Bob Chapman's Leadership Approach

St. Norbert's Schneider Business School recently sponsored renowned businessman Bob Chapman for a day to talk about his excellent approaches to Leadership, and his examples of how they create vibrant organizations of mentally healthy and unusually productive employees.

His counterpoints were severe … that today’s workplaces are centers of high anxiety, that ownership and leadership are “Me-centered”, focused only on shareholder success, seeing employees as functions necessary to ownership success,  that there is an “epidemic of anguish”, with statistics that support this … 74% of employees become sick at work due to anxiety and distress, 88% go home feeling not valued.

Management, he said, is interpreted as “manipulation of others for your success.”

“I watched a group of enthusiastic employees, as their 8 AM start came closer and they had to go into the office, and saw their energy drain out of them.”

“ We aren’t taught how to work with people as people with energy and soul."

Bob Chapman To The Rescue!

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But his messages/approaches/philosophies/bromides are actually wonderful and right on!

And his record of accomplishment is very impressive.  Today, his St. Louis-based Barry-Wehmiller has expanded with 100 acquisitions, mostly manufacturers like Paper Converting here in Green Bay, grossing $3 billion in revenues and 12,000 employees.  Today, he says that Harvard Business School and McKinsey are doctoring their teachings to include his approaches.

One can argue that the application of his approaches is not consistent at his various operations, but chalk that up to the challenges of growth and re-training managers to apply them consistently.

Insights

•  He titles his comments, “The PRIVILEGE of Leadership.”

•  Your job as a leader is to be the steward of the people you are leading, to help them discover, develop and share their gifts.

•  When you hire a person, gather his/her family and promise to nurture those gifts.

•  Our greatest act of charity is not the check you write, but how well you treat the many people you lead.

•  You CAN make work FUN!

•  The foundation of our leadership development is “empathetic listening.”  I thought when you saw a problem, you went and talked it over.  No, it starts with questions and empathetic listening.

•  Yes, we all have to create VALUE …

•  Yes, we need ways to keep score, to know we are meeting daily goals.

•  Every Sunday, we go and listen to our preacher and his/her message on how to act right for an hour.  As Leaders, we have a FORTY TIMES greater opportunity each week to influence people.  We must be intentional in using that opportunity.

•  At a wedding, what the father-of-the-bride is really thinking:  You better continue our efforts to nurture her growth, and health and development that we just spent 20 years at!

•  Parenting and Leadership are identical.

•  You pay people for their hands to do the work, yet they’ll give you their heads and hearts for free … if you can figure out how to do it.

Some Other Thoughts

•  Who they ARE and what they DO ... matter.

•  Listenig is both the most critical leadership skill … AND the most powerful act of CARING.

•  Recognition and Celebration are essential tasks of leadership.

•  Lead like the Leader you want your children to have.

On Making Impactful Social Media Content ... Using It To Sell!

•  On Making Impactful Social Media Content 

Make sure there are people in any photo, using your product.

Show what the product ACCOMPLISHES!

Technique:  Show the Worst Scenario that people experience, that resonates with them … and then the Great Scenario that you provide.  Try to get “feeling” into the photos.

Social Media providers (Facebook, Google, etc.) have their algorithms elevate items with content that is Celebratory, contains Life Milestones, or shows Engagement.

(Source:  Chris Burns, BConnected, Appleton)

•  For Salespeople:  Using Social Media To Sell

First, create Awareness of who you are, where to find you, what you do.

Second, create Micro-Commitments … little opportunities you provide them (an insightful article, a referral to more information, attending a workshop) that stimulate a response of some sort.  Keep these coming; creates positive visibility.

Note:   Whereas most of these are “broadcasts” to your email list, periodically you can send a personalized one:  “Hey, I was just in your business and Tim handled me really well.”  “Ran into this information.  May be grist for a good discussion about your challenge when we see each other next."

Third, create a Logical Conclusion:  Make an offer to talk further about a topic you’re providing information about.  Where your expertise is.  Be relevant to the prospect’s pain.

(Source:  Matt Middendorp, selling consultant to banks and an officer of American National Bank Fox Cities.)

Libraries and "Late Fees" on Books ...

In a recent Wall Street Journal article:
"Libraries battling to retain borrowers in the digital age are ending late fees, a change intended to ease the shame and dread of returning overdue books."

It's a way to make libraries once again a "safe place" for them.

About the Power Outage This Past Weekend

We were out for 32 hours … from 11:30 AM on Saturday until Sunday evening.

It’s a wakeup call to how much we depend on electricity being there!

No hot coffee when I woke up.  Only cold water for washing dishes in the sink.  Couldn't wash or dry dirty, sweaty clothes.

When I walked into a darkened room, or went to the basement, I flipped on the switch, and NOTHING!

It was hot and muggy.  But all I could do was sit there … no fan to turn on, no air conditioner to turn on.

No computer … where I do much of my reading.

Couldn’t watch the British Open!!!

Freezing shower!  Quickest one I’ve ever taken.  No hot water.

