Mueller - The 'new normal' -- finding better ways to do things

As a part of my professional development, I read many different business publications to stay abreast of the current business climate. It is interesting to note that in the last two weeks, I have read the words "new normal" several times in different publications. What does this mean?

These words are new but I propose that they really describe what we have all been experiencing for several years now. That is, we have been experiencing what we call the "New Business Reality" in our Carnegie programs -- meaning that we are all expected to work harder, better, faster with less (less time, money and other resources).

For a while, business analysts thought this was a short-term situation -- when profits were up and life was good, this reality did not exist. Over the last several years, the business climate has changed. This has left many leaders and organizations wondering, "How do we get things done now?"

At Dale Carnegie Training, we truly believe people are companies' best assets. When times are tough we must focus on the people-related factors within our companies.

To do that we first need to verify the vision -- are the visions of the folks out in the field comparable to that of the corporate execs at their desks? We also need to check the reality of the vision against external sources through benchmark data and second, make sure our senior team and managers are aligned around the same goals.

Is our senior team transitioning into the leadership team who will guide the organization into the future? Our leadership teams should be aided by coaches, individuals selected to assist their associates in driving the organization to the next level. I am thinking Dale Carnegie Training, of course, could provide that coaching role.

The leadership team needs to have a continuous improvement process embedded in the organization. The progress and outcomes of all initiatives need to be measurable. The leadership team will evaluate the measurements and decide on a corrective action that may be necessary. Continuous improvement teams are created to ensure a constant forward momentum. The ideas and thoughts of the people within the organization are the most valuable resource we have in today's world.

At the beginning of this process the organization starts as an "as is" stage. By completing this process, the organization should move to the "should be," where the organization wanted and needed to go. And it should have the processes, skills, and systems in place to stay there, or go even to the next level of performance and results.

This entire system requires input (and output) from all people within all levels of the organization. The employees in the field usually have great ideas as to how they can contribute to the success of the company -- why aren't we asking them more often? And, when we ask them, we need to make a concerted effort to research the viability of their suggestions, and ask for their cooperation in putting their ideas into practice.

When was the last time you had a brainstorming, or green-light thinking session at your place of work. Remove all of the "we can't, that won't work because É" and just let ideas flow freely. It is best to do this in a round-robin fashion, so that oftentimes someone can piggyback on a great idea, making it even greater, or more likely to succeed.

Take notes, assign personnel to research and redefine the ideas if necessary, and come back and put into place a plan for action. The results can be truly amazing. The best part of relying on our people to generate ideas -- they become true owners of the process, the change, and the ideas that will move the organization forward in these challenging times.

The "new normal" really just means that we will always be hard-pressed to find better ways to do things. This is true whether we are parents running a household, or a business owner trying to fight off competition. People are the one resource that can really deliver -- use them!

Sharon Mueller is the regional manager for Dale Carnegie Training-St. Louis. Dale Carnegie Training is the world's oldest and largest training company. Dale Carnegie Training can provide a keynote speaker, public courses, or comprehensive organizational training programs for your organization. Mueller can be reached at 332-0900.