Thriving Amidst the Tech Tsunami: Extreme Employee Engagement/Extreme Humanization

1. EXCELLENCE 2019 THRIVING* (*NOT “SURVIVING”) AMIDST THE TECH TSUNAMI:EXTREME EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT/EXTREME HUMANIZATIONTom PetersAustralian Institute of ManagementWestern Australia Perth/14 March 2019(This presentation/10+ years of presentation slides at tompeters.com; also see our annotated 23-part Monster-Master at excellencenow.com)

2. Dr. D.A. Henderson, who led the international effort to eradicatesmallpox, was asked what he wanted to eradicate next. His answer …Source: Sabin Vaccine Institute

3. Dr. D.A. Henderson, who led the international effort to eradicate smallpox, was asked what he wanted to eradicate next. His answer:“BAD MANAGEMENT.”Source: Sabin Vaccine Institute

4. GOOD MANAGEMENT: THE HUMAN ELEMENT “Business has to give people enriching, rewarding lives … or it’s simply not worth doing.” —Richard Branson (#1/4,096) “[Business has the]responsibility to increase the sum of human well-being.”—Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Good Business “Business was originated to produce happiness, not pile up millions.” —B.C. FORBES, 1917/first issue/Forbes

5. FIRST THINGS BEFORE FIRST THINGS

6. FIRST THINGS BEFORE FIRST THINGS I EXECUTION: THE ALL-IMPORTANT “LAST 95%”

7. CONRADHILTON, at a gala celebrating his career, was called to the podium and asked,“What were the most important lessons you learned in your long and distinguished career?”His answer …

8. “Remember to tuck the shower curtain inside the bathtub.”

9. You get ’em in the door with “location, location, location”—and gorgeous appointments. You keep ’em coming back* with the tucked in shower curtain.***Profit rarely/never comes from transaction #1; it is a byproduct of transaction #2, #3, #4 …**Andtucked in shower curtains come via a respected/engaged housekeeping team

10. THE ALL-IMPORTANT “LAST 95%” “Amateurs talk about strategy. Professionals talk about logistics.” —General Omar Bradley, Commander of American troops on D-Day

11. FIRST THINGS BEFORE FIRST THINGS II 37 YEARS/6 WORDS“HARD IS SOFT. SOFT IS HARD.”

12. Hard (numbers, plans)is Soft. Soft (people/relationships)is Hard.

13. GOOGLE GETS A [SOFT] SURPRISE I“Project Oxygen [data from founding in 1998 to 2013] shocked everyone by concluding that, among the eight most important qualities of Google’s top employees, STEM[Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics]expertise comes in dead last. The seven top characteristics of success at Google are all SOFT SKILLS: being a good coach; communicating and listening well; possessing insights into others (including others’ different values and points of view); having empathy toward and being supportive of one’s colleagues; being a good critical thinker and problem solver; and being able to make connections across complex ideas. Those traits sound more like what one gets as an English or theater major than as a programmer. …”Source: Valerie Strauss, “The surprising thing Google learned about its employees—and what it means for today’s students” (Washington Post, 20 December 2017)

14. GOOGLE GETS (SOFT) A SURPRISE II“Project Aristotle[2017] further supports the importance of soft skills even in high-tech environments. Project Aristotle analyzes data on inventive and productive teams. Google takes pride in it’s A-teams, assembled with top scientists, each with the most specialized knowledge and able to throw down one cutting-edge idea after another. Its data analysis revealed, however, that the company’s most important and productive ideas come from B-teams comprised of employees that don’t always have to be the smartest people in the room. Project Aristotle shows that that the best teams at Google exhibit a range of soft skills: equality, generosity, curiosity toward the ideas of your teammates, empathy and emotional intelligence. And topping the list: emotional safety. No bullying. …”Source: Valerie Strauss, “The surprising thing Google learned about its employees—and what it means for today’s students” (Washington Post, 20 December 2017)

15. The “Hard-Edge-First” Logic “Far too many companies invest too little time and money in their soft-edge excellence. … The three main reasons for this mistake are: 1. The hard edge is easier to quantify. 2. Successful hard-edge investment provides a faster return on investment 3. CEOs, CFOs, chief operating officers, boards of directors, and shareholders speak the language of finance.” Source: The Soft Edge: Where Great Companies Find Lasting Success , Rich Karlgaard

16. Soft-Edge Advantages “1. Soft-edge strengths lead to greater brand recognition, higher profit margins, … [It] is the ticket out of Commodityville. 2. Companies strong in the soft edge are better prepared to survive a big strategic mistake or cataclysmic disruption … 3. Hard-edge strength is absolutely necessary to compete, but it provides only a fleeting advantage.” Source: The Soft Edge, Rich Karlgaard

17. TOO SOFT FOR THEM??? “As I sat listening to one presentation after another highlighting the remarkable and unorthodox activities—people first dogma, leadership style, communal culture, etc.—that have made this organization so healthy, I leaned over and asked the CEO, ‘Why in the world don’t your competitors do any of this?’ After a few seconds he whispered, ‘I honestly believe they think it’s beneath them.’” —Patrick Lencioni, The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business

18. My first book, In Search of Excellence, can be summarized in six words: Hard is soft. Soft is hard. My next fifteen books can be summarized in six words: Hard is soft. Soft is hard. My seventeenth book, The Excellence Dividend, published in April 2018, can be summarized in six words: Hard is soft. Soft is hard.

19. FIRST THINGS BEFORE FIRST THINGS IIIMANAGEMENT: THE PINNACLE OF HUMAN ACHIEVEMENT

20. MANAGING: AS A PAIN IN THE ASS. Somebody’s got to do it; punching bag for higher ups on one end, grouchy employees on the other; blame magnet if things go wrong, big bosses abscond with the credit if things go right. MANAGING: AS THE PINNACLE OF HUMAN ACHIEVEMENT. The greatest life opportunity one can have (literally); mid- to long-term success is no more and no less than a function of one’s dedication to and effectiveness at helping team members grow and flourish as individuals and as contributing members to an energetic, self-renewing organization dedicated to the relentless pursuit of Excellence.

21. “The role of the Director is to create a space where the actors and actresses canbecome more than they have ever been before, more than they have ever dreamed of being.” —Robert Altman, Oscar acceptance speech

22. Les Wexner:FROM FASHION TRENDS GURU TO JOY FROM PICKING/ DEVELOPING PEOPLE!* *Limited Brands founder Les Wexner queried on astounding (>>JackWelch) longterm growth & profitability: It happened, he said, because “I got as excited about developing people”as he had been about predicting fashion trends in his early years.

23. “In a way, the world is a great liar. It shows you it worships and admires money, but at the end of the day it doesn’t. It says it adores fame and celebrity, but it doesn’t, not really. The world admires, and wants to hold on to, and not lose, goodness. It admires virtue. At the end it gives its greatest tributes to generosity, honesty, courage, mercy, talents well used, talents that, brought into the world, make it better. That’s what it really admires. That’s what we talk about in eulogies, because that’s what’s important. We don’t say, ‘The thing about Joe was he was rich!’ We say, if we can … —Peggy Noonan, “A Life’s Lesson,” on the astounding response to the passing of journalist Tim Russert, The Wall Street Journal

24. “ … We say, if we can … ‘The thing about Joe was he took good care of people.’”

25. Joe J. Jones 1941 – 2019 Net Worth$21,543,672.48

26. FIRST THINGS BEFORE FIRST THINGS IV“COST CUTTING IS A DEATH SPIRAL”:THE COMMERCE BANK/ METRO BANK SAGA

27. Commerce Bank/Metro Bank Dogma“WE WANT THEM IN OUR STORES.”Source: Vernon Hill, Fans! Not Customers. How to Create Growth Companies in a No Growth World

28. Commerce Bank/Metro Bank:Get ’Em Away From the ATM and Smart Phone and Into the Branches (Stores):7X. 7:30A-8:00P. Fri/12A.7:30AM = 7:15AM.8:00PM = 8:15PM.Source: Vernon Hill, Fans! Not Customers

29. “YESBANK”: “When we had a processing problem with MasterCard, it came to our attention that a customer couldn’t pay for their airline flights. A front-line Metro Bank team member stepped in.SHE PUT THE CUSTOMER’S FLIGHTS ON HER PERSONAL CREDIT CARD SO THAT THE CUSTOMER COULD STILL TAKE ADVANTAGE OF A[time-sensitive]GOOD DEAL, and later—with their permission, of course—transferred the money from their account.” Source: Fans! Not Customers. How to Create Growth Companies in a No Growth World, Vernon Hill

30. 2,0000,000 17,000 8.6

31. 2,000,000 Dog Biscuits +17,000 New Jobs $8,600,000,000 Price Tag

32. Commerce Bank/Metro Bank Dogma(Coda for The Excellence Dividend)“COST CUTTING IS A DEATH SPIRAL. OUR WHOLE STORY IS GROWING REVENUE.”“ARE YOU GOING TO COSTCUT YOUR WAY TO PROSPERITY?or …ARE YOU GOING TO SPEND YOUR WAY TO PROSPERITY?” “OVER-INVEST IN OUR PEOPLE, OVER-INVEST IN OUR FACILITIES.”Source: Vernon Hill, Fans! Not Customers. How to Create Growth Companies in a No Growth World

33. Michael Raynor and Mumtaz Ahmed: THE THREE RULES: How Exceptional Companies Think* … 1.BETTER BEFORE CHEAPER. 2.REVENUE BEFORE COST. 3.THERE ARE NO OTHER RULES. (*5-year study/Deloitte: From a database of over 25,000 companies from hundreds of industries covering 45 years, the authors uncovered 344 companies that qualified as statistically “exceptional,” and finally winnowed the list to 27 firms, including Thomas & Betts, Weis Markets, Hartland Express.) Jeff Colvin, Fortune: “The Economy Is Scary … But Smart Companies Can Dominate” … They manage for VALUE—not for EPS. They get RADICALLY CUSTOMER-CENTRIC. They keep DEVELOPING HUMAN CAPITAL.

34. THRIVING IN AN AI-MAD WORLD EXTREME HUMANIZATION The Excellence Dividend’s “poster child”: Commerce Bank/Metro Bank The human touchcan prevail circa 2019! (Pamper customers [“Fans”-to-be] AND create good jobs AND earn big $$$$ ANDembarrass [steal MILLIONS of customers from] the tech-gaga-cost-cutting-obsessed-short-term-shareholder-value-maximizing-narrow-minded- job-and-sustainability-destroyers.)

36. PUTTING PEOPLE (REALLY) FIRST

37. The Excellence DividendBook Tour 2018* *Time & Time [& Time] [& Time] Again …Interviewer: “Tom, you always talk a lot about people.”Me: “What the f*** else is there to talk about?”

38. The Business of Business Is PEOPLE Serving PEOPLEServingPEOPLE

39. The Business of Business Is … PEOPLE/LEADERS Serving PEOPLE/FRONT-LINESTAFFServing PEOPLE/CUSTOMERS

40. “You have to treat your employees like customers.” —Herb Kelleher, Southwest Airlines, asked what was his #1 secret to success “If you want staff to give great service, give great service to staff.” —Ari Weinzweig, Zingerman’s (from Bo Burlingham, Small Giants: Companies That Chose to Be Great Instead of Big) “What employees experience, customers will. The best marketing is happy, engaged employees.Your customers will never be any happier than your employees.” —John DiJulius, The Customer Service Revolution

41. EXCELLENT customer experience depends … entirely … onEXCELLENT employee experience! If you want to WOW your customers, FIRST you must WOW those who WOW the customers!

