As many are aware, FedEx, the world’s largest cargo airline, and my business alma mater, lost two dedicated pilots and an MD-11 aircraft last week in the first fatal crash in the company’s 37 year history.

Since our first book, I’ve written and spoken extensively about the company’s high performance culture in which going the extra mile is the rule and not the exception. Though I’ve been gone 20 years, chills ran down my spine this morning when I read an internal account written by a fellow employee of lengths the company and its employees went to in order to pay respects to the fallen pilots and their families. Some excerpts…

“As all of you know, one of the fallen pilots was based in San Antonio.  First Officer Tony Pino is a retired Air Force officer and has been flying with FedEx for a little over 3 years. On Friday the 13th of this month, Pino jumpseated out of San Antonio for the last time with a promise to his wife that he would be home Thursday the 26th.  Today, we received about 12 of the Pino family and friends on the ramp, along with 35 uniformed pilots and approx 70 of our FedEx family to fulfill that promise.

” In Narita, Japan there were a number of pilots in full uniform to present the remains of both pilots to the aircraft and see the flight off.  In Oakland for a “gas and go” there were 25+ full uniformed pilots that went up the stairs and paid respects to the fallen ones.  In MEM a full color guard received the two and took them to a hangar where Fred Smith, Dave Bronczek and a large number of executives received 400-500 pilots and personnel that were bused to pay respects.  My understanding is that Mr. Smith was there for the duration.  People signed a book for each family.

“After which, Captain Mosely was flown to Portland Oregon this morning where the Ramp Team received the family and had approx 80 employees lined up on the nose dock.  Their operation was without any issues or concerns and was a very moving presentation according to the Senior Manager.

“F/O Pino was taken to a MEM funeral home and escorted for 12 hours by 2 crew until time for the day-turn show time.  A full honor presentation accompanied the loading.  Flowers were also sent to the MEM funeral home and all of those were loaded on our flight 379 along with crewmen (2 were formal escorts). Our pilots were not ever left without escort from Japan until the funerals and will not be unless the family requests otherwise.

“At San Antonio, it rained today until approx 1400hrs, skies cleared and the sun came out.  It was a beautiful afternoon.  We received the family and parked them on the tarmac at approx 1650hrs along with the guests and uniformed crew.  We made arrangements to have the flight land on the closest runway and touched down straight across from our ramp with a perfect landing.  The aircraft blocked at 1734hrs and the flowers from Mr. Smith  (gorgeous 6’ tall arrangement) and the book signed by all in MEM were presented to the widow and 3 boys.  Tony’s mother and other family were also present.

“The body was covered with the American flag and the pilots and honor guard stayed at full attention then moved to salute when the pallet started in motion forward.  It was lowered and the honor guard stepped up on the loader.  Mrs. Pino came forward with her son, hugged the casket and spent a few moments with her late husband.  She retreated and the transfer was completed to the hearse with proper respect and military bearing.

“I have a ramp agent that indicated in his 32 years with FedEx it was the proudest moment he has experienced.  Our FedEx Team did an exceptional job of honoring these two pilots. Our loader operator, stairs, marshaller and others were absolutely perfect in their execution. One of the pilots authorized to be here was in full UPS uniform and he was absolutely awed by the respectfulness.

“We still work for the best company in the world because we fill it with the best people in the world!  Please feel free to share this with your teams as they also should know as well.”

As we go about trying to figure out what is (and what should be) the new normal in our post-AIG world, it pays to remember that there can still be places where people care about each other, and where work is something more than a pure commercial transaction. That ain’t all bad.

A thought leader in the arena of leadership and employee engagement, Bill Catlette is a seminar leader, keynote speaker, and executive coach. He helps individuals and organizations improve business outcomes by having a focused, engaged, capably led workforce. For more information about Bill, his partner Richard Hadden, and their work, please visit their website at www.contentedcows.com

In our September issue of Fresh Milk, our free monthly leadership and organization newsletter, we proffered ten ideas for impoving your employee retention efforts. Then we asked our readers to participate in a contest by giving us an 11th idea. The winner was promised a copy of Contented Cows Moove Faster, our book about Discretionary Effort and what it takes to get it. Thanks to all those who submitted ideas. The winner is Sharon Burdine, Vice President and Manager of Benefits Administration for Simmons First National Bank, based in Arkansas.

