I learned a valuable lesson this summer from an unlikely source. Let me set the scene: A beautiful, svelte blonde in a multicolor 2-piece bathing suit, frolicking on the shore of a peaceful mountain lake...Wait! Did I mention the beautiful blonde is my 6-year old daughter, Julia? (For those of you who need to reset your visualization, take your time. The rest of us will wait up for you.)
Julia is climbing a large rock by the shore. A young boy joins her on the rock. She turns to him and says, "Are you a daredevil? I'm a daredevil. I was born a daredevil." (Dramatic pause) "I'll probably die a daredevil."
Perhaps I should be nominated for Mother of the Year for not spoiling her dramatic moment by bursting out with laughter. As I kept one eye on my daredevil, making sure that particular day wasn't the day she would "die a daredevil," I thought about what it means to be a daredevil.
A daredevil is a risk-taker, someone willing to go out on a limb and take chances.
Most DMIA members have some daredevil in us. We are, after all, an association of risk-takers. Wherever we are in the supply chain, the most successful of us go to extremes to meet our customers' needs every day. Ironically, risk-takers are the ones most likely to come out of the current economic doldrums safely. People who are determined to play it safe, to run their businesses as if nothing changes, are the ones truly in danger.
Are you a daredevil? Do you go looking for trouble at your top clients, rather than hoping that no news is good news?
IBG's most valued suppliers are the ones who ask "why?" when our business with them is down. They ask, "Are we losing business to a competitor? If so, what can we do to make our services and products more valuable to you?" Or they ask, "Are we losing business because your own business is slowing down? If so, what can we do to help you regain your top line?"
At IBG, we believe in asking the same questions of our strategic customers. Even when sales volume is holding steady or growing, we're constantly asking our clients questions: "What can we do to help you streamline your procurement system?" "How can we improve our billing system or our reports to give you more valuable information?" The simple act of asking such questions means taking a risk. Sometimes customers ask for products and services we hadn't considered providing, and this is when the real daredevil action kicks in.
It's critical to stretch your abilities to meet strategic customers' needs. Have I ever listened to a customer's answer to one of my questions and thought, "Damn, I wish I hadn't asked that"? Of course. But the truth is, if I'm not asking the question today, my competitor will tomorrow. By talking with customers about why they need certain changes in their systems, or how they plan to implement changes they deem necessary, we're able to make minor adjustments to our processes and accommodate their requests.
We must know our limitations, though. Just as professional daredevils sometimes should walk away from challenges (Evil Knievel's Snake River jump comes to mind!), sometimes we can't meet requests. There are two ways to deal with "impossible" requests head-on. The first is to work out different, more practical solutions. This often requires open discussions and frank cost analyses with customers. The second way is to tap into the marvelous resources available from DMIA and its members.
From experience, I know that tapping into DMIA's resources can be invaluable. With the wealth of knowledge available from our industry peers and fellow association members, there's no need for any of us to be meek with customers. Backed by the strength of DMIA, not a single member should "die a daredevil."
Gail O'Roke, CDC, is CEO of distributorship Independent Business Group, based in Hayward, Calif., and president of DMIA.
