I used to do my work at one of the greatest retailers in America. A decade ago, the way things were accomplished was people-centric. There weren’t ‘managers’, there were leaders. Schedules were made by having conversations and relationships. Customers were ‘astonished’ by an engaged team of their peers. Stores were merchandised and maintained based on a deeply thoughtful, situationally variable, customer-oriented philosophy that took months or years to master. The empowerment of each employee to make entrepreneurial decisions ‘in the moment’ was a core principle. Tenure was measured in decades. Turnover was single digit.
A few years ago, things changed. A multi-million dollar computer algorithm took over the scheduling. Merchandising and maintenance of stores was dumbed down, voluminously codified and disengaged from circumstance. ‘Selling’ became the central focus. ‘Managers’ were implored to stand above and apart from the team. Employees had to ask for permission to suggest decisions. Turnover approached 50% in my final year.
And the stockholders applaud.
What it the largest number of people a venture can employ before the Lowest Common Denominators demand a rule book in order to perform?
~Alex
#YourTurnChallenge
www.YouAreYourWork.com