Strengths

12/19/11 Strengths!       

In an office team and helping environment like the one we work in, it is really important that we best utilize those unique and shared strengths that we each bring to the table. Clearly, we are not all the same. Good thing, too, because if we were, some of us would be unnecessary.  We do projects like the Meyers-Briggs (MBTI) personality typologies, Strengths Finder, group survival scenarios and more (like potlucks) to better understand the strengths that each of us brings. But, as an office we have to be the "total package" no matter what. Our customers need to see that we are organized, outgoing, thoughtful, relate well to others, are understanding, etc. If they perceive that we are weak in any area that is meaningful to their experiences, they may not return and could possibly bad mouth us on Facebook (read: a  marketing fate worse than death). So, we need your strengths to help us be successful. And, now that you have a chance to see your strengths, we need everyone on the team to fill in the gaps so we can demonstrate ALL of the strengths and so we can provide the great, quality service our constituents and customers have come to expect. Thanks for giving us your strengths and strengthening your weaknesses!

How Do We Steer This Thing?

 7/29/13 How Do We Steer This Thing?

As a supervisor, I often view my job as steering a ship comprised of the physical components of the office, the financial resources and the human resources. As the helms”man”, I must take responsibility for the direction in which we move. Thinking about how a sailing ship moves, we always visualize it moving forward. Steering has exactly no effect if the ship is stationary; one could move the rudder to his heart's content, but nothing will happen if the ship isn’t moving forward. Forward movement is the job of each and every staff member. We must move if the institution is to move. We look to our leaders to steer us in the right direction, but we won’t go anywhere if we don’t do our daily work and look to capitalize on novel and cutting edge opportunities to fulfill our mission. These activities will put wind in the sails and allow our leaders to steer us in the right direction. As we have middle and upper leadership changes, we frequently will make slight adjustments to our course, but the regular crew are the ones who propel us in those directions. You play a key role in keeping this ship moving in the right direction.

Working toward Balance

So much of our daily existence surrounds the concept of finding balance; or equilibrium, or harmony, or homeostasis, or any of the myriad other considerations that have similar meaning. As employees, we must balance the interests, strategic plan, mission, vision and values of our company, division, office, supervisor, and coworkers with our endeavor to meet the needs of our customers. In our private lives, we must balance the needs and interests of varied people and stakeholders with our own needs and desires. So, we could choose to see ourselves in constant struggle between these varied factions of our being. But, really, there must be no struggle. In the Bible, Jesus said that we must love our neighbor as our self. This means that we must first love our self and care for the self, so we CAN most effectively love and care for our neighbor and customer.  As a supervisor, I ask that my colleagues be conscious of the needs of others in the office and of our ability to meet the needs of the customers due to any reduced staffing. But, I know also that each of us must meet our personal, familial and professional development needs adequately in order to be able to provide great service to our customers. Stephen Covey said, “The challenge of work-life balance is without question one of the most significant struggles faced by modern man.” Expect that we will have continual conversations about finding this balance. And, know that I appreciate your efforts.

We’ve got a Mission and Value for That

Like every other company, we have an app for our organization. Our customers can log-in quickly from a smart phone or tablet to access our app. Got a problem? Yeah, we’ve got an app for that. But what about when the problem is ethical or outside the normal scope of our everyday considerations? We may not have an app for that, but we do have an institutional mission, values, guiding principles, code of professional ethics, laws and regulations, etc. Our organization has decided corporately to adopt a core focus and the philosophy under which literally all of our activities should fall. When any one member of the community strays from the company mission or values, the whole organization could suffer greatly. 

Jim Collins in Good to Great talked about having the “right people on the bus”. To extend the analogy further, I would also make the case that everyone in the organization should know where the bus is going, their role on the bus and what the edges of the road look like that it is supposed to be driving on. So, if the bus begins to veer off the road or turn off on the wrong road, any number of people in the organization can raise an alarm and hold others accountable before the bus goes careening over a cliff. Our mission, values and guiding principles delineate the parameters for solving problems, innovating and planning for the future. 

Got a problem? Yeah, we’ve got a mission and value for that.

Managing the Wait

5/6/13 Managing the Wait

In our world, we wait. We wait for lots of reasons and as individuals we must learn to manage ourselves while we wait. In our place of business, our customers will certainly wait at times. During peak busyness periods they will wait more than during others. As purveyors of great customer service, we must be conscious of how the wait will be received by our customers and how we manage it as professionals and as managers. Patricia Lotich wrote a great article on this topic for EzineArticles.com. In it, she wrote, “It is unfortunate that organizations often get so wrapped up in the performance of delivering a service that they lose sight of the service experience. When was the last time that you assessed your service through the eyes of the customer?”

When we was the last time we sat in our own lobby? How do our customers receive their welcome measured on their wait? What sorts of conditions help you to feel positive about a waiting experience you’ve had? In my opinion, the two biggest tools for providing a positive wait are friendliness and ongoing communication- the communication of the concern for your wait and of the realistic time to expect to wait especially. I have waited for doctors who were known for their great interpersonal skills and desire to answer patients’ questions. The staff of those doctors would call ahead and indicated if the doctors were running behind. What are some ways we can be innovative in managing the wait? How do smart phones play a role in the wait? Could we have some funny or relevant texting-based surveys running at any given time on a computer monitor?  Could we have a list of recommended apps for our clients to view? Are their apps directly relevant to our work that we could recommend- or should we develop one?

Administrative Office Professionals Day Poem 2013

You’ve found amazing successes

despite your supervisors’ best efforts and guesses.

You offer our customers consistent smiles

though you’re buried in work measured in miles.

You are the yin of organizational order

to our yang full of disorganizational disorder.

You are constantly, amazingly, expertly juggling multiple hats,

so allow me a moment to recognize you truly as “all that”.

You are composed and compassionate

even in the face of customer frustration or discontent.

You are time management and reality’s anchor

when my feet and mind are wont to wander.

You have a selfless service gift given

when my contribution is generally but to enliven.

You’ll, at the counter, save the day

while I’m in meetings wasting away.

You’re the front-line Lieutenant

while I’m stuck debating “ands” in the Senate.

You’re the information and knowledge keeper,

but your work sits there while all glean as hungry info reapers.

Your customer help leaves folks better and different.

The reach of your impact is literally infinite.

Despite dealing with poop that lands down on you from uphill rolled,

it’s unfortunate we allow all our appreciation to sit so vastly untold.

In expertly handing all things most vital, left undone and tough,

we can never say thank you enough.

Your professionalism is truly inspirational.

Without you this place would scarcely be operational.

Daniel Segura, 4/24/13

Social Media- Another Way to Connect

4/22/13 Social Media- Another Way to Connect

I think it would be safe to say that, generally, we are people who desire to connect with other people. We’ve chosen a helping field like education because we like people and we want to make a difference. In the last 6 or 7 years, various social media outlets have increasingly become a more and more ubiquitous part of our lives. Even someone who doesn’t use Facebook, probably hears information in-person about something shared through it. Information moves very rapidly from person to person. This phenomenon is not isolated to certain age groups or socio-economic classes, but happens across the board. Like any medium, this can and is abused, so we must be cautious and diligent with confidential information. But, one thing is true throughout these mediums- we can now create a sense of community and interconnectedness with a very wide range of people across any distance. In our work, we are now almost expected that we will be available 24/7/365 on the web and almost as much through social media. We must meet the imperative to connect with our customers for real-time service across multiple communication mediums in order to continue to exceed  customer service expectations.