As Leclerc with the least expensive life

February 14, 2012 12:00 AM

In an American restaurant chain "medium range", the branch had intended to boost growth and back in range menus and prices. Disappointing results: some restaurants were quickly emptied and client satisfaction surveys showed clearly that the plan was not walking. Error of strategy or execution The two, no doubt. But despite a rapid reorientation of strategy and a return to what had been the success of the chain, the evil was done. This was no longer the strategy that gear, but run that too. The Directorate had lost the confidence of employees and franchisees (70 of the network owners). Its confusing and conflicting messages appeared to have blurred for always values and benchmarks of a string built on something simple, but effective teams: dinner in City casual for a reasonable price, in a friendly atmosphere. At a seminar, the team discovered with dismay the results of a survey conducted in the field, where employees expressed their doubts, frustrations or anger about the degradation of their work and the ability of the leadership team to give them good media and good instructions. "The worst day of my life", tersely remembers President-CEO.

Little branches thus call into question. The problem is not so much in awareness of the importance teams in first line, but in the difficulty to this evidence in practice. Branches too often forget the importance of direct interactions with clients and operational reality faced by teams in first line. This discrepancy reveals badly in a bath survey: almost all of the leaders of 360 companies of their sector recognize the importance of attention to clients and three in four believe that they are happy. But the test client is relentless. Nine times out of ten they disclaim companies convinced of their excellence, regardless of the sector and activity.

The teams on the ground know: what are they face or even angry disappointed clients, who are struggling in the contradictions instructions and procedures, living the gap between the promises by the marketing directions and reality at the counter, in the rays or online points of sale or in the offices of the claims... "Put the client and the employee in the heart of the system, and profits will follow themselves," said Jack Taylor, founder of Enterprise Rent-A-Car, which has built its leadership in the rental car on this principle.

360 Business leaders surveyed on the brakes to growth, only one in five cited a lack of opportunity in its market. Without exception, all rely on internal barriers as a main obstacle to the growth of their company.

One of the criteria of the performance of companies is the commitment and involvement of the teams in the field: sales, services customers, deliveries... All those who are in a position to make contact with a client in a lasting relationship. In a large distributor, it is also to buyers who select the products for the following season to the cashiers. In an insurance company, it is also the vendors who offer and sell contracts that employees in charge of compensation and claims. When the first lines colds, it is any business coughing: unsatisfactory service, poor quality, unnecessary costs.

The effectiveness of the first lines is dependent on their ability to make live the good decisions and to implement quickly. The number of decisions that take the teams in direct contact with customers is dizzying. Should take into account this request Should we give this discount How to reach this command in time In business, the decision is not the responsibility of Headquarters. Amount of decisions escape them the field, which are nevertheless vital and make the difference between success and failure of strategies concocted in the meeting rooms.

The most successful companies know motivate teams to be the best of themselves, even in the most menial tasks. This requires that the individual and teams have taken on their employment, to make a difference by their initiative and motivation, regardless of the level of responsibility. "This is not a leader that need us, but thousands", insists Terry Leahy, CEO of Tesco, the largest grocer online world.

How high-performing businesses successfully create a front line able to Excel both in the decision-making and execution We can identify four factors:

the communication of a simple and compelling business priorities, that field vision can easily result in decisions and actions;

clear definitions of roles and the radius of action of each;

continued investment in the development of teams and individuals and motivation systems focused on good indicators;

the dissemination of a true culture of performance.

Communicate a simple vision

and mobilizing the priorities

How to bring thousands of people to work together in a common goal It is the leaders to provide guidelines that are both accurate enough to guide everyone in the same direction and sufficiently General to allow each to take ownership and be there where it is. It is imperative to break with the too generic visions such "become the reference of the market" or other pompous formulas that reflect only legitimate, but trivial, any normally constituted business ambition.

The best are able to make in two or three words both the aim and the means to do so. In its motto "be direct", Michael Dell summarizes its strategy and what it expected of each of the 55,000 employees of Dell worldwide.

