I was talking to one of my IT Manager Institute graduates a few weeks ago and he made an interesting comment. He said that he had never heard of the concept, “win – win”, until attending my class. He went on to say that he had incorporated this concept into his approach to things and was amazed at the difference it seemed to make as he worked with clients, vendors, even his employees.
Comments like this reinforce why I like this job so much.
If you aren’t familiar with the “win – win” concept, it means that in your dealings with other people, you need to seek ways so that both parties win, , , not just you or your IT organization.
Ultimately, if you win but the other party does not, , , then you lose. You may be able to get a one-up on your vendor for a time, for example, but in the long run you can only win if you establish a partnership where both parties win.
I approach a “win – win” even when I have to terminate an employee. You may wonder how this can be a win for the terminated employee, , , good question. Well, it’s pretty simple actually.
If you have an employee who isn’t performing and you have done everything possible to help the employee get his or her act together in order to perform effectively, but it’s just not going to happen, , , then, you owe it to the employee to get him or her out of your organization and allow them to seek employment elsewhere where they have the opportunity to be successful. In fact, I believe you have an obligation to help them in this regard, even though it means termination.
I very much look at this as doing what’s right by the employee and forcing the issue so he or she can be successful. It is unfair to allow them to continue to fail in your organization. It’s not only unfair to the employee, it’s also unfair to your other employees, your clients, and your company.
Oh yeah, don’t forget that it’s unfair to you as well.
There is a “win – win” option in almost everything you do if you look for it. What you will find is that when you start seeking ways for the other party to win in a situation (even a disgruntled client), your approach changes and people start noticing it. Before you know it, others start trying to insure that you are able to have a win, , , and that’s when it really becomes fun.
Start looking for ways to insure the other person or entity can get a win the next time you have a tough situation to handle or when negotiating with your vendor. Remember what they say, “the more you give the more you receive in return”. I can verify this to be true from my own personal experiences.
Best of success.
ITLever™ 