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and there are ten different ideas out there, and
nobody can agree on anything, then at the end of the day,
it's the leader that really has to step up and make the decision.
Make the decision based on the information that's been presented to you, but
at the end of the day it's up to you.
Because if you don't make a decision and you continue to focus
on getting more information and time goes by, people are wondering what's going on.
It's called, you've heard it, analysis paralysis.
You're not moving forward.
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At the end of the day, you gotta cut bait, make a decision, and move on.
And you know what?
Sometimes it could be the wrong decision but I am more impressed with leaders that
are able to take that information, use their gut, make a decision, and move on.
Versus someone that just gets the alligator hands and says I'm not going,
I'm not ready to do that,
I don't want to be the guy that makes that bad decision and gets blamed for it.
So, I think that's real important because you need to stay nimble,
you have to redirect all the time and that's what you're paid for.
As a leader, sometimes you're going to have to make the tough call,
the unpopular decision, but at the end of the day, that's what a leader has to do.
>> Right, now as the director,
you working with other businesses, things of that nature,
how does risk and uncertainty affect your decision?
>> I have one boss that always tells me that hope is not a strategy.
So what that means is well we have to get information.
We have to get a plan together.
We have to understand what the obstacles are,
and minimize that risk and minimize that uncertainty.
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If we just go out and say, I hope we're going to make our goals this year.
Well, that's not going to cut it.
We need to know what's out there.
And then form a plan based on that.
And then execute it.
>> Okay great, planning.
So what is your planning process?
>> [LAUGH] Planning process.
Planning happens, I think planning happens every day.
One boss told me one time that we have to think of ourselves as being water
going down a stream.
A stream just starting out has a direction, it's moving along,
there may be a rock in the way, but that we consider an obstacle.
How do you move around that obstacle?
How do you move around, keep flowing, keep moving ahead, and that's the plan.
So a plan, we work on our strategic plans.
A broad based high level 40,000 foot view plan is our strategic plan.
We'll get together and talk about where we need to go,
what's our goal, where do we want to go?
And then we create a road map to get there.
>> Okay >> And that's very important, but you know
what, the plan may change, the plan can change, new obstacles can come, new rocks
can come in your way, and you've got to figure out a way to maneuver around that.
So are there external forces out there that are causing you to change
the direction?
You've got to understand what it is, get info on it, get your intel, get your team
together and figure out how we can stay competitive and move around that obstacle.
So, it's, again, the collaborative nature, employing everybody to get together and
understand what the plan is and get their buy in and move forward.
>> So what I'm hearing is the strategic is this high level,
that's pretty much the first plan you know.
>> Yeah. >> You're forecasting,
you're thinking ahead.
How do you then take that strategic plan and
break it down into like a tactile or operational plan?
>> What we do is, we encompass smart plans.
We use smart plans and that is an acronym for strategic,
measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely.
So for one sales manager and say, to go out and
say I'm going to make a bunch of sales calls.
I hope I make my goal.
Well, that's not smart.
We need to quantify it and qualify it.
So if we look at saying something more like, I'm going to focus on the corporate
market, I'm going to make 20 outside sales calls in the week of March.
I'm going to identify 10 prospects, convert three of them into definite
bookings for $50,000 worth of new business, that's a smart goal.
And that's, I have them go out and create them, bring them back to me.
We look at them together, and then we move forward.
We let them implement it, and that's very important.
Again, I tell them hey, listen, you're kind of running your own show here.
Think of it as your own business, run it like you own it.
What would you do to get to the next level?
>> That's a great concept.
Great concept.
I like the analogy.
So most business courses, programs always comes back to the SWOT.
You know the strengths, weakness, opportunities, and threats.
>> Yes, absolutely.
>> What does that mean to you, your role, and your business?
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>> It is a tool that has been around for a long time, as you've said, and
I've used it for as long as I've been in business so it really is helping
you to identify your strategic plan, if you can take a step back, and again using
that 40,000 foot analogy, getting a high level view of where you are.
In terms of your strengths, what are you doing well within your company,
weaknesses.
What do you need to work on to stay competitive?
That is very important.
The opportunities are external.
What's out there in the competitive set that could create new demand for
us and how do we capture that?
And then threats.
