"UNCOVERING THE UNDERCOVER BOSS" - Episode 9, 1-800-Flowers

What are two basic actions that can improve the leadership within a Company or department? This season’s final episode of “Undercover Boss” clearly identifies such actions and Chris McCann, President of 1-800-Flowers, the largest florist and gift shop in the U.S. promises to use them to improve his leadership.

Basic Action 1. “Build Relationships First and Do Business Second.”

The truth surrounding this quote was exemplified by Dee, who manages the highest grossing store in the Company. She knew all of her customers and they loved her. Regular viewers of the series will recall that Delores, the employee at 7-Eleven, treated her customers the same way and that is why the 7 Eleven store in which she worked sold the most coffee in the U.S.

This quote applies to successfully managing employees as well as customer relations. All of the CEO’s in the Undercover Boss episodes discovered the most effective managers are the ones who knew and cared about their people. Each CEO walked away from this experience recognizing that to be a more successful Company, they need to get to know, appreciate and recognize their employees. As Chris said, “1-800-Flowers is in the business of being thoughtful,” and his new commitment is to be more thoughtful about his employees.

Basic Action 2. Involve your employees in decisions that affect them.
Chris found that:

• Pauline, a floral designer with the Company since 1997, was never asked for her input regarding floral arrangements. She didn’t even know who came up with the designs except to say it was “someone at Corporate.”
• Nicole, a line operator at the Fannie May chocolate factory, owned by 1-800-Flowers, had no input in setting production goals. Furthermore, she wondered if the “bosses knew how hard the employees worked since they don’t come out of their offices.”
  

Because a person is in management doesn’t mean they have all the knowledge and ideas to improve the company. This is especially true if the supervisors spend little time with their employees. The fact is that many managers may give lip service to wanting to listen to their employees but they don’t take the time to do it. Some CEO’s repeatedly say that “our employees are the Company’s greatest asset”, but too many companies do not tap into this asset.

The "Undercover Boss" series has consistently shown the value of getting to know and listen to your people. The great companies continually strive to improve relationships and upward communications because they realize that their employees are the competitive edge between their company and the competition. We hope that your leaders will get to know their employees as people, listen to and involve them in the business. By doing this you will never have to go “undercover” to discover the quality of your people.

“Uncovering the Undercover Boss” is written by Richard Reinhardt, Vice President of F&H Solutions Group LLC. You may contact Richard by email at rreinhardt@fhsolutionsgroup.com or by phone at 901.291.1546.

"UNCOVERING THE UNDERCOVER BOSS" - Episode 8, Roto-Rooter

They have one of the most recognizable names in corporate America. And like many companies, making the Roto-Rooter stronger during tough economic times was the primary goal for Rick Arquilla, President and COO of the company. As we followed this week’s “Undercover Boss,” can we say that Rick is really doing all he can to make this 75-year old Company stronger?

It is hard to imagine how your company gets stronger when employees are “giving away” your service. We found out that if you don’t like Roto-Rooter’s quote of $1,200, just tell the top technician, Henry you can’t afford it. The price will be instantly lowered. . Rick rationalized this decision by saying Henry is on commission so it affected his compensation. Does Rick think Henry’s actions really help the Company become stronger?

Perhaps it resulted in one satisfied one customer, but what about the other customers? How does reducing revenue of your company help the job security of Roto-Rooter employees? Shouldn’t this well known Company have adopted fair prices for all customers which could not be reduced based on the customer’s financial condition? It is also unfair to the other employees, especially since the Roto-Rooter plant employees are concerned about losing their jobs during this recession. And what message does Henry’s action send when, at the close of the show, Henry is promoted to a field supervisor position. This valuable technician, who Rick admired for his knowledge and contribution to the community, may now have a chance to “give away” more work to the citizens of New Orleans. It is certainly the compassionate thing to do, but it will not make the Company financially stronger nor provide greater job security for its employees.

Rick also had the opportunity to work at the Chicago Call Center, which dispatches technicians to the customers across the U.S. What we learned is that selecting the right person for a customer service position is critical and unfortunately for Rick, he did not fit the profile. For instance, as Candice the trainer pointed out, Rick “talked at the customer” rather than listened. He also tended to sell services to the customer rather than listening and learning about the real problem. He even interrupted the customer when he gave the person a chance to speak.

