1) GE flattened its organizational structure and mandated self-directed work teams to cut costs and increase customer satisfaction. 2) At GE's Business Information Center, the LIFO training helped build strong teams by having employees understand each other's communication styles and balance strengths. 3) Call volume increased 53% while costs plunged 34% as the self-directed work teams developed their own rewards program.

1. From Our Files: the Best of Our
Client Success
Stories
Performance Improvement Programs
for Teams and Individuals
LIFO® Training—A Client Application ACT!—A Client Application
GE Flattens the Organization and Accountability
Builds Strong Teams—Cuts Costs Skills Help
and Increases Customer Satisfaction Managers
Manage People
ohn Wilfore, a sub-section man- would be, “What's in it for me? Why ast year, Toys R Us addressed a
J ager at GE’s Business Information
Center (GEBIC) in Albany, NY, had
should I be doing all this extra
stuff?” He, along with the rest of
L challenge faced by many organi-
zations: how do you help managers
been a part of General Electric's hier- upper management, made a pro- move from managing tasks to man-
archical structure nearly thirty years found commitment to employee aging people?
when he was mandated to “de-layer” personal growth, learning new skills The company had decided to ele-
his section. This included eliminat- and having the opportunity to vate 6 to 9 hourly employees in each
ing the layer he shared with two col- enhance their jobs. store to supervisory positions. As a
leagues and outplacing them. The So, what was the first step? “A result, Store Managers, for the first
only guidance he was given was to two-day LIFO® workshop was a good time, would be managing people
“create a self-directed workforce.” start,” says Wilfore. who were managing people.
GEBIC’s responsibility is fielding Each person's LIFO Survey results Mike Turner, Pacific Region
outside calls from industrial cus- were posted on his or her Strength Director of Human Resources, says,
tomers or prospects who do not know Feedback Wall Chart, which were “Store Managers had much more of
whom to call in the sprawling con- then used to record his or her team's a task orientation than a superviso-
glomerate of GE corporations and perception of them. “This pulls peo- ry orientation. This had to change.”
subsidiaries. This gives outsiders a ple together,” says Linda McClain, Turner explains, “If certain tasks
personal liaison to refer or take them who attended the LIFO training on are not done in a toy store, shelves
to the experts or other GE organiza- her second day at GEBIC. “The LIFO are empty of merchandise. Instead
tions they need. Besides counting Strength Feedback Chart and the of simply going to the back room
phone calls to measure productivity, human graph contributed to an and getting the toys themselves, the
the team created ways to measure appreciation for team strengths, Store Manager now needed to hold
customer satisfaction—their target. weaknesses and balance.” the new managers accountable for
Wilfore knew from the beginning “The first two sentences a cus- getting the job done through other
that de-layering leaves extra work to tomer says on the phone,” says people.”
be done that fits into nobody's job McClain, “enable me to put them Turner wanted all Store Managers
description. The staff's question into a LIFO window. Becoming a and their bosses, the Store Directors,
LIFO trainer is what enabled me to in his region to receive Accountabil-
get to this level of skill. I know I can ity Circles Training. He chose to
identify their style and then com- conduct sessions in each of the 12
municate to them quickly in their districts when the Store Managers
style.” She describes how the team and Store Directors would be meet-
immersed themselves in the home- ing with their boss, the District
work for the LIFO certification class. Manager. In all, about 120 Store
They were asked to look through Directors and 200 Store Managers
magazine articles and watch TV went through the program in the
commercials to practice identifying first year.
See “GE & Customer Satisfaction” on page 4 See “Accountability at Toys R Us” on page 2
Copyright © 2001 by Dr. Stuart Atkins

2. Accountability at Toys R Us Turner says, “This helped managers SOLVE IT!—A Client Application
from Page 1 understand that the company provides
some very good tools. It was good to Health Care
From Negative to Positive help them see what factors in the sys-
tem, the organization, were reinforcing Professionals
Accountability
The program was very well accepted.
their success.” Take Their Own
One reason is that the program starts Medicine
with a discussion of conventional “neg- Multi-level Accountability
by Marly Heidkamp
ative accountability.” Turner says, “The Turner employed an inventive training Education Specialist
managers easily related to the idea that strategy to ensure that the new Delnor Community Hospital
when things go wrong, ‘Accountability accountability skills would be widely
is usually used as a big stick.’ The pro- practiced throughout his region. The s education Specialist at Delnor
gram contrasts this negative approach
with a positive learning process: how
first component of this strategy was
delivering the accountability training
A Community Hospital in Geneva, IL,
I found the need for a different kind of
can I better train you? It fit right into sessions when the Store Directors and stress program. The problem is that
what they are supposed to be doing all Store Managers were meeting with stress management is old news. Still,
day—following up with the employees their District Managers. That gave the stress won't go away.
