Dominic Siow

One of the keys to fulfilment is the desire to make Servicing others a priority. In Daniel Goleman’s research on Emotional Intelligence, Service-orientation was found to be a trait that distinguishes star performers apart from the rest.

The converse to this is the attitude of entitlement. This is often at the root of comments like “they don’t pay me enough to do this” and “if my company wants me to do more, they should first pay me more”. Not surprisingly, this is the last attitude their managers feel like rewarding.

While some may be guilty of this, this attitude is often unknowingly perpetuated by parents, managers and governments who have a tendency of protecting or spoon-feeding their children, staff and constituents rather than coaching and empowering them as a priority. I too, have been guilty of this. How often have we said “no” only to capitulate to pressure? The message we end up giving is that “no” doesn’t necessarily mean “no”. Whilst we think we are doing this for the benefit of our charges, we fail to realise that we’re doing this for ourselves, to gain acceptance, or simply find it more convenient to do it this way without realising the harm we create.

A sorry example is illustrated in this recent article in The Australian titled “UNIONS that championed the carbon tax are now seeking wage rises to compensate workers for higher living costs - http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/climate/union-backers-of-carbon-tax-seek-pay-hikes-to-cushion-the-blow/story-e6frg6xf-1226314012693. The comments made by many of the readers sadly show how prevalent this culture of “entitlement” is. Note: the point I’m making is not whether I am for or against the carbon tax – what I am suggesting is that the behaviour of the unions is symptomatic of the underlying cancer called “entitlement”. Such behaviour only serve to weaken a community, not hold them accountable to the higher standards they’re capable of.

Conversely, when was the last time we consciously observed and acknowledged the positive behaviours, of proactivity, going the extra mile, acts of kindness, etc.?

This realisation has helped Sue and I adopt the following philosophy with our children – “that they can have everything they want in life as long as its good for them, and they are willing to earn it”. Similarly, we’re conscious of providing feedback even more effectively for our children, both positive and negative. Whilst I’m cognisant we’re very much work-in-progress with this, we do our best to ensure our feedback leave them feeling empowered.

The attitude of wanting more without first creating more is totally misaligned with how the Universe works. A wise man once said to me that life is like a farm. Imagine a farmer expecting to reap more than he’s sown just because his personal needs have grown or the cost of living has gone up! To harvest more, a farmer must be even more diligent in preparing the soil, planting the seeds, watering and nurturing the crop. At times, even with the best effort, the crop might get wiped out. He’ll even experience lean years. Inclement weather, locusts, crows… But learn from every experience, keep persisting and eventually, he too shall be rewarded with a good crop.

For sustainable success, increased returns needs to be preceded by elevated levels or quality of productivity. At the breakneck pace of progress we’re experiencing today, this means we have to deliver more with less to just get the same as before. Yesterday’s good is today’s mediocre. The key is to always be proactive about growing more – our skills, our emotional intelligence, our creativity – in order to create even more.

To experience even more fulfilment in whatever you’re doing, simply remember how you felt when you were first told you were successful in getting the job. Stay grateful for the opportunity and express that appreciation through your efforts. Secondly, remember the commitments you made at the interview? How you were a keen learner and wanted to contribute and make a difference? Fulfil that promise. If you’ve done that for a sustained period of time and feel the environment is just not empowering you to be the best you can, then perhaps it’s time for a change. Life really is too short to not enjoy your job.

A good friend shared this quote with me today which I thought is relevant – “If you don’t like something change it; if you can’t change it, change the way you think about it.”

Have the most outstanding day you deserve!

Read this very cool quote in The (Singaporean) Straits Times at a recent trip  from an article titled “A plucky woman with altitude”.

“Climbing shows you at your most humble. You are literally at the mercy of your elements. But you are also at your strongest when you get up, wind or no wind”, Jane Lee, Mt. Everest Conqueror, attempting to be the first woman in Southeast Asia to scale the seven highest summits on seven continents.

In both our personal and professional lives, we are often buffeted with the winds of challenge. It’s how we set our sails in the face of such winds that determines our destiny and defines our legend. Reaching our full potential is akin to the relationship between a kite and wind – we reach our highest through, not in spite of, the winds in our lives.

“The greatest glory in life comes not in never falling, but in getting up every time we fall” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

So how are you dealing with the challenges in your life? Are you avoiding them or tackling them with gratitude, inspiration and passion?

