The story repeats itself

The story repeats itself. A client got me to conduct a training program. Sessions went very well. But suddenly, the engagements were stopped. There is a new leader that comes into the scene. A new HR person, new CEO or president, and as usual, the first thing a new leader does is to reorganize.

Never mind that some programs are doing well. What they want is to introduce new things. Perhaps they are marking their territories, or perhaps they notice that all the training directions are not in sync with company objectives.

I understand and respect this, and being in business myself, I would not want to waste resources in activities that do not add value to my company’s success goals.

But then there is the other story. The CEO, chief honcho, president etc. does not believe in training at all. “It’s all a waste of money. Why should we get external consultants to come and speak, they do not even know the business we do? We can save a lot of money by using our internal resources. We’re paying their salary anyway. We don’t have to spend money on food, hotel and needless to say… all those hours wasted on training…”

Makes sense doesn’t it? Until… things that are not pleasant begin to happen: high attrition, infighting, silos, change resistance, factions, and in general a sense of demoralization. And worst of all, poor business performance and lagging behind the competition. Then the chief is replaced.

A new one comes into the picture. He realizes the business needs to catch up with competitors as they are now trailing behind. They invite me and other consultants back. Training resumes. You can sense a new excitement happening from within the organization. The inbreeding has stopped. Fresh new ideas, relevant and updated tools are introduced, and most importantly, people are hopeful again. It’s an old script that keeps repeating. And I have witnessed this happening again, and again.

This is not to say that consultants and external speakers are the saviors of lagging businesses because they surely are not. But what they can bring to the table are new tools, new ways, new perspectives new materials, effective approaches of equipping and exciting their key people to embark on new initiatives that could just save their business and make them more competitive.

Now here is the funny part. When companies have their own “internal speakers” do the job, apart from suffering from “inbreeding” and a lack of outside-theorganization perspective, the message and the work comes across as “sermons” they have been hearing since the day they got on board. They will give the customary nod of the head, but their minds are wandering all over the place. And I have been asked why this happens.

Here is the reality not too many people would want to admit, but may just be the case. There are certain things that internal people in the organization cannot do, but only external people can. Soft-skills training is on top of the list. Here is the reason why. People in the workplace behave like children at home. They may not want to listen to their parents, but they believe what their teachers say even if what they are saying are the same things.

I smile every time I do the talks and the owner of the business, or the top honcho of the organization, keeps on elbowing the HR manager saying, “I’ve been saying this… this is what I said… I have been reminding our people of the same thing…” And the feeling is that they have paid me to say the same things they have been saying all along. Yes, but not really.

What I bring to the table is not just what the boss has been saying, but insights, experiences, observations, latest trends perhaps in other industries that would lend credence and concretize their company change initiatives.

Mind you, I am not the first person to say this. Scriptures points out the same as Jesus Christ says: “…a prophet is without honor only in his hometown...” and then the same Scriptures later on says “and He was not able to perform many miracles.”

Some consultant friends of mine lament when they are made fun of with the old line that says: “A consultant is an expert who would borrow your watch and tell you what time it is…” Of course! Perhaps your watch is either broken or telling the wrong time and you need another pair of eyes to tell you what time it is. I can assure you that your people will never tell you that.”

I have been around for a long time and have seen this script happen repeatedly. It’s not a good thing. Consult experts – not just the articulate ones, but those who are practitioners and are immersed in doing business. Ask advice. No one has a monopoly on knowledge. Every time the leader thinks he or she is the smartest in the group, the leader is probably in the wrong group. We need to learn from those who know. I certainly do.

(Attend and experience two inspiring days of leadership training with Francis Kong in his highly acclaimed Level Up Leadership seminar-workshop this April 18-19 at Seda Hotel, BGC. For registration or inquiries contact April at +63928559-1798 or register online at www.levelupleadership.ph)