The Learning E.D.G.E.: Aether Systems Newsletter

Special Edition
July 2003

Aether Systems, Inc. adds Team Building to focus their teams on becoming World Class!

The Learning E.D.G.E. Chosen For its Experience
To Start the Process of Building a World Class Aether Team

A real world, practical applications approach to the new world of business management, The E.D.G.E. specializes in customized sales, marketing and customer service programs that enhance or change current performance to meet newly defined skill requirements.

The Learning E.D.G.E. Incorporated is a Texas based developmental resource team available for those companies who have looked at the skill and knowledge base of their current sales, retail merchandising, project or marketing teams and don't find the needed level of competency to meet the challenges of today's changing business environment.

The E.D.G.E. and their consulting resources have worked in several industries that include: consumer package goods, telecommunications, computer hard and soft ware, building, funeral, financial, chemical, pharmaceutical and travel, to name a few, and have helped build more solid and productive business teams in each.

The EDGE has worked for companies like: Bayer Corporation, Nokia, Sabre, Bristol-Myers Squibb, American Airlines, U.S. Brick, Dell Computer, Mead Johnson Nutritional, Gadzooks, Lennox, Genuity, QualComm, Citigroup, Dobson Electric, Service Corp International, Dial Corp, Gillette, Johnson Wax, Kraft General Foods, M & M Mars, PaperMate, Rayovac, Capital One, Aether, Zales and Reynolds Metals.

Aether Team Building Event Is Used To
Wrap Up Their Division Meeting Near Boston

The Mobile Government Division of the Aether Systems Team came together for their annual team meeting and added a team building session to integrate new team members and challenge each team member to develop a stronger and more productive World Class team of ONE. They wanted their team to bond while increasing their knowledge and appreciation for each other as valuable resources. They wanted the team to experience a few activities that would challenge them to become more cohesive and productive and deliver life applications to the team that could be applied on the job. The Aether team also wanted to have some fun while addressing some very specific learning objectives that included:

TEAM BUILDING OBJECTIVES

1. Work on continuously getting better as a team after each activity. Continuous Improvement is a key ingredient to a successful team.
2. Increase our knowledge and appreciation of each of our team members as resources; get to know one another better.
3. Develop stronger world-class skills that can apply with Aether Systems Teams in each of our respective areas of responsibility and locations. Understand the Power of the Aether Team.
4. Get more connected to one another and our customers to build a more flexible, cohesive & productive world-class team.
5. Encourage each other to “Kick Butt”

With these goals in mind Karen Hicks and Mike Mancuso talked with Joe Hudson, from The Learning E.D.G.E. Inc., to design a comprehensive learning and fun experience for the teams. The workshop was held at Aether Systems’ facility near Boston and focused on the learning objectives listed above. Information and activities worked to get the team members to know one another better and understand the power of each individual while bonding together for a stronger Aether Team. The key attributes that needed to be displayed by each leader on a team included setting the vision for the team (Big Picture), knowing when to let go of the reins, can pull the team back on course, is supportive of team members, is mature in his/her outlook toward the team, is a good communicator, honest and is fair-minded and can be trusted. The key attributes of each team member on every activity were: Knowledgeable, a good listener, trustworthy, follows and executes the plan, encourages other team members, gives their all for the team, knows their roles and responsibilities and is loyal.

Each leader and team member worked to exhibit these attributes in each activity during the course of the afternoon. The adventure learning challenges included: The Customer Hoopla and Building a World Class Bridge to our Customers. Each of the four Aether teams set out to conquer the Team Building challenges and turned in some incredible times. The times recorded by event were: The Olympic record for Customer Hoopla was set with the total number of 852 passes for two 10 minute stretches using one hoop. The record was set by the Terrible Twos with Karen Hicks as the team leader. Second place went to The Achievers with Bill Dooley as team leader with some 461 passes. The Bridge to World Class Customer Service was a tight race with the winning team, the Achievers lead by Joel Ste. Marie, recording a time of 16:35. The second place team was the Tigers lead by Lesley Russell in a time of 32:00. Congratulations to all teams for the enthusiastic participation.

Medals were awarded to the first and second place team leaders: The medals went to: Karen Hicks, Bill Dooley, Joel Ste, Marie and Leslie Russell.

Special Olympic designed T-Shirts were also presented to top team players, and they were: Best Team Members: Roger Karr, Joel Ste.Marie, Matt Purcell, Tony Barone, Jeff Thau, Neal Martel, Scott Kunian and Franco Bradley. Special Thanks to Karen Hicks and Mike Mancuso for their time and effort in handling all the meeting details!!

Aether Event Can Spell Further Team Success

Key points made at the workshop included:

The four components needed for effective teams are: The Leader, the Team Members, the Team and The Challenge.

Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress and working together is success.

Discussing that a team is a group of individuals doing extra ordinary things together to reach a common goal.Success depends above all, upon people. Build relationships, teams, and partnerships -- and motivate people to contribute. Cultivate leadership, creativity, and excellence. Listen; seek new ideas and advice. “-Ruth Scott, Pres. & CEO, Assoc. for Portland (OR) Progress

Trust Depends on: Open and Honest Communication, Offering Constructive Advice & Feedback without Harming The Working Relationship, Acceptance of Each Team Member and Embracing Their Differences, Respecting the Opinions of All Team Members, The Leader and Team Must Feel-We Fail or We Succeed Together, There Are No Individual Hero’s, Everyone Is Recognized For Their Part, All Contributions Are Valued, Common Goals That All Are Committed To Achieving Excellence, Establishing & Practicing Ethical Standards.

Words of encouragement fan the spark of genius into the flame of achievement.

It takes 30 encouraging words or sentences to negate one discouraging word said in haste or anger. Let you brain engage before your jaw jacks.

Each team member is a resource no matter what the package. We are all given different skills, abilities and talents and have had different experiences. We come in a package that must be unwrapped and the contents used to reach our goals.

Applications for a World Class Team Effort at Aether

The Bridge To World Class Customer Service

Keep all your deadlines and focus on your priorities.

Listen to your customers and their needs as well as listening to all your team members.

Speak up more to make sure your ideas are heard.

Make sure everyone understands their roles and make sure all the tasks are clearly defined.

As a team we can overcome any barrier to success if we take the attitude that we will never give up.

Listen to our leadership and follow their direction. Keep focused.

Use all the resources on the team to accomplish the task. Think outside the box.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Always support your team and team resources.

Need to challenge perceived barriers to determine if they are real or not.

Learn from your mistakes and complete the project or assignment. Don’t let anything stop you.

Teamwork is the key to success.

Work as though if you lose you really gain. You gain from the new knowledge and experience you have been exposed to.

Don't be constrained by vague rules...insist on doing things the "best" way.

It's often NOT the leader's job to make the decisions, but to facilitate and coordinate the combined input of the entire team.

Encouragement "felt good" and spurred more and better activity thought and participation.

Things that will prevent us from becoming World Class

Lack of Resources, low morale, and lack of measurements; Perception we can’t do it and effectively communicate.

Not enough time to celebrate our successes, not thinking through the process outcomes before we start, not enough involvement by taking a proactive role, and not enough trust of our team mates to accomplish their responsibilities.

Lack of efficient inter-department communication, lack of clearly defined goals and objectives, lack of good outbound customer follow-up, lack of fully integrated product solution set and lack of a continuous improvement feedback channel.

Budgetary constraints, lack of fully integrated end-to-end solutions, lack of bug tracking/issue tracking systems and lack of training.

Things that will help us to become a World Class

The opposite of everything listed above.

Implement a formal training program for all our resources after a comprehensive needs assessment.

Evaluate critical needs and hire appropriate resources.

Create a cross functional team to evaluate and recommend a system for purchases.

Buy/build a CAD system and modify and extend FireRMS to handle law enforcement.

Help customers find grants and apply for grants to solve their budgetary problems. Help customers solve their finance problems.

Initiate measurement management metrics and have it measured monthly.

Give feedback on proposals win or lose.

Add CAD system, enhance partner relationships and add RMS system.

Measure and reward employees for their follow-up.

Customer contact for all employees through trade shows and site visits are a must.

Develop a customer survey and put it on the web.

Re-statement of goals and objectives at each company meeting.

Regular monthly reporting by functional lead.

Company meetings every two months with a focus on a different functional area.

Increase company meetings from once a year to twice a year.

Cross-functional teams based around a sales territory.

Honest feedback, and accurate and timely information is a must.

Setting benchmarks and looking for continuous and measurable success.

Walk the walk by meeting and living up to all your commitments.

Web postings internally with real time information.

Set up a recognition system that truly recognizes top performers as well as just taking the time to walk over and compliment someone on a job well done.

Get to know the other people and resources around you, and work with them to improve the processes.

Rely on each team player to accomplish their part of the project. As a team player, live up to your commitments.

Encourage each other when the pressure is on and continue to keep focused on the tasks at hand. Don’t let your daily work responsibilities slide.

Deal only in open and honest communication and own up to your own mistakes. Don’t forget that we are all in this together. We are a team of one and to be world class we must all be reaching to achieve the same goal.

WE ARE A POWERFUL FORCE WHEN WE WORK
TOGETHER AS A WORLD CLASS TEAM!