Remember that such challenges are often gifts from above, designed to bring out the very best in us and to help us realise just how capable we are. When you are feeling down about a particular situation, keep in mind that it is not the situation, but the meaning you are giving to it that is getting you down. A wise sage once said to me – “Don’t judge the situation as being good or bad. Unless you can see everything that is going to happen in the future, you have no right to judge it”. All you can do is to take it as it is and know that whatever the situation is, you have the power to choose your response. I find that by reflecting on the empowering opportunities presented by the situation, I can draw on a well of gratitude from which I choose the most appropriate response that will move me forward positively, a better, wiser and stronger individual for having had the experience.

Here’s a tool to help you find the strength and inspiration to overcome any challenge you be facing right now.

Think of a challenge that may have previously caused you to feel disempowered. Grab a piece of paper, reflect on the following, and write down as many answers as you can to each of the following questions.

• How could this challenge be a gift? What positive lessons can you draw from it?
• How will you be a different person for overcoming or putting in your very best to overcome this situation?
• How will this positively affect your self-belief, confidence and resilience?
• By overcoming this, how will it help you scale future challenges?
• What will it give you?
• How will the benefits positively influence the lives of others around you?
• How will your journey and actions be a source of inspiration for others?

Reflect on all the answers you have written down. Notice how much more empowered you are having done this? Now, decide to let go of the past, design your future and move positively towards it!

To your Success,

Dominic Siow

Love this article by Jacqueline Smith on “How the Best Salespeople Make the Sale”. Reinforces many of the points we teach in our training on “Communicating to Influence for Sales Professionals”.

Lesson # 1 – Qualify your Prospects

“Focus on finding the appropriate client for the product or service you’re selling. If you’re not talking to a qualified prospect, the chances of anyone turning into a customer in the end are very minimal.”

and

“Don’t be scared to ask tough questions. Salespeople are afraid to uncover something that might tell them that the prospect isn’t as qualified as they thought. You need to find that out, and you need to let them go if they aren’t an ideal fit.”

Remember the basics – a sale takes place when there is an exchange of value between two parties – one party values what you’ve got and is willing to give you what you value in return. Qualifying your prospect is about making sure he or she can derive or perceive value from your proposed solution.

The best salespeople have the ability to walk away from a prospective client who they know they can’t help.

With each of your prospects, ask the following questions to “qualify” the client:

• Who has the greatest pain that your solution can help with?
• Who is it that through your skills in rapport building and listening will be open-minded enough to give your solution time and space?

Be courageous about focusing on those clients who can and are open to seeing if your solutions present them with the value they’re seeking and who to your organisation will present the greatest value as well. And for those who after much persistence are simply not open to new ideas, appreciate that the timing may not be right, move on and revisit at another time in the future.

Lesson #2 – Understand their needs first and communicate using their communication preferences

“You have to understand your audience prior to getting on the phone and continue learning about them as you go along,” Castain says. “Once you make the first call, find out their preferred way to communicate, and use that throughout the rest of the process.”

Before you “tell” your prospect about your solution, spend time understanding their needs and how they prefer to receive communication. Some want the quick bullet point summary that shows them how your solution helps them with their bottom line, others want to feel or sense how your solution will make their clients lives better, yet others will want to take away a detailed, well-researched report they can analyse before speaking with you again.

Once you have identified that your solution is a good fit for their issues, and you feel that rapport has been established, communicate to them using their preferred style of communication.

Lesson #3 – Meet up face-to-face to build that relationship upfront

Call and ask for a face-to-face meeting. If that’s not possible, schedule a phone conversation to have an in-depth discussion about how your product or service can help the prospect.

“This is where most sales people make the mistake of focusing on making the sale,” Weiss says.  “You can’t go from ‘hello’ to closing the deal. There needs to be a discussion.”

Bear in mind that in relationship building, face-to-face is most powerful for building that rapport. As much as 93% of communication is non-verbal. Keep in mind that time up-front building that relationship is important. For some, that time should be brief, for others longer. No matter who it is, bear in mind you want to invest time addressing the human emotional/spiritual connection up front before getting down to business.

Lesson #4 – Control the process

If you can offer them something they want or need, inquire about the next step. “At the end of the meeting, get some agreement from the prospect about what will happen next,” Weiss says. “A lot of salespeople leave things very open.” Get a sense of whether or not they are interested in moving forward. Ask if they would like to meet again. Find out when they plan to have a decision for you, and setup a follow-up call.

