In our final episode, Clive walks Gavin through their Respect Model.
The RESPECT Model came from the book, Carrots and Sticks Don’t Work which as you would have seen in Episode 1, this book is part of the Mainline Library. The book talks about building engagement. People turn up to work to earn money but that is not always the main driver, it’s important, but it is down the list. People want to feel that their efforts are appreciated and their contributions matter and make a difference. How do you get people engaged on a personal level and aligned with the missions that Mainline are trying to achieve as a company?
Clive didn’t come up with this model however he did take elements from it and put them into practice, as we have mentioned previously, it is okay to study it all, but you need to put it into action. When the RESPECT model was rolled out initially, Clive shared it with the leadership team and they all agreed it had to start with them. They 100% acknowledged they need to be mindful of these elements, and it was a very humbling experience. They all took a good look at themselves in the mirror and realised there was room for improvement for all of them.
Joe, in his infinite wisdom thought it would be great if everyone in the business was on board and they used this model as their guiding principles. The RESPECT model complements their core values.
If you look at them one by one you will notice that the word RESPECT does not actually appear in any of these, it is just the result. If you do all these then you gain respect.
R – RECOGNITION
Take the time to let others know that their work is appreciated. Many managers, leaders, supervisors, advisors overestimate how much they give recognition. They think they do but really it is not so much. Clive says if you are in that kind of position, a little thank you note or bonus if you feel inclined or even just highlighting and shining a light on people in the morning meeting can go a long way. Just a thank you in front of everyone can be so powerful.
E – EMPOWERMENT
Provide tools, training, and opportunities to be successful. If you ask someone to do a job, equip them with the right tools or training to succeed. Provide them with all of that and then have faith in them to make good decisions and then get out of their way. Empower them to make wise choices and drive some action. A wise man knows how to employ the right people and then step back and let them do their job.
S – SUPPORTIVE FEEDBACK
Deliver constructive performance feedback in the moment. Congratulate them on a great job whilst offering advice on something they may be able to improve on.
P – PARTNERING
You must build partnerships. When Clive first started at Mainline there was a lack of alignment between front of house and back of house. Comments such as the service writers didn’t do this or if only production would do that, which is not uncommon across the industry. That no longer exists because they have built those partnerships and everyone is on the same page, pulling in the same direction.
E – EXPECTATIONS
Set clear expectations and ensure accountability. Who, what, why, where, and how, have a clear outline so that people are under no illusion as to what is expected of them? If you fail to do that and people don’t deliver, then you have no one to blame but yourself.
C – CONSIDERATION
Treat people with consideration, show thoughtfulness and consideration towards others. It is easy to forget that you see the world through your own eyes but there are forty sets of eyes at Mainline and everyone has their own aspirations and challenges which can often be overlooked. Some people might be having an off day for one reason or another, so you need to show consideration.
T – TRUST
The one thing that pulls it all together is trust. You must have mutual trust and you need to work hard at that. You need to give people a reason to trust you and show trustworthiness.
That is their RESPECT model and when it was rolled out, they did have some people take it at face value and realise they didn’t do well in some of those areas. They are just about to do a refresher on this because as we mentioned previously, every 90 days or so things can fall off the rails. This model really gives people a different mindset on their day-to-day work and when faced with a potentially difficult or confrontational situation, this model pings into their head and gives them a different way of looking at it.
This is the third part of the 3-legged stool, along with core values and process and procedures that keep them on the right track. They often talk with people and find people doing things right as opposed to going out there and looking for what they are doing wrong. Clive says you will never get the behaviour you do want by focusing on the behaviour you don’t want. If you are always calling someone out for showing up late, how do we determine if we might be able to help them?
Gavin calls this the approach and coach, how do we approach and coach our team members? If they are always showing up late, maybe 3 days out of 5, what is the consideration? Looking at the RESPECT model, how can this be utilized to understand what is happening in their world? What thoughtfulness can we show to sit down with that person and ask is everything OK? You don’t know what is going on in their world, so it is about trying to relate to that person has a human being. You can easily make assumptions and judgement and use the big stick but that doesn’t help. The result is that if you get good at all the elements of the RESPECT model or even a variation of the theme, people feel more engaged at work and that is powerful.
Mainlines culture is developing all the time, they are moving in the right direction and seeing the benefits of putting these models in place. You need to work at it though, there is no point printing it out and sticking it on the wall and expect it to change, you must live it and breath it.
In the end it comes down to the last letter T – TRUST. Demonstrate and engender trust in others because without the trust it is difficult to build on anything else. There is a proverb – “your actions speak so loudly I can hardly hear what you are saying” and that comes back to building trust through actions and words.
Thanks, Clive, for taking the time to share your values, culture and respect model and everything that truly represents the Mainline Way. They need not only apply to Mainline but to life in general and that is a powerful tool. It is common sense, check in on yourself and ask yourself where you are at and what is important . The moment you can learn to speak the truth, things will change.
Gavin reflects on a powerful line from Dr Wayne Dyer “when you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”