permission | The Barefoot Spirit

8 Steps to Making Mistakes WRITE

Michael Houlihan & Bonnie Harvey — Thu, 30 Aug 2018 17:00:19 +0000

One of our favorite talks is on making mistakes write. Not just right R-I-G-H-T but WRITE like W-R-I-T-E! When we started our business, we made so many mistakes, we got good at it. So, it seemed natural to us to develop a process for making mistakes.

Our business was successful, but it was built on the backs of mistakes. When we started our company our standard contracts were three pages long, but when we sold it 20 years later, our contracts were 37 pages long! That’s how many mistakes we made along the way.

And that’s not the half of it! Beyond contract clauses, our mistakes actually improved all of our company’s documentation. Why? Because we never wasted a perfectly good mistake!

Here’s our short list to making mistakes write:

1. Permission

Give yourself and all your people permission to make mistakes – as long as they make mistakes in a way that improves your company. Most new hires come from families, schools, associations, and former employers that frowned upon mistakes. They may have been punished, embarrassed, or worse, fired! Is it any wonder that they don’t want to admit a mistake has happened? Is it any wonder that they go for the quick fix, and just throw on a patch and say, “Yea, there was a problem, but it’s all straightened out now.” Change that attitude with a culture of permission. And sure, if they are just incompetent, they gotta go. But even the most competent people are scared to admit to a mistake.

2. Admission

Yes, admit that a mistake was made. Prevent exacerbation and cover-up. You are judged more favorably when you own up, apologize, make amends and present a plan to prevent a reoccurrence. We call this “Aim, don’t blame!” Blame is disempowering and makes you a victim. Take charge and aim at what you can do to prevent the mistake in the future. Basically, take responsibility and clean up your own backyard.

3. Cause

Behind every mistake there’s a miscommunication, a misconception, or a misrepresentation. Identifying those causes is the first step in making mistakes write. We all make assumptions about the other person’s behavior and when we are wrong, things go wrong. Someone smart once said “A-s-s-u-m-e: It makes an ASS out of U and ME!” When you can put your finger on the cause, you are on your way to improvement.

4. Documents

To prevent future mistakes in the areas affected, identify all the documents that need to be created, corrected, or improved. Yes, that’s right, documents. Maybe it’s a clause in a contract. Maybe it’s a checklist, a signoff sheet, a job description, a policy, a procedure, a label, or maybe it’s a sign above a low hanging ledge that says, “DUCK!”

5. Write!

Write down the mistake, the cause, and the all revised documentation that needs to be incorporated in to your business environment. Be sure to involve others in the writing process. Get opinions and suggestions from folks in your company and from other companies and institutions. Then, develop new policies and procedures that make the mistake less likely to reoccur. Most mistakes can improve several documents at the same time.

6. Approve

It doesn’t do you any good to document new ways of doing things if they are lost in the effort and just filed away. No. You must distribute the new policy and get everyone involved to agree and sign off on it. Sometimes folks outside your company may be required to give their approval. This is a positive way to defuse faulting others and dissolve hard feelings. Creating a notebook where these sign-off sheets are kept is also a great onboard-training tool for new hires. They can quickly see the mistakes made in the past and how and why the new documentation and procedures exist to prevent them in the future.

7. Acknowledge

When someone on your staff makes a mistake, but makes that mistake “write,” give them public acknowledgement. Folks thrive on validation from a higher authority and the appreciation of their peers. You can do this with a simple memo circulated to the whole team, “Mary identified a ongoing problem with our procedures and improved them to prevent a reoccurrence.” Now three things happen. First, your people know who Mary is, what she does, and how she improved the company. Second, they know that they too will be celebrated when they permanently fix a problem. And third, Mary is encouraged to continue improving your company.

8. Repeat!

We had a senior exec who chided us for this policy, “You guys are trying to make everything idiot proof.” We quickly answered, “No we’re not. We’re just trying to make things idiot resistant!” To which he quipped, “That may be true, but even now, as we speak, they’re building a better idiot!” He was right! It’s a moving target out there. So we kept adding clauses until our contracts were 37 pages long!

You and your people are going to make mistakes. Why not make them write?