The prospective client might ask for a formal proposal. “Don’t e-mail it and sit by the phone with your fingers crossed. Set up a time to review it together,” Weiss says. “This puts you in a position where you have more control.”

You must “control” the process. Don’t be tempted to leave discussions “open-ended” without an agreement about what the next steps are. Even if there needs to be time for both parties to take time out to think things through, control the process by closing with “let’s take time out to think things through with a view of getting back together to review things within a week to see if it’s worth moving to the next step. I’d be happy to give you a call next week to follow through with this”.

Lesson #5 – Get better with every call

The best salespeople turn rejection into a learning experience. “The really good ones don’t regard ‘no’ as a door slammed shut for eternity. They view it as a ‘not now,’ and they find out why now isn’t a good time. When you ask, don’t make them feel like they are being put on trial. You don’t want them to shut down and get defensive. Be gentle.”

“There is no failure; only feedback”. You never lose as long as you learn from every opportunity. So make sure you ask, gently and with curiosity to that you learn how to make each and every visit even better. With this attitude, you’re always a winner.

Lesson #6 – Be persistent without being a pest

“If you’ve reached out in numerous ways and they aren’t responding, leave a message thanking them for their time and let them know you’ll call again next quarter.”

Persistence is key to success, but don’t turn that into “annoyance” for the prospect. It takes an average of 5 calls to close a sale. “No” often means “not right now”. Stay positive, be empathetic and keep the communication lines open.

Successfully completing the Harbour Bridge run last Sunday, I was reminded of how much that experience emulated success in life in general.

First up at the starting line, there were the participants. They came in different shapes and sizes, colour and creed, by the thousands. What they shared was a sense of great anticipation. The happiness was palpable. The beautiful spring weather certainly helped. The diversity made the day so much more special.

And then you notice that everyone has a different reason for being there! A few eye the $1000 prize and dream of breaking records, others are there for their PB (“personal best” time), some to lose weight, or just do something special with loved ones, others were motivated by the prospect of having that unique snap of themselves on the Harbour Bridge without having to worry about traffic, yet others were there just for the heck of it and to raise funds for a good cause!

Regardless of background and reason, they shared the common goal of completing the event and having fun in the process. They were also united by the “values” – the “behaviours” or “code of conduct” expected in the pursuit of that goal.

Lesson 1: Life is so much better BECAUSE there’s diversity, not in spite of it.

Lesson 2: Diversity makes your team stronger.  Leaders, make one of your goals to recognise it, help your team appreciate that and align your team on two things – shared purpose and values. Turn 1 + 1 into 3! That only happens with a team that includes people with different strengths, perspectives and experiences.

And what about the technology! Because there were so many participants, start times were staggered with three separate groups. Being at the back of Group C, by the time I got past the starting line, I was a good 10 minutes behind those in the first group, and at least a minute behind those at the front of Group C. And I felt pretty impressed by the fact that no matter where you were in the pack, we all had individual “start” and “end” times automatically recorded in the electronic chip attached to our race bin! This chip acted also as our public transport e-ticket for the day! How cool is that????

Lesson 3: Keep the positives in mind when undergoing change! Today, change is happening quicker than ever, hastened by technology that is improving literally at warped speeds! Whilst change can be unnerving, know that there are lots of positive reasons why we WANT change to keep occurring.

The first kilometre or so took effort as I sought to find a rhythm. Navigating that first incline got me wondering how far I’d come and how much more distance I had to cover. And then you get into a channel or zone where it’s just flowing. Feels effortless. And I started looking around me and appreciating the amazing sights of the Opera House with Sydney Harbour and the foreshores of North Sydney as its backdrop and I felt a deep sense of gratitude!

I thought of all the people and sacrifices they had made to make that magic moment possible for me – my parents, both of Chinese heritage who grew up in Malaysia in poverty and yet, through their vision and toil, were able to send four sons for tertiary education in Australia. And what about their forefathers – the first man who left China on a boat and a prayer of a better life – what would have caused him to take on such a huge risk? I said a prayer of thanks for each and every one of them then, because I felt like the luckiest man on the planet!

Lesson 4: The first step towards a worthy goal is always the hardest. Keep at it. It does get a little easier once you’ve found your groove. It’s like learning something new. It takes time, it can feel frustrating in the initial stages but conquer that initial phase by staying focused on the end goal.

