by D. Kevin Berchelmann | Nov 7, 2016 | Executive Improvement
—quit complicating the uncomplicated
By that, I mean that leadership is not complex. Can it be difficult? Certainly. But we need to remember to keep things as simple as humanly possible.
We read books, articles, white papers, etc.… All in search of a silver bullet, a magic wand, or something that will allow us to leapfrog common sense and simple leadership techniques. We study “The Five Principles of Employee Engagement;” we listen intently to the webinar, “How to Increase Employee Commitment;” we read books on “Motivating Millennials.”
And we don’t get any better. In fact, many could make a good argument that as we study these “new and innovative” techniques our ability to actually lead people gets worse. In other words, the more we “know,” the less we do.
My advice then is simple: just stop it! (love me some Bob Newhart…)
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by D. Kevin Berchelmann | Sep 14, 2016 | Brazen Leader, Executive Improvement, Human Resources, Organizational Effectiveness
I hate to call anyone a crook. It sounds unseemly and judgmental, and just a tad juvenile…
Ah, to hell with that. Wells Fargo, you guys are a bunch of crooks. Specifically, the leadership involved in the fraudulent account processing debacle. 
Yes, the leadership, not the schmucks that
leadership whacked in the process.
The numbers, for you analytical types:
- 565,443 — The number of unauthorized credit card applications filed by Wells Fargo’s community banking division
- 1,534,280 — The number of unauthorized deposit accounts opened by Wells Fargo’s community banking division
- 5,300+ — The number of schmucks (mentioned above) fired for actually opening these fraudulent accounts
- $185,000,000 — The amount of the fine levied on Wells Fargo for this fraudulent activity
- $200,000,000 — The amount of stock held by John Stumpf (just “Stumpy” from here on)
- $19,000,000 — The amount of money Stumpy hauled in last year.
- $125,000,000 — The amount to be paid to Carrie Tolstedt, the executive in charge of these fraudulent activities
- $20,000,000,000 — The approximate dollars in annual profit made by Wells Fargo
- 0 — The number of senior leaders held accountable for this travesty
Here’s the deal… there’s simply no way that 5,300 people–all doing the same job for the same division–can be fired for fraudulent (potentially criminal) acts, and no one in real leadership was aware of the problem. Just no way. Think about it–that many people whacked, same division, same job, all for fraudulent activities in a bank. And no one noticed? That’s your story? Seriously?
I call bullshit.
If you hold a gun to someone’s head and say, slap Bill over there or I’ll pull the trigger, well, Bill’s about to get slapped. It doesn’t matter that you aren’t the violent type, that you’ve never hit anyone in your life, or that Bill is a helluva good guy. None of that matters. What matters is you have a gun to your head. The schmucks fired at Wells Fargo, all likely justified for doing something way wrong, had guns to their heads.
Over aggressive daily sales quotas; hourly (yes, you read that right)–hourly–conference calls to make sure your quotas are on track; after-school detention overtime and forced marches on Saturdays for anyone coming up short. And if you came up short after two months, you got whacked. I’d say that feels like a gun to the head. Held there by senior leadership at Wells Fargo.
The push was relentless, and making these arguably unreasonable quotas was not simply an issue of performance–some personal bankers had as much as 20% of their total compensation tied up in sales commissions from these extra accounts. In other words, another gun. I’m not excusing criminal or unethical behavior by those doing it; the firings were likely justified, and behavior like that is deplorable no matter the incentive. But to just punish over 5,000 workers while senior leadership is not just held unaccountable, but rewarded with mucho dinero?
