building a business Archives - 911�Թ�

Falling Through Two-Way Doors – Empowering Employees to Embrace Risk

Jason Beans — Wed, 19 Sep 2018 17:00:38 +0000

We live in a risk-adverse culture. I see this professionally and even at home with one of my young daughters. She’s talented in many areas, but she’s exceptionally hard on herself when she can’t accomplish something right away. In these situations, she becomes discouraged to the point she stops trying.

For a child, FAIL is nothing more than the “First Attempt In Learning.” As her father, it’s my responsibility to help her grow comfortable with failing so she can be the best version of herself.

Likewise, in business, one of the biggest mistakes I see talented people make in their careers is being afraid to fail. The prospect of failing is so intimidating, they pursue goals they are guaranteed to achieve rather than aim for more ambitious outcomes they could miss. They are so motivated to avoid error, they shortchange themselves and their colleagues, sacrificing creativity and ingenuity for the safety of the status quo.

To make any decision is to take a risk. Some percentage of our decisions will fail. According to JP Morgan’s Chief Marketing Officer, , “If you’re not failing, then you’re not learning.”

One of the best ways people can get comfortable making fast decisions is to focus on “two-way door” decisions making, rather than “one-way door” decision making. Jeff Wilke, Senior Vice President of Consumer Business at Amazon, does a great job the critical difference between these two: “A one-way door is a place with a decision if you walk through, and if you don’t like what you see on the other side, you can’t get back. You can’t get back to the initial state. A two-way door, you can walk through and can see what you find, and if you don’t like it, you can walk right back through the door and return to the state you had before.”

Two-way door decisions are reversible and therefore require less vetting. As Wilkes says, “Why would we need anything more than the lightest weight approval process for those two-way doors?” What applies for Amazon as an organization applies to people as well. Why worry too much if you can walk it back?

As a CEO, I encourage my employees to make two-way door decisions. This may take the form of releasing a software enhancement that can be rolled back, or piloting a program within a single department before implementing company-wide.

One-way door decisions require more thought and buy-in since they cannot be undone. Both decision types have the potential to yield great results, but one-way decisions risk greater repercussions if they are wrong and take greater care and vetting.

If fear of failure is hindering your organization’s ability to innovate or your personal ability to take risk in your life, consider using the concept of two-way door decision making. It is a safe, simple, smart way to open up your employees or yourself to the risk of failure, and, more importantly��– the risk of success.

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Growing a Company Montessori-Style

Jason Beans — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 15:50:00 +0000

I’ve been looking at schools for my two-and-a-half-year-old daughter and I was floored by the quality of education available today.

One school, , really stood out from the rest. It’s fostering a science and culture of learning that is unbelievable. The days I remember of mindless memorization and hours of sitting bored and frustrated listening to lectures are no more. While I wish I could relive my school years, I realize, especially after my recent Montessori school visit, that I’m reliving those years every day alongside our Company’s 200+employees. I discovered that what we’ve been fostering for the past 14 years within the Company’s culture is based heavily on the Montessori method. Here are six common philosophies we share to develop the human potential:
Management Style: “With freedom comes responsibility,” that’s the principle I heard students and teachers state many times. Students are expected to behave in a proper manner in order to continue to have the freedom they love. 911�Թ� employees have freedom, but with that comes responsibility. We foster an objective-based leadership model rather than a task-based management style. We define the top corporate goals, the unit chooses their top goals (aligned to corporate goals) and the individual can set their own goals (aligned to team goals). By defining KPIs (key performance indicators), the teams and individual can find and execute quality improvement projects to improve their KPIs.

Focus on Strengths:  Montessori encourages children to pursue their interests. They have freedom in sports, art, music and even learning topics. Equally impressive was that classes are divided by learning style. Similarly, 911�Թ� is a strengths-based culture. When a new employee arrives, the first thing we do is give them the Strength Finder and Predictive Index assessments to determine their top five strengths and a book to reinforce those strengths. We then design a “flight plan” for each employee to help them find what they love to do and have an aptitude for so everyone can achieve their life goals.

Huddles: Montessori calls it something different, but ultimately the end goal is the same. Kids get together themselves on a daily or weekly basis. They can talk about what is going on, where they are stuck and ask each other for guidance. The team helps each other and holds each other accountable. At 911�Թ�, we get together at the same time every morning in our teams, discuss our daily happenings, gain support if needed, and keep one another on task.

Variable Roles: The kids are put in positions where they need to be comfortable stretching themselves and leaning on others, and in situations where they are leaders, helping other children. Much like life, 911�Թ�’s Situational Leadership training and mentor program also mirror this reality. After all, a person must be comfortable helping others and/or asking for help in order to achieve their maximum potential.

Support: I noticed many systems in place for positive validation.  The children look out and root for each other. They are trying to climb mountains together, not play King of the Hill. Similarly, we have Company “High Fives,” “911�Թ� Rock Stars” and “Catches of the Month” to recognize employees for their professional achievements and milestones.