Call Center personnel are critical to the business because they are the face of the company and often a customer’s first point of contact. So, a customer’s first impressions of Roto-Rooter are often based on how well that call center employee interacts with the customer. And as we learned, not everyone has the ability to do this job. Rick can be a great COO and he even designed the Call Center routing system. However, those skills did not match the requirements for the customer service job. The lesson is, hire the right person with the right skills for the job.

Roto Rooter is a great Company and will be stronger under Rick’s very compassionate leadership, but sticking to the basics regarding the pricing jobs or hiring practices will go far in achieving the goal of becoming a stronger Company.

“Uncovering the Undercover Boss” is written by Richard Reinhardt, Vice President of F&H Solutions Group LLC. You may contact Richard by email at rreinhardt@fhsolutionsgroup.com or by phone at 901.291.1546.

"UNCOVERING THE UNDERCOVER BOSS" - Episode 7, Herschend Family Entertainment

Is every Herschend Family Entertainment employee a great performer? It appears that Joel Manby, the CEO of this $400 million business, would say, “yes” based on his undercover experience. He was very thankful for this “incredible week” and considered it the best experience of his career, but if a viewer was looking for real lessons in leadership, they were few and far between.

Each employee on the show was a top performer, which for a reality show seemed to be a bit unreal. Each of these employees had personal issues, which is real life, but besides using these issues as a way to pull at the emotional strings of the viewer, very little was learned about actual leadership. Joel didn’t learn much about what his Company needed to do to address the problem of declining attendance at his 22 theme park properties, and if he can’t fix the declining revenue problem, employees are going to be very unhappy when they start to lose their jobs.

If Joel, acting as John Briggs a new recruit, wanted to get a real sense of how his employees felt about the Company and what corporate could do to make it better, he could have asked questions such as:

• What’s good about this Company?


• What can be done to improve attendance?


• What are the obstacles you and other employees face that make your job more difficult than it should be?


• How can employees provide greater service to customers?


• How are the communications in the Company?


• How do people get a pay raise or promotion? Is it based on performance, seniority or perceived favoritism?


• Does the Company have sound policies and are they administered fairly?


• What kind of shape is the equipment in and do you have the right tools or supplies?


• How is your supervisor to work for?
  

I believe answers to those questions would not only make good TV, but it would also provide Joel with valuable information which he could use to benefit the business, all employees and not just the few who were on TV.

“Uncovering the Undercover Boss” is written by Richard Reinhardt, Vice President of F&H Solutions Group LLC. You may contact Richard by email at rreinhardt@fhsolutionsgroup.com or by phone at 901.291.1546.

"UNCOVERING THE UNDERCOVER BOSS" - Episode 6, GSI Commerce

In this week’s episode, Michael Rubin, Founder and CEO of GSI Commerce, went undercover as Gary Rodgers, a seasonal employee. GSI Commerce provides e-commerce and interactive marketing services for retailers. The Company has 5,000 regular employees but during the holiday peak season the numbers increase to 10,000.

His first day as a seasonal employee was spent working at the Company’s fulfillment center loading a trailer with Rochelle, another seasonal employee, who had three weeks’ experience. Matt was the floor supervisor and his only guidance was to tell both employees to stack the boxes “high and tight.” Rochelle worked quickly but the two of them did a terrible job of loading a trailer. The boxes were in disarray and some were falling as they were being loaded. The Company’s failure to train either employee on how to load and stack boxes could have been disastrous. Either employee could have sustained an injury, the unbalanced load could have affected the driver’s ability to properly steer the vehicle, and it most certainly would have resulted in crushing a few boxes.

Nothing was ever mentioned about the need for training or the lack of supervision. At the end of the show, Michael rewarded Rochelle for being a hard worker, which she was, but the supervisor and all of management failed.

The lesson learned is that most jobs, in this case loading a trailer, require training and nothing should be taken for granted. This is a job that is not only physically demanding but the consequences of loading a trailer poorly will affect the employees, the truck driver, others on the highway and the customers. Michael only recognized that it was a physically exhausting job. He did not even think about the financial repercussions of not properly training employees –workers compensation claims, damaged goods, and a potentially dangerous vehicle on the highway. Could Michael have been pennywise and pound foolish for not spending money on properly training employees?

