Tag Archives: Problems

Follow the Leader

Posted on January 28, 2015 | Leave a comment

In this world of expert teams—groups of people who are each smart enough and wise enough to lead—it is ever more important to follow with integrity.

While we routinely debate the merits and qualities of leadership and its impact on productivity, often missing from the conversation is the importance and obligation of true teamwork; following the leader.

If we expect good leaders trust their teams, it is only logical that good teams trust their leader.

When an individual is given the title of leader—both the glory and the burden of being accountable for results—it becomes imperative for teams to acknowledge and support the leader.

Too often when uncovering the problems with teams, it comes down to followers who aren’t quite willing to follow. Every plan has a flaw; every decision meets a “yes, but…”; every criticism has an excuse. Poor followers are caught up in their own ego, more concerned with eventually being the saviour of the situation (a perceived need, not a real need) than trusting that the leader is making good choices. Poor followers aren’t really following. They are riding the coattails to success—going through the motions with an agenda all their own.

  • Poor followers gather information but hold it close for personal gain.
  • Poor followers agree in their words but reject in their actions.
  • Poor followers fixate on the plan without focus on the goal.
  • Poor followers stand among the team but have an agenda of self-preservation.
  • Poor followers believe they have the wisdom to lead, but lack the courage to risk leadership.
  • Poor followers are eager to hear feedback, but quick to find excuses.

Ultimately, poor followers lack conviction, and let apathy and arrogance undermine their actions. Failure becomes a self fulfilling prophecy; not because the plan lacked strategy or leadership lacked ability, but simply because the they didn’t fulfill their follower role with integrity.

This isn’t about blind allegiance, or recklessly abandoning good sense and objectivity. There is a time and place for questions and contradiction; there is room for tough discussion in search of excellence; it is important to disrupt the status quo. But when planning transitions to action, and everything that we’ve prepared for is on the line, it is time to let leaders lead, and support them—support the whole team—by acting as an excellent follower.

Know the goals and know the plan; share information; respect decisions; act with conviction.

Strong Brand Strategy is rooted in leadership and trust. It takes teams of people committed to a common purpose, unafraid to tackle the challenges of bringing their vision to light, but also unafraid to work together. Strong brands demand diligent teamwork. If we truly expect leaders to lead with integrity, it is only fair that leaders expect followers to follow with integrity, too.

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Posted in Authenticity, Best Practices, Leadership, Strategy

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Mind the Gap.

Posted on May 29, 2013 | Leave a comment

You’re probably well of aware of the concept of “the brand gap”—the difference between the experience you promise and the experience you deliver.

You should know that nobody cares about the ‘gap’ except you.

The brand gap only exists in your mind—it’s the strategic vacuum between your promise and your capacity to deliver the experience consistently. The gap doesn’t exist in your customer’s mind. Or any other stakeholder, for that matter.

No one else knows what experience you intended to deliver. No one else sees a gap. Everyone else sees it merely as a promise that you failed to deliver, and now over-promised or failed-to-deliver is part of your brand story. You exaggerated your capacity and the value of the experience; no gap.

A regular assessment of the gap is a helpful brand management tool; it’s important to take a brutally honest look at the experience you are delivering against the promises you make.

Defining the gap, though, is not a stage of brand development to work through. It’s a failure of your brand strategy and any sign of a gap is a serious wake up call. If there is a disconnect between the brand you want to have—the promise you believe is compelling—and the brand experience you offer, you must change one of them fast.

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Customer Service. Strategy or culture?

Posted on September 21, 2012 | 5 comments

Customer Service is the great differentiator for your brand. Competitors may offer a similar product or service, but the way you treat people—the way you make people feel within the brand experience—will define the brand. No exceptions.

There are two important mandates for customer service:

The first is the experience you intend to share with your customers—the promise you’ve made. This is rooted in your strategy; fail here and you’re doomed. (But that’s a post for another day)

The second is the experience you provide when things don’t go as planned. The way you treat people in the middle of chaos—chaos you’ve caused or chaos thrust upon you—will have a tremendous impact on the brand story, perhaps even the most impact. Success here is rooted in your culture.

