Great business requires great people

Rough Notes, Aug 2002 by Huling, Emily

STRENGTHENING THE FRONT LINE

Effective hiring, training and encouragement produce a successful front-line staff

Great corporate leaders such as Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric; Lou Gerstner, chairman of the board of IBM; and Microsoft's Bill Gates all credit the success of their companies to one major factor-their people. Undoubtedly they are right. It's the people on the front line who make the business happen. But responsibility for developing the people and creating the environment and culture falls squarely on the shoulders of the day-to-day leaders and managers of the organization. Regardless of a firm's size or location, every organization can develop people who will take the business to higher levels of success. Here are five strategies to get you where you want to be.

Be sure you have the right kind of people. It may take eliminating some staff who do not meet your best employee criteria. Building the right staff takes hard work and willingness to look outside the insurance industry. Your recruiting success depends on knowing what qualities and skills are needed for each position. Consider the following three areas:

Attitude and personality. Observe closely the spirit of the individual. Is his or her nature upbeat, positive, and outgoing? Do voice and body language exhibit interest and enthusiasm for the job?

Education and intelligence. A person without insurance experience needs to have skills that can be transferred to the position. Attention to detail, organizational skills, and the ability to solve complex problems are needed to succeed in our business.

Communication skills. Verbal and written communication skills are critical for success. Conduct the proper pre-offer testing in order to determine at what level your candidate performs.

So where can you find potential hires? Check out other professional advisory businesses such as banking and finance, education, and the hospitality and restaurant industry. Generally, people with these career backgrounds are customer-focused and have above average communication skills.

As always, follow the proper legal interview guidelines during the recruiting and hiring process.

Create a learning environment. In 1984, Fortune magazine named Jack Welch the "Toughest Boss in America." In the prior five-year period, he cut 118,000 people from GE's payroll and pared additional costs by closing uncompetitive factories and selling unprofitable businesses. At the same time, Welch invested millions of dollars to renovate the corporate headquarters and upgrade its Crotonville management development center. These moves generated some harsh criticism.

But Jack Welch knew what he was doing. Finding and developing good people were needed to turn GE around. It was a long-term commitment that would pay off

Today you don't need to build an entire management training or learning center. People can learn online, with CDs or videos, through instructor-led sessions and on-the-job cross-training. What's important is that education offerings should be broad. Include product and coverage, insurance operations and workflow, customer service, and technology. Create a curriculum. Find outside experts or willing, experienced staff who can bring knowledge and interest to the subject. Involve as many employees as possible in the teaching and require everyone to participate in the learning.

Encourage people helping people. Mike Krzyzewski, long-time winning basketball coach of the Duke Blue Devils, is a master of this concept. In his book Leading with the Heart, Coach K talks about his team development strategies. One of his techniques is simply to put a talented freshman player's locker next to one of his star senior's lockers. Then, in casual conversation with the Duke senior, he'll say something like, "You'll make sure this new player fits in, won't you?" The die is cast and before long the seasoned player has taken the new recruit under his wing, not only in basketball, but in other aspects of college life as well. Like Coach K, the best managers build their team by encouraging coworkers to help coworkers.

People need feedback every day. Feedback is not to be confused with micromanagement. Nor is it limited to comments on specific job performance. Feedback is a two-way discussion with associates on what's going on with their clients and their companies. Conversations can be held in the parking lot, bathrooms, hallways, and the lunchroom. By opening up a discussion, managers learn things they wouldn't know otherwise. A simple "How's it going with our new underwriter at XYZ Company?" or "Have you spoken with Joe Smith at ABC Manufacturing recently?" will give managers an opportunity to listen, learn, and be supportive.

In addition, management's interest and solicitation of opinions helps fuel enthusiasm and commitment. By practicing "oneminute management" techniques (read One Minute Manager by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson), communication can flow easily and the individual's confidence and performance will improve.