On September 4 2012, Michelle Obama delivered the speech of her lifetime to the congregation at the democratic convention. What has become clear now, is just how important that speech could be to the final election outcome.
It was full of personality and packed quite a punch, seeking to explain Obama’s philosophy using biographical references. Now, what has come to light is that her speech stood out not just because 66% of all Americans responded positively to America’s first lady but also because at its peak her speech earned her a staggering 28,003
. This comes as a blow to Mitt Romney whose speech earned him about half that figure, attracting 14,289 tweets per minute.
Isn’t it incredible how quickly and accurately we can gather feedback from key stakeholders in the modern world? These figures highlight the increasing influence of social media and how it has such an important role to play, not only within America’s presidential campaign, but also as a measuring tool. How often do leaders in your organisation take the time to consider how and when they measure just how well they are being received?
A high performing team will ask itself: “What does the outside world think of what we’re doing?”
In business, feedback is so important. Why else are we always asked to fill in customer satisfaction questionnaires? Feedback from key stakeholders helps to further improve and develop business relations and highlight areas of weakness. A fall in the number of incoming leads, for instance, could indicate a failing in the approach of a company’s sales team. As with everything in business, a team needs to be aware of what it needs to do to adapt and evolve to keep up with growing trends in the world around them.
For a team to be operating at its optimum level, it needs to be aware of feedback and what to do with that information. How often does the team take a step back and ask – what do customers expect in return of their investment? This is a key question that should underpin any decisions made that will have a direct impact on stakeholders or customers. Without this appreciation of the outside world, how can a team ever expect to deliver? Then, high performing teams stay connected to this external environment by providing it with a constant stream of current information.
A great example of a company getting this right is
. I love the fact that the online retailer keeps me up to date on the delivery of my latest purchase – right up to the hour before it arrives. Michelle Obama proved just how valuable to the Presidential team she is.
Not just because of her rousing speech but because of the way she managed to tap into the Whitehouse’s key stakeholders and gather positive feedback from the all-important voting nation. Now, it will be interesting to see how the current leadership team use that feedback and build on it during the coming weeks. The feedback and self-improvement journey isn’t over yet; it is a constant shifting cycle of learning and development that teams need to be aware of to help them deliver on promises to the stakeholder.
Clive Hook
ClearWorth – click
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