Todd Sattersten :: Astronaut Projects

Exit Interview Questions

I like the questions in Inc. this month around exit interviews. I think there is alot to learn when people leave a company and most miss the opportunity.

• If the CEO left unexpectedly today and you were put in charge, what are the first things you would change?
• What could have changed six months ago that would have prevented you from looking for a new job?
• If you weren't looking, what factors tipped the scale when an opportunity came up?
• Who do you think is next to resign? And why?
• Why didn't you leave us sooner than now?
• Describe any areas of conflict that have affected either your performance or morale, or that you believe affected other employees.

They have links at the end of the article to additional resources at Workforce Management and BusinessBalls.com.

One Quality of A Leader

Whitespace asks "What's the one quality in a person labeled as a leader that you look for?"

A Little Too Late

You need to click through to Johnnie Moore's blog and read the note that the employees of Blendz Coffee left their boss.

What's In a Name?

Chipotle Mexican Grill had their IPO last week and the WSJ ran a short piece on the titles that company leaders use.

The customer service manager goes by "Manager of Duct Tape and Plungers". The guy who runs creative-services is the head of "Special Weapons and Tactics". Finally, the company's spokeman goes by "Director of Hoopla, Hype, and Ballyhoo".

That probably gives some indication of the kind of place it is to work. :)

Perfect for Boss's Day

Over at 800-CEO-READ, we have put together an ebook for Boss's Day called Nine Lives of Leadership. We are really happy with how it turned out. If you are looking for something for that favorite manager in your life, check out our entry here for the details.

There seems to be an awful lot going on this week. Or is it just me?

Dee Hock on Hiring

Hire and promote first on the basis of integrity;
second, motivation;
third, capacity;
fourth, understanding;
fifth, knowledge;
and last and least, experience.

Without integrity, motivation is dangerous;
without motivation, capacity is impotent;
without capacity, understanding is limited;
without understanding, knowledge is meaningless;
without knowledge, experience is blind.
Experience is easy to provide and quickly put to good use by people with all the other qualities.

-Dee Hock on Management, M. Mitchell Waldrop, FC5, Oct:Nov 1996

9 Tips For Change Agents

1. Be open to data at the start. "Even if you think you know what you're doing, chances are you don't know what you could be doing. Open up your mind to as much new thinking as you can absorb. You may find different and better ideas than the ones your organization started with."
2. Network like crazy. "There is a network of people who are thinking about learning organizations. I've found you can get in touch with them easily. People say to me, `I can't believe you talked with so-and-so! How'd you do it?' The answer is, I called him."
3. Document your own learning. "People in the organization need to see documentation for their own comfort. The smartest thing I did was to create a matrix of ideas from leading thinkers. I documented two categories of thinking -- the elements of a learning organization, and the pitfalls to avoid."
4. Take senior management along. Turner's own education included benchmarking trips to Saturn, Texas Instruments, Motorola, General Electric, and other companies known for their innovative approaches to learning. "Some of the people in the senior group were very skeptical," Turner says. "It helped to take them on these benchmarking trips to show them other companies that were actually doing some of the same learning practices."
5. No fear! "You've got to be fearless and not worry about keeping your job."
6. Be a learning person yourself. "Change agents have to be in love with learning and constantly learning new things themselves. Then they find new ways to communicate those things to the organization as a whole."
7. Laugh when it hurts. "This can be very discouraging work. You need a good sense of humor. It also helps if you've got a mantra you can say to yourself when things aren't going too well."
8. Know the business before you try to change anything. "I don't think you can do this work if you're just a theorist. I've been a sales rep, I've been in a marketing job where I worked with the operations side. So when I go about the work of creating a change strategy, I already have an understanding of the people in our organization and what they do."
9. Finish what you start. "I made a list of change projects we'd started and never finished in the past. We called it 'the black hole.' I determined early on I didn't want to be part of a second-rate movie."

-9 Tips for Change Agents, Nicholas Morgan, FC5, Oct:Nov 1996

50 Reasons Why We Can't Change

1. We've never done it before.
2. Nobody else has ever done it.
3. It has never been tried before.
4. We tried it before.
5. Another company/person tried it before.
6. We've been doing it this way for 25 years.
7. It won't work in a small company.
8. It won't work in a large company.
9. It won't work in our company.
10. Why change--it's working OK.
11. The boss will never buy it.
12. It needs further investigation.
13. Our competitors are not doing it.
14. It's too much trouble to change.
15. Our company is different.
16. The ad department says it can't be done.
17. Sales department says it can't be done.
18. The service department won't like it.
19. The janitor says it can't be done.
20. It can't be done.
21. We don't have the money.
22. We don't have the personnel.
23. We don't have the equipment.
24. The union will scream.
25. It's too visionary.
26. You can't teach an old dog new tricks.
27. It's too radical a change.
28. It's beyond my responsibility.
29. It's not my job.
30. We don't have the time.
31. It will obsolete other procedures.
32. Customers won't buy it.
33. It's contrary to policy.
34. It will increase overhead.
35. The employees will never buy it.
36. It's not our problem.
37. I don't like it.
38. You're right, but...
39. We're not ready for it.
40. It needs more thought.
41. Management won't accept it.
42. We can't take the chance.
43. We'd lose money on it.
44. It takes too long to pay out.
45. We're doing all right as is.
46. It needs committee study.
47. Competition won't like it.
48. It needs sleeping on.
49. It won't work in this department.
50. It's impossible.

E.F. Borish,
Product Manager,
Milwaukee Gear Company,
Product Engineering Magazine
July 20, 1959
[This was published in the November 1993 prototype version of Fast Company].

Gaining Momentum...

I seem to be gaining some momentum again for blogging.

I just wanted to point you over to my FC Now BlogJam contribution. It is entitled The Time For Action Is Now.

Milwaukee looks good in the Fortune 500

OnMilwaukee.com looked through the recent Fortune 500 issue and found the Milwaukee and Wisconsin fared pretty well.

• Wisconsin has 25 Fortune 1000 companies
• The big names are Northwestern Mutual, Johnson Controls, Manpower, Kohl's, Harley-Davison, Rockwell, and Wisconsin Energy Corporation.
• Johnson Controls is the top ranked Wisconsin company at #71
• In looking at metro Milwaukee, the area ranked #5 when you consider population and number of ranked companies.