I had a client who called me out of the blue wanting to discuss his team. His company had had a large drop in sales recently, so he met with his executive team, and they came up with a plan. The Executive team presented the plan to the directors, and one of the Directors adamantly refused to follow the plan. This Director had no other solutions or suggestions, just dug in their heels, and refused to comply.
The Chief Revenue Officer had a private talk with the Director. So did the CFO. The CMO. The CIO. Finally, the CEO. The Director refused to cooperate.
My client was baffled by this person’s response. He kept saying to me, “It is the right plan. It is a good plan. The Director is the only one who doesn’t agree. What do I do?”
I am a strong advocate for a Restaurant Management philosophy called Popes. There are 21 rules in this system that cover every business problem that I have ever encountered. Rule #17 says “THE REPUTATION OF NO INDIVIDUAL IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE REPUTATION OF THE COMPANY.” At the end of the day, the business has to come first. There are too many people, employees, their children and their spouses, that depend on the business’s success, so no one person’s agenda can dictate the direction the company goes.
When you have a change in your business and someone on your team refuses to cooperate, you really have no choice but to let them go.
When you experience a crisis or a big change in the business, ask yourself this question: Who on the team is helping? Who on the team is hurting? Whoever is hurting has to go.
POWER THOUGHT: Who on your team is helping? Who on your team is hurting?