Lesson 5: No matter where or who you are, you can CHOOSE to BE happy, to FEEL like the richest, luckiest person on the face of this earth.

“Happiness is not a station you arrive at, it’s a manner of travelling.” - Runbeck

I’m midway through and I’m running in an area where you go around this loop and then head back where you came from and towards the finish line. The initial euphoria has started to wear off. I am starting to really feel my legs working hard now. I feel slightly discouraged because I am not quite halfway there and it’s starting to get tough. And then I see lots of people who have turned the loop and coming back the other way and there’s a spring in their step because they can literally smell the finish line.

I imagine what it feels like to be where they are and THAT creates a spring in my step. I just need to focus on getting where they are! Not on the pain, or the finish line which seems quite distant! But just the next milestone!

Lesson 6: In the pursuit of a worthy ideal, challenges are inevitable. When faced with a challenge, if focusing on the end goal is discouraging because it seems unattainable, focus just on that next milestone. This could be that next lamp-post, or even that next step, but just focus on getting to that! And then the next, and then the next! And before you know it, you’ll get there!

“How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time!”

Lesson 7: Life is truly full of ups and downs! Realise that after every winter comes the spring. And after every struggle, victory. Have faith and focus on the victory, without failing to savour the beauty of the struggle. We the challenges in life to bring out the very best with us! We need the winters to truly cherish the spring and summers of our lives! So why not just have faith, take it all in and enjoy the winters, the climbs.

I see the finish line and my heart sings. I realise I have spare gas in the tank and give it a final push! I’m home!!!!! It’s a wonderful feeling. I feel a deep sense of satisfaction. A quick look around the tired but mostly beaming faces around me assures me that for most, it has been incredibly satisfying. Although only a select few won a prize that day, everyone looked and felt like winners.

Lesson 8: 90% of winning is simply showing up! The rest comes from knowing you’ve given your very best!

As I reflected on that day, I felt really grateful and proud of the following:

• Colleagues and friends who had done such a wonderful job participating and getting others to participate to raise funds for ovarian cancer, and who through their actions, expressed their love for one of their colleagues.
• Donors who might not have run but who in their own way showed their love and support for their colleagues who did, by contributing to the cause.
• Spending that quality time with my niece, who enjoyed her first experience and is looking forward to more!
• The wonderful silent heroes, the volunteers who selflessly cheered everyone on and made the event run like clockwork, helping create for all of us a magic moment to cherish!

Lesson 9: We can either choose to play the game of life or be a spectator! The players tend to have the most fun! Take part! Give it a go! Just do it!

Happiness truly is a journey, not a destination!

To your continued Success & Fulfilment,

Dominic Siow

Came across this video yesterday which had me in stitches! Reminds me of the importance of keeping the team focused on the Vision when working to introduce change!

Love this brief, compelling video on “Leading Change” by Pat Zigarmi.

In this blog post, I will paraphrase the gems from her talk that correlate with my personal experience helping plan, strategise and implement effective change interventions in organisations.

Firstly, she reminds us to keep the following key principles in mind:

1.     People don’t resist change. They resist being controlled.

2.     The people who plan the battle do not battle the plan.

In short, to make change effective, plan a high people involvement strategy.

Research from the University of Texas shows six predictable stages of concerns that people have about change:

Stage 1 - Information concerns.

People want to know what the change is about and why we need to change. They don’t want to be sold about the change. Just given the facts so they can draw the same conclusions. In planning change, management would do well to reflect on the following question:

“What is it that you know, that if your people knew, they could come to the same conclusion?”

For instance, in helping a client with an organisational restructure designed to eke out greater efficiencies, we shared with the people the following:

• Revenues are going up.
• Our product is considered a “commodity”, our competitors come from countries with a significantly lower labour cost base, our clients expect annual decreases in our product pricing.
• Staff costs will continue to rise.
• Profitability is decreasing and will continue to do so unless we take action
• Staff are already working hard, long hours

And then posed to them the following question: “To stay competitive and to stand a chance of improving our staff’s work-life balance and bonuses, what would you do?”

People are smart. By involving and helping staff come up with their same conclusions for the need for change, we get buy-in and commitment to embrace it.

Stage 2 - Personal Concerns

It’s natural for people to ask “what’s in it for me? Will I win or lose? How is this going to affect me?”

