Examples of Rule #4 in Action

In the Rule #4 post, I mentioned three things author Adam Grant says today’s workforce wants from a job: autonomy, meaningful work, and a caring workplace. One of my readers commented on the post asking for specific examples.   

Over the years, I have preached to our team, if you get sent out to do a job and you don’t think the instructions you’ve been given are right, if you think there is a better or more efficient way to do the job, don’t bitch and complain about it, drop the tools and come back to the shop. We’ll talk it over to come up with the best solution and procedure. I try to let our team know they don’t have to be dissatisfied with how something is being done. Everyone can be part of the solution, if you have a better idea, bring it up, and we’ll see if it can work.

Creating an atmosphere where team members can be part of the solution is powerful, but as a leader, I have to live up to this ideal. Simply saying it isn’t enough if I fail to live it, I lose their trust.

A few weeks ago, my assistant superintendent and equipment manager were topdressing greens. I was concerned about having enough sand and wanted to wait for one more truckload, but they convinced me they had enough and the truckload we were waiting for wouldn't be needed. I trusted their judgment because they were the ones making the application. It was a small moment, but it was me committing to letting them dictate the process.

Raking bunkers is another good example of how we can allow our people to influence the operation. Let’s say you have a new person on your team. They’ve never been on a golf course before and you’re going to have them rake bunkers. You take them to the first bunker, hand them a rake, and show them a picture of how the finished product should look. You give no further information. That person will naturally innovate as they make their way around the course. With every bunker they rake, they’ll find a better and faster way to do the job. Each bunker they rake will be a new iteration and by the time they finish, they’re likely to have come up with a pretty good process.

This, of course, is an extreme example, but think about how it might work in reality. At the beginning of the season, rather than sending a team out to rake bunkers with the entire procedure detailed for them, give them a photo of the finished product, and a few tips and let them have at it. Don’t worry about how long it takes and don’t get overly concerned about the finished product; just let them figure it out. Eventually, you can sit down and discuss the process, but what you’ll find is the team will have much more to add to the discussion. They’ll have context and they’ll have some ideas of what worked and what didn’t. They might even have some feedback that can make the process better.

Now imagine one of the team members involved is a high school kid, totally new to the golf course. She goes to a family gathering later in the summer and an uncle asks her how she likes working at the golf course. It’s great, I get to be outside, the people are great and I came up with a new technique for raking the bunkers that has all the members saying the bunkers have never been better. “Wow!”, the uncle says. “That’s cool that you got to make that kind of contribution.”

Pizza, and the party accompanying it, are universally loved, and people will never say no. However, people also love to feel like they are making a valuable contribution. By allowing your employees to share their knowledge and giving them some autonomy in how they do so, you can create a positive workplace culture and improve the quality of your golf course.