on what they are doing right and, if it is Health care professionals think they
not right, what kind of training can be know all about stress management
done to make sure it is right the next because the health care industry gave us
time.” all our information about how stress
One of the high points of the pro- affects the body and how to perform
gram was the Accountability Survey. interventions such as relaxation tech-
The managers enjoyed learning about niques to “manage” stress.
their own accountability patterns— I liked the Solving Stressful Problems
who they typically praise when things program first because it wasn't called
go right and blame when things go “stress management.” What really excit-
wrong. ed me, and the participants, is that
They also enjoyed using the Account- while traditional stress management
ability Circles process to expand their programs focus on coping with stress
perspective on accountability. Turner through meditation, diet and exercise,
reports that the managers typically saw the main focus of this program goes
accountability in black-and-white terms. training top-down support from the beyond tolerating stress to solving prob-
Their approach was: “I’m holding you outset. It also gave all management lev- lems that cause stress.
accountable and either you got it done— els in the region a common language Though the program includes several
or you didn’t.” As a result, Turner says and framework for discussing how to specific techniques that actually lessen
there was little real problem solving; dis- improve the performance of the stores the impact of stressful people and
cussions were limited to: “good for you” in the region. events in ones life, it acknowledges that
or “shame on you.” The Accountability The second component of the strate- stress is a given. It helps people learn to
Circles process gave them additional gy came into play during year-end eval- live with it, to tolerate problems that
tools for exploring what else might be uation committee meetings attended can’t be solved right away or at all.
going on. by the District Managers and Store People also learn how to build stamina
For example, instead of making the Directors. Turner used these meetings
assumption that an employee should in part to evaluate how well the Store See “Health Care Professionals” on page 4
know how to perform a task simply Managers had been using the new
because he or she had been working in accountability skills. At the same time, Accountability
the store for a year, they learned to ask, he used this meeting time to reinforce from previous column
“Did the person actually know every- the Store Directors’ own accountability
thing they needed to get it done? Has skills. Holding the Store Directors account-
anybody ever gotten it 100% right “If a Store Manger’s performance was able to increase the accountability skills
before? Will some training help solve not up to par,” Turner reports, “among of their Store Managers reinforced the
this problem?” They learned to analyze other things we would discuss how the skills taught in the training sessions. It
the many factors that were contributing Director could more effectively hold also gave the Store Directors a positive
to the problem and identify who could the Store Manager accountable for focus for future performance feedback
do what to solve it. using the accountability skills with his sessions with their managers. And so
Another eye-opener was looking at or her people.” the multi-level connection between
how the organizational policies and Store Managers, Store Directors, and
procedures contribute to successes. See “Accountability” in next column ➔ District Managers came full circle. s

3. Trainer Feedback
“LIFO Communications Training took us a step beyond the “I’ve been using Dr. Atkins’ programs for over 15 years in a
MBTI because it is very explicit about action strategies. It variety of applications—all of them extremely successful. The
focuses on translating insight into actual behavior. After the beauty of LIFO Training is its simplicity and usability at all
program, participants write us that it really has made a differ- levels of the organization.”
ence in how they approach other people. It has been a
tremendous hit.” Jeff Wells, Sr. V.P. Human Resources
Circuit City Stores, , Inc.
Dr. Harold Hillman, Director
AMOCO Management Learning Center
“SOLVE IT! is very practical. Participants definitely derive bene-
fit from it. Participants learn effective ways of resolving diffi-
“The most popular class that the Department of Labor has cult problems that are causing them stress, and they feel that
ever offered. It has had the most significant impact on our they can apply the techniques very easily.”
staff.... People who could not work effectively together now
work harmoniously. Management is requesting that everyone John Barry, Training Coordinator
be scheduled. They love it. Once people witness the benefits, Electric Insurance Company
everyone wants to attend!”
Penny Beiler, Training Officer “SOLVE IT! has been very positively received at Deluxe Data. I
Alaska Department of Labor love it because it practically teaches itself. The concepts are
straightforward and the training materials make it easy to
teach. After the last course, the students all raved about it and
“LIFO Training helps people become really comfortable with were visibly less stressed.”
each other. It creates laughter, communication, self-insight,
and mutual understanding. It helps people get to know each Susie Tjell, Associate Trainer
other on a more intimate level than the usual superficial Deluxe Data
working relationships. LIFO Training has really enhanced the
success of our programs.”
“LIFO Training is one of the easiest programs to grasp, and it
Dave Radcliffe, Training Advisor is one of the more effective programs for a broad spectrum of
Controller's Department, Exxon Company USA people from mail clerks to vice presidents. It helps people
understand how they work together and how to present infor-
mation in a way that makes everyone receptive.”
I quickly saw LIFO Training's power and realized it could
become our primary vehicle for bringing about management Dr. Karen Otazo
change. The important thing was to get everyone—managers, Manager of Human Resources Development
supervisors, individual contributors—acquainted with the ARCO
LIFO approach. About 300 of our managers have taken the
workshop. It's been a great success.”