Michael’s other major experience occurred at the Company’s call center in Florida. He assisted operators who receive calls from disgruntled customers. One of the operators, Danielle, had an extremely poor attitude. She explained to Michael that you had to show the customer who was the boss. Danielle demonstrated this in dealing with a customer who was dissatisfied with the merchandise received in a crushed box. Danielle told the customer that she could not receive $50 credit immediately, because the system would not allow it to happen. The customer did not accept Danielle’s answer and Michael was so mad at Danielle that he almost blew his cover. He thought that she was not satisfying the customer and he would have fired her on the spot if the cameras were not present.

There are several problems with this situation and they don’t only center on Danielle. First, based on what little we know, Danielle was a bad hire as her personality was a poor fit for the job. Second, what kind of training had she received? At the end of the show we find that she was only provided with two days of customer service training. In a customer oriented position, we doubt that this was enough to handle calls from disgruntled customers, which are the most challenging. Third, as is often the case, the system designed to fix the problem, was, in fact, the major cause of the problem. It prevented Danielle from immediately satisfying the customer. Fourth, Michael wanted to fire her on the spot. Instead of hearing her side of the story, understanding the system’s short comings or evaluating the training process, he was ready to attack the person. A good manager should never fire a person on the spot. Before any discipline occurs he should have invested what led to this serious failure in performance.

This episode concludes, as have the others, with the CEO “taking care” of the individuals with whom he came in contact. Cameron, a warehouse picker, was promoted because Michael thought he would be a good supervisor. Adam, a call center employee, was given $10,000 so that he could have a nice wedding. Shannon, a line processor, was given $5,000 for the community football league. Is Michael’s way of fixing problems, with money, really the right way to motivate a work force? What if you were an employee of Michael’s company, working as hard as possible, and you found out on television that Michael rewarded a few select employees with cash? How would you feel?

These were all very nice gestures, but how does Michael’s actions affect the other employees in the organization? Of the 10,000 other great regular and seasonal employees many of them have needs or desires, but they will not receive similar rewards. This type of favoritism from the CEO causes far more organizational problems than it is worth. A sincere thank you from the CEO is better for the overall organizational well being than choosing a few lucky employees who not only benefit from celebrity status but also receive money and/or promotions.

“Uncovering the Undercover Boss” is written by Richard Reinhardt, Vice President of F&H Solutions Group LLC. You may contact Richard by email at rreinhardt@fhsolutionsgroup.com or by phone at 901.291.1546.

"UNCOVERING THE UNDERCOVER BOSS" - Episode 5, Churchill Downs

Who doesn’t think running Churchill Downs, the famed locale for the Kentucky Derby, wouldn’t be fun?

Bill Carstanjen is the COO of Churchill Downs, a $500 million racing and gaming Company based in Louisville, Kentucky and the home of the Kentucky Derby. Bill went undercover as an entry level employee by the name of Billy Johns.

As COO, Bill says he spends much of his time, “looking at the numbers, spreadsheets, and PowerPoint presentations.” Halfway through this episode he admits to having lost sight of the fact that this is a “people business.” This sounds all too familiar because in each episode the “undercover boss” recognizes the same shortcoming. Clearly, this is a very common problem among companies, both large and small, and across virtually all industries.

Bill concludes the episode with comments such as . . . “I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything.” “We are losing a connection with our employees.” “Executives have lost sight of the need to talk to and show that we care about our employees.” Why do we hear the same refrain over and over again from corporate executives?

What we need to figure out is how a company keeps this from happening? What will it take until executives understand that without employees, it is hard to have a successful business?

Rest assured, top executives can not and should not resolve this problem by themselves. However, they must set the tone and expect, no, demand that the rest of management make sure employees know the company cares about them as people. For instance, when I am out meeting clients, I ask supervisors to identify their best performers, but when I ask them any questions about the employee as individuals, they are clueless. It is sad that a supervisor can spend forty (40) hours a week with their “best” employee and not know the people who report to them.

It is so easy to learn about the people you work with. At a minimum, supervisors should know the following about each of their employees:

· The spouse’s name, if married;
· The children’s names, if they have kids;
· Interests outside of work;
· The name of their friends at work;
· Who they eat lunch with; and
· Their birthday.

Other items can be added to the list without the supervisor getting involved in their personal lives. Top management may not know this information, but if the Company philosophy embraces the fact that people are important, then the employee’s immediate supervisor must show he or she sincerely cares.

The point is, if you care about your employees as people, they will care about you as an employer.

