Coach Pete's Advice for This Season

Football Season is in full swing – and I had a rough weekend. All my teams lost and made some major mistakes. So, what lessons can we learn in the glazing business???

Those of you who might have followed this blog for awhile might remember that I am a Cleveland Browns fan. Yes, I am one of the abused. You remember the Browns? Years of history and tradition then had the team ripped away by our “pal” Art Modell. Drew Carey put our feelings about old Art very well here. Then, the team comes back and goes through 5 coaches and 13 starting quarterbacks in 10 years.

The Brownies did not have a stellar first game last week. As we grasp at hopeful straws, the dreaded Steelers just keep on winning. My fellow blogger and Steelers fan Max Perilstein is happy, but I am ticked off. The Browns are a good symbol for all that can go wrong running a business.

1) Change just to change. The Browns keep changing players, philosophies, offenses/defenses, coaches and on and on and on. Meanwhile, the Steelers draft the meat and potatoes players who fit their culture and system. Have you ever gone out to get a “superstar” employee or purchased a new machine just to find out that you haven’t done the homework to ensure that your system is really ready?

2) Alienating your customers. The Browns have repeatedly driven away the fans of Northeast Ohio. Here is a great piece on what we really want. All the while, Steelers fans are rewarded with loyal players, coaches and owners. Are you REALLY serving your customers or just paying lip service?

3) Lack of discipline and execution. Bottom line, the Browns have not done the job they are being paid to do. Last year, they spent too much time reading their press clippings and not enough learning plays. Are you working in your business to improve every day? Look for better processes, better sales tactics, better training. It comes down to doing the right thing every day.
OK. In the end, I am still a fan of the Browns. I just wish they could learn a few things from their rivals down the turnpike.

Oh … if you think I am tortured as a Browns fan, did I also mention that I am also a fan of Notre Dame and follow Ohio State. Even worse, my kids are following in my fan footsteps – God help them!

On another note, as you might be getting ready for the GlassBuild show in Atlanta, you really should plan on attending the Glazing Executive Forum put on by the NGA. I went last year and found it very valuable and worth the time. More can be found here. I look forward to seeing some of you there.