Two weeks ago, I attended the Gulf Coast Green (GCG) conference in Houston and spoke to a group of really interesting folks from contractors and engineers to business owners and consultants. Never mind the fact that some of the keynotes were talking about biophilic cities and biomimicry (not in spell check or Webster’s), words that are confusing the 300 million that don’t yet know the definition of sustainability, 
I thought I would share my practical business and personal views on sustainability which are outlined in my GCG presentation.
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Archive for April, 2010
Food for Thought
Thursday, April 29th, 2010Add a Comment »
I Can’t Help Myself
Thursday, April 22nd, 2010This week saw the official Administrative Professionals Day. This is a day celebrated in the United States on the Wednesday of the last full week in April to recognize the work of administrative assistants, secretaries, receptionists and other administrative support professionals. The day was founded by a guy named Harry F. Klemfuss, a New York Publicist, and the reason behind the day was to try to encourage more people to enter the administrative support field as a career. Pretty good reasoning, I guess, but my reason for bringing the day into focus here is to say an enormous thank you which I believe is the best recognition that can be given.
The term “Administrative Assistant” is often very widely and loosely used but seldom do we stop to think what it actually means. It is probably one of the most diverse roles in an organization. I am sure that the person performing this function, close to me, would agree that no two days are ever the same. I say the term loosely because I am sure that although there is probably an official job description to fit this title the breadth and depth of the position can vary hugely from company to company as well as from boss to boss.
It is for this reason that before taking on the role an individual should ask themselves just how flexible they are prepared to be and the person doing the hiring should be honest with themselves as well as with any applicant as to just how far the duties would extend.
I am sure Sue Xan, who is the Executive Admin in our team, would endorse this and never ceases to be amazed by the sundry nature of some of the tasks that pass across her desk. Yet, she is never fazed by the unusual and diverse, from complicated travel itineraries to presentation preparation, to acting as driver, car mechanic, party host, letter writer, gate keeper, agony aunt and in fact any type of support that is required.
I believe we are part of a great company and part of a great team. The credit for that is often claimed by a variety of leadership positions within an organization. Every team member in the company is as important as the next and has an important and necessary role to play. Not least the often forgotten Executive Admin. I have done presentations representing the company on numerous occasions and have received compliments and accolades as a result. But it should never be forgotten that the compliments were for the company, the team, the support! Not just for me, but for every behind the scenes effort that went towards the making of the success. In this example, presentation preparation, slides, AV, facilities, travel, hotel accommodations, etc., were all organized by the Exec Admin.
The role is not high profile, it is not highly visual but to me it’s crucial. My success is dependent upon the efforts of the team and for sure upon the efforts of the Executive Admin. I recognize this as a fact and encourage all other leadership to recognize it too. It can be a difficult task and pressures can often be coming from all sides at the same time. Many balls in the air and not one to be dropped.
I certainly recognize Administrative Professionals Day and want to celebrate it by saying the biggest THANK YOU ITHOE to Sue Xan Tunnell. She so willingly, admirably, cheerfully and diligently undertakes the role for me.
Incidentally, it is Earth Day this week but I don’t think the two are linked.
Blow It Up Y’all
Tuesday, April 13th, 2010I read an article in The Dallas Morning News Sunday that was focused on the implosion and demolition of Texas Stadium in Irving near Dallas. The stadium was 39 years old. Much of the article was pointing towards the pointless exercise of preserving historic buildings and structures, the fact that the stadium was, “tired,” and, “old.” When I read this I was aghast! Thirty-nine years old, not to mention, “Historic,” made me; in my 50s feel older than ancient.
The article went on to say that we seem to, “have a fetish for old buildings these days.” Which should have led into the one important point missing from the article, the future of the United States … SUSTAINABILITY. Building on the past (you like that Hanson Building Products team?!?!?) by preserving buildings and structures for their historical interest is one thing but planning, designing and building structures to be fit for purpose through the passage of time is an entirely different issue.
Texas Stadium certainly should have fit into this category and a magnificent facility of this kind to have a lifespan of only 39 years is disgraceful. (My views of the Death Star are implied in the previous statement.) Nothing lasts forever, nothing lasts for its intended lifespan without care, maintenance and some investment and to admit that because a structure is tired and dirty (and yes hot) it needs replacing is indeed promoting how the rest of the world perceives the U.S., “a throw away society.”
It flies in the face of sustainability (if it had one) and if we are serious about creating a better world for our children’s children then we have to start building for a longer term future. It has been proven that concrete structures will last for many thousands of years, when cared for, not just 39.
The article then went on to quote other buildings that have been demolished like the, “Reunion Arena which has been reduced to a giant dirt pile.” This is just another example of unsustainable planning and building.
The United States is a fantastic country in many, many ways but it has to look outside of its borders to other parts of the world and start to build a more sustainable infrastructure. There are buildings and structures all over the world that have been built with future generations in mind. Their lifespan has served communities to the fullest. The, “I’m fed up with it, it is tired and dirty, so let’s knock it down,” syndrome simply has to stop (further translation for Dallasites ~ no more McMansions in the Park Cities and M Streets, even if it is good for my business short term, it is not in the long term).
We can’t legislate for this alone, it’s important to win over the hearts and minds of the people to change our, “throw away society,” culture. To help the population create a better world everyone must play a part. Unfortunately this didn’t make it into TDMN article. I always look for a balanced view when I read articles of this sort and sad to say sustainability didn’t get a mention. So The Dallas Morning News, let’s hear more about sustainability. Let’s hear more questions being asked about the sustainability of some current projects in the pipeline. Let’s hear more about the products and materials that exist today used in construction in and around this city. Let’s do all we can to ensure not only Dallas but also the U.S. moves from great to even greater by ensuring we are creating a sustainable future.