In a 2013 interview, Wells Fargo CFO Timothy Sloan said “I’m not aware of any overbearing sales culture.” Where’s that bullshit flag again…? I’m throwing it. Of course, Timmy had good reason for–and was rewarded for–his ignorance; he’s been promoted twice since that interview, and is now heir apparent to Stumpy himself. Things that make you go hmmm. I’m certain it’s just a coincidence…
Stumpy doubled-down on his perception of executive innocence in a Sep 13 WSJ article, stating “There was no incentive to do bad things,” and that “…some employees didn’t honor the bank’s culture.” And what, exactly, might that culture be, bigshot? My favorite Stumpy quote: “I feel accountable.” Not “I am accountable.” Tweeeeet! Throwing my flag again…
Leadership matters. Ethics, integrity, even simple honesty, are all driven from the top. That which you condone, allow or permit, through action, inaction or positive consequence, is what you get. Culture really is that simple. Honest leaders get honest employees (for the most part). Ethical senior leadership promotes ethics and integrity throughout. Conversely, fast-and-loose behavior at the top creates a culture of shady corner-cutting throughout the organization. Plausible deniability is a good movie line, but it sucks when used by senior leaders to allow bad behaviors to boost profits.
This is Stumpy.
Stumpy likes money
Stumpy doesn’t question where it comes from
Stumpy’s people get him money
Stumpy makes lots of money
Don’t be like Stumpy
Be Brazen…
by D. Kevin Berchelmann | Aug 23, 2016 | Brazen Leader, Executive Improvement, Kevin Berchelmann, Organizational Effectiveness
This is an area where mediocre leaders just don’t get it.
And because of their egocentric defensiveness, they lose a ton of credibility.
Without writing a treatise here, suffice to say that there are three very simple things that a leader can do to set himself apart (positively) from the pack: (more…)
by D. Kevin Berchelmann | Aug 16, 2016 | Brazen Leader, Executive Improvement, Miscellaneous Business Topics, Organizational Effectiveness
As do many of you, I travel a bit.
During the last several months, as I travel around, I’ve been asking people I come in contact with two questions:
- Do you like your job?
- Why or why not?
Creates some interesting conversations, I’ll tell you. Almost missed a flight out of Baltimore when my conversation with the Hertz counter rep went into overtime.
I jotted down fairly copious notes for these discussions. And though I realize the lack of statistical “rigor” in my survey methodologies, I think the results were interesting nonetheless.
In about four months, I spoke with 56 people about this. Most readily answered my questions. Some, of course, seemed hesitant to respond candidly to such questions from an unknown traveler (go figure). Most, however, spilled their guts without a drop of hesitation.
16 people said “yes, I like my job.”
11 said “It’s OK,” or “It’s a job,” or something equally noncommittal and nonplussed.
26 replied “no,” or something equally negative. A few expletives were included in several.
(for you math whizzes, this doesn’t total 56; 3 would not answer the question at all)
The #1 reason given for “why?” with those 31 who said, “yes?”
They let me do my job.
Not “the money,” though most in this category did mention the pay was either “good” or that they felt paid “fairly.”
Not “it’s easy,” or “I don’t have to do much work.”
Nope, not those things we frequently imagine are in the minds of employees who seem satisfied, contended, or otherwise happy to work for us.
They let me do my job.
Never forget — the vast majority of successful leadership application is not some fancy buzzword, or the chapter title from some consultant’s new glossy book.
It’s the basics. It’s blocking and tackling.
So, what’s the take-away from this incredibly scientific, statistically strict employee survey?
- Hire right. Attitude, integrity, intellect and work ethic… none can be trained, all must be hired.
- Set and manage expectations. Keep it simple, folks.
- Empower people to do their jobs, and expect that they will.
- Rinse and repeat.
Don’t make this harder than it needs to be.
Be Brazen.
by D. Kevin Berchelmann | Aug 10, 2016 | Executive Improvement
— Put ‘em in a box and learn to say ‘yes’
I used to believe that empowerment and delegation were the same thing… that we just invented the term “empowerment” because so many managers sucked at delegating.
I was wrong. I try not to say that too often (just ask my family), but it’s a certainty here. I was wrong. (more…)
by D. Kevin Berchelmann | Aug 8, 2016 | Executive Improvement, Kevin Berchelmann, Miscellaneous Business Topics, Organizational Effectiveness
Training is essential for success—always has been, always will be. But like everything else, not all training is created equally. Nor is there a one-size fits all when it comes to teaching employees. And that’s true for leadership – technical, interpersonal or whatever it may be. But there are tried and true strategies for success that can lead to more effective employees, a happier workforce and a better organization. Here are 3 key strategies for training employees that can make the process more endearing for all those involved. (more…)