Who We Are

Michael Houlihan and Bonnie Harvey co-authored the New York Times bestselling business book, The Barefoot Spirit: How Hardship, Hustle, and Heart Built America’s #1 Wine Brand. The book has been selected as recommended reading in the CEO Library for CEO Forum, the C-Suite Book Club, and numerous university classes on business and entrepreneurship. It chronicles their humble beginnings from the laundry room of a rented Sonoma County farmhouse to the board room of E&J Gallo, who ultimately acquired their brand and engaged them as brand consultants. Barefoot is now the world’s largest wine brand.

Beginning with virtually no money and no wine industry experience, they employed innovative ideas to overcome obstacles, create new markets and forge strategic alliances. They pioneered Worthy Cause Marketing and performance-based compensation. They built an internationally bestselling brand and received their industry’s “Hot Brand” award for several consecutive years.

They offer their Guiding Principles for Success (GPS) to help entrepreneurs become successful. Their book, The Entrepreneurial Culture: 23 Ways To Engage and Empower Your People, helps corporations maximize the value of their human resources.

Currently they travel the world leading workshops, trainings, & keynoting at business schools, corporations, conferences. They are regular media guests and contributors to international publications and professional journals. They are C-Suite Network Advisors & Contributing Editors. Visit their popular brand building site at www.consumerbrandbuilders.com.

To make inquiries for keynote speaking, trainings or consulting, please contact sales@thebarefootspirit.com.

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5 Ways to Get Good Ideas Out of Your People

Michael Houlihan & Bonnie Harvey — Thu, 21 Sep 2017 17:00:54 +0000

Companies ask us, “How can we get the entrepreneurial spirit?” The real question should be, “How did we lose it?” When their founders started in that garage or basement so long ago, there was no question in their minds, if they didn’t make sales, they’d go out of business. But something changed along the way. They lost the entrepreneurial spirit!

What happened? Did they get so carried away with the specialization of human resources, they forgot what their founders knew – that sales are essential to survival? Did the various siloed specialties, like engineering, marketing, R&D, and admin, actually begin to believe that they were more essential than sales?

The specialties began to organize, have their own groups, their own conferences, their own publications. And as they became isolated and insulated from sales, they began to take sales for granted. “Sales can’t happen without my skill set,” became the refrain. Or worse, “Sales? That’s not my job!”

A “good idea” was thought to be all about improving some part of the production process. But did the folks who executed and improved those processes know why their process was essential to sales? Probably not. Management might say “They didn’t need to know.” But knowing why you are performing a process is the backbone of the entrepreneurial spirit. Sales is the reason!

We were honored to be the Keynote Speakers for the 75^th Anniversary Summit for IdeasAmerica. These are the folks who brought you the suggestion box in the early 1940’s and have advocated for employee-authored good ideas ever since. We decided that our message should encourage them to explore the cultural conditions that allow for, and promote, the engagement of employees.

Here’s our short list:

Overkill on Orientation. It’s not just where the bathroom, coffee, forms, and go-to person are. It’s how the money that’s in paychecks, benefits, and bonuses gets to your employees. Show them a graphic “money map” that identifies everyone who touches your company’s products or services, and what each one wants from your company. They will see more clearly how they fit in.
Pay for Performance. At least some part of your employees’ compensation must be tied to sales, growth, and profits. When you put all your people on the same bonus plan, you create the comradery of a well-practiced team with the same goal. The most effective bonuses are given quarterly – long enough to get the numbers and short enough to stay attainable.
Know the Need. Some companies are convinced that their people don’t need to know about sales, marketing, or competitive challenges. But when your people get the big picture, see how they fit in, and realize that you view them as a valuable problem-solving asset, they become more creative, and more loyal.
Grant Permission. Mistakes will happen. Make them permissible, as long as they are followed by immediate improvements to the company’s processes and procedures so they will be less likely to reoccur. Grant permission to brainstorm and entertain “crazy” ideas to solve problems. They often lead to a bright idea and a practical solution.
Give Acknowledgement. Make acknowledgement both public and written, and copy the whole team. Everyone will know more about who is being praised and have more respect for that person. They will likewise anticipate public praise when they solve problems. Some studies show that being appreciated is even more important than salary.

We salute IdeasAmerica and acknowledge the fine work they continue to do for both American and international companies. With a bit of encouragement, your people will provide a plethora of good ideas!

