All building service contractors offer at least some form of training for their employees. Perhaps it’s a classroom or video session, or maybe it’s on-the-job. But what do presidents, CEOs and other leaders do to train themselves?

Many hit the books, and those who don’t should, say their well-read peers.

Arthur Barraclough, CBSE, president of Cross Gate Services Inc., Brentwood, Tenn., reads about 30 or 40 books a year, plus many periodicals, in addition to his executive duties. And while business-related books are on that list, he branches out into other genres. He has found that non-business volumes such as history and biography are even better at helping him relate to his customers.

“I read books on business and leadership every day,” adds Todd Hopkins, CBSE, president of Office Pride Inc., Franklin, Ind., who places a high importance on continuing education for executives. He averages up to 20 books a year while overseeing a company with branches and franchises throughout Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky.

An “occasional” reader is Edwin Greer, president of Modern Maintenance Inc., Tucker, Georgia. Greer finds time to read books about once a week, and seeks out history and Christian literature.

“I like seeing the leadership examples that others have given,” he explains. “How to handle your business with high integrity and morals.”

The reasons for reading vary from person to person, but they all relate to self-improvement and better business sense. For instance, Barraclough enjoys reading books with specific examples from businesses that are regarded as successful.

“I can gain the most information from these case studies,” says Barraclough. “I like to get an understanding of mistakes and successes of other companies and individuals. It’s a tremendous source of knowledge.”

Case studies, he says, help him keep his own business in perspective.

“I like biographies for the same reason,” Barraclough adds.

Hopkins, on the other hand, prefers books about strategy and organizational culture. Although some readers may be turned off by thick, statistics- and theory-heavy books, Hopkins prefers those to ones that are more story-oriented.

“Buying books would be a good thing if one could also buy the time to read them .”
— Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher

Lack of time to read was a common excuse among BSCs who declined to be interviewed; one cited a home-remodeling crisis as the most recent time-consuming culprit, while another said he didn’t have time to do all of the “required” tasks of running a business, let alone fit in “luxuries” such as reading.

But other contractors believe reading is so important that one should make time, even if it means stealing away 15 minutes during lunch.

“I’ve never had a problem finding time to read,” says Barraclough. “I keep books and articles on hand near me. If I get a break, I read.”

However, that strategy may not work for statistics, theory or other intense, thick books. To focus on difficult material, you can’t have other distractions, Hopkins says.

“You might be able to read an easy book while doing other things, but you need to set aside time — perhaps at home, after the kids go to bed — and just focus,” he says.

If contractors see reading as an investment akin to attending a class or a trade show, rather than as an unaffordable luxury or a boring task, they’ll become more comfortable with taking the necessary time.

“It’s an investment, and it’s one of the best investments you can make to grow yourself,” Hopkins says.

He often will make an appointment in his calendar for reading, just as he would for a meeting or trip.

Also, with today’s technology, “reading” doesn’t necessarily have to involve sitting down and opening a book. Many business books and other bestsellers are available on cassette or compact disc; in fact, a biography series about U.S. presidents is in Barraclough’s car stereo now.

However, the downside is that books more than a year or two old often only are available on cassette, and many newer cars come only with CD players. One solution is to bring a portable tape or CD player along if the car doesn’t have one.

“Never read a book through merely because you have begun it.”
— John Witherspoon, signer of the Declaration of Independence

To better manage reading time, select books carefully. If cost is a factor, check some books out of the library rather than buying them. And don’t feel you must finish what you started, Hopkins says,

“Half of the books I own, I’ve read one chapter of,” he states. “It’s got to be a tremendous amount of value.”

If you’re bored silly, or feel the book is frivolous or otherwise not useful to you or your business, feel free to abandon it, even if you did buy an expensive hardcover. After all, the time you’d waste reading the wrong book is more valuable than its cover price.

You also may discover that only some parts of the book hold value for you. In that case, skim the headings or check the index for relevant information, and ignore the rest.

“Read the book for what’s meaningful for you,” says Tom Drucker, president of Consultants In Corporate Innovation, a Los Angeles organizational learning and leadership firm.