42. Profit Through Putting People [REALLY] First Business Book Club Nice Companies Finish First: Why Cutthroat Management Is Over—and Collaboration Is In, by Peter Shankman with Karen Kelly Uncontainable: How Passion, Commitment, and Conscious Capitalism Built a Business Where Everyone Thrives, by Kip Tindell, CEO Container Store Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business, by John Mackey, CEO Whole Foods, and Raj Sisodia Firms of Endearment: How World-Class Companies Profit from Passion and Purpose, by Raj Sisodia, Jag Sheth, and David Wolfe The Good Jobs Strategy: How the Smartest Companies Invest in Employees to Lower Costs and Boost Profits, by Zeynep Ton, MIT Small Giants: Companies That Choose to Be Great Instead of Big, by Bo Burlingham Joy at Work: A Revolutionary Approach to Fun on the Job, by Dennis Bakke, former CEO, AES Corporation Joy, Inc.: How We Built a Workplace People Love, by Richard Sheridan, CEO Menlo Innovations It’s Your Ship: Management Techniques from the Best Damn Ship in the Navy, by Mike Abrashoff, former commander, USS Benfold Turn This Ship Around; How to Create Leadership at Every Level, by L. David Marquet, former commander, SSN Santa Fe Employees First, Customers Second: Turning Conventional Management Upside Down, by Vineet Nayar, CEO, HCL Technologies Patients Come Second: Leading Change By Changing the Way You Lead by Paul Spiegelman & Britt Berrett The Customer Comes Second: Put Your People First and Watch ’Em Kick Butt, by Hal Rosenbluth, former CEO, Rosenbluth International Hidden Champions: Success Strategies of Unknown World Market Leaders, by Hermann Simon Retail Superstars: Inside the 25 Best Independent Stores in America, by George Whalin The Dream Manager, by Matthew Kelly The Soft Edge: Where Great Companies Find Lasting Success, by Rich Karlgaard, publisher, Forbes Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, by Tony Hseih, Zappos Camellia: A Very Different Company Fans, Not Customers: How to Create Growth Companies in a No Growth World, by Vernon Hill Like a Virgin: Secrets They Won’t Teach You at Business School, by Richard Branson

43. THE DREAM MANAGER— by Matthew Kelly“AN ORGANIZATION CAN ONLY BECOME THE-BEST-VERSION-OF-ITSELF TO THE EXTENT THAT THE PEOPLE WHO DRIVE THAT ORGANIZATION ARE STRIVING TO BECOME BETTER-VERSIONS-OF-THEMSELVES.” “A company’s purpose is to become the-best-version-of-itself. The question is: What is an employee’s purpose? Most would say, ‘to help the company achieve its purpose’—BUT THEY WOULD BE WRONG. That is certainly part of the employee’s role, but an employee’s primary purpose is to become the-best-version-of-himself or –herself. … When a company forgets that it exists to serve customers, it quickly goes out of business.OUR EMPLOYEES ARE OUR FIRST CUSTOMERS, AND OUR MOST IMPORTANT CUSTOMERS.”

44. HIRING: Listening. Caring. Smiling. Saying “Thank you.” Being Warm. Nice. Empathetic. “Better people.” “We.”

45. 1/7,500 “May I help you down the jetway …”

46. “We look for ...listening, caring, smiling, saying ‘Thank you,’ being warm.”— Colleen Barrett, former President, Southwest Airlines

47. “The ultimate filter we use[in the hiring process]is that we only hire NICE people.… When we finish assessing skills, we do something called ‘running the gauntlet.’ We have them interact with 15 or 20 people, and everyone of them have what I call a ‘blackball vote,’ which means they can say if we should not hire that person. I believe in culture so strongly and that one bad apple can spoil the bunch. There are enough really talented people out there who are nice, you don’t really need to put up with people who act like jerks.” —Peter Miller, CEO Optinose (pharmaceuticals) “When we talk about the qualities we want in people, EMPATHY is a big one.… If you can empathize with people, then you can do a good job. If you have no ability to empathize, then it’s difficult to help people improve. Everything becomes harder.—Stewart Butterfield, founder/CEO Slack, Flickr

48. “I can’t tell you how many times we passed up hotshots for guys we thought were better people… and watched our guys do a lot better than the big names, not just in the classroom, but on the field—and, naturally, after they graduated, too. Again and again, the blue chips faded out, and our little up-and-comers clawed their way to all-conference and All-America teams.” —Bo Schembechler (& John Bacon), “Recruit for Character,” Bo’s Lasting Lessons

49. Observed closely during Mayo Clinic employment interviews (for renown surgeons as well as others): The frequency of use of“I”or“We.” Source: Leonard Berry & Kent Seltman, chapter 6, “Hiring for Values,”Management Lessons From Mayo Clinic

50. “I am hundreds of times better here[than in my prior hospital assignment]because of the support system. It’s like you were working in an organism; you are not a single cell when you are out there practicing.’” —quote from Dr. Nina Schwenk, in Chapter 3, “Practicing Team Medicine,” from Leonard Berry & Kent Seltman, Management Lessons From Mayo Clinic