Diary of a start-up: The Ten Commandments, 1-3 08/02/2010
AN EMPOWERED, motivated employee is going to do more for your business than just someone putting in their nine-to-five, turning the crank.
But with the massively varied, often relatively inexperienced staff we frequently have to work with in the wilds of Costa Rica, on the rock of Gibraltar or in the middle of the Med in Malta, I’ve found that ‘empowerment’ may be used in HR circles, but less often makes it out to workstations and cubicles.
Recently, I was faced with five brands to run, two dozen relatively inexperienced, homegrown staff, a $40m budget, and hungry, creative competitors aiming for my customer base.
Of course, there was never any time for seminars - from which one recalls maybe 20%, and actions 10% - so I needed a training shortcut that anyone in the department could turn to for immediate guidance.
I needed a ‘ten commandments’ of sorts: a simple list of clear instructions that would both guide and support the newly-empowered; even if things should go astray occasionally. The team needed to respond creatively to the challenges we faced, and there was always enough going on that we had to let them make their own calls - even if their previous experience was as a head chef or captain of a fishing boat.
Hence, with input from various managers and mentors, I’ve formed the following - a list of the things I found myself saying over and over to various staff.
Emphasis here is on ‘creative;’ if you just need people to turn cranks as instructed, stop reading now.
But if you’d like to see your staff have more initiative and deliver more insight, you need a way to set them free from whatever company culture they may be labouring under. Here are the first three of my ten:
1) The only rule is there are no rules. Tough way to start a list of rules by eliminating them, but if you want some new-think, new insight from the team, set them loose. I always charged my departments with being the “idea factories” of the company; if they felt constrained by rules laid down by previous managers, we had to get those shackles off their thinking.
This did not mean they could work from 1pm to 4pm and drink beer at their desks; rather I wanted them to consider every angle to overcoming an obstacle regardless of
the ‘way we’ve always done it.’ If an idea seemed ‘against the rules,’ we’d discuss it rather than dismiss it
2) If it's not written down, it was never said. A lot of great ideas happen in the chance meeting in the lunchroom or
over a shared cigarette, and as many dissipate as quickly as the fag ash on the pavement. A good idea, or an intelligent request or order, needs to be followed up by an email reiterating the idea
or request.
This allows everyone to consider it further and to create a tracking mechanism of sorts so the idea is eventually actioned. Apply a rule like this from the CEO down, and dropped balls - frequent in this sector’s fast moving, seasonally driven firms - will be reduced and accountability made crystal clear.
3) We don't take no for an answer. This is an important mantra both internally and externally. The marketing department wants something from IT and IT says it’s
can’t be done. Or we want to reach a certain market segment and the key media for it says ‘no’ to online gambling ads. There’s always a way!
Now, you do have to consider the ROI on the effort but perhaps, for example, outsourcing the microsite development or using a Trojan horse with the uncooperative media partner would accomplish nearly the same goal. But “we can’t do it,” is never an acceptable answer. If we think it makes sense, we find a way to get it done.
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Posted: 08/02/2010
User comments
Tell me about it
David K: I have the same problem. In my case in particular, my own boss (the company owner) backs the idea of improvement in principle, but doesn't really want 'the boat rocked' in terms of shaking up staff provided the business is making money; not realising that it could make more if the 'can't do' and 'that's not how we do things here' attitudes prevail.
Alex: how have you dealt with senstive staff when you have had a boss above you?
Tell me about it
David K: I have the same problem. In my case in particular, my own boss (the company owner) backs the idea of improvement in principle, but doesn't really want 'the boat rocked' in terms of shaking up staff provided the business is making money; not realising that it could make more if the 'can't do' and 'that's not how we do things here' attitudes prevail.
Alex: how have you dealt with senstive staff when you have had a boss above you?
Anonymous
my advice only employ russians, they smart, loyal..........and will do anything to acheve ultimate victory. remember stalingrad!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anonymous
My advice is take your staff sailing for the day. Specifically if in Gib or Malta - team work, fresh air and adrenaline.............I met my wife this way.
Barry Balovinski
Employ russians i agree, they laugh at the puny americans visiting their 'psycho-analysts'. This industry is about to be taken over by the russians, Ladbrokes new logo will feature the hammer and sickle!
KS
Referring to the first part of your article: I’m living in Malta and I wouldn’t really say that the staff on offer here is inexperienced. Far from it, I and many others that I know have over 5 years gaming experience. The problem is coming to find the right people and how you go about looking for them.
Malta
I think it's not that there aren't experienced staff in Malta, just that the number of them is limited.
Anonymous
I don't think it's fair to say that the Maltese are limited. I know there not as advanced as some EU countries, but I think's that's a bit OTT.
Last comment
I agree with the last comment. Sometimes it might feel like they are limited, but thats only because each one weighs less than, say, a Minstrel, a Revel or an M&M. Indeed, I would go as far as to describe them as 'floaty light'.
KS
About 4 months ago I was approached by a head hunter on behalf of a leading gaming company. Seemingly an interesting role I went to talk to the company and found out that they were talking to 20 others just as qualified as me for this upper management role.
So I wouldn’t really say limited. Lets not forget that a lot of companies relocating to Malta are bringing their staff with them and most end up staying here even if its not with their original employer due to better offers.
KS
About 4 months ago I was approached by a head hunter on behalf of a leading gaming company. Seemingly an interesting role I went to talk to the company and found out that they were talking to 20 others just as qualified as me for this upper management role.
So I wouldn’t really say limited. Lets not forget that a lot of companies relocating to Malta are bringing their staff with them and most end up staying here even if its not with their original employer due to better offers.
Alex Czajkowski
Russians can be great to work with: smart, efficient, hard-working.... and fun to drink with as they can actually keep up.
As for the other scenarios, I find that a) managing everyone to a number, their own key, core metric, and 2) clearly delineating the dept's processes so people see the interdependencies required to make their number enables a chaotic or disorganized rabble to have a better view of exactly what the group is supposed to do and thus pulls them a tad more together. I guess this is called "leadership," setting out where you're going and how each player has to contribute in order to get there.
Make sense?
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David K
This was interesting, and I think could be useful for many people in egaming. However my problem is almost the other way around: instead of inheriting a small team that is held back by rules, I have inherited a small team in which every member has in fact had too much independence and not enough leadership. As a result, they work in disconnected, inefficient ways, yet are precious and over-protective in terms of being given guidance, even though they urgently need it. What do you recommend I do?
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