“Don’t hold yourself hostage to the author’s intent,” he adds. That may mean ignoring the “the purpose of this book” statements often found in introductory chapters, or it may mean passing on the related videos, posters and training aids sold with some books.

“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
— Dr. Seuss, American author

All of that reading time may be wasted if you don’t take action on what you’ve read, says Drucker.

“Try to put into practice an idea or two from the book right away,” he advises. That way, the time you invest in reading will not be wasted.

Another thing to consider: passing books — or even excerpts — on to managers and other senior staff. For instance, Greer often hands out books on leadership, as well as books on industry-related technical issues, to his other managers.

He’s also incorporated excerpts and ideas gleaned from books into training material for his cleaning staff.

Barraclough sometimes will hand books to members of his staff, but he also encourages them to read on their own, based on their own interests.

“It’s an asset to be informed, and to see things from other perspectives,” Barraclough says.

Or, you can share through example: “Most of the time, I incorporate the heart of what I read into my business,” Hopkins says.

To best remember what you’ve read, and thus make it easier to incorporate into your business life, take notes, Drucker adds.

Hopkins takes copious notes in the margins of the books he reads, as well as underlines relevant passages. He’ll often go back and read the notes a few times, even months or years later.

Book Reviews

While every book ever published has held value for at least somebody, no one has the time to read them all. So many people look to what others have read.

Contracting Profits looked at the business, advice and non-fiction bestseller lists from several retailers and media outlets, including USAToday, The New York Times and Amazon.com.

We then selected five business how-to titles from the lists; here’s a brief review of each.

Who Moved My Cheese?
by Spencer Johnson, M.D. (G.P. Putmnam’s Sons, 1998, $19.95 hardcover; available on cassette and CD)

Summary: This book about accepting change is told as a parable. It tells the tale of two mice, Sniff and Scurry, and two humans, Hem and Haw, who live in a maze and are searching for “cheese.” For the mice, that meant actual cheese; for the people, cheese represented the things that would make them feel happy and successful.

When the cheese supply runs low, the humans are disheartened, while the mice accept the change and move on. The book then breaks down the various mindsets that can help people get through tough times and eventually find what they are missing.

The message is solid: Those who embrace change will succeed; those who don’t will fail.
Benefits: Who Moved My Cheese? is short — only 94 pages — and written in simple language. It can easily be read in a short period of time, or in a distracting environment. It also is accessible to cleaning employees with basic English skills; it doesn’t require a large technical vocabulary.

The ending “Discussion” section of the book provides some interpretations of the parable that real-world employers may find useful. For instance, one family business was struggling in the face of competition, and the owner realized that the company’s leaders were ignoring the change around them, and would have to keep up in order to survive.

Drawbacks: The book’s biggest strength — its accessibility — also is its biggest flaw. Readers who are used to business theory or scholarly works might find the line drawings and lighthearted tone condescending.

“Who Moved My Cheese? is interesting but superficial,” says Art Barraclough of Cross Gate Services. “It doesn’t really address specific situations. It expands on the obvious.”

Usage tips: The book might be useful to contractors whose companies are going through a change, such as a leadership transition, merger or downsizing. Employees reluctant to accept change might find comfort or inspiration in the story.

Some executives have given a copy to all of their employees. At $19.95 a pop, that could be quite expensive. Instead, managers could read the book and discuss it with their staffs.

Several pages are simply line drawings of a block of cheese, with statements such as “When You Move Beyond Fear, You Feel Free” and “Imagining Myself Enjoying New Cheese Even Before I Find It Leads Me To It,” which represent the core values of the book. Try using those as visual aids during discussion.

Fish: A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results
by Stephen C. Lundin Ph.D., Harry Paul and John Christensen (Hyperion, 2000. $19.95 hardcover)

Summary: Fish is another fictionalized account, but this time, the situation is realistic. Mary Jane, a young, widowed mother, is promoted to manager of the operations department of a Seattle financial institution. While the pay is good, the department is what she calls a “toxic energy dump.” The employees of the department are described as “unpleasant,” “slow” and “negative,” but they stick around because of good pay and job security.

