Baseball and Business: Leadership Lessons From The Field

Spring training always brings back special memories for me. I played college baseball at Oklahoma State University and professionally within the Cleveland Guardians’ organization before transitioning into my current career in customer contact. I always felt fortunate not only to be able to play the game I loved for so long but also for the journey, experiences, and life lessons I learned on and off the field.

While it’s been many years since I swapped out my jersey and cleats for a suit and tie, I consistently think and connect the dots between my approaches to leadership and business in the contact center world and my time in baseball. Here are a few of my takeaways:

Individual Performance Drives Team Success

Call center agents are individuals performing inside a team framework. Like a pitcher facing a hitter, customer experience interactions often come down to an agent handling a customer using the resources available and having an outcome define their success.

A win in baseball is often defined by runs scored, while a win in the call center is a satisfied customer. What happens on a call with an agent will ultimately contribute to the overall team’s success on that day, month, or quarter. A rising tide lifts all boats, which is why I’ve found the best customer contact leaders thrive on working collaboratively within the structure of a team and knowing how to set up each member to find success in their individual roles. More runs scored, more wins. More satisfied customers, more wins!

Diversity Is An Asset

Baseball allowed me a chance to leave New York and play alongside talented athletes from all over the world. Whether they were from Japan, the Dominican Republic, Australia, the Southeastern U.S., or West Coast, baseball allowed a kid from Long Island to interact and learn from a wide range of personalities, cultures, and perspectives.

Working for and with other global organizations gave me an advantage to better connect with and learn from people all over the world. While we spoke different languages and came from many different backgrounds, baseball gave me and my teammates common ground through our shared passion. In business, it’s an incredibly valuable skill to be able to speak different “languages” across your organization’s different departments. Even if you’re not fluent in Sales or Product Marketing, showing a basic understanding and interest will go a long way in getting buy-in and motivating your teams to reach their full potential.??

Consistency Turns Minor Improvements Into Major Growth

In order to reach your full potential as an athlete, you must always be consistent in your efforts to find that next level of improvement. The same mantra applies to business leadership. One of my favorite sayings is “amateurs practice until they get it right, while professionals practice until they can’t get it wrong.”

When I talk to customer service operations leaders at incredible companies like Mastercard or Hilton, I see the common thread of consistency and practice. It’s all about moving the needle 1% every day or week to find that next level of improvement. High-performing organizations, whether in baseball or CX, prioritize finding the right talent, driving each other to improve their performance every day. Compounding growth isn’t just a term for investment advisors.

There’s No ‘One Size Fits All’ For Motivation and Empowerment

We’ve all had that manager who is unafraid to get in your face and demand better performance. That motivational approach works for some but can be demoralizing and demotivational for others. In an organization where you want 100% buy-in, you can’t use the same leadership approach 100% of the time.

As a customer contact professional, you need to be flexible in your approach and be able to understand and work with various personalities. Some customers are demanding and angry, others are easy and understanding, and most are somewhere in between. Understanding your team as individuals with different backgrounds, abilities, and motivations is a true difference-maker and empowers them as people, separate from their job performance, which goes a long way. A more engaged and empowered player usually results in better production, whether your success metrics are measured on a scoreboard or in feedback surveys.