I have truly enjoyed the last few weeks searching for information concerning trends in business that are driving our undercurrent of change. In my search for more information, I was able to attend a lecture this week by Frank Luntz, noted Political Pollster and Communications Professional. Mr. Luntz was the key note speaker among several noted speakers at the Business Council of Alabama 2010 Health Reform Update. Luntz has been called the Poll Czar by Fox News, and his research tells us what Americans are REALLY thinking. While the presentation by Mr. Luntz focused heavily on the health industry, I find his ideas to have far reaching relevance to many areas of business. Luntz has conducted much respected research that is helping us to better understand the hopes and fears of Americans. As the saying goes, “Seek first to understand, then to be understood,” and it holds particular relevance in today’s fight to stay competitive.
According to Luntz, what customers want is to RESPECT the company that they buy from today. Stretching this idea further, loyalty to corporations and governments has declined to such a degree that it is imperative that it be regained. How do you do this? A good start may be found in seeking ways to regain respect of the employee and the consumers. According to Luntz, the directive to company leadership should be to allow the customer to feel more in control of the buying decision. Alternatively, it is important for the employee to feel a sense of ownership in the decisions that drive business. A sense of control on the part of both the buyer and the seller is the bedrock to building trust.
This is a tall order given that consumers are expressing serious frustration with corporate America where CEO’s continue to give themselves big bonuses while they lay off people. In Luntz research he states that only 22% of people favor Corporate America, and even fewer at 15% favor CEOs. He positions that the employees view of the company, not just the consumer is at risk. According to Luntz, employee trust in employers is gone. They have grown to resent the stock options, year end bonuses, and golden parachutes that are funded by employee layoffs, wage freezes, and benefit limitations. Government does not escape this ire. Issues with healthcare remain in play in spite of a solid lack of support by American voters. Pundit Dick Morris states this morning that the bill is highly likely to get passed anyway. Astonishing! Makes you wonder who is really listening.
As companies continue to reinvent themselves for the coming decades, much of the work and energy toward branding and identity creation may want to pull from the work of Luntz. Taking a lesson from his first book entitled, “Words that Work: It’s not what you say, it’s what people hear,” Luntz encourages businesses to focus on opportunities to exhibit social responsibility and accountability, as well as measureable results. He encourages us to be mindful of our word choice and to say what you really mean to be best understood. For example, we should say “free market”, “not private.” Say words like performance, not bonus and profit. Use words like lawsuit abuse, not tort reform, prevention, not maintenance and health, not healthcare. You get the picture. Words mean something and people are listening as well as watching. Consumers want to buy from a business that has more in mind than just the bottom line. Employees want to work for a company that has more in mind than just the bottom line. Communities want leadership that is accountable and responsive and interested in more than getting reelected. Consumers are expressing a desire for companies and government leadership that can do it all. They want to work for companies that make quality products that they can afford without causing loss of jobs and without excessive wasteful spending. They want to live in cities where leadership keeps them and their children at the forefront of decision making.
Can it be done? Time will certainly tell, but there is a trend emerging from the frustration with corporate America that may be driving the growth in Stay-at-home workers. This trend represents a 23% increase from 1990, and 100% increase from 1980 in the number of people who work at home. This doesn’t include the estimated 20 million people who work from home “sometimes”. What is allowing this exodus from corporate America? According to Micro trends, the primary reason driving work-at-home is because you can. Blackberries, cell phones, videophones make the home office nearly indistinguishable from the office. Think about it, does it really matter if you take that conference call from your office at work, or the Starbucks around the corner? Besides, when you work from home, you feel more in control, more like the boss, and closer to the day to day decision making and challenges. Hey, you may just become the very boss that you were complaining so much about!
And remember, take care of your customers, or someone else will.
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