Ownership: I had the privilege to see some of the 6th–8th grade presentations to prospective parents; they were impressive and spoke volumes about their education. All you had to do was look at the children delivering these presentations to know this method of education is stellar. This is why I’ve always been an advocate for exposing our team to clients, with each unit being responsible for providing their own client tour. People don’t need the CEO or sales person telling them how good we are, they can see it with their own eyes.

911�Թ� has an amazing team and dynamic culture, one that has been written about in business publications and case studies. Over the years, I’ve been a dedicated student to the art of building a thriving Company culture. Yet who knew all I had to do was go to a different kind of school to get what I needed. Had I attended a Montessori school, I would have saved a lot of time, avoided a lot of mistakes, and honed my skills earlier on in life. At least now I can say I recognize the difference and want better for my daughter and for every employee at 911�Թ�.

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Leadership vs. Management

Jason Beans — Tue, 23 Oct 2012 14:31:00 +0000

Leadership and management are two very different things. Leadership “pulls” people. Management “pushes” people.

Everyone knows traditional management. Check on the team to make sure they are working. Clock breaks and punch out time. If people don’t comply, there are consequences. In bad situations, it can be exhausting and draining for both the person being managed and the person managing. This system was derived from the fact that most people are twice as motivated by fear as by gain. The issue is that it burns people out and makes them less engaged as a whole, requiring more management to keep them efficient.

Leadership is different. Leadership is about creating the common vision and pictures that inspire your team. It assumes the people around you want to do well and through your created vision are inspired to achieve that end though self-management. In this scenario, people are energized working for a goal instead of being drained.

If you are in a leadership role and find a large portion of your time is spent “managing,” sit back and try to think about how you can move towards leading. What can you do to make the team more engaged? Do they know the purpose of the unit and why it helps the company, the client and society? Are they fired up and engaged in the next big improvement you can all make together to improve the unit? Done right, the team is pulling because they are so excited. That is the ultimate objective of a leader.

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What to Expect with Change

Jason Beans — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 13:28:00 +0000

This is a on the process of change. It takes the “change” process and breaks it into a predictable path for adoption. As technology, society and companies evolve, things change.

The evolution goes like this:

Resistance
Mockery
Usefulness
Habitual
New Standard

I have seen this pattern over and over again throughout the years. I like the clinical aspect of the thought process. When resistance or mockery occurs, it’s easy to get angry or give up on the change. Just knowing it is a normal part of how people deal with change can help you to view each step as part of the process, and not take any of it personally.

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Creating Exceptional Customer Relationships – It’s a Must

Jason Beans — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 13:36:00 +0000

Taking the time to develop exceptional customer relationships is the most underutilized activity in business. Perfect service delivery without a great relationship leaves a person wanting…something. I recently read on this topic. So much of what’s covered in it, we’re doing at 911�Թ�.

Here are a few key points from the article:

Be responsive. Your customers’ urgency must become your urgency.
Be consultative. Gently challenge, make informed suggestions and provide options.
Keep it simple. Skip the jargon and sell the results.
Take an interest in the person; make it personal.
Keep your customer informed; nobody likes to be in the dark.
Be willing to go the extra mile; give customers more than they expect.
Follow up to check the customer’s level of satisfaction … it’s never over.

Bringing value to your daily customer interactions is the key to creating lasting business relationships.

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Ideal Project Team Size

Jason Beans — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 14:27:00 +0000

Studies have shown the ideal team size for maximum efficiency per person on a project is three to five people.�� This assumes the highest quality of people where everyone is talented, engaged and driven.

There is often a big jump in production and quality��when a��project��goes from one to two people.�� The team grows by 100 percent but efficiency grows by more than that amount.

Think about moving into your home.�� It could take you all day by yourself to get a large dresser up the stairs (and a lot of damage) but two of you can do it in five minutes.�� The��multiplying effect of the team is obvious.��Depending on the project and needs, there is a solid jump up to five people.�� After that, the additional people cause minimal gains and may even slow projects down.�� There is less ownership by each team member because the outcome feels less directly related to “them.”�� There is more conflict as everyone tries to have an impact.�� Constructive conflict is good.�� Destructive conflict (based on ego)��is bad.

I always like to think of a basketball team.�� All five players on the court have enough involvement that they all feel a major part of the outcome. Many agree that there is magic behind the number five.

How do��companies and teams��“let go” and still share��their knowledge as��they grow?��Many companies struggle with this every day.�� Team size is one way to systematically address this issue.

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Do Sweat the Small Stuff

Jason Beans — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 17:20:00 +0000

Everyone says “don’t sweat the small stuff.” People tell me I worry about little details too much. I think the opposite. I need to focus on them way more than I do. Why?�� It sets the expectations for what is acceptable. I just read on the importance of sweating the small stuff.

Every amazing invention, company or experience is based on people that focused on every last detail. Good enough is not good enough. Focusing on the small stuff sets the tone for tolerating nothing but exceptional.

