As a business owner or team leader, you want things to go well for you and your clients, all the time. But that is sometimes not the case. You may find that customers are calling you directly to get things done, rather than dealing with your team. Their reason. They are used to working with you and don’t want to be handled by anyone else. You can tell from the tone of their voice that they are perhaps only staying with you out of a sense of loyalty and often, if you’re lucky, the duty of friendship. You’re also aware that if you don’t get your act together quickly, you will erode the goodwill that friendship, loyalty and trust has built.

Now, imagine this scenario plays out for all the customers. Trying to handle ALL of them will wear you out and stretch you thin. It’ll also make you very impatient and upset with your team because you have to check their work before passing it on to clients. It will feel like you’re doing ALL the work and yet you have people that should be helping.

What is the problem? Why can’t they just get it right? Why is every client job a potential for crisis, unless you step in? Why does every client assignment need heroic efforts (yours) to solve?

Could it be that you’re assuming that your team “surely should know” how the client wants what they want? Let’s say you’re an event planner and for your client’s event, 10 cocktail tables should be set up in the reception area. The tables have been set up on the veranda… surely there is no problem with that? They have been set up after all.

How do you make sure that your team gets work done in the way you and the client expect? Be clear about the intended goal. Describe it simply and precisely and check their understanding by having them repeat what they have heard. This is the first step in setting up or improving any operations or management system – be clear about what you want to achieve. Name it. Quantify it. Set a timeline for it.

That will empower your team to find solutions when things are not going as expected. That will help your team notice that the cocktail table is not set up where the client wants. In fact, it’ll help them set up the tables in the reception in the first place.

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