Our Biggest Mistakes? Not Admitting to Them

Our Biggest Mistakes? Not Admitting to Them | United Credit Service, Inc.

“Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.” ? Napoléon Bonaparte

I gather Napoleon uttered this line before he got to Moscow.  Or perhaps the Russian Field Marshal Kutuzov took it to heart and made it a point not to interrupt Napoleon in the midst of one of Napoleon’s biggest mistakes.  The rest, as it is said, is history.

Yes, we all make mistakes. How we handle correcting them, let alone admitting them, is a true test of our character, the character of those we know and work with, and the character of the companies we work for and do business with.

Elizabeth MacBride, writing for CNBC, discusses the subject of making mistakes and what to do about them, especially in light of the recent Wells Fargo “debacle.”

As you may recall this ‘mistake’ caused horrific damage to the bank when it was discovered that “…over 5,300 employees…opened fee-generating accounts for customers without authorization, ultimately leading to the Senate grilling for Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf…”.

Not only a grilling for the CEO, but the loss of jobs for those 5,300 employees. A big company, yes, but the breadth of that number is staggering.

Adding insult to injury, Stumpf and some of his senior executive team “…first placed the blame on certain Wells Fargo employees and denied any problem with the bank’s culture. ‘Underperformers’ was the term they used to define the culprits.” Ouch.  5,300 underperformers?  The fact that it went undetected for so long simply does lend credibility to a statement like that.

By the time the ‘debacle’ had hit its peak, Stumpf found himself in front of a Senate hearing and the recipient of a scathing attack by Senator Elizabeth Warren. Whichever side of the political isle you are on, the last place you want to be, really, is on the receiving end of such an attack by Senator Warren.  No good can come of that.

Macbride poses the question: “Could the Wells Fargo CEO have nipped this headline scandal in the bud if he had been more contrite?”

She turned to the venerable Jack Boggle, the founder of the Vanguard Funds, for some insight and perspective. I like Jack Boggle and listen to him when he speaks.  He has been around the track just a few times, openly admits has made his share of mistakes, yet is one of the most revered legends in the mutual fund industry.  Truth be told, I like a little gray hair when it comes to seeking perspective and wisdom.

Boggle relates a story about making a huge mistake when he merged Wellington Funds with another firm that dealt in riskier securities. The deal lost a great deal of money.  Apparently, defending the deal as the whole thing cratered, he subsequently was fired.  After that experience, he launched Vanguard “…and realized the only thing worse than making a mistake is refusing to admit it.”

Quoting McBride: “If you get it right, research suggests that the ability to admit that you are no better than the people around you, that you are humble, is the trait that sets great CEOs apart from merely good ones.”

So, what to do? The virtually universal advice is to own up to the mistake, take responsibility, sincerely apologize right from the get go and of course make appropriate amends.

Amends can come in many forms, but Boggle has another good suggestion: Identify the problem and commit to fix it. “Look around and see if you’ve done material damage to something that already existed…When something results in a catastrophe, it’s like those people who say, ‘I wouldn’t have done anything differently.’ … Well, yes, if the house burned down, yes, you should have.”

Mistakes can be costly. In the collections industry honesty, accuracy and transparency are paramount to ensuring that genuinely delinquent debts are collected in a professional and legally sound fashion. As a result of our focus on detail, our track record is excellent when it comes to professionally colleting debts on behalf of our clients.  This is no mistake: you can count on us to always work in your best interests with professionalism, integrity and tenacity.

A. Alliance Collection Agency, Inc. is a full service, licensed accounts receivable management and debt collection agency providing highly effective, customized one on one management and recovery solutions for our business partners.  Founded in northern Illinois in 2005, we have been proudly improving the bottom-line on behalf of our business partners in and around Chicagoland for over 10 years.

Skilled Trades in High Demand

My wife and I recently bought an old house, one that was built in 1887. Many of the modern updates had already been completed when we purchased the home, but there were some projects we wanted to do.  The biggest of these projects–redoing a bathroom.  When the house was originally built indoor plumbing was not common. The original floor plan had no dedicated space for traditional bathrooms. To accommodate indoor plumbing,   bedrooms and other available space had to be converted  into bathrooms.  The bathroom we want to redo has lots of space, the room itself is over 300 square feet.  The problem is that everything; toilet, tub, and sink are all crammed into one corner of the room making for not only an inefficient use of space, but also, in our opinion, an unsightly one.

Our decision to completely redo this space began our odyssey with the skilled trades. We began calling plumbing, electrical and even general contractors to come out and look at the space and give us a bid for the work.  Four of those that came out never responded back—we never heard from them again.  Of those who did respond, it was a common theme on how booked they were and how it was going to take months before they could start the project.  With each of these visits I began asking a few of questions; are you short staffed?  Can you find people who are willing to learn?  The answers were exactly the same with every one that I asked; yes, we are shorthanded and we just can’t find people to fill the job openings.  I then asked what they saw happening with the trades in the next 10 years.  Each them was unsure and genuinely concerned about the future of their trade.