While figuring out what to do to turn the department around, Mary Jane visits the famous Pike Place Fish Market, where the employees engage the customers by throwing fish over counters, cracking jokes and having a good time. There, she meets Lonnie, a fishmonger who teaches her how to bring the energy of the fish market to her department.

She learns four important things all employees should do:

  • Choose your attitude: “There is always a choice about the way you do your work, even if there is not a choice about the work itself,” Lonnie says in the book.
  • Play: Kids know how to do this at recess; the fish market basically is an adult playground. Even in a secluded office, employees can customize their workspaces, have a joke-of-the-month program or have occasional lunchtime entertainment.
  • Make their day: Play with your customers, too. Or go out of your way to do a favor for them.
  • Be present: Employees need to be physically, mentally and emotionally present and focused on the task at hand, and on the customer. All of the laughing and joking in the world doesn’t mean anything if it’s not directed at the customer.

Mary Jane also learns that it was important “to find a way for your staff to discover the Fish Philosophy for themselves.”

Benefits: Like Who Moved My Cheese?, the book is short and easy to read. However, the coverage is deeper, with concrete ideas managers can implement in their own companies.

Drawbacks: The narrative structure can be distracting from the business message. Many readers could find the personal stories too sentimental.

Usage tips: At the end of the book, Mary Jane divides her department into four teams, one for each point of the “Fish Philosophy.” Each team is to present ways to implement each point; cleaning contractors can try to do the same with their employees.

The authors of the book also license speakers and seminars; in fact, Todd Hopkins of Office Pride Inc., Franklin, Ind., is bringing people in to speak at a company retreat.

First, Break All the Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently
by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman (Simon & Schuster, 1999, $25.00 hardcover; available on cassette and CD)

Summary: This book complies the results of a Gallup Organization in-depth study of more than 80,000 managers across a variety of business situations. The authors honed in on managers who showed measurable success in harnessing each employee’s talent and skills.

They found that measuring the strength of a workplace could be simplified to twelve questions asked of employees, ranging from “Do I know what is expected of me at work?” to “This last year, have I had opportunities at work to learn and grow?”

They also found there were four “keys” to being a great manager:

  • Hire for talent: Managers can change their employees’ skills through training, but if they lack the talent to perform the job, they won’t succeed.
  • Define the right outcomes: Instead of, or in addition to, telling employees what steps to perform, tell them the outcome you want to see.
  • Focus on strengths: Don’t try to fix employees’ weaknesses; instead, build on the strengths and try to manage around any shortcomings.
  • Find the right fit: The best employees don’t necessarily make the best managers. Too often, employees are forced to take on management or supervisory jobs in which they won’t excel. Meanwhile, a great worker gets promoted out of a job in which they really do shine.

Benefits: The sheer scope of the study, as well as the prominence of the Gallup Organization, gives a lot of credibility to the book. Some housekeeping operations were included in the study, and the authors list some anecdotes specific to the cleaning industry.

Drawbacks: Much of the survey was anonymous, so readers don’t know which companies participated, or who they should emulate.

Also, the same rules that apply to selecting the right people also apply to managers themselves. This book won’t help anyone who doesn’t have the talent to be a good manager, although it may help them realize their shortcomings.

Usage tips: This isn’t an employee-participation book, so managers wanting to improve their skills should read this on their own.

BSCs in a hurry can read the first chapter, “The Measuring Stick,” to get an idea of how the researchers reached their conclusions, then skip ahead to Chapter 7, “Turning the Keys: A Practical Guide,” which relays tips about how to use those four keys. The chapters in between are useful and detailed, but these two still provide a solid outline.

The 21 Irrefutable Laws Of Leadership: Follow Them And People Will Follow You
by John C. Maxwell (Thomas Nelson, 1998, $22.99 hardcover; available on cassette)

Summary: As the title suggests, Maxwell outlines 21 “laws” that define leadership. These aren’t laws to follow, but seem to be more like laws of nature — the way things are.

These laws are far-reaching, ranging from how to identify the real leader (as opposed to the figurehead), to how leaders reach their full potential.

