Are Your Employees Like Actors In A Movie?

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Are Your Employees Like Actors In A Movie?

Have you ever heard an actor say he can’t wait to see the premiere of his movie because he’s interested to see how it all came together? How could an actor not know the end result?! A recent encounter caused me to reflect on how different the making of a movie is than the way it is actually viewed.

I suppose it makes sense. After all, actors aren’t typically in every scene. And even if they were, scenes are shot out of order and special effects are added after the shooting. No matter how you slice it, their role in making the film really doesn’t give them much of a perspective on the completed product.

If they don’t have this perspective, they probably don’t know the true value of the film – which emotions it will stir, how it will make a difference, and why patrons should even bother seeing it.

Many business organizations have their own version of this movie-making phenomenon: employees who know some – but not all – aspects of their company’s products or only certain steps in the process. Sometimes employees are undeniable experts in their particular area but know little about what happens around them or how the end product/service is used.

Without this holistic understanding of how the organization brings its mission to life, employees won’t completely understand how their role can make a difference to customers. This creates an environment ripe for misalignment – with all of the ugly conditions that come with it – high turnover, low productivity, and a generally counter-productive culture.

In addition, lack of connectivity has some other missed opportunities:

• Customer service will be marginalized
• Cross-selling opportunities will be missed
• Employees, who are ambassadors by default, will not represent an optimal company image

As a Leader, What Should You Do?

Here’s the good news. There are some things you can do that will make a significant difference in how broadly your employees view your business.

• Onboarding. Make sure each employee has “read the company’s script” from start to finish. It starts with how you bring new employees into your organization. Help them build knowledge about the company’s past, present, and future, about its internal processes and organization. Help them build knowledge about the customers you serve.
  And here’s the key – give them time to absorb that knowledge. Spread out the learning over a number of weeks. There is only so much that a new employee can take in while they are still trying to figure out where to find the bathroom and what to do for lunch.
• Continually educate the cast. Keep employees apprised of key strategic decisions, changes occurring throughout the organization, and all methods being used to reach customers.
• Create stand-ins. Cross-train to help build flexible skill sets and knowledge across all areas of the company.
• Have cast members play multiple characters. By giving employees a diverse set of responsibilities, they will have opportunities to interact with many departments.
• Make them customers. If possible, have them use the company’s products and/or services. If that’s not possible, find ways for them to interact directly with customers.

There is much to gain by helping your employees have the broadest view of your organization and its mission.

I can hardly wait to see how it turns out.