It’s not enough to have good employees…

We’ve all been told about the benefits of hiring the best employees and then paying them well, offering benefits, nurturing them, training them.  All of these things are EXTREMELY important.  But there is another factor that is just as important.

Once you have these great folks, LET THEM DO THEIR JOBS!  Relish in their high competency levels.  Do not micromanage them, do not deter them from coming up with better “mouse traps”. 

I have had clients who have faithfully worked with me to hire the best folks, sometimes even replacing current staff because they truly do understand and embrace the idea of hiring the cream of the crop and then paying them well including generous incentive plans.  But then the trouble arises.  They get these folks in there and they treat them in the “same old way”.  They micromanage them, they convince them that the current way of doing things “is fine, don’t worry about it”, concentrate on the tasks, not the concepts.

Folks, there are two things I know to be true…you will NEVER meet your goals without good staff or outsource partners and your staff will NEVER live up to your expectations if you don’t give them some breathing room and open your mind to a new way of doing things.

Call me or email me with any thoughts…

It’s starting to feel personal or what is the back up plan for the back up plan?

Okay, so here I am taking some time off visiting my folks in Louisville so my husband can attend the Ryder Cup with my father.  I bolted out of Baton Rouge ahead of Hurricane Ike (which thankfully didn’t do much harm in Baton Rouge) thinking that coming to Louisville, KY (completely landlocked) would be a safe haven.

WRONG!  Sunday afternoon Ike moved through Louisville with sustained winds of 35 to 50 mph and gusts of 70 mph.  108,000 in the city are still without power.  Fortunately, my folks never lost power but most of their friends are still without.

What is the point of this rant you are wondering?  The point is I continue to hear from folks (I have  client in Houston) about back up contingency plans, what worked, what didn’t.  For instance, if you have no power at your home or office, how are you going to charge your cell phone and your lap top?  If you stay with a friend or relative who has power and you need to make a trade on his computer before yours is charged, do you feel comfortable doing this?  In other words, what is the back up plan for back up plan?

Again, I cannot urge you strongly enough to spend some time on your back up/contingency plan.  Don’t just do the minimum and think you’re in good shape.  You are not.  Gustav and Ike were dangerous, damaging storms and even 800 miles inland, can wreak havoc on your business, your personal life (who’s going to watch the kids when the schools are closed as many continue to be here?) and if you’re not careful, your clients by association.

Also, again, please send me any thoughts you have on any items that come to mind that might not be included in a typical, average contingency plan.

Thanks and keep your head down…

Post-Gustav thoughts…

I had my contingency back up plan SERIOUSLY tested this past week when Hurricane Gustav roared into Baton Rouge with 100 mph wind gusts leaving behind no power, phones or cable.

Here are some thoughts for those of you who have not met this challenge yet:

1.  The cell phone service for the first three days was non-existent.

2.  Wireless internet connection was also absent.

3.  Stupidly, I only have portable phones in my  house that require, guess what, electricity.  I will now purchase an old “direct connect” phone just to have around.

4.  Stupidly, I had been lazy about backing up my data.  My PC was not damaged but I did not have my up to date work on my back up drive.  I will not make this mistake again.

We were without power for 5 1/2 days but were lucky enough to be able to bunk with our neighbors across the street who had a generator and air conditioning unit.  We would have been in big trouble without them.  That was the only way I was able to recharge my computer and cell phone.  I WILL BE purchasing a generator at a minimum when this is all over.  At this point, 50% of the city is still without power and some are being told it will be another 3 weeks.  If they work from home or if their office does not have power and they have no generator, then what?

If you have experienced a similar situation, I would really like to hear from you.  Maybe we can compose a list of “emergency prepardness” items that no one really thinks about…things that aren’t quite as obvious.

Please keep your fingers crossed that Ike spares us.  I don’t think this city can take another direct hit at this time.  Take care, Ginny