Communication matters
New ideas can well up from the bottom, but Spires says the
culture that allows those ideas to take root starts at the top.
As the company leader, she says you need to be able to set
examples that everyone can follow. When it comes to communication, it all starts with keeping it simple and casting the
widest possible net with your messages.
“Communication is about three things: listen, listen and listen,” she says. “It has to start at the top of the organization.
When you truly listen to people, the results are incredible. You
hear how they respond. It’s amazing what you hear on many
levels.”
Spires sets the example at Acme by practicing what she
preaches. She goes out of her way to make interaction with her
team a priority.
There is no magic formula to making time for employee
engagement when there are dozens of other tasks that need to
be taken care of. You have to make a schedule, and then stick
to it.
“I schedule blocked-out time with each individual I meet with
on a weekly basis,” Spires says. “The door gets closed, and no
one interrupts us. On-the-fly conversations don’t allow you to
do that. My team knows that my door is always open and that
we’re always talking and communicating. They know that
when it gets down to the business issues, they can schedule
specific time and have my absolute, undivided attention. The
door gets closed, I listen intently, and it’s their time.”
Management repeatedly emphasizing open, honest communication is how employees overcome any reservations they
might have about approaching upper management with a question, concern or idea. The only way employees will become
convinced that you want to hear what they have to say is if they
see it for themselves over and over.
That’s a big reason why Spires likes to take her open communication philosophy on the road. In addition to having an
open-door policy in her office, she frequently visits Acme
stores.
“You have to make yourself accessible and walk the talk,” she
says. “For me, I love being out in the stores, talking to my people and making myself accessible.
“We have a town-hall meeting once a month where we tell
people what is going on in the business. We share our numbers
with everybody. There are no secrets. You get people to believe
you by walking the talk, by being in situations where people
say things, and it doesn’t come back to haunt them.”
When you communicate a mindset of best practices and
problem solving, Spires says you encourage teamwork by creating an environment where people aren’t afraid to bring their
shortcomings to the table and discuss them.
“In one of our first associate council meetings, we had a store
manager ask if we would take a look at the store because it
needed some neighborhood merchandising help,” she says.
“By the afternoon, our merchandising team was in that store
and worked with the store team to do what they needed to do.”
She says the store’s revenue production has grown rapidly
since then.
“My message to management is that I don’t need to come to
the store and tell you what you’re not doing right. I need you to
show me the things you are doing right and the things you need
help with.”