The quality of a "vision", it is its evocative power, its power of inspiration. Everyone does not have the chance to fall on formulas as instinctive as Komatsu, a Japanese manufacturer of industrial equipment, with its international currency: "Beat Caterpillar." Primary, but effective. ASDA, one of the best proximity to the United Kingdom chains, has the motto "reduce the cost of the basket of race of the housekeeper", concern which can identify all employees of the chain. As Leclerc, with "the least expensive life." Beyond the advertising slogan, this "concept" permeates the entire network, with buyers in the power plant purchases to franchisees in their store, and is investing of a "social mission" for rolling the costs, crop the margins, and increase the average basket price-quality ratio...

A test always interesting to understand how employees include their company mission: ask them to summarize their perception of the vision and the priorities expressed by the leaders with their words. The answers are often differences significant, sometimes contradictions or, worse, a true vacuum. The exercise can be extended to any of the company, with sometimes inspiring results.

How to communicate these words in order Top-down communication is often the only canal: the President-Director General and his staff apply to teams on the ground, with messages disseminated by e-mail or letter, as this practice at Asda. Other leaders prefer to descend directly into the "room machines" and set an example by working with the teams, such as Walt Disney executives or the leader of a great sign of distribution that passes at least one day per week in ray, occasionally helping clients to wrap their races. But cannot be everywhere at once, and to each his job. It must be that these directives broadcast in the Organization through the procedures, the modes of recognition and compensation...

Clearly define the roles

and radii of action

For an organization to be effective, the starting point is that everyone knows what is expected of them, and to feel responsible for. This obviously applies as much to the Steering Committee for the teams in first line. The correctness of decisions depends on the clarity.

There is not one good way to distribute the roles: sometimes should be a maximum of decision-making power to the front, sometimes not. It all depends on the battle, troops, etc. There is no configuration type. But the direction must not forget to specify where the radius of action of each stop. It must specify "offering, which has, and that has nothing to do". Everyone needs to know who decides what, when its contribution and who is responsible for follow-up. A well performing organization knows exactly who "sleep poorly at night" If the right decision is not taken at the right time.

Management must also ensure to organize the front so that everyone can effectively fulfil its role. Best-performing companies

arrive even to design their chart on value creation. For mobile operators, for example, the Organization has adapted to the maturation of the market. During the years of the explosion of the market, the heart of the creation of value resided in the acquisition of new customers. Then, the game is moved to the loyalty. The most efficient operators were the fastest to implement a "direction of loyalty" in charge of all decisions regarding the retention and development of existing customers.

A past master in the definition of posts on the front line is group Timpson, leader of the "heel-minute" and key duplication. In ten years, he has tripled its turnover multiplied by five benefits, increased the average salary of 40. In 2004, Timpson was ranked second in the "companies" list where to live, or rather that it is good work.

A large part of its success lies in the way of defining the roles of the teams in direct contact with customers. It is simple, according to John Timpson, Chairman and CEO and owner of the Group: "those who work in the front line are the real leaders, others are there to help.". The power of decision is in first line, where each is given a clear and precise role. For example, the tariff grids are only for information. Agents may decide to grant rebates if they feel they are justified. The points of sales managers require their stocks, rather than depend on a centralized system. Customer complaint, officers may spend up to 700 euros to settle the dispute.

Result: employees know their role on the fingertips. They have one directive of Directorate: impress clients. And they know exactly how far they can go to achieve this goal. The judicious use of their power is strongly motivated by the award to the weekly outcome of their point of sale. A coherent remuneration system that values culture of result: a point of sale Manager can win more than a head of area...

Select and encourage effective talent by implementing systems of motivation

Hiring and recruitment policy is vital to the strength and quality of the front line, but the ability to retain and grow talent is also part of the elements that an organization is unique and irreplaceable. Neither selection nor management is easy. So first online jobs are often qualified and badly paid. Turnover is a recurring problem. More and more companies outsource activities in first line. But the high-performance organizations are able to develop creative solutions to these problems.