To address this,

• Facilitate sessions that balance a healthy dose of asking and telling. Tease out answers to questions like “imagine if we have succeeded in making this change - how might it benefit you?”
• Be up-front about the temporary pain and sacrifices the team will make in order to enjoy the benefits of the change e.g. the need to cope with the style of a new manager or learn new skills.
• Communicate examples of “benefits” or “wins” for instance, the ability to free up certain staff for exciting new opportunities with other parts of the organisation, or how workload has decreased due to the flow of new ideas from new colleagues.

Stage 3 - Implementation Concerns

Apart from the what and why, it is important that the team is involved in and is clear about how the change is going to work. And where they can turn to for help. Get management buy-in and support to create 100-day implementation plans. Ask the question – “how will we know 100 days from today that this change is working and that we are reaping the intended benefits from the change?” and “what are the various initiatives or projects we will undertake with clear responsibilities and ownership to drive towards these outcomes?”

Stage 4 - Impact Concerns

Your team will want to know if the change is really making a difference.

So plan for short-term wins, plan to communicate regularly to keep them abreast and encouraged that this is working. Expect that particularly in the early days as new habits are forming, it will be common to experience setbacks. It is critical that staff gets a balanced view and be encouraged by the positives coming from the change so that they know there is a “light at the end of the tunnel” and that the sacrifices are worthwhile.

Stage 5 - Collaboration Concerns

Consider how to get everyone that needs to be involved on board. It is natural for people to think “yes, I’m all for this but what’s the point if others aren’t?” Be proactive about ensuring implementation plans involve a broad range of people – this includes up-skilling, communicating with them and creating relevant channels e.g. coffee sessions, projects, online change “forums” that facilitate a two-way dialogue and enable the team to express ideas and to be involved.

Stage 6 - Refinement Concerns

Think of how to monitor concerns and proactively address them so that you are continually refining and improving your implementation strategies.

In summary, the key to addressing the six concerns that people have about change is to plan and implement a high involvement strategy.  Give people an opportunity to have their voice heard. Your change strategy should include workshops, coffee sessions, dedicated change and communication agents, portals for two-way dialogue, training and communicating of wins to reinforce beliefs that the change is working and the team is winning!

Remember that research has shown that one of the primary sources of intrinsic motivation is autonomy. If people feel trusted and are given a voice, if they feel their voice is heard, they will feel more involved, able to express concerns and thus bring forth the positive energy required to move your change forward in a positive way. Your goal should always be to have your team feeling that “the change is not being done to them but WITH them.”

I’ve drawn one of the most powerful lessons on change from a philosophy Jim Collins refers to as the Stockdale Paradox in his book “Good to Great”.

The Stockdale Paradox refers to the inspiring perspectives that not only kept Vice-Admiral James Bond Stockdale alive but turned his 7-year stint as a POW at the Hanoi Hilton into one of the “defining moments” of his life.

Stockdale exiting a jet weeks before his Vietnam POW experience

Stockdale was the highest-ranking US soldier captured during the Vietnam War. The Vietcong’s strategy to discourage American participation in the war was to use propaganda, getting American prisoners to voice, after torture and under duress, their disapproval of the US government’s policies. Refusing to cooperate with his captors, Stockdale cut his face, bashed himself with a chair and even slit his own wrists.

In his book, Collins writes about a conversation he had with Stockdale regarding his coping strategy during his period in the Vietnamese POW camp.

“I never lost faith in the end of the story, I never doubted not only that I would get out, but also that I would prevail in the end and turn the experience into the defining event of my life, which, in retrospect, I would not trade.”

When Collins asked who didn’t make it out of Vietnam, Stockdale replied:

“Oh, that’s easy, the optimists. Oh, they were the ones who said, ‘We’re going to be out by Christmas.’ And Christmas would come, and Christmas would go. Then they’d say, ‘We’re going to be out by Easter.’ And Easter would come, and Easter would go. And then Thanksgiving, and then it would be Christmas again. And they died of a broken heart.”

And Stockdale added:

“This is a very important lesson. You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end—which you can never afford to lose—with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be.”

Witnessing this philosophy of duality, Collins went on to describe it as the Stockdale Paradox.

When facilitating change in organisations, I find it incredibly useful and important to engage staff in frank conversations about the brutal reality surrounding the change.