“Uncovering the Undercover Boss” is written by Richard Reinhardt, Vice President of F&H Solutions Group LLC. You may contact Richard by email at rreinhardt@fhsolutionsgroup.com or by phone at 901.291.1546.

"UNCOVERING THE UNDERCOVER BOSS" - The Repeat

This week, CBS chose to replay the third episode of Undercover Boss, featuring the CEO of 7-Eleven. This was probably done because the viewers wanted to see:

A. Bad Boys II on NBC
B. Family Guy on FOX
C. The 82nd Academy Awards on ABC
D. The CEO of 7-Eleven mess up making coffee

The answer is probably "C," but the lessons learned from this "reality" show are twofold:

1. Recognition -- Recognize people for being the best.
2. Gratitude -- Thank everyone for doing a great job.

That's what you saw and heard on the Academy Awards. Are you and your managers providing recognition and showing gratitude to the front line employees within your company? We hope so, but the results of our Employee Opinion Surveys tell us something different. We ask, "Are you told when you do a good job?" and often employees respond very negatively.

Showing your appreciation costs you nothing and to those on the receiving end it can be like receiving the Academy Award.

“Uncovering the Undercover Boss” is written by Richard Reinhardt, Vice President of F&H Solutions Group LLC. You may contact Richard by email at rreinhardt@fhsolutionsgroup.com or by phone at 901.291.1546.

"UNCOVERING THE UNDERCOVER BOSS" Episode 4, White Castle

Dave Rife is one of the owners of White Castle, the company best known for introducing fast food hamburgers to the masses. It is, in fact, the oldest fast food company in the U.S. This family business was started by Dave’s grandfather and is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. The business began 88 years ago and has 421 restaurants in the U.S.

Dave Rife went undercover as an entry level employee by the name of David Allen. It was quite an eye-opening experience for Dave.

In this episode, there were two examples of how new employee training is not helping the employee, the Company or the customer. The first was where Dave was one of 70 other employees and managers at a new store opening. The situation was chaotic, the employees were receiving poor training, and the managers were wasting time while providing conflicting advice, which means that the customer must have suffered. The second example took place at a White Castle bakery. Here Dave continually asked his production supervisor, “What am I doing wrong?” as he proceeded to destroy 4800 buns in the packing machine. He never received much help from his supervisor or anyone else.

Too often employees are trained by the “sink or swim” method. White Castle has a detailed procedures manual and Dave, as an owner, was interested in improving the operational process of the Company. However, it appears the Company needs to do a better job of understanding the realities of operations and translating them into an effective training process.

So what did we learn from this experience? A quality new employee training process conveys to employees that you want them to succeed. It also sends the message that it is important to do the job right in order to give the customer a great experience. Furthermore, it helps achieve consistency in the product or service whether delivered by an employee who is on the job for one week or one decade. This lesson is critical to any customer service job, whether it is serving fast food or the finest culinary.

Another part of the episode was at the White Castle frozen food factory where Dave loaded cheeseburgers on a production line with other employees. One of his co-workers, Vicki, commented that the operation ran smoother and the quality was better eight years ago. She attributes the decline to the fact that the supervisor is not as involved as she once was. In this case, Brenda, the supervisor, was not involved and spent her time in the break room while Dave, Vicki and the others struggled to run production.

At the end of the show, after Dave revealed himself to Vicki and Brenda, he asked the employee, what do you look for in a good supervisor? Her answer was one that I have heard numerous times from employees. They want their supervisor to provide help when needed. Employees resent it when their immediate supervisor stays in the office, or as Brenda did, sat in the break room while employees struggled. A front line supervisor is “the Company” and they must demonstrate that they care and that they know what is going on.

In this particular situation, I do wonder where Brenda’s supervisor was during this time. Brenda’s job title was assistant supervisor so you would think that her supervisor or a manager would expect her to help the employees. If I were Dave I would be as concerned about what the members of middle management are focusing on within this plant, rather than only expecting Brenda to improve her supervisory abilities.

One of the things that makes “Undercover Boss” such a great program is that management experiences a reawakening to the fact that most employees take pride in their work, want to do a good job, and that they really care about what they do. One example was Joe, an excellent multi-tasking order taker who also dealt with customers in the most pleasant and efficient manner.

Joe is the result of a good selection process which brought the right person to the right job. Once in the job he must have received good training and supervision. As Dave said, “the Company needs a lot more people like Joe,” and every Company can attract and retain “Joe’s” with the right employee relations culture, management systems and supervisory skills.

