. Not particularly because I really need to read and respond to emails in bed, but because the vibrating function on the device allows me to set my 'alarm clock' without waking Vivian (at least most of the time!)

The new approaches to communication may invite arguments that everything is excessive these days, but I find it has provided more freedom -- I can go to the gym in the middle of the day, with my laptop in my backpack, and Blackberry in my pocket, and work out during the 'quiet time' -- while keeping in full touch with the business. Rush hour isn't a problem; working from home or remote places, I can avoid the agonizing waste of long and painful commutes.

How do these alternative communication approaches affect your marketing strategies?

Clearly you need to understand and be able to use the new media effectively but I don't think you will get very far (or have many friends) if you try to turn your Twitter account into a blunt advertising outlet. And if you are going to email me, please realize that spam is as offensive -- even more irritating -- than before.

If you wish to comment on my blog, feel free, I encourage it, but if you are stretching things just to get a backlink, your comment will be deleted, unread by anyone.

The new tools change the scope and time of communication; creating opportunities to express really relevant marketing messages and ideas, but you need to think personally, individually, and with a relationship-centric approach. Broadcast your advertising messages somewhere else (or purchase some print ads in our publications).

Share, connect, provide insights, or (best of all) practical and individual resources for the people and organizations you wish to reach, and you can, indeed, communicate with decision-makers even in their beds.

Employee marketing

The team at the most recent planning meeting, in October. I expect the gathering will be larger at the semi-annual review next May.

A few weeks ago, I asked Chase to assist in the job posting/advertising process for new associate publishers. Our business model is free of many geographical constraints; we can produce viable publications in virtually every part of the U.S. and Canada, but the key is to find local publishers with the right set of skills and initiative to handle the self-reliant responsibilities.

(Some competitors try to handle this selling responsibility through central phone rooms; others contract with people on pure commission; we believe the much better approach is to pay a fair starting salary to local people who really like to work independently, but still wish to connect to the growing business.)

His most recent initiative has resulted in two finalists ready to move to the key stage in our recruiting system -- the paid, working assignment. But (and this is the great thing), he has modified the assignment's design to make it more meaningful and valid in measuring the potential of our possible new employees.

This kind of initiative, interaction, and communication, to me, is the essence of good working relationships -- and is a vital part of your business marketing and brand development. After all, for most business owners reading this blog, upwards of 75 per cent of your business originates from repeat clients and referrals -- and these occur because of the way you and your employees relate and serve your current clients. Do you want 'drones' who talk corporate-speak, or are you more likely to succeed with employees with initiative, spirit, and the ability to speak their mind and contribute their own thoughts to the business?

Of course, no business can survive long if it allows everyone to simply design their dream job and do it, without supervision or control. Employees need some rules of the game; some consistent practices and guidelines, and they must communicate frequently and routinely. This is where regular meetings are not only important -- they are essential.

Writing the book

It is time, at last, for me to write a book on construction marketing. Like any first, this challenge is both daunting and somewhat scary; perhaps, you may say, surprising, since I've earned plenty of money through my adult life as a journalist and publisher, which suggests I should know what to do, and how.

But you may be in the same boat when it comes to your own business. You may be an excellent architect, trades person, engineer, or general contractor, but "marketing" is something outside your expertise, your comfort zone, your knowledge. You know it is a good thing to do, but how?

Your best answer: You seek out a coach, a consultant, a mentor, and you discipline yourself to learn what you need to know, and set a deadline to get it done.

Ironically, if you are doing your fundamental work well, marketing won't be a big stretch. You simply need to systematize your processes and build on models which induce and encourage word of mouth and repeat clients -- applying other techniques like advertising strategically to support these objectives. But if you've been conducting business the conventional way in the industry, these systems will seem distant and daunting to you. You are used to just "finding" business through references and repeat calls -- or going through the process of submitting bids or reading leads service data, and hoping something materializes.

Guess what -- you and I are in something of the same space right now; because I have just these challenges in writing the book. I 'should' know what I am doing here, but as I've never travelled down the book writing path, I am somewhat scared, somewhat confused, and very much aware that this project will need help and support to complete.

So, I've engaged Cindy Shearer as a coach. And you can help out, too, with your questions, comments, and observations. My goal: To have a draft ready for thorough editing and review by December, and the first copies printed by Feb 1, 2009. What are your marketing goals, and what resources will you use to achieve them?

The communications balance

Michael Stone in a recent blog posting says "Deal with issues face to face" when you encounter a dissatisfied or hostile client. Thursday night, one of our suppliers sent me what seemed to be a highly insensitive and irrational email -- and copied it to all my employees. We quickly sorted out the problems by phone yesterday.
So when should we use email, and when should we get on the phone, or meet face-to-face? These are actually vitally important marketing questions, but I'll hold my pen (or more accurately, keyboard) on this until a special "synchoblog" initiated by Ford Harding, with Brian Carroll and Tom Kane, scheduled for September 22. You'll see some advance details next week.