My experience informs me that managers often fail to bring up these fundamental realities. Some underestimate their staff’s ability to handle the “truth”, seeing it as their role to “protect” them. For others, this is revealing of their personal pessimism about the future. And thus, they fail to utilize an invaluable tool for engaging the hearts and minds of their staff, so powerful in helping them get out of their comfort zone.

Take the example of a manufacturing concern in Singapore looking to restructure its organization to eke out greater efficiencies. The brutal reality here is that they are in an industry and environment where staff want growing returns year on year, customers are conditioned to expect annual price reductions and their main competitors are from countries with significantly lower labor costs. By communicating this reality and then asking the “consequences of the status quo” question, staff typically draw the same conclusions that the change in not only desirable but necessary.

This applies equally to the publicly listed organisation in Malaysia seeking to outsource part of its I.T. operations in order to reduce operational costs and enhance competitiveness. And the government department in Australia seeking to transform its “top down”, “do as you’re told” culture to one that fosters greater collaboration and innovation in order to retain and attract top talent and in the process, enhance its credibility with its clients.

Just as it’s important to have the “brutal reality” discussion with the team, it is equally important to instill hope through a clear and compelling vision of the change. It is through leveraging this paradox that you create what Kotter calls a “true sense of urgency” for change that comes from within.

“Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it.” – Dwight Eisenhower

In summary, to strengthen emotional buy-in for change, draw from the lessons given to us by James Stockdale to help staff confront the brutal reality whilst always keeping the faith that the team can and will prevail by moving with courage towards a compelling vision.

One of the key challenges of change management is helping people overcome the fear of change. So what exactly about the change do people fear?

When managing change, it’s important to remember that it’s not the event that people fear, but the meaning they give it. And this meaning is determined by the quality of the questions they silently ask about it. If they have a pessimistic disposition, chances are they’ll be dwelling on a question like “what’s the worst that could happen?” Fear takes over. And if this is not curbed, resentment. Disempowerment. Denial. Rejection. Depression.

Say the event is about an organisational restructure. Typical responses are going to be “I am going to lose my job”, which means “I am not going to be able to pay the bills” which means “I am going to let my family down”, etc. Or “my managers don’t care” or “I am too old for this”… you get the drift. Lots of gnashing of teeth!

“The only thing to fear is fear itself” – Theodore Roosevelt

Conversely, imagine if they were to dwell on “what’s the opportunity in this” or “what’s GREAT about this“? Chances are they’ll come up with answers like “another opportunity for me to learn and grow”, “I am glad my managers are being proactive leaders” or “this is just the push I need to finally do what I’ve always wanted to do”. Which brings about Gratitude. Empowerment.

“It’s not the blowing of the wind, it’s the setting of the sails” – Jim Rohn

In short, one of the most powerful tools you can offer yourself and your staff in dealing with the sort of change that you just can’t change is to empower them with the emotional competencies of “self-awareness”, “emotional self-control” and the skills of habitually asking more empowering questions.

If you’re interested to learn more about how to do this, download our guide on “5 Steps to Mastering Change”.

To find out more about our training on emotional intelligence, change management and mastery, check out www.eqstrategist.com or call us at +61 2 8901-3239!

Make this a truly outstanding day!

Sincerely,

Dominic Siow

At the present rate of change, organizations can go from peak to trough in a matter of months. To prevent downturns from becoming a death spiral, making tough decisions to initiate change often becomes critical.

In facilitating change, whilst innovation is often necessary (after all “insanity is doing the same things over and over again expecting a different result”), it is equally valuable to review your organization’s raison d’etre and values and to find opportunities to get back to roots the organization might have strayed from.

One such organization that successfully turned its performance around both through introducing new strategies as well as restoring its heritage is Starbucks.

Starbucks started as a small Seattle coffee store, which under the leadership of Howard Schultz became a global business with more than $10 billion in annual sales and 200,000 employees. Yet in the early 2000s, with Schultz having stepped down as CEO and faced with a significant downturn in the US economy, Starbucks was hit with slumping sales and quality control issues.  As consumers cut back on $4 lattes, Starbucks had to lay off thousands of staff and close about 600 stores.

Since Schultz’s return to take on the reins of the company in 2008, Starbucks has experienced a turnaround and become one of the success stories of the recession. I read with interest Bobbie Gossage’s interview with Howard Schultz, published in 16^th June 2011 edition of “The Deal” (the business magazine of The Australian newspaper) and Gil Schwart’z article in Men’s Health on “CEO Business Tips: Howard Schultz”.

