Teddy Is Thinking Different

Teddy was wiping down the desk and equipment when I struck up a conversation with him about his cheerful manner. He said, “gotta keep the place clean. A team comes in each night to clean each product, positioning it properly and wiping down the entire place. Another team comes in each morning before opening to go over everything and check it. The screens all have to be at 70° to each other and line up with this line" he said pointing to a seam in the timber.  I asked Teddy whether he thought it was over the top when he started. He said, "I’ve been here three months, and at the start, I thought it was kinda odd. Now that I’m here I understand." When I asked him whether this was a side hustle or a full-time gig, he said he was studying at Uni to be a nurse. However, he like this place, the opportunities to travel with the company are great, and the discipline and standards are something that inspires him. Teddy then said, “I'm not sure if I’ll go back to being a student of nursing again. This place is great.”  Now do an audit of your work environment, your standards, and the precision of knowing what is expected and how to deliver on it.  There is so much gold in this three-minute conversation with Teddy. Is it any wonder that he works for one of the most valuable brands in the world? You can knock them, ridicule them, or even despise them; however, the one thing you can’t take away is their standard of precision with how they have changed the fabric of retail shopping and lifted their staff to share tribal values and standards. Can you guess which retailer Teddy works for? ​© GB