At the end of this episode and the three preceding ones each of the employees discovers that members of top management actually care about their employees. This comes as a surprise to employees and yet it should not. Conversely, top management discovers how much employees care about their jobs and the impact their work life has on their families. This comes as a surprise to each undercover boss and yet it should not. That’s because we are all people with many of the same needs and concerns.

“Uncovering the Undercover Boss” is written by Richard Reinhardt, Vice President of F&H Solutions Group LLC. You may contact Richard by email at rreinhardt@fhsolutionsgroup.com or by phone at 901.291.1546.

"UNCOVERING THE UNDERCOVER BOSS" - Episode 3, 7-Eleven

Joe De Pinto is the CEO of 7-Eleven, a $17 billion company with more than 36,000 locations and 200,000 associates. Joe went undercover as “Danny Rossi” and in this episode he learned several lessons. Some of the lessons those of us in management should have learned are as follows:

1. It is relatively easy to find or train people to stock shelves, clean restrooms, fill coffee urns and even rapidly put dough in the oven. The challenge is to hire people with the right attitude. Every one of the 7-Eleven associates on the program had the “right attitude.” I am sure that 7-Eleven has some people with bad attitudes, but this show proves that even in the most mundane jobs you can find great, hard working and talented people that have the “right attitude.” What are you doing to determine if applicants have the right attitude?

2. A store in New York sells the most coffee of any 7-Eleven, so Joe De Pinto wanted to know whether it was the store’s location, quality of coffee or the employees that caused this to happen. He quickly learned it was the employees, particularly a person like Delores.
Your competition can find a great location or in time imitate your product. The only truly unique differentiating factor between you and the competition, regardless of the industry, is your people. In this case everyone knew Delores and she knew them. To the customers she is “the Company” and as a result they flocked into this store. Some executives give lip service to the fact that their employees are an asset, but employees like Delores prove it to be the case. If an employee is a liability get rid of them.

3. Phil, who was “Danny’s” trainer at the bakery, illustrated the fact that employees are people. They can be good at their jobs, which he was, but they also have other skills, talents or interests. In his case he was very artistic.

A good manager gets to know his employees as people. Once you know them you may be amazed at what other talents or knowledge they can bring to your Company. You will also discover that if you care about them as people, they will care more about you as an employer.

4. At the third store Danny learned about the failure of downward communication. There were two examples:

(a) Corporate may establish a policy, but who is making sure it is being implemented? In this case, a simple policy of donating day old pastries to charities was ignored. The food was thrown away each evening. Did the employees know the policy? If they did, why was it not adhered to? If they were unaware of the policy, what went wrong with the communication?

(b) Danny’s trainer had four years’ experience with 7-Eleven. He was in college during the day and viewed his job as a dead end. In many companies this night shift employee would be seen as promotional material based on his work ethic and commitment to further his education. Clearly the Company should have been doing a better job of letting employees know about internal promotional opportunities. Is your internal promotion system one that employees understand and believe in?

5. The role of Corporate is to support the stores so they can achieve success. Too often people at Corporate lose sight of this, which is what happened when one of the best stores in the organization had to wait a month to get lights replaced. It appeared as if the bureaucracy was functioning in a stereotypical way when the person on the other end of the phone routinely said it would be 30 days before it could be fixed. It is the job of the corporate office to support, not hamper, the operation of a Company. How can obstacles to that philosophy be removed?

So far, in three episodes of Undercover Boss each CEO has experienced a significant emotional experience by going undercover. By listening to their employees, they were able to learn. You may not be able or inclined to go “undercover” but many CEO’s we work with listen directly to all of their employees. Using a confidential Employee Opinion Survey process enables an employer to ask all of its employees to let senior management know what can be done to make the Company more successful and a better place to work.


“Uncovering the Undercover Boss” is written by Richard Reinhardt, Vice President of F&H Solutions Group LLC. You may contact Richard by email at rreinhardt@fhsolutionsgroup.com or by phone at 901.291.1546.

"UNCOVERING THE UNDERCOVER BOSS" - EPISODE 2, HOOTERS

Coby Brooks, President and CEO of Hooters, the restaurant Company with over a billion dollars in sales and 460 locations in 27 countries, was this week’s undercover boss on the CBS television reality show. Hooters was started by Coby’s father in 1983 in Clearwater, Florida and it remains a family business. Like many restaurant businesses, sales are currently down and Coby believes that going undercover may help him learn what needs to be done to improve the operation and increase sales. The lessons he learned as Scott Archer, a new recruit working undercover for seven days, caused him to “love the Company more than ever before.”

