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over 2 million served
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Julia Gorin

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Conservatives Are From Mars, Liberals Are From San Francisco
by Burt Prelutsky
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America Alone
by Mark Steyn
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There once was a time when the majority of employees took pride in a job well done, and cared about the success of the business as much as their cared about their own personal success.

Are we still living in a time when a job well done is something to be proud of, or today is simply getting the job done enough? Do employees of businesses, both large and small, truly care if the business fails?

Social Psychologists and Criminologists have developed a theory called the Broken Windows theory, which states that a broken window in a building left unprepared sends a negative signal to those who pass by it every day. The broken window says that the building owner is not paying attention and does not care about the condition of his property. It invites theft and encourages further damage to the structure. The same theory can be applied to businesses, both large and small.

In most businesses, the worst broken windows are people.

An employee who is not on board with the needs and expectations of the company‚s consumers can do immeasurable damage and is a broken window of the most urgent variety.

When an employee becomes a detriment to the company, for any reason, that employee has become a broken window, and the ripple effect from his or her failure can be devastating to your business.

Employees are human beings˜they will make mistakes. Employees who learn from their mistakes, who become better at their jobs because of those errors, are the best possible workers.
An employee who can‚t do the job properly should be fired. There is no excuse whatsoever for letting a poorly performing employee stay on the job. None.

There is a significant tendency in business to forgive more than is rational. We understand why someone is not producing as well as that employee should, we see the problem, and we explain it to that employee. The employee promises to do better. The problem? That employee doesn‚t improve.

There is only one way to make sure that problem won‚t recur˜the employee must go. I‚m not advocating cruelty. Persistent bad performance can‚t be tolerated if you want to be successful

The concept of training for employees is far from revolutionary. The concept of training employees to actually serve customers in a fashion that has all gone but out of style˜with courtesy, a helpful attitude, and a smile˜has sadly become revolutionary in today‚s business climate.

Customer service is more important than anything else your business does. Customer service must be unbelievably accommodating. It must meet and exceed all customer expectations.

How does customer service recover from the abysmal condition it finds itself in today? Employee motivation. Employees can no longer be allowed to sleepwalk through a day‚s work.

Advancement should also be stressed. Employees should know that those who put in extra effort will be noticed and rewarded.

Employees should know that punishment will be the result of poor performance (which in this case will be defined as anything except excellent performance). The ultimate punishment for continued poor performance should always be termination.

The worse broken windows are people. Broken windows that are not repaired result in more broken windows. An employee who is a broken window can cripple a business. People tend to emulate what they see, particularly when they are new to a situation, so freshly hired employees will take a look at the existing situation, and rise or sink to the level of the employees they see in place
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There is no excuse whatsoever for letting a poorly performing employee stay on the job. If the employee is simply not trying hard enough, or doesn‚t care enough, you have to let him or her go.

Businesses these days are far too slow to fire people. Yes, you read that right. More employees should be getting fired.

One dissatisfied customer is a cancer on the business˜they talk to people, they make noise, and they are likely to sway opinion of those who otherwise wouldn‚t have thought negatively about the company. No one can afford that kind of scenario. Your employees must always smile, must always be gracious, and must always solve the customer‚s problem.

An employee who can‚t do the job properly should be fired. Not warned, not shifted to another position, not admonished. Fired. Fast. Before another customer can be spoiled.

Everyone must be accountable, and the person to whom they are all accountable is the customer. There is no higher authority. CRO

Michael Levine is the founder of LCO- Levine Communications Office, a Los Angeles-based public relations firm, and the author of 17 books, including Broken Windows (Warner Books, 2005). www.LCOonline.com

copyright 2005 Michael Levine

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