Who We Are

To make inquiries for keynote speaking, trainings or consulting, please contact sales@thebarefootspirit.com.

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Give Your People Permission to be Brilliant

Michael Houlihan & Bonnie Harvey — Wed, 19 Apr 2017 17:00:13 +0000

These days there are tons of companies that say they want their people to be more engaged, but are they giving them permission to do so? Yes: permission! It’s subtle, but powerful.

Permission is a powerful idea in determining company culture. Are you giving your people permission to be creative, make decisions, solve problems, and take responsibility? Or, in the name of efficiency, structure, or compliance, are you preventing the very type of support you need?

Here are some ways to give your people permission:

Compensation

Some part of employees’ compensation should be based on sales, growth, and profits. It will take some time to identify and agree upon metrics used to measure those key indicators, but get started now and tweak it every year until it’s right.

If you offer a bonus, make it quarterly. A year is too long for them to remember, and after a poor first half of the year, they may just give up. Quarterly is short enough to remember, and if they have a bad quarter, well, there’s a new opportunity next quarter.

Knowledge

Your staff can’t help you if you don’t tell them what you need. Many businesses believe in the “need-to-know” policy which keeps employees in the dark. We believe in the “know-the-need” policy which includes them in the company’s challenges, opportunities and triumphs.

They already have your corporate knowledge and a stake in solving your problems, especially if they share in your success. We suggest quarterly meetings with sales and sales support staff (i.e., everybody not in sales) to brainstorm solutions. They will surprise you with their great ideas!

To read the complete article, please visit The Business Journals

Who We Are

To make inquiries for keynote speaking, trainings or consulting, please contact sales@thebarefootspirit.com.

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Are You Giving Your People Permission to be Brilliant?

Michael Houlihan & Bonnie Harvey — Thu, 21 Apr 2016 17:00:31 +0000

These days there are tons of companies that say they want their people to be more engaged, but are they giving them permission to do so? Yes, permission! It’s subtle, but powerful.

Here are some ways to give your people permission:

Compensation. Some part of employees’ compensation should be based on sales, growth, and productivity. It will take some time to identify and agree upon metrics used to measure those key indicators, but get started now and tweak it every year until it’s right. If you offer a bonus, make it quarterly. A year is too long for them to remember, or if after a poor first half of the year, they may just give up. Quarterly is short enough to remember, and if they have a bad quarter, well, there’s a new opportunity next quarter.

Knowledge. Your staff can’t help you if you don’t tell them what you need. Many businesses believe in the “need-to-know” policy which keeps employees in the dark. We believe in the “know-the-need” policy which includes them in the company’s challenges, opportunities and triumphs. They already have your corporate knowledge and a stake in solving your problems, especially if they share in your success. We suggest quarterly meetings with sales and sales support staff (i.e., everybody not in sales) to brainstorm solutions. They will surprise you with their great ideas!

Access. Clear the channels of communication. Don’t force interdepartmental messages go through a complex pyramid structure, and back to the department right next door. Don’t lock down creativity by allowing compliance to use fear to demand that everything goes through them. Their extensive turnaround time itself can discourage many good ideas from ever surfacing. Give your people ways to access top management directly to prevent middle managers from stopping good ideas.

Acknowledgement. Thank each of your people publically for all the good ideas they’ve produced to improve your company. This validation will make them want to do more. Their teammates will see your acknowledgement, and want some for themselves. We recommend once a year, on their anniversary, send the entire staff a memo that summarizes what that staff member did during the past year that improved the company, resulting in bigger bonuses for the whole staff. This will give everyone more respect for their teammate’s contribution and improve overall teamwork.

Mistakes. Give your people permission to experiment and make mistakes – as long as they make mistakes in a productive manner. This means that they come to you with the mistake they made and a list of documents that need to be created, altered or improved, so the mistake is less likely to reoccur. Companies that frown on mistakes force their people to hide them and the opportunity to improve the company’s policies and procedures is lost. Encourage your people to aim not blame. Aim at what they can do to prevent a reoccurrence, and don’t disempower themselves by blaming others.

Your people are looking for the limits you will allow. Some are very obvious and necessary like dependability, production and civil behavior. Beyond that, show your “personal settings” by giving them the permissions we have discussed here. The message will soon become crystal clear and they will operate within those limits. Don’t let your structure and procedures deny your people the permission they need to help you!

