Why Every Interaction Matters
I did a bad thing yesterday. I made a complaint without providing a solution. I’m glad I did because it connected me with some old friends. But I try to practice what I preach, so let me rectify the situation. I’ll start with a story that illustrates the point. I’m told people like and remember stories. ??
When I was first hired at MSFT, I was doing a lot of speaking engagements. You go to events; you do your talk. You know what I mean. So, I’m at this event at Moscone maybe 15 minutes or so before my talk. And I don’t want to get off track, but for me, the few minutes before I go on stage is a very Zen moment. That 5 minutes of anticipation is probably why I love public speaking so much.
There was no green room at this event so I was just kinda standing near the stage, and this older gentleman approached me. I’m not sure why he did. Perhaps he surmised I was a speaker or that I was with Microsoft or maybe he just liked the cut of my jib.
He started a conversation with me. Small talk. Whatever. This was around Widows 7 launch date … he mentioned that his daughter or his son or someone had bought him a new laptop and he was getting used to it and so forth. You know this encounter. So, naturally, I asked him how he liked it. As it turns out, he was very positive and liked it a lot. We talked a bit more and the conversation was winding down when the doorknob complaint came.
“Except this one thing”, he said sheepishly. “Oh yeah, what’s that?”, I inquired. “Well, when I used to play the card game, my cards came out fast, and now they go ffffppfftfpffff”
Somehow, I instantly knew what he was talking about. He was talking about the Solitaire game, and he was objecting to the animations. At this point, I could have been dismissive. I could have told him “Hey, I have to go on stage.” I could have told him “hmmmm, not sure.”? I could have given him the “cool story bro” brush-off. ?But I didn’t do any of those things. Instead, I said “let’s have a look.”
He took out his laptop and demonstrated the issue. Indeed, it was exactly what I thought it was. I quickly found the options menu and the checkbox for animations and turned them off. Obviously, he was very pleased. He thanked me, gathered his laptop, and went about his business. I went up on stage and went about mine.
Why did I do that?
Because to me, it was the right thing to do. But it was more than that. You see, my manger at the time (anyone who can place this in space and time knows the terrific person, leader, and technologist I’m talking about) drilled the idea into our heads that “we are the team that helps people.” Such a simple idea.
A big part of why I did what I did was because I felt empowered by my manager and my organization to do the right thing. There have been times when I didn’t feel empowered by my company to do the right thing. I don’t like those situations. And that’s why I’m not in them anymore. ?? But, in this case, my values, my manager's values and my company’s values were aligned.
So, who cares? You might ask. You helped a dude with his laptop at an event. Big deal.
You’re right. It didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. But as a culture it does matter. When your entire team, organization or company treats every customer as important, it absolutely matters. It stops being a drop in the bucket and becomes the way you do business.
No one would have known if I had simply brushed him off. But I would have known. And we each work in the culture that we create for ourselves.
Now I rectify my original mistake by offering a solution to the problem I identified:
As a leader, create a culture where everyone in your organization understands that every customer matters. Every external interaction impacts the company. Every single one. Let your teams know that they are empowered to live that ideal.
You might respond “that’s easier said than done.” I will concede that often, doing the right thing is not in perfect alignment with doing the thing that will hit a KPI as quickly as possible. In fact, it might detract slightly from a direct beeline to an objective. (Remind me one day to tell you the story of the email that cost me $5,000).
I counter simply with all my manager needed to do was say “we are the team that helps people” from time to time. In fact, I say that to my teams to this day. It’s a simple, powerful message that gives them the freedom to do the right thing when called upon to do so.
I promise that as a leader, if you adopt and adapt this culture to your team’s mission, you will reap rewards. Not only the reward of a culture that people enjoy being a part of, but you will hit your KPIs faster for the simple reason that people work harder on missions they believe in and that align with their personal values. Ask yourself:
Do not underestimate the ripple effect of treating every interaction as important. These are not just isolated acts; they are manifestations of our core values and have a big impact on the bottom line.
And, as a reward for sticking around, Claude's suggestions for titles to this story: