This story caught my attention long back, as the simplest illustration of ‘interested’ vs ‘committed’.
A Pig and a Chicken are walking down the road. The Chicken says: “Hey Pig, I was thinking we should open a restaurant!” Pig replies: “Hm, maybe, what would we call it?” The Chicken responds: “How about ‘ham-n-eggs’?” The Pig thinks for a moment and says: “No thanks. I’d be committed, but you’d only be involved.”
A recent experience got me thinking about this distinction as it applies to business and frontline employees behaviour.
A couple of weeks ago, my 13 year old microwave finally decided to call it a day, and I knew it was time to let it RIP. So, armed with a lot of internet research, Rangaraj and I ventured out into the market – we aren’t yet the kind who is comfortable buying high value goods online, and I had set my mind on a high end, fancy, convection / grill / microwave of a particular brand. Unfortunately my standard port of call, Croma, didn’t carry this brand model. So I zeroed in on the outlet of a locally popular chain, which carried the model as per their online information.
We walked in at around 2, where there wasn’t a single customer, but about fifteen employees, sitting in the ground floor, watching the cricket match. They didn’t mind our intrusion, since they didn’t bother to notice us or acknowledge us. We figured out the microwaves were on the 2nd floor and walked up there. After 10 minutes of roaming around in an empty floor, a girl came up to us, reluctantly, and gladly told us the model we wanted was out of stock. I suggested she check their warehouse inventory for Bangalore so I can still buy it. Definitely looking put out, she took us to the ground floor, to the cashier, suggested we ask him, and walked away. He checked the system to say ‘not available’. Rangaraj suggested he inform us when they get the model, and with great reluctance, they took down our number and name in a notebook.
Not one with a lot of patience, I wanted my microwave NOW. So we went to another store, which was the brands exclusive franchise. Fortunately for me, the sale person there was extremely enthusiastic, ran the demo video for us, took care to understand we were vegetarians and made a smart suggestion that actually would save us a few thousand rupees. While we were hemming and hawing at the price, and size of the discount, the proprietor walked out from behind the cash counter.
He just took over! Offered his ‘sale’ price, even though sale was over, and a price that matched our expectations; and ended up selling us a refrigerator too! Spot discounts, offers of same day delivery, suggestions of a good ‘package’ and ‘insurance’ and there we were buying something more than what we had planned. It was delivered the same evening, and I was busy baking and grilling with my new toy within 24 hours!
By the way it is about three weeks since, and no call from the first shop!
Like the pig and the cow, while a proprietor is committed to making the sale, his sales man was interested in making the sale, and folks in the first shop were not even ‘interested’?
How do we build ‘committed’ frontline that are passionate about serving the customer, closing the deal, as if it was their own business?
One thing for sure, is the ‘skin in the game’. What do they stand to gain or lose, from delighting or ignoring the customer? From making or losing the sale? Building incentives, rewards, recognition and strong communication around the desired behaviour and outcomes is so important, and very often either missed completely, or left to someone sitting in HR to design, and effectiveness isn’t tested frequently.
The other, is the power of demonstration and role-modelling. In the franchise shop, the proprietor clearly did not sit behind the desk and wait to just count the money; he did not feel like sales was the job of his employee on the floor. He did what needed to be done; he connected and spoke with the customer, and ensured he made the sale. In the first shop, the ‘manager’ was nowhere to be seen (I am not sure if he was one of the guys glued to the TV screen); the owner was probably somewhere in the head office or his home…………
The third is the power of empowerment. Even in the franchise store, I wondered if the sales man could have himself closed the deal – did he have the authority and the empowerment to make the customer the same offers – of discounts, delivery and such that the owner did? If he did, he would have himself closed the deal – and made it unnecessary for the owner to be there to close the deal. After all, if he had more than one showroom, he couldn’t be there everywhere all the time.
The fourth is connecting the dots, and telling the story right and repeatedly. Making it clear to each and every employee, how their behaviour impacts the larger business outcomes – customer retention vs loss, customer loyalty vs dissatisfaction, sale and business growth vs losing business to competitor………to me these are consistent messages and stories and data points that need to communicated and reinforced.
The last is a sense of ownership – and the toughest one I guess. I know I am keen for my former employer to do well as long as I continue to hold stocks in the company. What is the equivalent of sharing the larger business success or failure with the frontline employee? Is it ESOPs? Is it some other innovative wealth-sharing mechanism? But this is also key to making the level of ‘commitment’ a reality.
So what else can you think of that can make ‘pigs’ and not ‘chicken’ in the frontline?
I think taking employee needs and wants into consideration- eecially when it comes to schedule. I feel far more committed to an organization that allows me to work the schedule hat works for me 🙂