WING TIPS

Suppose you read my short article last week. In that case, you’ll recall that I featured my former employer, Delta Air Lines, and the culture of excellence it has created over the decades by applying the P4 system outlined in my book, The Flight to Excellence, Soaring to New Heights In Business and Life. If you didn’t have a chance to read it or you would like to review it again, here is a link to the article. 

Of course, Delta is a massive company with tens of thousands of employees, hundreds of airplanes, and a global footprint. One may assume it easier to focus on the four Ps when resources abound, yet the system works just as well in a small business or even a personal environment.

A Troubled Company

Some years ago, I acquired a small engineering services company that was in distress. The founding owner had unexpectedly passed, and his wife, who had taken over the business, died in a freak accident shortly after that. The son was an artist in San Francisco and had no desire to return to Maine and run the business. I saw a strategic opportunity, and despite the risk and financial challenges, decided to buy the company.

After settling in and observing the company for a short while, I began to apply the components of the P4 system. We stood the company down one day to meet with all 7 of my new employees together. I started by sharing some of the Principles that we would abide by and told them that I would always be open and honest (Integrity and Transparency). I shared the company’s current financial condition, how much I had invested and how much more I was willing to invest in sustaining the company for some time.

We then talked about them (People). Three had been with the company since its founding twelve years earlier. Most had families, including one who had just recently had a new baby. My goal was to turn the operation around and provide them a stable work environment so they wouldn’t have to worry about their jobs. I emphasized that I had a family too with obligations to them, limiting my investment in this company.
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Expansion Plans

I then shared my Plan to open a Boston office to take advantage of The Big Dig, at the time, the largest infrastructure project in the country. My market research also showed plenty of transportation work in the state to make our Maine office a viable location. The plan also included putting a full-time salesperson at the Maine office to grow the business.

Finally, we discussed the need to step up our collective Performance. We needed to complete our projects more efficiently, with better customer focus and faster turnaround times. With a full-time salesperson in the office, we had to anticipate more business and needed to be ready to handle it. I ended my comments by asking for input and entertaining their suggestions on making the plan better. We ended the meeting when we were all on the same page concerning the way forward.

We opened the Boston office, and despite some ups and downs, the Maine office stabilized. Both offices grew, and the company became very successful. Six years later, we had forty plus employees in both locations, and because of an unsolicited offer, I sold the company at twelve times for what I had bought it. The P4 system had served the Maine employees and me exceptionally well.  

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A Quote To Consider!

“If there is no struggle, there is no progress.” – Frederick Douglass