Key messages I picked up that are useful for managing effective transformations are summarized here.

“Cutting prices or putting things on sale is not sustainable business strategy. We’ve found that consumers are willing to walk another block and potentially spend a little bit more for companies whose values they truly trust. “

“At a time when so many constituents – the media, Wall Street, competitors, ex-employees – were all saying that Starbucks’ best days are behind it… they underestimated the power of our culture and values and the resiliency of the brand and our people.”

“I’ve said for years that the most important aspect of our company is our culture. People laugh at that but that’s the truth. Whether it’s a small or large company, transformation can’t take place with only one person saying “I’m going to transform this enterprise”.

LESSON 1

When initiating change, it’s worth reviewing your core mission and values and culture, the key things which built your brand in the first place and that represents your “unique selling proposition” and take the necessary steps, however painful, to get back to the basics.

One of these basics for Starbucks is the passion and expertise of its staff in making great coffee. An example of what Schultz did to get back to this was a bold decision to close all 7100 stores across the USA for an evening to get every staff member re-trained on the passion and science of brewing and serving great coffee.

At its core, Starbucks is defined as an experiential brand. Beyond its coffee, the place provides an experience that is defined by “very comfortable and soft, and provides human contact.”

To get back to this, another bold decision was to take toasted cheese sandwiches off their menu, even though Starbucks was making “a ton of money” with them, simply because the smell of toasted cheese conflicted with the lovely aroma of roasting coffee.

Yet another was to ditch its investment in “cool and shiny coffee machines” because they were tall and interfered with the line of sight between customers and their baristas, a visual relationship that Schultz saw as crucial to the entire coffee experience.

Another important element that had made Starbucks successful in the first place was its culture and the value it placed on its people. A feature of this was the health care it provided for all employees – both full and part-time.

The Starbucks mission is basically a reproduction of the mission Schultz had written for Il Giornale, the coffee company he renamed to Starbucks when he bought Starbucks in 1987. In a memo Schultz wrote about this mission, he said, “Il Giornale will strive to be the best coffee bar company on earth. We are genuinely interested in educating our customers and will not compromise our ethics or integrity in the name of profit. . . We will build into each Il Giornale coffee bar a level of quality, performance and value that will earn the respect and loyalty of our customers.” During the recession, despite shareholder pressure to cut this benefit, Starbucks chose to retain this key component that symbolized what was core to its DNA.

LESSON 2

Apart from going back to your roots, it is equally important to review your strategies and business plans for relevancy and take equally bold steps to come up with new strategies.

With the Starbucks turnaround, one of those key changes has been the introduction of Via, its instant coffee. Taking 20 years to invent (“primarily because we couldn’t replicate the taste of Starbucks coffee in an instant”), Via in its first year did more than $US180 million in sales.

In summary, to turn an organization around, bold steps are required. Firstly to get back to core principles that are at the heart and passion of what made you successful in the first place, and then to initiate innovations that take the organization to its next level of evolution.

Points to reflect today:

1. How well is your organization or project team doing in fulfilling its mission and living our your core values? What more can you do to get the team focused on getting back to doing its basics really well?
2. How well are you doing in living out your core mission and values? What more could you do to fulfil your mission and live your core values?
3. What innovations could you introduce that will enable you, your organization and your project team to create even more value for your clients and in the process create even greater vitality and growth?

Love to hear your comments on this.

Onwards and forwards,

Dominic Siow

Some dislike reality TV - I’m not a huge fan of most though I occasionally enjoying watching shows like “So you think you can dance” and “Masterchef” with my family. Like sport, I love learning by observing human reaction under pressure, gleaning what brings out the very best in people. Britain’s Got Talent unearthed two wonderful human beings the world might not ever have gotten to know about - Paul Potts I featured in my previous post and Susan Boyle is a huge inspiration.

Last week, a good friend shared another video that moved and inspired me greatly. It’s the story of Choi Sung-Bong - if you need more reinforcement of our innate ability to be resilient, take the 10 minutes to learn about him here.

Mr Choi’s story reminds me of two wonderful quotes:

“The lion who breaks the enemy’s ranks is a minor hero compared to the lion who overcomes himself.” - Rumi

“The only difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is extraordinary determination” - Mary Kay Ash

Your thought of the day: Write down a list of things you can be extraordinarily determined to achieve in this lifetime.

Make your life extraordinary,

Dominic Siow