The Hart Research Associates poll showed that top executives are even more disliked than politicians. … The vast majority of potential jurors see corporate CEOs as greedy and willing to break the law.” —LA Times, 11/10/09

It’s a sad day when business leaders are lower on the trust pole than politicians. Actually, I didn’t think any group could be rated lower than politicians.

The saddest part is that the great majority of men and women running small, medium and even large companies don’t lie, cheat or steal; they aren’t particularly greedy and they don’t break the law.

The problem is that many of those who do fit the profile, and there are plenty, run high profile companies in the same or related industry—think financial services and autos to name two glaring examples.

I think part of what’s going on is the spread of the lemming mentality.

You see it a lot in the venture world. During the internet boom no matter how good your business plan if it wasn’t .com you could pretty much forget getting funded. These days the magic markets are green/clean tech, healthcare and mobile anything. In other words, if one jumps off a cliff all the rest will follow.

I have a friend who says that the more expensive the suit the lower his initial trust level; I might agree except that I’m sure that the folks wearing them are aware of the prejudice. Therefore, I have to believe that they are either arrogant enough to believe we are all dumb/disinterested/ignorant not to notice or they just don’t give a damn.

The real question in all this is what are we going to do about it?

Are we going to wring our collective hands, tar all business with the same brush, lament the mentality that drives our distrust and then let it all sink back into the muck when the economy turns around—out of sight, out of mind?

Or are we going to get active, demand better accountability, force business leaders to toe an ethical line and avoid our normal memory loss?

Image credit: powerbooktrance on flickr

“Is there a single devastating thing I may do unconsciously that messes my people up the most and, if so, what are the effects?”

I’ve heard variations of this question from many managers over the years.

The answer is yes, there sure is and if you aren’t doing it unconsciously then you’re one of the really bad guys and I can only hope that your turnover soars and your reputation spreads.

The action is inconsistency and the primary effect is fear. Secondary effects include intimidation and insecurity.

The end results in the business world are distrust, low productivity, less innovation, abysmal retention and, on a more personal level, poor reviews, fewer promotions and less opportunity.

It doesn’t matter that the inconsistency is unintentional, arbitrary or whimsical the results are the same.

It’s not knowing that really gets to people—even more than expected abuse.

Think about it. It’s one thing to have someone who constantly criticizes (unconstructively) or disparages you, because you can learn how to turn a deaf ear if, for some reason, you can’t get out of earshot. But when a zinger comes out of nowhere in what’s normally constructive, or at least neutral, feedback you’re caught unaware, thrown off balance and it really gets to you.

Actually, the more infrequent it is the worse it is when it does happen. And after it happens a few times people find themselves waiting for it, wondering when it’ll happen again and almost holding their breath to see if this is the time the other shoe will drop.

That fear grows exponentially once it takes root and distrust typically increases at the same rate.

Can you think of a worse scenario for people to labor under?

But when it’s unconscious, how do you know?

If you actually focus on the person with whom you’re talking, instead of checking your Blackberry or thinking about something else, you’ll see the zinger hit and you should be able to identify what it was. If you can’t, then ask! Acknowledge the reaction, state that you know it was something you said, but you’re not sure what. Be gentle if you expect the person to open up, but you stand a better chance if you ask immediately, while he’s still in shock.

But if you did it on purpose to enjoy the show and then get them to open up so you can twist the knife, I sincerely hope that all your teeth and hair fall out and Zeus’ thunderbolt strikes you where you stand and chars you into tiny little bits.

Image credit: tdnb on sxc.hu

Image credit: asifthebes

‘Innovation’ is one of the main themes permeating recession-proofing advice, but if you don’t already have an innovation-friendly culture you need to start by rectifying that or it ain’t gonna happen.

As you work to fix any cultural problems you found, you can work on small innovations, too. Just don’t try and implement something that your culture won’t support. Innovation is about the freedom to fail as much as it is about the joy of succeeding. If you’ve trashed your managers or killed the messenger every time something didn’t work don’t expect to change their assumption that it will still happen or rebuild a viable trust level overnight.

And before you start moaning about spending money let’s remember that innovation is not always synonymous with expensive inventions or something that rocks your industry.

• Start with your business processes and open everything to consideration, discussion and improvement.
• Listen to your people—all of them.
  • Don’t make the mistake of thinking that ideas are the province of a certain level or education or position.
  • Administrative staff often knows where more of the speed bumps and bottlenecks are than their bosses, but they need to know that they’re safe before they’ll say anything.
• Rethink your customer care. No matter how good you think it is it can still be improved.
  • Look for ways to do and fix the stuff that you may not have bothered with in good times.
  • Listen to your CSRs because they are your pipeline to your customers.
  • Be proactive by asking your customers for feedback, instead of waiting for a complaint.
• Explore open innovation. It’s “about connecting with others to find new ideas and, often, to co-develop and co-market them.” Open innovation is not about outsourcing.

Remember, a slow-down or recession approach that’s only about cutting costs ignores the obvious. If you don’t innovate now you won’t have anything going for you when the the economy impoves—which it will as it always has.