Rules Are The Enemy Of Trust

I remember looking at an employee response to a "What could we do better" question, and finding a suggestion that those with a spouse in the military should be given a couple of extra days off when their partner had to move posts.

I raised this with the head of HR as an example of a 'quick win' to prove that senior leaders were listening and willing to make change based on employee suggestion. He remarked that if they needed a new rule to have supervisors act with common sense and compassion, then the issue was not with engagement, but rather with management. 

He was absolutely right of course. If you have an entry in your employee handbook that states "Do NOT throw chairs at others" or (and this one is real I promise) "No spandex to be worn in the office" - then you have problems.

The moment you start to build up rules, or over engineer processes (sometimes they can be the same thing) - you start to absolve employees of responsibility. It becomes easier to point at the rule book (or the process) than take the blame. 

Nobody sets out to kill innovation and trust with rules, they are applied with the best of intent, but beware the consequence of not allowing people to THINK for themselves and act in the best interest of the company.

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I have a passion for watching great teams work - I wrote a blog about McDonalds some months ago which goes into detail on that.

But it's not always great to see teams in action though, during a visit to Oxford recently I saw the manager (or rather just his head over the metal in the kitchen), yelling at every server at the front to hurry up, split the queue, change station, etc. etc. 

I felt sorry for the staff, of which there were too few - but exasperated for him, because had he moved to the front and taken one of the many spare stations he may have gained respect, instead of embarrassing himself in front of customers and his team. 

(Was this due to rules or poor management - I honestly don't know, but I suspect both)

But one of my favourite evangelists for the common sense over rules approach is Howard Schultz, the CEO of Starbucks. He returned as CEO in 2008 after serving as Chairman when it became evident that the company was in serious trouble. 

Starbucks is all about the 'local' experience, and one of the things that went wrong was that the speed of expansion overwhelmed the culture and the values of the company. 

There was a point in time when only four different 'store styles' were being built. When the coffee machines were so high you couldn't talk with your barista. When expansion was so fast that proper training wasn't completed. This is not a recipe for success.

With amazing perception for what needed to be done in early 2008, every Starbucks store in the US was closed and this notice placed on the door - heralding to all that things were going to get better.

"We're taking time to perfect our espresso. Great espresso requires practice. That's why we're dedicating ourselves to to honing our craft"

But the biggest thing (at least in my opinion) that changed was the reintroduction of the 'neighbourhood' feel to each store. The cookie cutter approach to expansion was abandoned, and the stores started to get personal - and that meant the partners too. 

The managers in each store have a degree of autonomy, with their teams they govern the ambience and character in each location. My favourite places to go are those where the team really is enthusiastic about coffee, the customer and the location. In London (Vigo St) Malik explained to me the history of the building and how he was helping with translating some of the friezes and murals on the ceiling. 

Stopping on the M40 for a coffee as I drive by is an experience made brilliant by the camaraderie of the staff at Beaconsfield who seem to have photographic memories for customer names and a shocking level of energy even at 6am or 11pm.

At Bicester Village (where I visit the most) - the team always provide welcome inspiration for my work, weird experimental coffees, and nothing is ever too much trouble. There's always laughter, always a welcoming smile and always great coffee. I miss them when I'm away for any length of time.

I'm not going to name the stores where I've had poor experiences, such as the one where staff are punished if it takes more than three minutes from a customer entering a store to receiving their coffee, or the one where they put the chairs on the tables half an hour before closing and turn their backs on customers - you know who you are!

So what's this got to do with too many rules? Everything. Think of your 'star' performers - I'll bet they bend the rules. 

(In some cases where 'hero' cultures exist, some are encouraged to break rules, whilst others are punished - this is BAD behaviour. Fix it. Favouritism, like its close cousin nepotism is always a recipe for cultural disaster)

When managers listen to staff, things work out. You cannot create rules that work in every office, or store, or country - so why try? Think of the places you visit that you like the best. Is it because of the product or the people?

People are your most valuable asset, listen to them. The more responsibility that's given to the customer facing people, the better your customer service will be. The more engaged your teams are, the more value you will reap.

If you don't think that's the case, then evidently you do not trust your staff. So why did you hire them?

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(If you haven't read Onward, go and treat yourself now - especially if you don't believe there's a link between culture and business success)

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Why Do People Always Have To Leave?