Who We Are

To make inquiries for keynote speaking, trainings or consulting, please contact sales@thebarefootspirit.com.

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What it Takes to be a “Good” Boss

Michael Houlihan & Bonnie Harvey — Sat, 18 Oct 2014 18:30:43 +0000

October 16^th was Boss’s Day. Traditionally it was established to show appreciation to your boss for being kind and fair throughout the year. Of course there are differing opinions about the appropriateness of the celebration based on people’s experiences with their current and former bosses.

Nevertheless, the holiday has been gaining in popularity since it was first registered with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in 1958. In 1979 Hallmark produced its first Boss’s Day cards but in 2007 increased its offerings by 28%. Boss’s day was originally established in an attempt to promote positive relationships between managers and their employees. The thought was to recognize bosses for the hard work, dedication, and challenges they face on a daily basis.

We think it is something more. We think Boss’s Day should also serve as a reminder to bosses at every level that to be deserving of that recognition they must practice certain policies that promote the respect and admiration of their people. Remember, everybody is some sort of a boss at some time. Whether it’s asking an outside vendor or customer for something you need in order to do your job, or whether it’s training a new employee, you are the “boss.” Here then is the short list of what it takes to be a “good” boss when you are the one in charge:

1. Clarity. You know what you want but can you explain it in no uncertain terms to a third party? A good boss will explain it several different ways with examples. They will put it in the larger context of “why” it is necessary, not just what is necessary. Then they will ask the person from whom they are requesting the action to repeat it back to them so they can clear up any misunderstandings.

2. Respect. Your employee, or the party from whom you are requesting action, has a brain. They can help you achieve your goals. So share your challenges with them and they will surprise you with out-of-the-box solutions. We practiced know-the-need, rather than need-to-know. When you do employ their workable solutions, they feel more engaged and empowered, resulting in a greater desire to help solve more problems

3. Appreciation. When you are the boss, you are in the role of surrogate parent. The people you depend upon look to you as an authority figure not unlike a parent. They want and need acknowledgement and validation. Don’t be afraid to give recognition for a job well done in writing. When you do, you will receive more of what you have shown appreciation for.

4. Encouragement. Again like parenting, bosses must tell their people “You can do it!” Show them how far they have come. Tell them that you have confidence in their ability to improve their skill set, achieve the deadline, or produce the deliverables. And again, when they do, be sure to thank them and acknowledge them for their achievements

5. Permission. Give your people permission to experiment, have fun, and make mistakes. Permission is probably the most important ingredient in employee engagement. When you look at mistakes as building blocks and not as blame centers, the people you are depending on will get the message and endeavor to learn from every mistake.

These are just a few of the best practices of “good” bosses, but feel free to add to this list. If it sounds a little parental, it is. Showing concern for the people you rely on and their needs is the basis for a positive company culture. By the way, Patricia Haroski, who founded Boss’s Day? Her boss was her dad!

Who We Are

To make inquiries for keynote speaking, trainings or consulting, please contact sales@thebarefootspirit.com.

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Successful Hiring takes Preparation, Permission and Patience

Michael Houlihan & Bonnie Harvey — Sat, 14 Jul 2012 22:50:59 +0000

No matter what business you think you are in, you wind up in the personnel management business. Your first hires will require a great deal of your time and energy with no guarantees. Your way may conflict with their previous way of doing things.

For the most part, great employees are not found, they’re made. In order to delegate and allow your company to grow, you really have no choice.

All this takes time, energy, preparation and lots of patience, but by working together in concert, you can see wonders.

1. Good Seed. Start with people who demonstrate a high degree of integrity, take responsibility for their own behavior and have a history of long-term commitment. They should be willing to learn and extrapolate conceptual ideas and apply them to new situations. A good way to test this is to give the applicant a verbal run down of the job, the company’s challenges and your expectations for the position. Then, have them send you a one-page summary on a deadline. This will tell you volumes.

2. Good Ground. Make sure their job is clearly defined in writing and explains how your products and services produce the income to pay their salary, bonus and benefits. We used to give our people a “Money Map”. It started with the consumer and worked its way back through distribution, production, and all the payables to finally get to their check. This gave them respect for how and where the money came from – the customer, of course.

