More power to your elbow by Ann Elliott

The wonderful Marta P, managing director of Gail’s Bakery, has recommended two great books to me; one of which is called Powerful by Patty McCord, ex-chief talent officer at Netflix. I listened to it on Audible first and am now reading the book. It really did challenge my thinking on how to develop the culture in a business, the role of the “people” team in recruiting the right individuals to live this culture and the unflinchingly honest communication needed from top to bottom to use the culture to drive performance.

?There is, sometimes, an assumption in business that people who are technically good at their jobs can successfully manage others – often without direction and training – but there is (as everyone knows) a real skill in being able to do it well. The management of individuals and teams will differ, by company, in line with their differences in culture. The “powerful” way of driving performance is certainly not how Whitbread, where I started my career in hospitality, asked you to lead teams. The “Whitbread way” wanted its employees to behave in a “gentlemanly” manner – not words found in this book.

?The key messages, summed up in brief at the end of each chapter, were very helpful. I won’t lay them all out here but some of the more salient ones for me were:

?? Individuals derive their satisfaction at work from having great team members to work with – ones who they can trust and challenge. This is significantly more motivating than bonuses, stock options and perks.

?? Companies should always employ the very best possible talent possible and pay them accordingly.

?? Businesses should have the leanest possible processes, policies, rules and approvals to be truly agile. They should eliminate those that hamper the ability of the business to be quick – even better still, don’t introduce them in the first place. Every process left in place should have a clear rationale for its existence.

• Truly understanding how a business works is the most valuable training employees can receive.

?? Everyone in an organisation should be encouraged to challenge, question and suggest ideas. Communication must flow both ways and must be constant. People can handle being told the truth. Lack of truth leaves the team to fill the gap.

?? Radical honesty is vital and critical feedback must be specific and constructive. Don’t allow colleagues to talk about one another behind their backs or to you. They must speak to one another face to face, honestly and openly about how they are feeling.

?? Admit when you are wrong and encourage the team to do the same. “That encourages employees to share ideas and opposing view with you, even if they directly contradict your position”.

?? Encourage intense and open debate over business decisions, expect arguments to be supported with facts not personal assumptions and let the team know that it’s OK to lose arguments and to admit when they have.

?? Build a team that can deliver future plans, not current ones. Recruit a team that, just like any sports team, will change constantly to ensure the very best players are on the pitch. The business is “building a team not raising a family”. Proactively replenish the talent pool.

?? It is not the job of the business to invest in developing its high performers – the job is to develop the product and to be successful. People should take charge of developing themselves.

?? Hiring great performers is the hiring manager’s most important job. HR must truly understand the way the business works to ensure they can do this. People should be actively encouraged to constantly explore opportunities outside of the business – only great performers who are a great fit with the business should stay.

?? Do away with the annual review process. It is a waste of time. Performance improvement plans should genuinely help people improve performance. If they aren’t doing that then stop using them.

?? There isn’t a correlation between high engagement and high performance.?

In summary, “People have power. It’s not your job to give it to them. Appreciate their power, unleash it from hidebound policies, approvals and procedures and they will be powerful".

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Great book. Very provocative and extremely relevant for today’s issues and opportunities.

Ann Elliott is a hospitality strategist, connector and adviser