What are some lessons that we can learn from his experience?

1. Scott Archer’s first job was at the largest Hooters in the world. He worked in the “back of the house,” emptying the garbage, loading mugs into the cooler, cleaning and coating the wings and other tasks removed from the customer. At the end of the day Scott was tired and his manager said he probably would not hire him.

As CEO, Scott recognized that the “back of the house” gets forgotten when the focus is primarily on one part of the business, in this case sales. Hooters, like other sales driven organizations, wants to take care of the customer, sometimes to the detriment of the rest of the organization. For instance, if the leadership of a manufacturing organization focuses too much on sales, production loses efficiency because sales may demand unrealistic timeframes or too many unique products in order to make the sale. Conversely, if the organization is engineering or manufacturing driven, the response to the needs of sales may be too slow or resistant to change, because it will hamper production.

The most effective CEO’s are those that can strive for a balance among the sales, finance and operational divisions of the business. Just think, if Hooters had too many people who performed poorly in the “back of the house” jobs, then the Hooters girls would become lonely “out front.”

2. Jimbo was a successful Store Manager but his management style was considered to be completely unacceptable by Scott. Jimbo showed no respect toward his employees. He walked around with a toothpick in his mouth, shot rubber bands and made inappropriate comments to his employees. He determined which girl would be able to leave work early based upon who would be the first to finish eating a plate of beans without using their hands. This was a degrading act that almost caused Scott to come out from his undercover.

There are still plenty of “Jimbos” in management. They are not just men managing females, but there are male and female supervisors who don’t know how to treat people with respect. They bully a few or all employees, they treat them unfairly, inconsistently or without respect. They may be quick to use terms such as “it’s my way or the highway,” or “do it because I said so.” Jimbo mentioned that “there are no rules” so he makes up the rules. To avoid having a “Jimbo” in management it requires things such as,

• Establishing a culture that will not tolerate such behavior and then hire people who fit the culture.
• Establishing and adhering to rules and policies that set forth what the Company expects from employees and equally important, what employees can expect from the Company.
• Ensuring that upper management, in this case Jimbo’s immediate supervisor, identifies poor management skills and initiate corrective actions regardless of what the “numbers” look like.

It is very difficult to change a management style such as Jimbo’s. Even though Jimbo was given a chance to improve, my guess is that he will not change.

3. The stark contrast to Jimbo was the female manager, Marcee. Marcee talks to her people with respect and all of her actions show that she is there to help them be successful. Her rationale for this type of management is that she has “been in their shoes.” That may help, but good managers learn from other good managers combined with effective training and the inherent qualities of how to deal with people.

4. Hooters is a family business and apparently Coby’s dad was known and revered by the employees, particularly those in the Atlanta food processing plant. The founder of a successful family business creates an aura that is often difficult to follow by the second generation. However, sometimes the next CEO performs better than “the old man.” In Coby’s case he discovered that the employees did not know him and they attributed morale problems, including the lack of bonuses, to the fact that his father was no longer managing the Company.


A billion dollar family business can retain the “family touch” without the founder. Coby plans to restore this feeling with visits to the plant which will help, but given the Company size it will be difficult. However, if he establishes better communications with subordinate managers, which he seems to have also lost, then they can represent him better to their people. Creating policies that still reflect the feeling of family will also help maintain the culture that was established by his father.

Coby learned more about his Company and himself as a President by listening to his employees. Are you and your management team listening? What would your employees tell you about improving the operation and increasing sales?

“Uncovering the Undercover Boss” is written by Richard Reinhardt, Vice President of F&H Solutions Group LLC. You may contact Richard by email at rreinhardt@fhsolutionsgroup.com or by phone at 901.291.1546.

“UNCOVERING THE UNDERCOVER BOSS” – Episode 1, Waste Management

Larry O’Donnell, President and COO of Waste Management, becomes “Randy the trainee” in the new CBS television reality show, “Undercover Boss.” Larry comes across as a caring person, and a family man. He wants the Company to be more effective and recognizes that his employees can help him accomplish this. So he goes “undercover” to get unfiltered information from the real stars of the show, the hourly paid employees, Sandy, Walter, Jacquelyn, Fred and Janice.

