By Jon Wortmann
It was January 3rd, and all the elves had returned from
their post-Christmas holidays. The
auditorium at North Pole, Inc. was filled with sunburned,
slightly nervous elves. Upon returning home, all of
them had received the same email calling an all-company
meeting.
This was not good. Other than the annual Fourth of
July party, this was only the second time in the organization's
history that everyone was in the same room. Last January
Santa got the whole company together and threatened
with lines about tightening belts and coal in stockings.
When Santa walked in wearing a black suit and black-framed
glasses, the whole room gasped. He grabbed the podium
with both hands and launched in. "People, our way
of life is in jeopardy. Children no longer want your
rocking horses and toy soldiers. It is the age of the
MP3, the PS3, and the 3-D space projector. I have no
idea what any of these things are, but our research
has found that we have a serious problem with innovation.
We come up with new toys, or next Christmas is canceled."
As Santa walked off stage, the room was silent. For
years the Elves received complaints about their outdated
products, but so much retro gear had come back into
fashion, they hadn't worried. Last year, they figured
Santa was grumpy with indigestion after too many cookies.
Back in their offices, the Board got together. EVP for
Product Development, Jerry Elfman, was frustrated. "Our
problem is not talent. We have the best staff of designers
and engineers money can buy. What's missing is a process.
We need a way to push each other, to get creative, even
argue, and come out with new concepts that will make
kids love Santa again."
"Shoot," CTO, Kevin Elfmanowitz, piped up.
"I'd be happy if we actually talked to each other
at all. Everyone just does their job like they always
have. Sure we're all friends outside the office, but
in here, we're as useless as the Talking Rudolph doll
we tried last year."
"Maybe your group doesn't talk." CFO Jane
van Elf said. "Our guys can't keep quiet. Every
meeting lasts half-a-day and we never get anywhere.
We haven't stayed on budget in two decades."
"Look team," Jerry said, "Either we
come up with a way to focus our ideas and get on the
same page, or we're looking for another holiday. We
need some help."
Jerry went looking. He interviewed twelve different
consulting firms, each promising to solve all their
problems. While their ideas were sound, they kept talking
about their program. They didn't ask Jerry what he needed.
Jerry was frustrated, until he talked to the Fenemore
Group. In their first meeting, they kept pushing him
to go deep about the core problem at North Pole, Inc.
Jerry realized communication was what was getting in
the way. They didn't have the language, tools, or arenas
to talk to each other.
When Santa approved Fenemore's Naming the Storm™
program for North Pole, Inc., Jerry had hope. The promise
of every elf understanding each other's communication
tendencies, owning the tools needed to communicate clearly,
and even a process to allow each elf's personal passion
to become part of their work had Elfman excited about
North Pole's prospects for Christmas '06.
After unveiling three new products by Memorial Day and
ramping production that would even allow the company
to take an extra week off in August, Santa toasted his
team in a Webcast.
"When I spoke to you in January, I was not exaggerating
how serious our situation was. But now that all of us
know how to communicate clearly, this will be the first
of many Merry Christmases for all. Here's what's changed."
"When you see problems, you don't keep them to
yourself. That's allowing us to stop wasting time with
backroom conversations and let our disagreements energize
us to create new ideas."
"When you have a new idea, you know where to go
with it. The intentional communication process you've
put in place is making it possible for us to build the
Christmas of tomorrow--today."
"And most importantly, you know how to stay focused
on our core vision: making children happy. Your communication
tools are making sure you work based on what matters
most to this organization, not fear of failure or trying
to please Wall Street. Our stock is up because we are
doing what we do best: making toys that change lives."
As Santa's smiling face disappeared from Jerry's screen,
he breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't need to worry
any more. Problems would always come up in their business,
but now he knew what to do with them. He was confident
there was no storm he could not name.
Jon Wortmann is the creator of Naming
the Storm™ - an intentional communication process
for organizations. Trained at Harvard University in
community organizing and development, Jon has infused
his process and techniques in the Fortune 100, start-up
companies, and non-profit organizations. Jon's methodology
helps build awareness, tools and ownership essential
for turning ideas into results. Through coaching, consulting
and seminars clients learn how to create an effective
and efficient communication culture, which enhances
individual productivity and company profitability. Jon
can be reached at jon@fenemoregroup.com.
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