Is there a new competitor coming online that we need to know about and
could that change the scope of our business?
And that's a great example of a rock that we need to navigate around and
figure out how to overcome it.
It's a great starting point.
And you know what, sometimes you can get,
well we already know what are strengths are, we already.
But if you get a team around the table it just sparks new discussion and
new outcomes can definitely come about when you just start from
the basic spot analysis.
>> It's a great brainstorming tool.
>> It is. >> And actually quantify and putting on
paper those different elements that meet each one of those legs of the swat
>> Right.
>> Great, now lets move to staffing.
What is the value of human resources for both a companies human resource
management department as well as his manager, one being yourself.
>> Right, I believe that the human resource department is one of
the single most important departments that a company can have.
I think they have a finger on the pulse of who the people are in the company.
They are not there to just hand out the benefits paperwork once a year.
They're there to help and build our managers and
build our employees and develop the culture that is the company.
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to me but human resources is a great liaison
to help these folks in terms of coaching.
And developing their leadership skills.
That's huge because sometimes for middle managers, there might not be
as much training as for the sales, because sales is top line revenue,
and we've got to make sure our sales people are dialed in.
But for the other operational managers, it's really important for
them to get the tools that they need to succeed.
So I think Human Resources is hugely important for the success of a company.
And for me personally, I place a lot of value on the department, because they help
me in finding the right talent, helping me get the right people on my team.
Because hiring great people is hard.
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It's you kind of get better at it.
But there are times when you need the help of another department to run through
situational questions and really get the best information out of people so
you can make the best decision.
Because it's an expensive process to go through, the hiring process,
because there's training involved, there's turnover.
Thankfully we don't have a lot of that but when it does happen it's like,
you know what, I really want to focus on this and get the right person in the job.
Because it's going to effect my team,
It's going to ultimately effect the success of the hotel, so hugely important.
>> Wow, so you talk about human resource being a resource to help
you with hiring the right people, training the right people.
What about logistics?
Legalities of what matters?
Do you find human resources department being a resource for that?
>> Absolutely, because I don't know any of that stuff.
>> [LAUGH] >> Whenever I'm dealing with an issue,
I always go back to HR to say, hey are we okay?
To make sure that we're following the guidelines that our company set forth.
So my focus is sales, marketing and driving business.
But I may not know the legality issues of FMLA or maternity leave, things like that.
So really bringing them in as a partner to help me navigate through that is very
important.
>> Great, well one last sector.
>> Yes sir.
>> Talk about leading and controlling, you know, what are the conditions
that can substitute for or neutralize an effective leader?
>> Leadership to me is someone that is inspiring, somebody that is motivating,
somebody that is trying to find the best in you and that,
somebody that believes in you so that you can get to the next level,
something we talked about, succession planning.
I think that what can get in the way of that is someone that
may be negative in nature.
Someone that may flat out lie, unethical.
Those types of things are, there's no place for that in leadership.
Once you've done that as a leader, like I said before,
I don't think you can come back from that.
So those types of negative attributes would just crush leadership.
Because leadership is ongoing.
It's every single day and it's something
that you need to focus on to manage your people and lead your people.
If they're not inspired, if they're not motivated, if they're not happy,
if they don't feel like they're adding value, they're going to move on.
People don't leave jobs, they leave their managers.
So it's something that you have to really focus on all the time.
And those attributes can definitely spoil.
>> I like that Daryl.
People don't leave jobs, they leave their managers.
That's a great line to always keep in remembrance as a manager.
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Well, I'd like to thank you, Daryl.
>> Great. >> Again, I'm Dr. John Beckham, here with,
Daryl Lejerry, who is a director, of sales and marketing, at the Hilton Hotels.
And we'd like to thank you, for your time, for your valuable information.
And we're quite sure the students will find this very advantageous to their
academic aspirations if they continue on.
>> Very good, happy to do it.
>> Thank you.
Dr. Valeri ChukhlominProfessor
Dr. Michele ForteAssistant Professor, SUNY Empire State College
Dr. John M. Beckem IIAssistant Professor of Finance and Management Studies
Dr. Tonka JokelovaCoordinator of Curriculum and Instructional Design
Amy GiaculliCoordinator of Student Services
