The statement “Courtesy Is More Important Than Efficiency” may sound radical, but it is a truism.
As someone once asked me, “Dr. Mike, aren’t you being too radical by saying that?” I responded, “No.” This principle holds in organizations recognized for excellence. A few years ago, I initiated a conversation encouraging organizations to strive not just for effectiveness but for greatness, specifically within private companies rather than governmental entities.
Great companies do not rely on “pillars of excellence,” which many organizations in financial, hospitality, or healthcare sectors use, where priorities are balanced but often unclear. Organizations that are centers of excellence make it clearer by utilizing a ladder instead of pillars. While pillars do not help prioritize, ladders do. Pillars do not facilitate growth; ladders do. Managers and leaders should understand this distinction. On this ladder of priorities, safety and security occupy the top position, followed by courtesy, then visibility or demonstration (which relates to perceptions), and finally efficiency. The hierarchy looks like this: – Safety – Courtesy – Show – Efficiency. Returning to the themes of healthcare and hospitality, excellent service hospitals recognized this principle long ago. Author and researcher Fred Lee illustrates it effectively in a flowchart:
1. Unit efficiency focus
2. Internal focus
3. Turf protection \
4. Competing for resources
5. Overall inefficiency.
This is often the pattern followed by organizations, which then blame governments and the economy, labeling them as the root cause of all problems. While I do not defend governments, I believe that managers and leaders in companies must do better. The ideal flow should be:
1. Courtesy focus
2. External focus
3. Responsiveness
4. Shared resources
5. Overall efficiency.
To clarify: focusing solely on efficiency can lead to inefficiency and a lack of responsiveness. Conversely, prioritizing courtesy can yield both efficiency and responsiveness. Let me be clear about what I am not suggesting. I am not saying to disregard efficiency or to stop measuring cycle times and considering process improvements and business models. However, too often, initiatives aimed at process improvement and business models are “department-centric” rather than “customer-centric” or comprehensively organizational. Such improvements may boost departmental efficiency but often at the expense of overall functionality, merely shifting the workload to other departments. Sometimes optimizing one part of the system can slow down the entire operation.
Let me share a story about an organization that embraced the importance of courtesy and found success. One hospital transformed its food service. Initially, they operated with an “efficient” model of meal delivery at set times—three times a day. If patients missed a meal, that was unfortunate because the kitchen closed. However, to enhance service, the food service department evolved to provide food delivery throughout the day, not only for patients but also for staff, physicians offices, and anyone in the hospital. This change resulted in tripled volume and reduced food waste costs, ultimately covering the additional labor expenses. I must admit, this concept still makes me uncomfortable. However, I am asserting that organizational efficiency is more important than unit efficiency. Often, organizational efficiency aligns with finding ways to provide excellent service to clients and customers.
Solutions
For requests involving efficiency, cost management, and accountability to reposition your workforce, Contact Dr. Mike Ihezuo can assist, especially in partnership with Proctles Consulting. https://www.proctles.com/. Please reach out to him.
