The Greatest Operators in History

We believe in trying to get the best out of the people who work with us. This is the only way that a business can grow, succeed and benefit all stakeholders. Investment adverts try to persuade us that the past is no indictor of future performance, however, we believe there is a lot to be learnt from what the past masters and captains of industry did to improve performance and have a happy yet productive workforce.

Therefore, whilst we ramp up our search for new managers and management teams to take on businesses, we thought it would be fun to look at world-class operators in history and their inspired techniques for getting the best out of their team. We will write about 10 individuals over the coming months to impart to you some of life’s great lessons.

#1: Charles Schwab:

Mr Schwab learnt his trade working for Andrew Carnegie, before moving to Bethlehem Steel where he helped it become the second-largest steel maker in the United States, and one of the most important heavy manufacturers in the world.

Some of his genius can be seen in the anecdote told in the book “How to win friends and influence people” which shows an unbelievably simple but effective use of basic competition…..

"This conversation took place at the end of the day just before the night shift came on. Schwab asked the manager for a piece of chalk, then, turning to the nearest man, asked:

'How many heats did your shift make today?'

'Six.'

Without another word, Schwab chalked a big figure 6 on the floor, and walked away. When the night shift came in, they saw the 6 and asked what it meant. The big boss was in here today the day people said. He asked us how many heats we made, and we told him 6. He chalked it down on the floor.

The next morning Schwab walked through the mill again. The night shift had rubbed out 6 and replaced it with a big 7.

When the day shift reported for work the next morning, they saw a big 7 chalked on the floor. So the night shift thought they were better than the day shift did they? Well, they would show the night shift a thing or two. The crew pitched in with enthusiasm, and when they quit that night, they left behind them an enormous, swaggering 10. Things were stepping up.

Shortly this mill, which had been lagging way behind in production, was turning out more work than any other mill in the plant."

It doesn’t always take expensive software, inordinate processes or complex remuneration structures. Sometimes just a little thought into what really gets people going is all that’s required.

Key Lessons: Competition is good. It’s crucial to motivate your workforce.