When the shit hits the fan—and it will at some point—we expect the brand to understand and honour the relationship we shared in the good times. We expect the brand to honour our needs BEFORE they worry about their own. We expect the brand to deliver the experience when it matters to us, not only when it’s convenient for them. And we expect the brand to know more about solving our problem that we do; we expect them to be prepared.

Customer Service, for all the tools and techniques and plans and training, is about treating human beings with respect. Respect for the promises you’ve made; respect for moment you’re in; respect for the variables that make each of us unique. It’s an art, not a science. It’s in your culture.

Anyone who has seen my Essential Brand Strategy presentation knows of my admiration for WestJet, a Canadian based airline that focuses on a fun, friendly travel experience.  A few days ago they lost my luggage.

Their customer service culture, not just a problem-recovery strategy, made all the difference.

  • I never felt like Westjet lost my bag because of sloppy staff. It was simply an error, not negligence or apathy.
  • They apologized first. They were genuinely disappointed—not in themselves or their team, but the situation. I never felt like they weren’t 100% positive they would find it, and I always believed they were in control.
  • They compensated me without hesitation, even though they promptly found the bag. The employee recognized their team dropped the ball on the relationship—the flight—and accepted responsibility.

Luggage gets lost. It’s an inconvenient reality of air travel, and like many people, I have lost luggage with other airlines. While the other airlines stopped short of blaming me, there was always the impression that my action somehow broke their system, or that my need to have my bags was now an inconvenience for the airline—a disruption of their normal duties. The report, the solution, the reconnection—all met with just enough contempt to break any promise of friendly skies. Perhaps they loved to fly, but dealing with luggage problems was simply out of scope.

WestJet didn’t just retrieve my luggage; they did it within the experience I expect.

Now, I don’t want to belittle their business model, but good customer service isn’t exactly a secret formula for success. But with WestJet, it’s not really a formula at all.

Their approach to customer service is rooted in a culture that genuinely cares for their customer. It’s in their brand. It’s not a marketing tool; it’s an HR obsession. WestJet doesn’t train nice people to do things right—they hire awesome people and give them permission to do the right things. It shows.

Customer service is never just a strategy. When it is your culture, it is your brand.

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Posted in Best Practices, Brand Experience, Customer Service, Diary, Strategy

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Be good to be great

Posted on January 5, 2012 | Leave a comment

Success is found in a simple equation: a good business model plus a strong brand strategy will thrive.

As part of that equation, I will be the first person to tell you how important it is to have a solid brand strategy. I believe any organization in any industry can benefit from being proactive and strategic with their brand. No exceptions.

I will also tell you that a good business model could still be successful without the support of a compelling brand strategy. As much as it pains me to admit it, there are plenty of organizations that succeed regardless of how clumsy, disorganized or just plain bad their brand appears. The team works hard (probably harder than they have to), and they are able to hold enough relationships to support a business. It’s not pretty, and it’s not easy, but it works for them.

The opposite, however, is not true. Even the best brand execution won’t save an organization with a poor model behind their operations. It doesn’t matter how much attention or love or enthusiasm the brand generates; if the organization can’t function effectively, it’s doomed. If the organization doesn’t generate interest and deliver value—whether that’s revenue, donors, supporters, or attention—it simply isn’t sustainable.

While a good business may survive with a weak brand, a poorly run organization will fail, even with the best brand ideas. Always. You have to have a good model to have success with a great brand. No exceptions.

Kodak is expected to file for bankruptcy in the coming weeks. Kodak is an amazing brand; the phrase “a Kodak moment” is synonymous with moments so special they are worthy of a fabulous photo. With a solid brand and a lucrative business model—for many years they had a virtual monopoly on film production—the company was a classic power brand; the choice of consumers, a desired employer, an industry innovator and a leader within its community.

Kodak had the chance to stay relevant and evolve the brand experience, but they missed the opportunity. Love for the brand couldn’t ignore the technology shift that was eating away at the existing business model. The brand still holds a place in everyone’s heart—it’s an American icon—but the business model eroded and has fallen apart.

A strong brand strategy can evolve with the business model. A smart model can evolve around what innovation delivers and what the market demands. A good model is at the foundation of a great brand.

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Posted in Best Practices, Brand Experience, Customer Service, Strategy

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