Page 51 - How to Drive the Bottom Line with People

Understanding Higher Math

cial reports, which, in turn, the executives review. As
elementary as it sounds, this is precisely the model

used by many businesses today—and to the extent the
basic math adds up, it works fine.
Now, in the spirit of understanding higher math,

contrast the storekeeper with the merchant. Mer-
chants are entrepreneurial. They complete the same
tasks as storekeepers in getting the store ready for
business, but they take extra time to personally engage
each team member and thank that team member for

what they hope will be a stellar contribution that day.
Financially, merchants approach the day as if the
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cash registers are empty, and it is the team’s mission =

to fill them. They think of the money as their own, not
the corporation’s. They will take the risk of deviating
from the corporate plan because they have confidence
in the idea that the company’s higher purpose is peo-
ple, not just profit.

At day’s end, the home office gets the figures in the
same way that it gets the storekeeper’s figures. How-
ever, the merchant’s figures reflect a radically different

level of engagement. The storekeeper wants to main-
tain the status quo, but the merchant is never content
with today’s performance because tomorrow repre-
sents an opportunity for improvement. To the man-