The question is - what did we learn from Larry and his employees? The following paragraphs provide a few answers.

1. Even though most executives spend more time communicating down, Larry demonstrated that there is more value in receiving upward communication. Larry accomplished this by asking questions and listening, as a result, he learned. Too often, executives feel like their role should be the provider of answers.

2. Picking up trash by hand or thoroughly cleaning port-a-potties are jobs that the employees, Walter and Fred, know a lot about. By watching and listening to these two, it becomes clear that selecting the right person with the right attitude for each job (regardless of their duties) is one of the most important tasks of a manager. It is obvious that Larry didn’t have the skills to pick up trash. However, according to Fred, he had potential for port-a-potty cleaning.

3. Employees must be recognized as people first. Too often front-line supervisors only seem to care about what their employee does at work. A good manager shows an interest in the whole person. As a leader, Larry got to know each employee as a person. He recognized that if you care about the person, they will care about you and the Company.

4. A Company policy may be very sound, but the administration of the policy is what counts. For example, being on time at Waste Management is very important to the success of the operation. However, correcting for lateness through a supervisor-created policy of punishing employees by docking them two minutes for every minute late is unfair within their culture and in most other organizations that practice positive employer relations. Correcting behavior should be done on an individual basis in a positive way, which excludes docking employees’ pay.

5. Establishing productivity standards are goals by which performance can be measured. However, Larry learned that by using only one dimension, in this case 300 stops a day on a trash collection route, is counter-productive. It appears that this number is too high because it reduces the time for customer contact, and it created intolerable working conditions which included no time to stop at a restroom. Standards should be realistic and achievable. They should not be counter-productive, but in this case, they seemed to be since they allowed for little customer contact.

6. In today’s economy, many employees have to perform multiple jobs. Jacquelyn was seen functioning as an administrative assistant, scale operator, office manager, and mail clerk. Because a person performs many jobs, doesn’t mean they should automatically be paid more. Jobs are paid based on such factors as the required skills, responsibilities, and working conditions, not the number of different tasks. Furthermore, Jacquelyn needed more money to prevent the loss of her family’s home, but again that should not be a factor as to whether she receives more money for her job. However, jobs should be re-evaluated periodically to ensure that they are paid fairly. This is what was done by Waste Management, and in her case the operation was restructured which benefited her and the Company.

In conclusion, the employees and Waste Management gained because Larry asked questions, listened, learned, and then acted. Are you and your managers receiving a good flow of upward communication from your employees? If not, you need to explore ways of becoming an “Undercover Boss.”

“Uncovering the Undercover Boss” is written by Richard Reinhardt, Vice President of F&H Solutions Group LLC. You may contact Richard by email at rreinhardt@fhsolutionsgroup.com
or by phone at 901.291.1546.

What Would Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Say?

The “I Have a Dream Speech” written by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was so futuristic. We made national history on November 4, 2008, when we elected our first African-American President: Barack Hussein Obama. Dr. King would have been quite proud, despite the fact that race was the elephant in the room throughout the entire 2008 presidential campaign. Fast forward to January 2, 2010: the news breaks that Mayor L.E. Godwin III of Plains, Georgia has discovered an effigy of our elected President hanging by a noose from a building. A sign had been placed next to the doll that read, “Plains, Georgia. Home of Jimmy Carter, our 39th President.” Undoubtedly, the use of a noose for the effigy evokes a powerful racial symbol. Moreover, it pours salt into the still unhealed wounds of those who are painfully reminded of the history of racially-charged lynchings by White mobs that plagued the U.S. South years ago. This was certainly not the first time. We would be remiss to forget Mike Lumsford, the Ohio resident who intentionally hung an effigy of Barack Obama in his front yard in October of 2008 to express his opposition to the presidential candidate because of his race.

Yet as we approach the 2010 national celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday on January 18th, followed by Black History Month in February -- another fast-moving news story regarding President Obama has erupted. Even as I write this article, all political pundits from the news media outlets are still buzzing. What’s the buzz all about? Journalists Mark Halperin and John Heilermann reported in their newly released book entitled, “Game Change” that Democratic Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid, had privately voiced some inappropriate comments about the then presidential candidate. The authors quote Reid as saying that Obama, as a Black candidate, could be successful thanks, in part, to his “light-skinned” appearance and speaking patterns “with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one.” “He [Reid] was wowed by Obama’s oratorical gifts and believed that the country was ready to embrace a Black presidential candidate, especially one such as Obama …” Halperin and Heilermann write, “Reid was convinced, in fact, that Obama’s race would help him more than hurt him in a bid for the Democratic nomination.” It goes without saying that all eyes were on President Obama for his reaction to the controversy.