3. Care. You must inspect what you expect, especially in the first year. Once you are convinced you have “good seed” it’s worth your while to regularly spend time with them answering questions and mentoring. Listen to what’s behind their questions to discover what they really need to excel in their new position.

4. Light and Space. Give them permission to make mistakes. That’s what allows them to develop into the independent decision makers you need to confidently delegate. To “make those mistakes right,” have them write down what needs to be done to prevent those mistakes in the future. Have them make new polices, procedures, checklists, sign-offs, or whatever, but they have to document everything. Consider rewriting their job description to fit their real skill set.

5. Nutrients. Give them the training they need, in person and in writing. If a document doesn’t exist, have them write it. Create a mini manual for every job with the growing list of frequently asked questions and as many charts and graphs as are necessary to depict processes, relationships and decisions. Provide outside training with conferences, or field time with sales or production staff. The more they understand your total operation, the faster they will become invaluable.

6. Time. How much time you give them before they “get it” really depends on the position, their ability to learn, and how much faith you have in them personally. Some folks take longer but “get it” at a core level. Others may learn a specific process quickly, but miss the big picture. So it’s a judgment call based on your assessment of their progress and conceptual understandings, and the preparation, time and energy you have put in.

Even if you do these essentials, there’s no guarantee of success, but you will be much more likely to succeed. To grow those new hires into fruitful producers it takes preparation, permission and patience.

Who We Are

To make inquiries for keynote speaking, trainings or consulting, please contact sales@thebarefootspirit.com.

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Positive Company Culture is critical to Growth and Survival – Part 2

Michael Houlihan & Bonnie Harvey — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 20:19:28 +0000

A company survives and grows due to sales and the loyalty of customers and staff. Sales are based on price, value, dependability, integrity, availability and perception. The basis of perception is image, networking, and more recently, the transparency of the producer.

Transparency is what the brand stands for, its authenticity, its identification with higher values, and the actions it takes to demonstrate those values.

When companies subscribe to a higher order of value, beyond the products they sell, they have an advantage in today’s marketplace. Employees excel, and tend to stay with these companies, providing long-term relationships with retail buyers, customers and complementary organizations.

The Culture of Customer Service

At the time Barefoot Wine was founded, the business model was considered radical. The founders viewed it as more of a “service” rather than merely a product. At Barefoot’s price point, which we termed the “velocity price point”, it was clear that it could not survive without becoming “America’s Personal House Wine”. From the beginning, it was understood that it had to sell massive quantities to stay in business.

“Personal House Wine” was defined as the wine one serves in one’s own house as a staple: “Tuesday night wine, picnic wine, beach wine”. It was the wine to always keep on hand. It was the brand you discovered that consistently delivered the quality and value you had come to expect from your own “personal house wine”.

The company knew that customers (“foot fans”) would be loyal to the brand as long as the price remained stable (at the velocity price point), the taste profile was consistent (delicious), and it was available and easy to buy (in stock).

The original Barefoot culture wa based on the most comprehensive definition of customer service. Imagine a company that, through worthy cause promotions, encouraged customers to go into specific retail establishments to buy their brand. Imagine a company that viewed its displays as retail entertainment, adding color, fun, and theme sets for the enjoyment of its customers! This is the ultimate in customer service to your retailer, your end-user, and to your community.

The Culture of Acknowledgement

People are motivated by goal achievement, but also by public recognition. It not only validates their creativity, but it send a message to the rest of the troops that this type of behavior is not only appreciated, but also identified and exemplified.

Appreciation goes a long way toward building team spirit and encouraging everyone on the team to be creative in a productive and fun way. They know that top management and their teammates will recognize their achievement and are not afraid to speak up about it. They are encouraged to create imaginative promotions and fun events.

Public acknowledgement, especially in written form, circulated to all staff, is validation. Employees want to know that they are contributing, and that their efforts are being appreciated. Third party validation from managers, peers, customers, associates and non-profits builds confidence to go out and do more of the same, or better! It also give your people an appreciation of what their team mates are doing to improve everybody’s circumstances.

Positive company culture is the foundation of company success. It reduces turnover, improves morale, cooperation and overall team spirit, all of which result in increased imagination and productivity. Next time we will examine the culture of Common Causes.

Who We Are

To make inquiries for keynote speaking, trainings or consulting, please contact sales@thebarefootspirit.com.

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