These conversations lead me to do a little research on the topic. Currently the average age of the skilled trade worker in this country is 55 and for every new entrant into the work force three are retiring.  You don’t need a calculator to do the math to tell you that this means trouble.

Why is this happening? Likely a number of reasons, but two common ones are; the thought that you need a four-year college degree to be successful and working with your hands is viewed negatively by many in our society.

My research lead me to Mike Rowe and his foundation, mikeroweWORKSfoundation. Mike is familiar to many of us from his time hosting the television show, Dirty Jobs or his current show Somebody’s Gotta Do It. He’s also the voice-over on The Deadliest Catch as well as a number of other shows.  Anyway, his foundation promotes hard work and supports the skilled trades in a variety of areas.  Mike is working hard to combat both of the reasons listed above for why more young workers are not entering the trades.   For example, on his foundation’s website there is a section of video clips titled, “Hot under the Blue Collar” where Mike takes on many of the myths surrounding working with your hands.  One of these videos focuses on the myth that skilled trade jobs don’t pay well.  In this video, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data on the starting salaries of certain four-year college degrees is compared to that of a six-month to two-year training for skilled trade.

Degree in Education             $33,800

Psychology                         $34,700

History                               $36,900

Business                             $41,200

Skilled Trades                     $48,100

Add to these statistics the fact that 40 million Americans have student debt, up from 29 million in 2008, with an average debt of $29,000. The class of 2015 was the most indebted graduating class in history averaging $35,000 in debt.

Opportunities in the skilled trades are abundant with Bureau of Labor Statistics showing that there are currently over 3,100,000 good jobs available that no one seems to want, with 2,500,000 more to be available in the next two years.

You can hardly read the business section in any newspaper or online without reading about the skills gap happening all across our country. It appears that this gap is real and only going to get worse.  So if you are unsure of where your career is headed or have influence on someone still in high school, have the conversation about the skilled trades.

There are numerous blue-collar career options available, many which come with: training in half (or less) than the time needed for a typical four-year degree, minimal to no educational debt, with pay equal to or better than many four-year degrees. Not to mention that many come with a complete benefit package as well.

Oh and if you become a plumber in my area, call me as I may still be waiting to do that bathroom project.

A. Alliance Collection Agency, Inc. is a full service, licensed accounts receivable management and debt collection agency providing highly effective, customized one on one management and recovery solutions for our business partners.  Founded in northern Illinois in 2005, we have been proudly improving the bottom-line on behalf of our business partners in and around Chicagoland for over 10 years.

 

U.S. GDP Growth Revised Down, Optimism Up

The U.S. economy expanded at a sluggish 1.1% pace in the 2nd quarter as businesses sharply reduced their stockpiles of inventory and spent less on new buildings and equipment according to the recently released U.S. Department of Commerce estimate of the 2nd quarter.  This 2nd estimate is slightly lower than the first estimate of 1.2% growth.  Since the first quarter saw a meager .8% advance in GDP, the U.S. economy has had only 1% growth in the first half of 2016.  Yet, most financial analysts predict faster growth in the second half of the year.  Their optimism is buoyed mainly by consumer spending trends signaled in the estimate.

In fact, consumers offset the corporate cutbacks in the 2nd quarter by spending at the fastest pace in six quarters, the U.S. Department of Commerce said.  Household consumption, the largest part of the economy, grew at a 4.4% annualized rate, the most consumption since the end of 2014. Purchases added 2.94 percentage points to GDP growth. This suggests steady job growth and modest pay gains are making Americans more confident and willing to spend.  “The only real area of strength was consumer spending,” David Sloan, senior economist at 4cast Inc. in New York said before the report was issued. At the same time, he forecasted, “The general view is that things are going to pick up in the third quarter.”

This consumer spending trend should encourage businesses to restock their warehouses and stores with more goods. New home construction should also help quicken growth in the 3rd quarter.  Sales and construction of new homes has been healthy in recent months.  In fact, new home sales jumped to their strongest pace in nine years this July according to several news reports I saw on television. 

Additionally, despite the weak growth to date, businesses stepped up their hiring in June and July. Furthermore, there were signs in the 2nd quarter estimate that incomes are rising. The 2nd quarter estimate included a large upward revision to wage and salary data. Worker pay climbed to $92.6 billion, up $44.2 billion from the first estimate issued in July.

The U.S. economy is sluggishly moving along, but there are signals and trends that have given most economists a good reason to be optimistic for the second half of 2016. In fact, The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta currently forecasts growth will jump to a 3.4% annual pace in the July-September quarter.  That’s a healthy dose of optimism coming out of Atlanta.  Trends of increased consumer spending, higher wages, more hiring, more purchases, and increasing new home sales, are all positive signals for the U.S. economy.  These are good reasons for a healthy dose of optimism. 

A. Alliance Collection Agency, Inc. is a full service, licensed accounts receivable management and debt collection agency providing highly effective, customized one on one management and recovery solutions for our business partners.  Founded in northern Illinois in 2005, we have been proudly improving the bottom-line on behalf of our business partners in and around Chicagoland for over 10 years.