{"id":495,"date":"2021-02-14T18:22:51","date_gmt":"2021-02-14T18:22:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/?p=495"},"modified":"2021-03-02T15:22:19","modified_gmt":"2021-03-02T15:22:19","slug":"mbwa-ing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/allred10.com\/?p=495","title":{"rendered":"MBWA – ing"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"linked-152575_640\"Management By Wandering Around (MBWA) is a style of business management practiced by Hewlett-Packard since the 1970\u2019s and popularized by Tom Peters and Robert Waterman in their book, In Search of Excellence, Lessons from America\u2019s Best-Run Companies<\/em>.\u00a0 The premise is that managers wander through the workplace, in an unstructured manner, observing operations and engaging employees.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Some leaders have substituted \u201cwalking around\u201d for \u201cwandering around\u201d because it sounds more businesslike.\u00a0 The problem with too much structure is that it eliminates the benefit of casually engaging employees, which are the most important assets of the company.\u00a0 Making sure that they are content is much more important than checking off tasks in a schedule. \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

MBWA also provides an opportunity for nurturing employees and improving productivity, as well as capturing new ideas from the front-line employees.\u00a0 It is the best way to find the problems that exist in the organization.\u00a0 Some leaders seem to want to scurry back to their computers to find the latest data, while Persuasive Leaders<\/a><\/span> know that employees can provide the most valuable information.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

As the \u201cKing of Quality,\u201d W. Edwards Deming, said, \u201cIf you wait for people to come to you, you’ll only get small problems. You must go and find them. The big problems are where people don’t realize they have one in the first place.\u201d<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

I developed the following list when I was working with a company to change its reputation of having a toxic working environment.\u00a0 As company leaders engaged in these practices, their employees responded very favorably.\u00a0 Those leaders who did not participate had the same problems as always.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Ten Best Practices of Management By Wandering Around<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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  1. Make MBWA part of your normal routine<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Relax, smile and greet people warmly<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Share company goals, philosophy, values, and vision<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Listen and observe more than you talk<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
  5. Ask for feedback and ideas<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
  6. Answer questions openly and honestly<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
  7. Wander around the entire organization \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
  8. Use the time for spontaneous recognition<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
  9. Don’t bring an entourage \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n
  10. Don’t use this time to judge or critique<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    I share the following benefits of MBWA from my personal experience.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n