Sustainability is not just a fad; it needs to become a part of our culture. For better building! We need to build to last. We need to plan for the future. We need to take more care of our environment than we have ITHOE.
Real Power is People
Thursday, April 8th, 2010During these tough times of downsizing and cut-backs the affects on the people within a business can be pretty devastating ~ stress, worry, concern, to name just a few of the harmful downsides. It’s at times like these when it’s important to know in detail the skills and attributes of everyone who works within the company, in order to ensure a balanced portfolio of skills, attributes, drive and enthusiasm going forward.
To do this it is worth focusing on the skills necessary to make the company rounded and successful in the short and long terms. These are generally obvious; there are the accountants, the engineers, the attorneys, the techies, the marketers, etc. All of these are people, above all but are in the positions that they are in because of the qualifications that they earned through the education system, their years of experience at your company or others and the personality traits inherent to them as individuals to enable them to take these specific roles within an organization.
But what of the managers, directors, the President of the company, the ones who have led their troops through downturns such as we are currently experiencing. What skills does a manager or director need? Where would you go to get educated in the art of general management?
I would suggest the only place is the, “University of Life,” in this the fourth year of the downturn. Why do I take this view? Because general management is and always will be about managing people. Managing people with the skills listed above, not managing them as individuals but molding them into a cohesive, integrated, strategic, solid team.
The general manager or director in the current circumstances is under probably more pressure than anyone else in the organization and uniquely that pressure comes from above as well as below. Handling this type of pressure requires a special skill set. Not those that can be learned in college or even read in a book. These skills are probably inherent in the individual and are honed over the years through mentors and through experiences and more importantly learning from these experiences. No two days are the same, maybe that is part of the appeal, but the greatest appeal is the opportunity to interact with people, the team. The team is made up of a myriad of personalities that all have their own needs and concerns as well as skills and abilities.
The skill of the manager comes to the fore when it becomes possible to release the power of the people ~ through persuasion, motivation, praise, clear, concise instructions, support and trust. It certainly rarely brings out the best results when finger pointing, bullying and power are utilized.
Managers usually fall into three categories.
- First, those with a natural aptitude in working with people and these are the folks that would employ the tactics quoted first above.
- Second, those who have taken the job for the power, the bullies. These are the people who generally fail and do you know what? It is usually the people they are managing that cause them to fail. That’s the negative power that forms the backlash to a huge ego.
- Third, the one who wishes they’d never been appointed. The great accountant or engineer that was so good at their job they were appointed as a manager ends up completely out of their depth. Simply put a round peg in a square hole.
General management is a great role to undertake. It has its ups and wow don’t we all know it has its downs too. At times like these it can be the most isolated position in the organization. However, the loyalty, trust and respect shown by the team are testament to the leader’s success and reward him or her with the greatest job fulfillment ITHOE.
Keep on Running
Thursday, April 1st, 2010It’s not very often I use this forum to directly talk about our company, Hanson Building Products, but this opportunity has arisen that is too good to miss and is well-deserving of a public accolade. Our Hanson Brick facility in Athens, Texas, has just passed an amazing milestone, 33 years without a lost time accident ~ fantastic example to any manufacturing facility everywhere. A huge well done to everyone involved at the plant over that time period!!!
We hear a great deal these days about SUSTAINABILITY and that word seems to “pop up” in conversations and texts with increasing regularity. The problem in my view is that wherever there is a mention of SUSTAINABILITY in any arena, too many people immediately call to mind visions of the environment, green stuff, tree huggers, etc., etc. The fact is SUSTAINABILITY is much, much wider than this and one of its cornerstones in any business is safety in the workplace.
Within Hanson Building Products we strive to be a sustainable company in every sense of the word (think the 3 p’s ~ people, profit, planet or the 3 e’s ~ employees, economy, environment) and safety is very much a part of our focus (i.e. people/employees). Achievements like the one at our Athens Plant pay testament to this philosophy. I thank every member of the team at the facility, past and present, for attaining such a fantastic result. It is not only through local leadership and a team approach that such consistency can be achieved but also diligent and detailed focus on the safety issue itself.
My belief is each and every person who attends work has a God given right to be kept safe whilst there and return to their family at the end of the day in the same condition as they set out that morning, even if a little more tired. The safety of the people in a company is the number one priority at Hanson Building Products as it should be in any workplace. It is, and always will be more important than profit.
Out of all the resources necessary to run a successful business, the people within the company are undoubtedly the most precious of all the resources. This fact should be recognized, voiced whenever possible and demonstrated by the way management act towards each level of the organization. Communication, teamwork, appreciation and the occasional, “Thank You,” are all essential to demonstrate the esteem in which every person is regarded. All of these should be evident in the day-to-day actions at the workplace and indeed, to achieve the landmark that has just been passed at the Athens facility, I’m sure they are.
People are the company, without them the company would not exist. It’s the people that turn a company into a living entity and this is essential to breed success. This has to be led from the top, status swept aside and each level of the organization treated with an equal level of importance. To achieve this, safety is the foundation that has to be under every activity. It’s paramount. It’s priority number one.
To you guys at Athens, a huge, “Well Done!” Thirty-three years without a lost time accident is the best news I have received ITHOE.
Contact
For more information about Hanson Building Products' sustainability and corporate social responsibility initiatives, please contact us at groupsustainability@hanson.com.