Monthly Archives: June 2014

Dress Codes

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What should I wear?

I am certain we have all heard this question over and over again and we’ve even asked ourselves this question countless of times.

I  remember how, many moons ago, at a fancy downtown hotel, the mayor of the city was turned away from a restaurant for not wearing a jacket and not wanting to make use of the hotel/restaurant “loaner”. Soon thereafter, hotel chains like the Four-Seasons Hotel Co., started sprouting all over the world with their revolutionary approach of casual elegance and allowing jeans in their restaurants and lounges. A far cry to where we are now, with trendy and boutique like venues where, literally, anything goes!

You still have country clubs that frown on “improper” attire. Jeans are still not permitted in close to 90% of private clubs in the country! You still have the “older” generations fighting with the “younger” generations about what is and what should be.

Truth of the matter is, dress codes do work!  Yes! That’s right – I said it!  BUT, now more than ever, there is a time and place for everything. Here’s a fun exercise to try out: If you have the flexibility at your work place, dress down for one week, heck even for just one day and observe how your work habits change: more casual, more relaxed, more likely to cut some corners, more laid back. Then, for the next week or even just a day, dress up, full business attire to the tees: notice anything different? More serious at work, more punctual, more “business-like”?

What about when going out for drinks and dinner?  Does food taste different when you’re wearing jeans and a T-shirt or when you’re wearing black-tie?

It really all comes down to one of my favorite topics: perception, and the fact that perception is reality! The way you dress gives not only a perception about you to the outside world, but even more importantly it gives a perception of yourself to the one that matters the most, you!

I have found that in the hospitality world, one should not dictate to the customer what one should wear, but rather focus on creating and fostering an environment and ambiance where a customer’s needs and wishes are mirrored by the staff and environment.  Society has changed dramatically in the past 50 years and continues to change exponentially; the me-me factor is more and more prevalent.

Some people say that the customer MUST be taught/educated on how to behave, what to wear and how to experience their life.  I’m a firm believer in the concept of live and let live and things will work out on their own.  You want to honor yourself and loved ones – dress up next time you go out – not because the restaurant is fancy but because you want to feel fancy and self-respected. You want to relax and dress-down after a whole week of wearing suffocating ties and jackets – then do just that, dress down and be yourself. Just try to be in tune with the fact that perception is reality and the question will always be: whose reality do you want to live?

There are two things you can do: either you do it or you don’t!

At Your Service,
Aurelian

Profitability

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Let me ask you a question:  why are companies in business? Or better yet, what is the purpose of a business?  To make money! And, sadly that is why so many companies get it wrong.

It doesn’t really matter what line of business a company is in, but anyone that is totally focused on making money will soon be out of money!  As Peter Drucker  once said, the purpose of a business is to create a customer.

I am not detracting from net-flow-through, from the art and science  of managing the P&L.  By focusing on solely making money, companies lose focus and truly don’t see the forest for the trees. It can’t always be about cutting costs to the bone, increasing prices to the point of gouging the marketplace and, it has to be about more than that.

Here’s an example near and dear to my heart!  I think that we can all agree that banks for the most part are gouging their customers. From ATM fees, to all sorts of other banking fees, whether online or not, we all know that banks are in it for the money and they are raking it in!  Yet, at most banks, you can never find a pen to fill out your deposit slip, or if you do find one it’s usually on a chain. At the amount of money that they’re making, wouldn’t it be more sensitive and customer oriented to simply give pens away? Through economies of scale and large volume ordering, one can get decent pens for 1-2 pennies each - so wouldn’t it make a great advertising strategy to have the bank name and website address on the pens?  But no, banks will typically not do that; they’d rather spend 1000 times more in all sorts of campaigns whereby one would get $100.00 for opening an account with a certain branch, etc. instead of having their customers and visitors feel appreciated.

Anyway, as I always say: There are two things you can do! Either you do it or you don’t!

At Your Service,
Aurelian

Managing Sideways

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Today I thought I’d share some insights on management.  I think we all know what management is and I bet that 9 times out of 10 times, when one thinks of management one thinks of supervisors and subordinates, task planning, etc. To manage a team is to plan, organize, coordinate and assess activities and objectives.

I bet some of you have also heard about the art of managing upwards (i.e. your boss) and the importance of properly, efficiently and effectively managing the relationships with those above you on the food chain (sorry meant to say corporate ladder).  But we’ll save this topic for another time.

I am also willing to bet that most of you have not heard of the art of managing sideways, and this is what I want to talk about today!

The art of management is not to dictate what needs to be done but to team-build, and collectively plan activities, coordinate and provide support in order to achieve the objectives in the most efficient and effective way.  I can already hear some of you say: But that’s leadership!! No it’s NOT!  Leadership is the art of inspiring and motivating someone to do more than they ever thought they could.  Leadership is JFK going to a “janitor” (aka sanitation engineer) at NASA and spending time with him/her instead of the program director. Leadership is giving more attention to the line-staff in the “trenches” than the department heads. Leadership is the answer when JFK asked that janitor what his job was and the resounding reply was: “my job is to put us on the moon”! That is leadership – where everyone on the team feels like they’re contributing to the mission and things could not be achieved without their input.

Now, in terms of managing sideways, this is the art of providing lateral support and service without making it apparent that you’re actually managing the processes.  Remember the art of management is not for one person (the boss) to look good at the expense of everyone on the team, but rather, to make your boss look good while the whole team looks good as well!

For example, instead of telling your coworker: Bobby – could you please do this, I’m swamped with this time sensitive project…(now you’re bossing your peer).  You could say: Bobby – anything I can help you with? Once I’m done with this time sensitive project I’ll be able to help you with XYZ! By the way, how do you do this?  Can you show me quickly? And so on. Now you’re offering help while asking for help as well, except that when you’re asking for help you’re actually empowering someone to showcase their strengths while you get to achieve your goals.

Please do not misunderstand. Managing sideways  is not about fooling others and tricking them into helping you, it’s about you making your coworkers realize that their priorities are just as important to you as to them, and that Together, Everyone does Achieve More than on their own (T.E.A.M). Managing sideways is about empowering people to showcase their skills, their strengths and making everyone realize their value to the team overall!

So next time you’re at work, give it a try, and let me know how it works for you!  I for one know that I would not have had the success that I have had to date, had it not been for using the three types of management approaches in an interconnected way!

As I always say: there are two things you can do – either you do it or you don’t!

At Your Service,

Aurelian