I've been sat in my local Starbucks getting on with my work for the last hour or so, in truth because I find that a change in scenery often gives me a change in perspective.

Recently I've been pondering what makes certain places so outstanding that they epitomise all the positive aspects of their brand - I wrote a blog a few months ago about a particular McDonalds that could give teamwork lessons to any company in the world.

Like many people I'm a creature of habit, and there are a few Starbucks stores I stop at regularly when I'm travelling. I've noticed an fairly high level of turnover at these, and sometimes feel sad to be losing friends and familiar faces whose company I've grown used to.

Yesterday I found that Lewis, one of the assistant managers here is leaving and taking on a new role in a different company, and I felt sad about that.

But really this is a great thing for Starbucks (and for Lewis). Almost all those who have left have transitioned  to more senior roles in other companies - taking their training, attitude, and ethos with them. 

Which other company wouldn't want to take advantage of this? There are only so many  people that can progress upwards within a company - some will be lost, and what better way to build your brand professionally than by creating demand in the marketplace for those that you've trained.

Good things will always happen to good people. If you demand the best, then you always run the risk of them being poached into other positions by other companies - perhaps this is why some of the most well known and admired brands in the world have such longevity.

I'm out of the way upstairs writing this, and a moment ago one of the guys brought me up a  coffee (the one in the picture above) and a smile. I cannot express how nice it was to have this happen - and how much it was appreciated. 

It's the small things like this that make all the difference - but the key is having the right people in the right roles, no matter what the company, who really do love what they do and go out of their way to make people feel special.

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Learning From McDonalds

I have a habit of observing teams wherever I go. Drives my family nuts - but having a passion for what I do means I'm always looking to learn, and sometimes this comes from unexpected places.

There's a particular McDonalds I stop at with the family (Bassett's Pole - B75 5SA) which is mid-way between our home and my parents place. Over the last few years I've never failed to be impressed with everything that happens there. 

Let me list some examples of things I see consistently there, but rarely (or never) at others....

- Any time there's a queue and an available cash register , any member of the crew will step up and open a line. Manager, shift supervisor - anyone. The important thing is clearly that the queue is short, not the status of the employee.

(I've seen the managers emptying trash, running across the car park in the rain carrying orders, helping clean tables)

- Last time I was there the manager looked out and saw a queue had built up. Then started ferrying the cups between the fountain and the tills, and restocking the high traffic items. Helping the crew to serve faster. 

- I have four children, on several occasions extra toys from previous months happy meals have magically appeared on the table with a smile. 

- The food is always, repeat always hot. I've often returned to the line with a cold sandwich in other places. Never here - because the crew are checking the temperature as they pick it off the slide, not relying 100% on the system.

- The guys that run round keeping the place spotless are clearly part of the crew. They laugh and smile with visitors and the rest of the team.

- There's usually someone being trained, and I've yet to see micromanagement going on. Equally, if there's a question - there's no hesitation from the trainee in asking for help.

- These guys think outside the box. My daughter likes her burger with just the ketchup. With four children there's a lot of orders to get through but sometimes she'll still be waiting for hers whilst the rest of us eat. Not here. Last time, the crew member excused himself mid way through my order to ask the chefs for it - that way, he explained, everything would arrive at once.

So what's my point? This is one of the best teams I've ever seen - they seem to naturally exhibit all the things that we try so hard to learn from books and experience and pass into more office based environments.

The team at Bassett's Pole are innovative, clearly place the customer first, their managers lead by example, there's a lot of fun happening - and they break the rules when it makes sense to do so. 

It's not a dictatorship - nobody seems to being told what to do, the team just do the right thing when needed, and help each other to give the customer the best possible experience.

And it has to affect their bottom line - we're not only willing to stay hungry for an extra hour on the journey to stop there, but happy to do so. I'm sure many others do the same. 

If you work on the corporate side of McDonalds, or own that particular franchise - please go out of your way to congratulate them. I've stopped a few times on my way out to tell them what an amazing job they do - but I'm darn sure it would mean more coming from you :-)

**** Update: This weekend we visited again. My Dad accidentally knocked his half empty cup of tea, and spilled some on the table and the floor. Before he could go and get a napkin, one of the team was there to clean it up.......and then, out of the blue returned two minutes later with a fresh cup of tea and a smile. Just brilliant *****

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