The Door to My Office is Always Open! ...or is it?
The Door to My Office is Always Open! ...or is it?
How do you get the real story?
A recent discussion on tapping knowledge resources led me to consider what works and what doesn't. I recall my first exposure to the concept of an executive open door policy. It was a comedy album that my parents used to enjoy....
"The door to my office is always open. I think you all know why its open. It was stolen and I'd like that returned too." - Bob Newhart, The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart
The physical state of your office door is less significant than your mindset for seeking insight from your stakeholders. They include anyone who is impacted by the success of your organization and can hold valuable insight into what's really going on.
When you're spending most of your time working in your business rather than on your business, you're likely creating unspoken barriers to both seeking and receiving information from those with the real story about your operation and your marketplace.
Beyond the Open Door
The open door policy is a reactive approach to seeking information. Tom Peters' 1982 best seller, In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America's Best Run Companies, suggested a more proactive approach to seeking stakeholder insight. He used the acronym, MBWA: Management By Wandering Around. He discussed the value of getting out from behind your desk and into the field or on to shop floor and meeting with customers, vendors and employees.
While Bob Newhart and Tom Peters are dated references, is the need to understand our stakeholders' needs, capabilities and challenges any less relevant today?
How Do You Rate?
* How approachable are you, really? Are you getting the candid feedback you need?
* How proactive are you in seeking the real story: not only what is happening, but why?
* When is the last time you took a stakeholder to lunch? How frequently should you be doing so?
* How much proactive wandering have you done in the past week? How might you improve?
* Do you use a "My door is always open" mindset as an excuse for not proactively seeking the information you really need?
Your answers are out there. Just don't expect them to come knocking on your door. In fact, in our world of excessive political correctness and cover your tail mindsets, all of your wandering around and open door invitations can still fail to deliver what's really needed for effective decisions: candor. And how much wandering around time do you really have?
A More Effective Solution
I've discovered that as an unbiased outsiders, we can gather candid information about what your people are really thinking and why. This insight is impossible for insiders to acquire. And paraphrase Master Card, the insight is priceless. So if you want the real story, we would be honored to discuss how you might profit from getting to the truth of your situation.
The Door to My Office is Always Open or is it - To learn more about this author, visit Tom Lemanski's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
The Door to My Office is Always Open! ...or is it?
How do you get the real story?
A recent discussion on tapping knowledge resources led me to consider what works and what doesn't. I recall my first exposure to the concept of an executive open door policy. It was a comedy album that my parents used to enjoy....
"The door to my office is always open. I think you all know why its open. It was stolen and I'd like that returned too." - Bob Newhart, The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart
The physical state of your office door is less significant than your mindset for seeking insight from your stakeholders. They include anyone who is impacted by the success of your organization and can hold valuable insight into what's really going on.
When you're spending most of your time working in your business rather than on your business, you're likely creating unspoken barriers to both seeking and receiving information from those with the real story about your operation and your marketplace.
Beyond the Open Door
The open door policy is a reactive approach to seeking information. Tom Peters' 1982 best seller, In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America's Best Run Companies, suggested a more proactive approach to seeking stakeholder insight. He used the acronym, MBWA: Management By Wandering Around. He discussed the value of getting out from behind your desk and into the field or on to shop floor and meeting with customers, vendors and employees.
While Bob Newhart and Tom Peters are dated references, is the need to understand our stakeholders' needs, capabilities and challenges any less relevant today?
How Do You Rate?
* How approachable are you, really? Are you getting the candid feedback you need?
* How proactive are you in seeking the real story: not only what is happening, but why?
* When is the last time you took a stakeholder to lunch? How frequently should you be doing so?
* How much proactive wandering have you done in the past week? How might you improve?
* Do you use a "My door is always open" mindset as an excuse for not proactively seeking the information you really need?
Your answers are out there. Just don't expect them to come knocking on your door. In fact, in our world of excessive political correctness and cover your tail mindsets, all of your wandering around and open door invitations can still fail to deliver what's really needed for effective decisions: candor. And how much wandering around time do you really have?
A More Effective Solution
I've discovered that as an unbiased outsiders, we can gather candid information about what your people are really thinking and why. This insight is impossible for insiders to acquire. And paraphrase Master Card, the insight is priceless. So if you want the real story, we would be honored to discuss how you might profit from getting to the truth of your situation.
The Door to My Office is Always Open or is it - To learn more about this author, visit Tom Lemanski's Website.
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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