Boots on the Ground

Three chambers of gleaming glass and 316L stainless steel, it sat glinting under the fluorescent lights, holding a promise of speed, efficiency and innovation. A six foot carpenter’s level reached from the middle chamber into the two flanking outer chambers, a testament to the care and expertise with which it was installed.

The multi-chamber instrument washer replaced a hulking behemoth held together with bailing wire, duct tape and chewing gum. Metal fatigue and the encroachment of years of rust had reduced the washer to a creaking invalid which was kept alive only by the creativity of a service technician and the prayers of the department director.

Father Time had been replaced by Baby New Year, and the horizon was golden.

By the end of the first week of operation, the department director asked if it was too late to get the old washer back and a refund for the shiny new albatross. Now! Only cajoling from the service technician and impassioned promises from the account manager stayed the director’s hand from sending a fiery e-mail to the hospital administrator – with copies to her counterparts across an 800-facility corporation – decrying the new equipment and denouncing the false promises and competence of its manufacturers.

Boots on the Ground

Two thousand miles and 20 years distant, the Vice President of Sales sat in his office - his eyes focused not on the San Bernardino Mountains rising outside his window, but on the telephone keypad on his desk.

“That can’t be right,” he berated his sales representative. “You measured the pad wrong. No one is selling that pad that cheap.”

“Rick,” responded the sales rep, “the measurements and pricing are correct. I FedEx-ed a piece of the pad and a copy of the invoice to you. Check it yourself.”

The pad had been retrieved from a hospital dumpster (before AIDS came along to remind us that infection prevention is Job One) and the pricing secured from a source in the purchasing office.

Following receipt of the patient support pad and careful measurement, the VP of Sales grudgingly admitted that the sales rep had accurately represented the situation and gave him the pricing he needed to grab the business.

Boots on the Ground

Two outstanding sales managers, Gary O from Texas and Nashville’s Mark L, touted the value of field representatives in providing a funnel of information to the corporation – regarding problems, successes, competition and market trends. Gary, a Vietnam veteran, referred to it as gathering intelligence. College linebacker Mark labeled it Boots on the Ground.

The corporate office and upper management of both organizations considered it to be misinformed interference from underlings who should do as they were instructed and keep their mouths shut.

It has long been my contention that vendors and manufacturers who want to be successful in purveying their products should leave the office and join the people on the front lines. The view from the trenches is remarkably different than the view on the computer monitor.

Boots on the Ground

Thanksgiving, 1950 -- Based on the success of U.S. and South Korean Forces pushing north along the Yalu River into North Korea, General Douglas MacArthur predicted that U.S. troops would be home for Christmas. Having enjoyed pleasant fall weather in October, they suffered a bitter, early winter in November, with temperatures falling as low as 30 degrees below zero at night.

The Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) began to reveal themselves in greater abundance as MacArthur’s troops pushed farther north. Reports of engagement with the CCF by ground troops – supported by aerial reconnaissance - were discounted by MacArthur. By November 27, the U.S. Army east of the Chosin Reservoir and the U.S. Marines west of the reservoir were surrounded by 300,000 CCF. They were forced to break out of the trap and fight their way south for air evacuation.

Boots on the Ground

In the instance of the instrument washer, cited above, the problem with the washer was eventually solved by the field service technician and not the designers and engineers. Each phone call to engineering for help with the problem brought the same response – a checklist repeated in the same sequence with each new call, despite repeated failed attempts from previous calls. When the problem was solved - a relatively easy and inexpensive fix - by the service tech, engineering sniffed that it must have been an anomaly, and that the problem would return. The washer has been working faithfully since the persistent and creative service tech addressed the ‘anomaly.’

The V.P. of Sales in the second example, who trusted himself more than his representatives in the field, was moderately successful until new technologies overwhelmed his core products. The new technologies were reported back to the V.P. by his field resources when they were still nascent introductions. His shallow faith in his resources forced the company from a position as market leader to one of catch-up and me-too. It never regained its advantage.

My admonition to Corporate America is simple – listen to your people. Believe that they are earnest in wanting to see better products and produce a better bottom line for their employers. Your service technicians, account managers, sales reps and clinicians are an impressive force of intelligence gathering agents. They are your Boots on the Ground.