ASDA, for example, treats his hiring to choose candidates sociable, happy to share with clients. Attitudes are as much as skills. Leaders speak of hearing of the candidates rather than job interview. They prefer the middle-aged who are more likely to identify with the public attending the stores. The results of this policy combined with well relayed instructions are impressive. Bankrupt in 1990, teaches is today one of the most popular in the distribution, with 265 shops and 135.000 employees.

Once recruited, this was to identify and retain the best. Amex, among other successful companies, has an ambitious and effective policy to identify and develop talent. First-line managers play a key role in this area. Some companies premiums paid managers integrate not only the economic results, but also the turnover of the employees and the ability to retain the best elements.

More ambitious way, should aim to push all employees at their level of excellence. First, it is trained to interpret and use customer satisfaction indices, including the "score of promoting net" that identifies customers prescribers, détracteurs and neutral shares. Beyond these analytical indicators, it is also to train them to interact appropriately with customers, particularly in the event of difficulties or crises. It also measures the performance and incentives to maintain the cap on growth. In an effective organization, it refrains commonly multiply assessment tools, to book in what really matters. Just often a few dozen key indicators to measure the bulk of the economic value of a company, allowing its leaders to focus on individual performance and that of their firm. Report performance-reward must be clear. Mobile phone operators were able to adapt it and sometimes enhance the uptake of new customers, or the preservation of subscribers. By measuring the performance in the right place and playing on the remuneration of officials and heads of agencies, operators at the same time maximize the capture of new customers and minimize the loss of existing customers.

Thus, the leaders of the restaurant chain that we have left top of this article in the horrors of the questioning were able to out of the crisis by reviewing completely their compensation systems and their human resources policy. Managers have agreed to link a portion of their salary to teams and customer feedback. They have ensured to hire "good" recruits and help too discouraged employees from "correct" way (including by assistance to find a job). They have set up a client satisfaction systematic measurement system and a constant review of the performance of each restaurant on this basis. After a few months, the turnover has decreased significantly, trust took over and the atmosphere in the rooms and the kitchen is much improved... for fun found customers. Restaurant sales increased four times faster than those of the competition and the stock quadrupled in three years.

Disseminate a true culture of performance

Culture is the foundation of the success of a company. "During my visit at IBM, I understood that culture is not part of the game: it is the game itself", said Lou Gerstner, the boss who released the IBM Mastodon on the rails of the profit during the 1990s.

Many companies want to display dynamic and cultures "fun", but few are able to disseminate the objectives and the vision of the leaders to the front lines. The best companies are able to instill a passion that pushes people to be the best of themselves, and to thrive. They inspire loyalty and make want to invest and to be part of the team. They create ready to sing the praises of their company or their product with customers, colleagues or new recruits "champions". They encourage them to engage more, to go to the most effective and not easy.

Natura, line Brazilian beauty products manufactured and distributed in the displayed sustainable development concern, is a recent example of high culture that motivates both the employees and shapes their behaviour, though she won a strong membership to people sensitive to the values that it proposes.

Great leaders know that culture is not self-evident, it must be the subject of careful attention and permanent, as it will read in the article signed by Serge Hoffmann in this same issue.

Crisis act as real developers of culture in a company. Teams must make difficult decisions on live and act without reference to their hierarchy. In the chaos of the September 11, 2001 in New York, of Enterprise Rent-A-Car teams had to cope with a flood of travelers stranded in the city by the closure of airports. Or Rent A Car, like most of the car rental, rent not its vehicles in "one-way", because of the extra cost generated by the difficulty of recovering the car in some areas. But employees at counter decided to allow customers to return home without these additional costs. The Directorate-General has, in the days that followed, released a memo authorizing this practice given the exceptional nature of the situation, recognizing the merits of the approach of the employees in the field. The first lines were at the forefront of the culture. Ownership is private, the company does not publish its results. But the global sales grew by 32 between 2000 and 2004 and currently amounting to an annual income of $ 7.4 billion.

Any company must evolve to move its strategic objectives. Only a solidly grounded performance culture will allow to react quickly and well. Indeed, no organization is eternal. But some are more efficient and durable than others...