When New York was a crime ridden, dangerous place to live, Giuliani decided to sweat the small stuff with crackdowns on relatively minor offenses such as graffiti, turnstile jumping, and aggressive squeegee men. The principle was that this would send a message that order would be maintained and the city would be “cleaned up.”�� It worked; the city’s crime rate plummeted.

When eating at a fine restaurant like Chicago Cut across the street from our corporate offices, it all comes down to the details.�� The best run restaurants will do little detailed things like alternate a dark napkin (for people wearing dark pants/skirt) or a light napkin (for people with light pants/skirt) so no lint appears contrasting to the diners’ pants or skirt.

One of my best examples of a detailed-driven experience was at a restaurant in Istanbul. The staff constantly rotated my white wine into chilled glasses to keep it cold while eating outdoors in the blistering heat.�� Neither the colored napkins nor the chilled glasses really make a major difference, but they do create an “experience.”�� They show the level of detail a facility is focusing on in order to be exceptional.�� I have never had a bad experience at a place that focuses on the granular level of detail. When a team gets down to the micro details the big stuff is always taken care of.

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Impossible is a State of Mind

Jason Beans — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 15:55:00 +0000

“The young do not know enough to be prudent, and therefore they attempt the impossible — and achieve it, generation after generation.” – Pearl S. Buck

I love this quote. It’s true, as companies age and grow, they need to not let “experience” block ingenuity.

Life is always a balance of “learning” from experience, and having bright minds and new views to take things to a new level. Things that we could not comprehend a few years ago are commonplace today, but they were built on the foundations of thousands and thousands of years of learning and experience.

Any company that wants to be exceptional must always strive to bring innovation and evolutionary and revolutionary change to their products. It takes a lot of purposeful, unyielding effort to make ingenuity a part of a company’s DNA. So, forget about prudence sometimes — it is the only way to achieve the impossible.

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The Power of Speed

Jason Beans — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 15:20:00 +0000

I was taking a boxing lesson the other day, and when doing a combination, I asked my trainer whether he wanted speed or power. He said speed. When I was done, he told me he answered speed because he wanted power. Speed is power.

Anyone that follows boxing or football has heard the expression power thrills, but speed kills. Think about it. Mass and velocity together determine the energy behind an object. Get hit by a car going one mile per hour, not so bad. Speed it up, and it is a different story. The same holds true in the business world.

McDonald’s and other “fast” food may not be considered the “best” food, but they made it faster and became a global powerhouse (serving the convenience factor).

Jiffy Lube may not be the most robust car care, but it sure is easier than leaving the car at the dealer (again, serving the convenience factor).

Google has all but replaced the encyclopedia and Yellow Pages because it is “instant” (speed).

It’s the exact same in our world. Speed is critical to a customers’ satisfaction in almost everything we do for them. Why does this matter so much?

Today people are more critical and savvy than ever before because they can be. Expectations are higher. We are all expected to do more and more. When a customer finally has time to do something, they want to do it and knock it off. They don’t want to set it aside and come back to it. They do not want to wait on the phone. Plus, customers know what is possible. They aren’t just comparing you to direct competitors, they are comparing you to every company they come in contact with. That’s the way the world works today.

So much has changed in such a short time. Back in my college days, I would stick in a floppy disk and wait a long time for the computer to boot. Now, I go nuts waiting five seconds (at six seconds I call the help desk). Remember dial-up internet connections where a page would take ten minutes to load? If a page doesn’t come up right away now, I move to another site or wait until I have a better connection. My expectations have changed because I know what is possible.

Speed is critical to our customers, just like it is to all of us in our own lives.

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Strength Comes from Overcoming Challenges

Jason Beans — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:28:00 +0000

I believe confidence comes from overcoming challenges. I developed this as a core belief while training in and teaching jujitsu. I noticed a lot of new students came seeking to learn jujitsu, but couldn’t perform techniques right away and quit within a few weeks. They were embarrassed by their perceived failure. Some, however, stuck with it.

As a teacher, I was especially fascinated with the individuals who were not confident or natural at jujitsu in the beginning, but they kept on trying. Overtime, you’d see them get a technique right once, then 10 percent of the time, then half of the time, then 80 percent of the time. What I witnessed more than their ability to “kick butt” was their emotional ability to overcome failure.

Fall and get up enough times, you soon know emotionally nothing can keep you down. Knowing you can overcome is confidence. Watch the Olympics, professional athletics or successful leaders, and you’ll learn that a surprising number had less than ideal childhoods or periods in their lives. Overcoming those challenges gave them the strength and confidence to achieve their goals.

Fear is another challenge in my mind. If you can get through fear, you’re stronger than before. Overcoming challenges, like fear, builds strength and confidence. Much like lifting weights, where the work-out tears the muscle fiber, but then heals-up stronger than before.

If we never fail, we have not tried hard enough. If we pick-up ourselves and push through, we will be stronger. At the time of struggle, it may not seem like it, but a challenge is our friend. It makes us better.

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