Sharon’s idea #11:

Our CEO always tells us to “catch someone doing something good” and then to recognize and reward them for it.  To help do that, all associates at all levels are able to give QCS (quality customer service) awards to anyone who goes the extra mile either for a customer or a co-worker.  A QCS award can be anything, from cash to a gift, up to a $50 value, and can be given immediately, which contributes to the effectiveness of the reward.  In addition to the immediate rewards, quarterly winners are chosen from each our 8 banks, and those quarterly winners win a lunch for themselves and their supervisor with the CEO and other top management at their location, as well as a trophy and $500.  To top it off, at the end of the year, all quarterly winners attend a nice dinner off-site with their supervisors as well as the CEO and other top management at their bank, and at that dinner, the annual overall QCS winner is awarded with another trophy plus $1,000.  Then, each of the 8 bank winners come together at our Corporate headquarters for lunch with their CEO and the Corporate CEO, and one of their names is drawn for a cash prize of $5,000!

To make sure everyone is aware of the QCS award winners, monthly publications are issued with the names of all associates receiving and giving QCS awards.  As space permits, stories that led to the rewards are also published.  Additional quarterly and annual editions of the QCS newsletters announce those winners and tell their stories, and show their pictures when they were presented their award by management.

It’s a really great program!  It has achieved for us great customer service ratings from shoppers (consistently above 95%), as well as a continual stream of very nice notes from customers, which also get published in the QCS newsletter (with the name of the customers withheld).

Thanks Sharon for your idea, which not only improves employee retention, but customer retention and development as well! And thanks to all those who took the time to let us hear from you with your ideas.

Richard and Bill

A thought leader in the arena of leadership and employee engagement, Bill Catlette is an author, seminar leader, keynote speaker, and executive coach. He helps individuals and organizations improve business outcomes by having a focused, engaged, capably led workforce.

Richard Hadden is a leadership speaker, author, and consultant who helps organizations improve their business results by creating a great place to work. He and Bill are the authors of the new book Contented Cows MOOve Faster, as well as the acclaimed business classic Contented Cows Give Better Milk. Learn more about them and their work at ContentedCows.com.

On a day when the Dow tanked another 508 points in a long string of losing days, some good news, any good news, even a little piece is most welcome. Such a nugget climbed into my in-basket this evening in the form of an email message from the 92nd Street Y in New York.

Business partner, Richard Hadden and I rendezvous there two or three times a year and catch a lecture by a business chieftan or other notable. Though it’s a long trip from our respective domiciles, we’ve never been disappointed in the experience. Anyhow, the text of the email follows, unedited. Consistent with our experiences with these folks, I thought it was a class act. Clearly, these folks are going the extra mile.

Another of the excellent speakers we heard at the National Speakers Association convention in New York last week was Bill Strickland, President and CEO of Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild and Bidwell Training Center, Inc.

Talk about someone who does meaningful work! His story is much too long to detail in this blog, and I certainly can’t do him justice. Besides, he’s been written about in Inc, Fast Company, and tons of other publications, and you can read about him there.

In a nutshell, Bill Strickland is a social innovator who runs a company to train and give substantive (not empty) hope to poor inner-city kids, welfare mothers, and others in the Manchester area of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He’s taking his highly successful model, which educates people in the visual, culinary, and other arts, and replicating it across the country now.

Here’s just a little of what Strickland said, that stuck in my mind:

• “The only difference between rich people and poor people is that poor people don’t have any money.”
• “People’s behavior is a function of how they’re treated.” (Where have we heard that before?)
• “We have fresh flowers all over the center, because these people deserve to see fresh flowers.”
• When he had his center designed in Pittsburgh, he wanted it to be flooded with light. The people who learn there have lots of darkness in their lives. Strickland knew that light would change their outlook, and their behavior. It has.
• The walls of his center are covered in valuable art. Skeptics told him the art would be trashed within a month. In the 22 years since he started the practice, there’s never been an act of vandalism at the center. Reminds me of a point made by John Houseman in the classic training film, Brain Power, by Karl Albrecht, in which Houseman reminds us, “We get what we expect to get. What are you expecting?”

We heard lots of polished, eloquent speakers at the NSA convention. Bill Strickland was not one of them. It was, instead, his message, not his delivery, that blew me away.

Thanks, Bill Strickland, for being an Extra-Miler.

Richard Hadden is a leadership speaker, author, and consultant who helps organizations improve their business results by creating a great place to work. He and his co-author and business partner Bill Catlette, are the authors of the new book Contented Cows MOOve Faster, as well as the acclaimed business classic Contented Cows Give Better Milk. Learn more about them and their work at ContentedCows.com.