Maestro: A Surprising Story About Leading by Listening by Roger Nierenberg

Author:Roger Nierenberg
Language: eng
Format: mobi, pdf
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2009-09-22T14:00:00+00:00

The Pep Talk

THE NEXT REGULAR MEETING WITH ALL OF MY DEPARTMENT heads was upon me before I knew it, and I was well aware that this was going to be an important one. Despite making some impressive strides toward our goals, we had suffered two more months of weak sales. I sensed that the team needed the assurance of a steady hand at the helm. And I wanted to bolster their confidence by showing that I was on top of the situation. I’d come to understand that, being on the podium, I could see the strategic issues more clearly than the members of the team. So I planned a crisp agenda, and was determined not to be sidetracked by anything that could turn into another squabble.

When the team arrived and gathered around our conference table, I began by congratulating everyone on the progress the team had been making. I noted how much better they were listening to and communicating with each other and with our customers and suppliers.

But then came the tough love. I described our major disappointments, one by one, explaining what mistakes had been made and how they had contributed to our difficulties. For the most part the group listened, but occasionally someone would bring up a peripheral matter.

“Listen,” I said, keeping a tight rein on the meeting, “we’ve got a lot of important topics to cover, and I want to stay with the agenda. We’re limiting the discussion to only strategic matters today.”

I was so well prepared, in fact, that when an occasional question was raised I was ready with the answer. “I’m feeling a little uncomfortable with the numbers we’re seeing from our distributors,” John ventured.

“You’re right, John,” I replied. I’d already reached the conclusion that we might well need to make a change. “So you think that we should find one or two new distribution partners? I probably agree with you.” Then I proposed a plan, appointing a role for each team member.

When I’d finished covering the agenda, I looked around the room and waited for some reaction. The room was quiet. Not one of them was showing any spark or passion about getting back on top. Clearly I needed to fire them up a bit.

“Come on, guys, we’ve been behind for two quarters now.” I raised my voice. “We’ve got good products and we’re introducing new products, so why aren’t we doing better?” I didn’t wait for a response. “This can’t continue. I want you to get behind this and push harder. Put more pressure on the distributors. If they can’t do it, we’ll have to find someone else.”

The hour was up. I thanked them all for coming, and they filed out of the room, making idle conversation. I can’t say that it was a great meeting. It probably wasn’t very pleasant for them to hear all of this bad news, but I got the job done. We covered everything. That’s what I get paid for.

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