Senator Reid immediately apologized for the highly publicized statement, stating that “I deeply regret using such a poor choice of words.” Okay, beam me up, Scottie. How quickly we forget the eloquently spoken words from Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech: “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. I have a dream today.” Clearly, Reid’s statement suggests that because President Obama is “light-skinned,” highly educated and possesses “oratorical gifts” that somehow the country would more openly embrace him as a presidential candidate than if he had a darker complexion and had a “Negro dialect.” In other words, as long as he maintains the outward features that White America deems acceptable, he will succeed in his role as President. Is this really the message that we want to send to our young children -- who are today’s students and positioning themselves to be tomorrow’s employees and leaders? I would surely hope not.

President Obama later responded to Senator Reid’s apology, stating that, “I accepted Harry’s apology without question because I’ve known him for years. I’ve seen the passionate leadership he’s shown on issues of social justice and I know what’s in his heart. As far as I am concerned, the book is closed.” The book is “closed?” As a light-skinned, Ivy League educated African-American professional female and an expert in the field of Diversity for over 25 years, I myself was appalled to hear that President Obama has simply accepted Senator Reid’s apology and has no further comment on the matter. Further, it is disappointing that he has decidedly dismissed this travesty and has turned his focus to “more pressing issues” such as the economy, healthcare and the wars in Pakistan and Iraq. For the first time in my adult life, I agree with the Republican perspective. Don’t get me wrong, the real issue here is not whether Senator Reid keeps his seat in the Senate. The fact of the matter is that as President of the United States, Obama has missed the opportunity to use this unfortunate misstep on the part of Senator Reid as a “teachable moment” -- a platform in which all of America can participate and offer insight. We are not just talking about a late afternoon beer summit, either. Naturally, I expect that some may argue that the uproar is without merit and has taken on the appearance of a call for reparation, but I am encouraged that others would instead see its relevance in the context of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream.

That said, regardless of how supportive Senator Reid was during President Obama’s presidential campaign, and how deeply involved Senator Reid has been over the years in the advancement of issues within the African-American community, his words speak volumes as to how out of touch he and other Americans like him are when it comes to Black America. And it doesn’t just stop there. Allow me to share another unique example: On January 11, 2010, ousted Illinois Governor, Rod Blagojevich, was quoted as saying that he was “blacker than Barack Obama.” Here is his statement: “I’m blacker than Barack Obama. I shined shoes. I grew up in a five-room apartment. My father had a little laundromat in a black community not far from where we lived. I saw it all growing up.” Keep in mind that Blagojevich was a twice-elected Democrat who was impeached and removed from office last year after federal prosecutors arrested him on corruption charges that included trying to sell Obama’s old U.S. Senate seat. He has pleaded not guilty. I shudder to think that the very same people who share this skewed perception of Black America hold prominent positions in our state and federal government systems.

Republican Party Chairman, Michael Steele, says that Senator Reid is “mortified” by the statement he’s made. And well he should be. In 2002, Senate Republican leader, Trent Lott, was forced to step down from his post during the aftermath that followed his speaking favorably of the 1948 segregationist presidential campaign of Strom Thurmond. And in spite of repeated apologies for those remarks at Thurmond’s 100th birthday, Lott was forced out as leader. A double standard, you say? Most certainly. But if President Obama would at least consider taking the time to hold a summit and have the conversation that we’ve been waiting to have for the last 400 years – America would be more inclined to move forward and fulfill Dr. King’s heartfelt dream. That national dialogue – in whatever skin tone that we are graced with – and whatever dialect we choose – will reveal that the problem of inequality and ethnocentrism is far more reaching than Senator Harry Reid. The celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday is not simply about having a day off from work. It is about stepping up to the plate and grabbing the baton in the continuing push for racial equality, as Dr. King did in the 1950’s and 1960’s. In the words of Dr. King, “And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.” Mr. President: I have a dream today.


Written by: Jennifer Melton, EEO/Diversity Management Consultant & Certified Facilitator - Leadership Development, F&H Solutions Group