“I have used nine different instruments over the last 15 years
Robert P. Edwards and the LIFO Survey is the best. People can get it quickly. It
Manager of Human Resources Development has face validity. Knowing the strengths and weaknesses of
Electronic Division, Xerox Corporation each style helps in understanding others and in valuing dif-
ferences. And diversity leads to creativity.”
Bruce A. Davis, Consultant,
Participative Management, General Electric
“I recommend SOLVE IT! very highly. It contains all the infor-
mation people need in order to understand what causes their
stress and how to work through it. The program generated a
high degree of trust and comfort, even though participants
came from different positions and departments throughout
the company. They left the course confident that they could
successfully apply the new strategies they had learned to
future stressful problems.”
Tavia Fondaw, Corporate Trainer
Frontier Communications

4. Health Care Professionals GE & Customer Satisfaction
from Page 2 Train-the-Trainer from Page 1
so they have more energy for dealing
with problems. But unlike other pro-
Workshops styles. “We all brought in three maga-
zine articles. We were really into it. That
grams, they learn how to get at the root 2001 Schedule developed our phone skills quickly.”
causes of stress by solving the problems Concerned that continuously
that cause it in the first place. increasing call volume might put
The hospital employees particularly undue pressure on the phone answer-
liked the Commiseration exercise for LIFO Training ing team and support staff, manage-
tolerating stressful problems. It gave ment sought outside proposals for a
them permission to admit that there Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . Apr 17 – 18 new rewards and compensation pro-
were people and situations contribut- Washington, DC . . . . . May 15 – 16 gram. When the team members got
ing to their stress. It wasn’t all their wind of the costs ($50,000-$75,000)
fault. San Francisco . . . . . . . . July 10 – 11 and the time required (6-18 months),
Standing for long hours and sprint- New York . . . . . . . . . . . Sep 11 – 12 they screamed “Outrageous!” and asked
ing two or three corridors at split second Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oct 9 – 10 to be allowed to develop their own
notice can be intensely demanding. No rewards program. They designed a plan
one knows better than hospital employ- Washington, DC . . . . . . . Nov 6 – 7 that was mutually acceptable to them-
ees that this kind of stress decreases the Ft. Lauderdale . . . . . . . . . . Dec 4 – 5 selves and management.
immune system. When the self-directed work team
They found the Stamina section of approach began, their call volume per
the workbook challenging and motivat- ACT!—Accountability employee was 3,698. In just two years, it
ing. Some wanted more emphasis; oth- rose 53%, to 6,105. And costs? Cost per
Circles Training
ers thought it was just right, because call during the same period plunged
while many of them already exercise 34%, from $31.76 to $20.80.
Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Apr 19
and watch their diets, they appreciated
being reminded about areas that still Washington, DC . . . . . . . . . May 17
needed improvement. San Francisco . . . . . . . . . . . . July 12
I like the workbook, because partici-
Call volume rose 53%
New York . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sep 13 while costs plunged 34%.
pants don't have to take a lot of notes.
They can fully participate, have some Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oct 11
fun, then go back and review the pro- Washington, DC . . . . . . . . . . Nov 8
gram material later. The GEBIC team educates new hires
Ft. Lauderdale . . . . . . . . . . . . Dec 6
Solving Stressful Problems is tangi- swiftly, explains Wilfore, through an
ble. People like to have something in eight-week program of blended mentor-
their hands that shows them the direc- ing and classroom training. “We try to
tion to go. That's what the workbook SOLVE IT!—Solving level the field as quickly as possible
does. And the surveys are wonderful. Stressful Problems when they come on board. We start
They really point people in the right with LIFO, then bring them up to speed
direction. When they look at them- Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Apr 20 on the other trainings we've had, such
selves and look at other people in their Washington, DC . . . . . . . . . May 18 as team dynamics and how to run a
lives, it suddenly makes sense. meeting.”
In Dr. Atkins’ program, I found a San Francisco . . . . . . . . . . . . July 13 “LIFO skills are second nature to us,”
successful stress management program New York . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sep 14 describes McClain, “so we don't use the
for health care professionals that pro- Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oct 12 language as much as we used to except
vides them with motivation to turn on the advisory team. But with a new
knowing into doing. Health care work- Washington, DC . . . . . . . . . . Nov 9 person, the excitement starts all over
ers are classically good at taking care of Ft. Lauderdale . . . . . . . . . . . . Dec 7 again!” s
other people and equally expert at
ignoring or repressing their own
needs.
The participants say that the program
raised their self-esteem and increased
their team spirit. The song of health care Stuart Atkins, Inc.
professionals everywhere regarding stress
management is, “Tell me something I 270 N. Canon Drive # 1626
don't know already.” That's what Solving Beverly Hills, CA 90210
Stressful Problems does! s 800-552-6446 www.stuartatkins.com