The Three Signs of a Miserable Job by Patrick Lencioni (Wiley, 2007)
Three signs of a miserable job...
- You circle the Starbucks drive thru twice on Monday mornings to delay starting your workday (and to feed the caffeine addiction that helps you survive).
- Your mobile phone's ringtone is Loverboy's "Everybody's Working for the Weekend."
- At 5:00 pm each Friday, you shoot off fireworks to celebrate your weekend independence.
While the symptoms of workplace discontent express themselves in a variety of ways, Patrick Lencioni spells out three universal origins of job dissatisfaction in his newest title, The Three Signs of a Miserable Job.
Sticking to his modus operandi, Lencioni tells a fable to illustrate his ideas. The central character of his story is recently retired CEO, Brian Bailey. After piloting JMJ Fitness Machines into a lucrative buyout from an industry leader, Brian has earned himself a leisurely retirement alongside his wife, Leslie. However, Brian's relaxation is cut short when he hears about shifts in JMJ's workplace wrought by its buyers. The culture he spent nearly two decades carefully creating is being demolished.
While brooding about the unfortunate changes in his former company, Brian gets the itch to be back in management. In need of a challenge, he becomes co-owner of a run-down Italian restaurant, Gene and Joe's, near his home. Having dined at the restaurant, Brian has seen firsthand the disinterest of its workers, and he resolves to make Gene and Joe's a place where employees look forward to their work.
At first, Brian's pet management project is a bit bumpy, but soon he begins to turn around morale at Gene and Joe's. To spark changes inside the restaurant, he puts in place measurements whereby the employees can gauge their performance. He also takes special care to remind each employee of the difference they are making in the day of a customer or co-worker. Finally, he goes out of his way to learn about his employees at a personal level. As a result, the employees, formerly accustomed to surviving their work shifts, actually begin to enjoy their jobs.
Framed as a conversation between Brian and his wife, pages 128-144 set out Lencioni's philosophy of management. During the course of the dialogue, the three signs of a miserable job surface.
- Immeasurement: "Employees need to be able to gauge their progress and level of contribution for themselves."
- Irrelevance: "Everyone needs to know their work matters to someone."
- Anonymity: "People cannot be fulfilled in their work if they are not known."
The three signs are summarized again by Lencioni on pages 221 and 222, and he advises managers on how to avoid them in the book's closing chapters.
Lencioni's story is well written, but it has only marginal entertainment value. However, by putting his philosophies into a fable, Lencioni makes The Three Signs of a Miserable Job far more memorable than the usual business text. Weeks after reading a book by Lencioni, it's easy to recall the central ideas by conjuring up his characters and storylines.
The Three Signs of a Miserable Job is a simple, yet profound book addressing the root causes of workplace malcontent. It is highly recommended reading for any LW subscriber in a management position. Readers will find that the book can be digested quickly and easily, and they will be able to draw from Lencioni's uncomplicated approach to purposeful management.