When I went to bed, completely still.  No fan to get the air moving.  Muggy.

Then, the freezer food and refrigerator food began to melt/heat up.  Spent Sunday afternoon taking food to three friends who had room in their freezers.

And then, five hours later, the electricity went back on.

On FoxConn

I belong to the Independent Business Assn. of Wisconsin, a Milwaukee-based group, and at a recent monthly breakfast meeting they had as speakers on the current status of FoxConn two people from Mt. Pleasant, the municipality in which it exists.  One was the economic development manager, and the other was their hired, very experienced project manager for the FoxConn project.

I wanted insights into what is really happening there, and I think they provided it.

Keep in mind that FoxConn is already assembling TV screens there for a number of customers (not manufacturing them, assembling them).

       1.  Yes, they will no longer make the 65" TV screens there, but rather the ones up to 36”.  The market for the larger ones is slowing, and they already make them elsewhere.  (Note:  There currently are NO manufacturing facilities for TV screens left in the U.S.; this will be the only one here.)

       2.   Mt. Pleasant has purchased the 3,000+ acres that make up the FoxConn footprint … and FoxConn has first option on any purchases.

       3.  They are currently developing a southern 850-acre property, on which the million-square-foot slab has been poured.  They have one building up, primarily used right now to warehouse equipment and product.  They expect to have all their buildings up by late fall, and completed and ready for operation beginning in Fall 2020.

       4.  The project manager meets weekly with every major construction manager to review progress against the timetable.  It includes representatives of the interested state agencies:  DOT, DNR, etc.

       5.  The only water that will leave the property will be for storm and sewer drainage.  All of the water used in production processes, which will also include hazardous metals, will be processed in a self-contained facility.  Some of the materials will be re-used, others will be appropriately land-filled, and the water will be re-used.  The cost is $30 million for the facility, and about $7 million of annual operating expenses to do this.

       — All state and federal environmental regulations are being complied with.

       — Mitigation of wetlands was done at 2X the required amount.

       6.  He cited the incredibly impressive numbers regarding the amount of dirt moved, size of electric substations, and other infrastructure development.

       7.  State ubsidies will be provided only after the agreed numbers are in place.

       8.  While the cost of the subsidies is large, yielding a lengthy payback period, the amount of additional development in Racine County will be very impressive … currently estimated at $750 million.  Example:  Three hospitals are building along Hiway 20 near the project.  Property values are already increasing.

In other words, a lot more positives than we hear in the media.

One other thing:  Be aware that there is no longer a TV screen manufacturing plant in the U.S.  This will bring this type of manufacturing back here.  The rumor is that FoxConn has a huge contract with GM to manufacture at this facility the dashboard screens and panel screens for their cars.

On Succession Planning: It’s NOT Hard, so why doesn’t everyone do it?

One of my Vistage groups has formed a group of their OD/HR people, meeting semi-monthly to share ideas on topics of interest.

At the most recent one, I shared my frustration as to why every company isn’t formally, with a process, doing both Succession Planning and its related counterpart, Employee Development.

So, what’s the trigger to stimulate it being embraced, since it’s not the “obvious rightness” of it?  They said …

  •  Turnover … important leaders and future leaders are leaving.

  •  Outsiders telling the CEO the company isn’t competitive.

  •  Low morale/engagement based on Employee Engagement Surveys.

Another question:  What’s the process for getting Succession Planning started?  They said …

1.  Retain/Appoint someone to be take on administration/championing of Succession Planning as part of his/her job.

2.  Work with the Unit Mgr. and direct reports.  Analyze the current person in each position for “seeable” events like retirement.  Also, think about the organization structure 3-5 years hence … will expansion add additional positions, and when.

3.  Assign two people as the successors for each position.  Are two available?  Ask them if they are interested in being groomed/developed for that job.

4.  Knowing the Competencies needed for the job, at a performance level of 7-8 on a 10-Pt. scale, develop a Development Plan for each person laser-focused on reaching an acceptable performance level to be promoted to the job.  How many years away from “acceptability” is each person.

5.  At least semi-annually, the Unit Mgr. and direct reports meet to update the chart regarding each person, and to make revisions as needed.  If there aren’t two people in development, begin recruiting.

Some Selling Tips

Tony Hoslet, who owns a Sandler Selling Training franchise in Green Bay, spoke to a Training Camp session of the Packers Mentor/Protege program recently.  

      Sandler has an excellent, detailed, structured process.  Among his points:

  •  Set an Up-Front Contract

We can stop this conversation at any point.

"At the end, let’s decide on the next step:  1.  No next step.  2.  Maybe … I’ll get back to you by (date).  3.  Let’s keep talking … set a date."

Why I’m here:  I’m seeking your pain explanation, your goals, your vision, how you’ll decide on your next step.  We may or may not get to money, to your budget.

Also:  To learn your agenda.  What do you want out of this meeting?

•  Build a relationship … a meeting of shared values, including business values.  Transparency will be a very important result; otherwise, the prospect will hold back information.