For Employees: Handling The (Fairly) Obvious

I would like to start this out by saying that I can understand how interactions over the phone can be harrowing and confusing, especially if you are making any attempt to multitask. That being said, this post (Wednesday, July 27) is about handling phone calls.

Last week, I had three calls for interviews. One was with a local fitness facility chain, another for my new current employer. The third was from another branch of the fitness chain, whom I missed because I was interviewing with the first branch. However, in an effort to be polite, and increase my chances of making a good impression, I called the second location back. I figured being honest would pay off. What follows is an actual transcript of my phone conversation with an employee in the fitness facility. She had a very high voice and seemed very young.

Girl: "[Blank] Club. How can I help you?"
Me: "Hi! I received a call from [Manager]. May I please speak with her?"
Girl: "Umm......(1) [Manager] is gone for the day." She sounded confused here, almost as if it were uncommon for a manager to be contacted via telephone.
me: lol
Me: "Can I leave a message, or would there be another day that's better to call?"
Girl: "Ummm....... Hold on a sec..." She put the handset down and came back a few seconds later. "She's working tomorrow."
Me: "What time would be good to call her?"
Girl: "Umm, let me check the schedule..." Again, she put down the handset and returned after a few more seconds (2). "The morning..."

I admit, this girl seemed sweet and genuine. However, I felt slightly put off by the idea that there was a possibility this would possibly be a future co-worker. This poor girl, whom I am unable to even censor because she did not provide a name to do so, triggered several negative responses with her lack of any telephone composure. First, I had almost immediately formulated a judgment about the girl and the rest of the staff at that location. Second, I had begun to theorize what kind of person and administrator [Manager] was if she had hired this girl, and what expectations (or lack thereof) awaited me for an interview. Third, I was slightly disenchanted with the idea of patronizing that particular location because I had doubts as to the staff's capabilities. None of these responses were negative enough to trigger anything more sever than minor annoyance and disappointment, but it did not make their particular location stand out as Shangrila, either.

It bears consideration that employees should be given some semblance of training in telephone etiquette, and that calls for the manager be expected without a total loss of capacity to think (3). If you are unsure of how to speak to strangers when not face-to-face, answering the telephone might not be the wisest choice for an employee.

When I worked at [BLANK], I was given a speech for the phone: "Thank you for calling [BLANK], this is Richard. How may I help you?" Over time, I adopted a more specialized, longer speech: "Hello, and thank you for calling [BLANK] in [Branch Location], my name is Richard. How may I help you today?" Perhaps some supervisory guidance on how to make that over-the-phone connection should be provided.

Notes:

1- I used the ellipses twice because the trail-off was about twice the appropriate timing for what ellipses denote.

2- The time the Girl put down the handset was minimal. It was a minor inconvenience that was more abrupt than anything else.

3- This is an exaggeration. Sometimes we all get flustered and/or blind-sided, especially if we are doing multiple things at once. The trick is to not let anyone else realize that is happening.

Leadership: The Cornerstone of Everything

“Cornerstone of everything” sounds cliché, but it’s a fairly accurate description of our everyday existence. However, this blog is not concerned with how essential leadership is to government, family, etc.; it is concerned with how this idea applies to the workplace, and where the lack thereof is bad for business. Yes, I said “business,” because at the end of the day, it all leads to the accumulation of resources for distribution to the contributing parties.

What is leadership? Dictionary.com defines “leadership” as: 1, the position or function of a leader (A); 2, ability to lead; 3, an act or instance of leading; guidance; direction. Many people might think to associate this with business executives, who attend massive leadership conferences so they can come back to HQ and earn those mega-bucks they get paid by making decisions that affect everyone on the payroll. That is part of it, but then there’s the forgotten leadership on the lower end of the spectrum—subordinate leadership. Not to be misconstrued as bossiness, laziness, and the like, subordinate leadership means that someone stands out among their peers as the go-to guy or gal, and that’s the person who becomes the “captain,” then the supervisor, and ultimately might find their way to the enormous corner office and five Administrative Assistants. That person, specifically, is the one that makes the impact.

During my time working for a certain café chain, I was also growing as a person and my eventual promotion to Supervisor was an eye opener for the fact that I had a vision and no real way to motivate people. I blamed it on the fact that I was also now outranking a few people who trained me or those who were my peers the previous shift they had worked with me. In retrospect, the awakening came when I realized that I was unable to get anybody to respect my authority completely unless I followed all of the other leaders in showing that I worked hard with them. My dedication paid off, because after a few years, I was given the opportunity become an Assistant Store Manager! This was a position that Corporate took seriously (B), including requiring me to attend numerous workshops on running the business the [blank] way (which, of course, is always the right way (C)); it was at that point that I was introduced to Situational Leadership. It still amazes me that I vividly remember a four hour class six years later.

Situational Leadership is a program I believe in, as it simplifies and demystifies the experience of how to lead a diverse group of people. For the three years of tenure I held as an ASM looking ahead to the eventual rank of Store Manager, and in the time beyond as I look to my next endeavor, I realize that this concept has failed me once (and even then, part of it was my own shortcoming). I frankly think everyone who holds any authority should take it, as there is a total lack of respect for one another in today’s society (D), and that same lack of respect undeniably manifests itself inside the workplace.

I have been told in the past by a “leader” that running a corporate-owned café business is vastly different from running anything else and that there is no comparison between them both. The comment, by its very nature, is an insult—to me, to the speaker and the people they represent, and pretty much anybody who does not work for [blank]. Dramatic as that sounds, stay with me here: how is being a competent leader exclusive to [blank]? By that logic, why bother working towards any goal not in the interest of the aforementioned café corporation? The above is another misconception, and I want to get it cleared away: to lead means to listen and do what is in your power to make things work. (The speaker of the non-comparison, to their credit, does seem to do much listening since that time.) As employers, it is the duty of anyone with managerial capacity to understand this key component. Don’t worry, employees, I haven’t forgotten about you. As listening is crucial for your uppers, it’s equally crucial to you. You can’t always get your way, but it’s not always your boss’ fault; rules are in place for a reason, and they need to be followed, even if it means saying “no” to something trivial.

For the owners of smaller businesses, I must apologize: you get the brunt of my feelings on this issue. Since I have been unemployed for two years, a good number of interactions with your kind have proven to be among the worst experiences I’ve lived through or heard about. Just because a business is small, it does not give anyone with authority the ability to treat others poorly (and here we see respect show up again). There are things that are NOT appropriate to ask (E), nor are there things you are free to say. This theme will recur again, but remember that the interview process is also a chance for the interviewee to determine worthiness of their energy. As such, you need to show your ability to lead effectively, and not come off as some possible sociopath who conducts business affairs with as much whimsy as they can find during a given mood.

Notes:

(A) As someone who holds a degree in English and is pursuing a degree in Education, I must say how I absolutely despise definitions like this, as they offer no satisfactory explanation of the word they define.

(B) Corporate took all of their positions seriously. ASM, however, was the lowest rank of full-time employees, and thus had far stricter regulations and requirements than the hourly/part-time roles.

(C) I'm being mildly sarcastic here. Every company, no matter how small, believes in their mission (or should, I hope) and that their methods are best for them. As such, whatever business you are in will have their own "right way," and I respect that. So this is not some free endorsement for [blank]'s ability to lead the way in business management.

(D) Respect will be covered in a separate blog posting in the future.

(E) Things better left unsaid will be covered in a separate posting in the future.