Page 50 - How to Drive the Bottom Line with People

Built to Serve

inescapable reality is that the human factor ensures
sustainability in a culture-driven, people-centered

organization, and savvy leaders acknowledge this.
Higher math, then, requires an emotional alignment
of the leader with all levels of the workforce. It is a mat-

ter of escaping the mahogany foxhole and avoiding
leadership in a vacuum. It is about building trust and
having a positive impact on people. A friend put it this
way: “You must surrender the armor of indifference.”
Financial statements are only a small part of the

story. Spreadsheets fail to convey the emotional status
of an organization’s leadership. They are tools and
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= nothing more—fine when it comes to numbers, of lim-

ited use when it comes to the human factor.
Consider this example. At United, we regularly
remind team members of the difference between a
storekeeper and a merchant. Storekeepers are custo-
dial in their approach to business. They get up each

morning, unlock the store, turn on the lights, and
ensure that team members are in place and product is
on the shelves in accordance with the corporate plan.

Once those tasks are completed, they wait for
guests to show up and buy something. At the end of
the day, they collect sales figures and send them to the
home office, where the accounting staff fills out finan-