Maxwell gives many concrete case studies, from business and other sectors, in each chapter.

For example, from “The Law of the Lid: Leadership ability determines a person’s level of effectiveness” — Dick and Maurice McDonald, founders of a small hamburger restaurant, were great restaurant managers, but didn’t have the leadership skills to make their business grow. On the other hand, Ray Kroc, who bought the McDonald franchise rights, had a much higher “leadership lid,” and was able to grow the chain into the international conglomerate it is today.

Or, from “The Law of Empowerment: Only secure leaders give power to others,” automobile mogul Henry Ford always undermined his key managers. The company kept losing its best executives. His grandson, when he took over, seemed promising, but began to repeat his grandfather’s patterns. The business grew, but didn’t take off. That’s because the leaders didn’t trust their managers, which Maxwell asserts kept Ford from being the top car company.

Benefits: There are hundreds of specific examples from history, religion, industry and government of successes and failures of leadership. The coverage is deep, as well as broad.

“It’s an easy read, with a lot of good stories and experiences,” says Hopkins.

There also are many relevant quotes and quips, offset from the main text in boxes, that reinforce the messages in the book.

Drawbacks: Although the book offers many examples, it doesn’t often explicitly state what the readers should do to make the laws work for them. That’s great for someone who can learn by example, but it may be difficult for others to interpret.

Usage tips: As the author states, “these laws can stand alone. Each law complements all the others, but you don’t need one in order to learn another.”

Each chapter, which covers one law, is about 10 pages long. If you’re especially busy, try reading one chapter at a time, whenever you get a chance.

And since they don’t need to be read in sequence to be understood, try skimming the table of contents for specific laws and honing in on the chapters that seem most relevant to your situation.

The Strategy-Focused Organization: How Balanced Scorecard Companies Thrive in the New Business Environment
by Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton (Harvard Business School Publishing Co., 2001, $29.95 hardcover)

Summary: The authors created a performance-management tool several years ago called the “Balanced Scorecard.” In short, that tool ensured that strategy and strategic planning was a continuous process owned by everybody, not just the managers.

Here, the authors draw from case studies of companies that implemented the Balanced Scorecard program. The book is structured around the five key principles required for building a strategy-focused organization: translating the strategy into operational terms; aligning the organization to the strategy; making strategy everyone’s everyday job; making strategy a continual process; and, mobilizing change through effective leadership. Each chapter takes a principle and discusses what companies have done to build on that, and what the results were.

For instance, one chapter titled, “The Balanced Paycheck,” discusses tying employee compensation to the Balanced Scorecard objectives. One thing Brian Baker, an executive at Mobil North America, noticed was that when pay was tied to simply meeting goals, employees would “sandbag” the target — set an easy goal and beat it. Instead, he implemented a difficulty scale, and completing a difficult task would carry more weight than completing a simple one. But more tellingly, stretching for a difficult target and falling short also scored more points than handily jumping a low hurdle.

Benefits: There is a lot of in-depth research here, and the case studies offer concrete examples — what each company did in implementing the Balanced Scorecard, and what happened when they did. There also are numerous graphs, charts and other visual aids.

The authors also offer an “online community,” at www.bscol.com, where readers can ask questions and share successes. There are numerous case studies as well as online “learning modules.” Registration is free, whether you’ve purchased the book or not.

Drawbacks: The book is 400 pages of extremely dense material, and there’s no real way to skip around or skim. The language is technical, full of both jargon and buzzwords, and may be tedious or difficult to understand.

Also, the companies profiled are large, national or international corporations, so the usefulness for a small- or mid-sized BSC may be limited.

Usage tips: This type of book isn’t for the distracted. Set aside time to focus on the material, and use a highlighter or take a lot of notes.

While many of the charts and graphs are directly tied to the text on adjacent pages, some provide good information on their own. Browsing the visual aids might provide ideas.
Chapter One, ‘Creating the Strategy-Focused Organization,” does provide a good, fairly straightforward outline of the principles discussed later in the book, so a BSC can find out fairly quickly if the rest of the volume is relevant to his or her business.




POSTED ON: 10/1/2001