People First. Strategy Second.

Tommy Rivs is the epitome of an ultra runner. Simple, baggage-free, and humble.

He runs because he loves the freedom of it. And also, he is damn good. Above all, though, Tommy is a family man. I have seen him win muddy and hilly 50+ miles races. And then immediately chase after his daughter.

I often met Tommy at starting lines. And at finish lines. (Never between those two lines, he was way too fast and skilled.) We chatted a lot, mostly about love, life, and family. He was always family-first, no matter what.

If this pandemic and quarantine have taught us anything, it's that business and corporations need to listen and feel more - put their family first. Be more like Tommy.

In an HBR book, On Leadership, they talk about a lot about executive leaders becoming Level 5. And to do that, they need to have an approach that's:

People First.

Strategy Second.

Shift the focus

This shift is massive for many corporations. I know HR and leadership look at staff's churn rates and often point the finger at hiring and lousy performance. However, flip the coin, and Culture and company behavior probably has a lot to do with lower morale and lower performance.

Now, let me be clear. A people-first model (including customers and their Brand Experience) does not mean lower revenues and profits. Quite the opposite. Research has proven that brands that offer people a better experience (staff and customers), remain loyal. And spend more money.

Working backward.

Amazon has a remarkable way of working backward from the customer - this is also relevant to folks on the team. They create the perfect end state (not a money end state, but a customer end state), and then work backward to getting there. Simple and amazingly effective and efficient.

Back to Tommy

Tommy is fighting a different race today. He has the heart of a lion, and I know he will win the race of all races.

#fuckcancer

Want to find out more? Let me know.