Service Magazine Fall 2017

@Service Magazine Summer 2017 | 15 Q: When we look at service delivery in the 21st century, you highlight three key elements to success: People, Technology and Processes. Why do these stand out to you? Each element is important and, in many cases, one element can be sufficient in solving a particular problem. The real opportunity we have is to focus all three in a coordinated way to improve service delivery exponentially. This means challenging the old ways of doing things: actively searching for new ways to utilize technology to eliminate tasks, suggesting shortcuts to speed up solutions, and sharing best practices. Q: During your leadership, you emphasized teamwork across the Service and Sales teams. You’ve said “teams win, individuals don’t.” Talk about the importance of the team. Teamwork is not only necessary but critical to success in business. This is not theory. Many studies conclude the same thing — the more people you can have actively involved in solving a problem, the better the solution will be. An old African proverb says it all: “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.” Help your sales partners sell and live with the extra business those sockets create! Q: You emphasize the importance of communication. You’ve often said, “The problemwith communication is the perception that it occurred.” What are your top tips when it comes to good communication? First, be succinct. Use bullets and charts and make sure you have a “so what” at the end of your communication that drives action. Second, in a distributed workforce like Service, redundancy is better than a miss. It takes multiple channels and many tries to reach an audience in the field. Third, verify what you hear to be sure you got the message right. Q: Earlier this year, John Flannery became our eleventh CEO in GE’s 125-year history. What are your impressions as we look ahead under this new leadership? Change is good for individuals and companies. The concept of “fresh eyes” is a profound one. We all have our biases and blind spots, and a new leader can often identify new opportunities. Jeff helped GE navigate through some very tough times and streamlined the company for the 21st Century. I don’t know John, but I’m impressed with his leadership of Healthcare in a very competitive environment. I look forward to his contributions in keeping GE in leadership positions across the spectrum of businesses. Q: You’re an avid history buff. What lessons can we apply to business from observing history? From Lincoln — putting ego aside and requesting help from adversaries when they have talents. Doris Kearns Goodwin’s “Team of Rivals” should be required reading for all leaders. From Colonel Joshua Chamberlain, leader of the 20th Maine Infantry in the Civil War, the courage to stay the course in tough times. He offset a Confederate charge at Gettysburg while being outmanned four to one. (For more, read “Killer Angels” by Michael Shaara). From the Wright Brothers — persistence! Two relatively non-educated boys showed a very skeptical world how to fly (David McCullough’s “The Wright Brothers”). Q: What’s your fondest memory from your days in Service? My fondest memories are of the people with whom I had the good fortune to work. I was the beneficiary of an incredible team that made work enjoyable and rewarding. We worked hard and played hard! Q: When you’re not serving on multiple boards of directors, what do you like to do in your free time? I like to read, play bluegrass music with friends and golf (poorly). Barb, my wife, and I especially like to travel to see our kids and grandkids. Services team-building meeting, 1998