Articles > Clients Who Are Doing It Right, Part II

Clients Who Are Doing It Right II

In my work as an expert who works with organizations to help them grow to the next level it can sometimes be frustrating. Now don't get me wrong, I am not complaining about my clients at all. It's just that when hired to assist organizations to improve their lines of communication between say sales and operations or to provide candid feedback on leadership issues that are limiting growth - my advice isn't always taken. Shocking isn't it? I mean I am hired and paid to do a job and at times it can feel like I am only successful if I am telling the company leaders what they want to hear versus what they need to hear.

Here's what I have found out in my years of being an expert who speaks to large audiences and consults to help implement programs. You can't please all the people all the time and if you try to please versus be truthful you will not be successful. My best clients are those who are already doing a lot of things really well and they also recognize that to get to the next level they need to be open to new ideas and perspectives. My best clients say to me, "Please don't tell us what we want to hear- tell us what we need to hear".

Right now I am working with one of my clients, a very well known home builder in Portland Oregon who has had huge success in their industry. This homebuilder client is definitely a company who is doing things right. Here is a list of some of things they are doing that are growing them to the next level and will keep them a competitive force in their industry:

• The President & CEO hires outside consultants regularly to 'audit' his business and to evaluate his leadership.
• The executive team agrees to disagree with each other and each one is outspoken, passionate and fact based when interacting with each other.
• They do not measure success by comparison to others in the industry rather they focus on customer feedback, employee input and measurable strategies within their plan.
• The entire executive team is accessible, open to suggestions and committed to the vision and mission of the company AND communicate that down to management and employees.
• The company has high level incentives in place they expect their people to work hard but they also want them to play hard. In addition to company events they do regular department retreats where they white water raft, ski or do other team activities.
• The company ties reward to performance- you get results- you get rewarded both monetarily and with time off.

Working with this client who does so many things right has been a true joy and of mutual value. I have had difficult face to face conversations with the President & CEO about things that may be limiting next stage growth both from a personal aspect on his part and from a leadership standpoint overall. The executive team has had to examine some things that need to change as they grow and that growth does not mean maintaining status quo.

The bottom line- this company is definitely doing it right.

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