A lesson from the trenches ~ being devious doesn't get you anywhere

A CEO was approached by his executive assistant and told that the Management team had thought it critical to the business that they join a golf club so that they could entertain their agents. It was well known in the industry that agents were avid golfers and that alot of relationships were built that way and subsequently business gained. At least, that is what they told the executive assistant.

Before signing any membership forms to a golf club, the CEO approached a colleague who deals with alot of agents to see if they did indeed play golf only to be told that that was not the case. Whereupon the CEO called his Management team together and proceeded to make it known how disappointed he was in their behaviour including that of his executive assistant.

There are 3 points to this story:

1. Stay focused on what is important
   What irked the CEO was the fact that joining a golf club was not about the agents or the company but rather about the self-interests of the Management team. He had no doubt that agents would have been invited to play but the motivator was the individual self-interest of the Management team. The Management team had lost sight of what was important.
2. Be direct rather than devious
   By approaching the executive assistant and asking her to approach the CEO, the Management team appeared devious and their intentions questionable. We have all used at one time or another assistants to do our dirty work for us but in this case it was tantamount to sending a lamb-to-slaughter and a direct approach would have been better. 
3. Be courageous
   Knowing your boss and knowing what is important to him/her; knowing how she/he thinks and what they will say before they actually say it, is a sign that an assistant is aligned with the boss. In our story, the executive assistant knew instinctively that the answer would be 'no' but she went ahead and asked anyway. She needed to be courageous despite any pressure from the Management team. It is important that a CEO and the executive assistant are seen as one. 

So next time you approach an executive assistant with a request - ask yourself if a). you are focused on what's important and b). would the direct approach be better served. 

Yours in execution

ian

Comments

[po¿yczki chwilowki]

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