I had an experience this weekend that disturbed me from both a personal and business perspective. This is a personal story but one that has a lesson for anyone in business who has customers. 

For a woman, the person who cuts your hair is sacred. I have used the same stylist for over 10 years and have been loyal to him as he built his business from the ground up. He's had some rough years, but I stuck by him and weathered all his ups and downs. I have stuck with him as his prices have risen but this weekend, he went too far. A week before my appointment he raised his prices by $40 per cut. He does not work out of a salon so basically what you get is just a haircut — no washing, no primping, no nothing. Just a haircut. He sent this message via email. No explanation, just I've raised my prices. I sent a very nice note back saying that I am now out of his price range, it's been grand, and best of luck. I got back the nastiest note with a "how dare you" tone and a "sorry to hear you won't be coming for 40 dollars" message. Oh, and they deleted me from their list of Facebook friends. As it turns out, we weren't really friends after all.

This communication could have been handled so much better if he was truly putting his customer first. I don't begrudge someone raising their prices. You should ask for what you believe you are worth, and if the market is willing to pay, then all the better. I do have a few suggestions for him however, that would have made the experience better for me, the customer, and his business. Here's what I would have counseled him to consider:

1. Give your customers more than one week to notify them of a price increase. No one likes surprises.
2. If the increase is particularly large (20% is in that category), provide an explanation.
3. Do something for your loyal customers. Make them feel good, that through their loyalty, you have built your business. 
4. Be respectful in the language that you use. When you do otherwise it makes you seem cheap and crass.
5. Be true to your brand. One incident can make it crumble and its value is lost forever in the mind of the customer. And customers talk — to other potential customers.

Please don't think this is a sour grapes post. It was a reminder lesson to me that all you really have is the good will of your customers. That relationship is very sacred and should be handled with kid gloves.It takes a lot of effort and resources to get and keep a customer.  Why would you just want to throw them away? 

I've been reading a lot lately about the marvels of collaboration. There's always a topic of the day, and then there are those that keep turning up every few years, and collaboration is one of them.  Don't get me wrong, I'm all for it, as more brains working on something is better than one.  What people fail to discuss however, is just how decisions get made and ultimately who is responsible for failure. I single out failure because everyone shares in the success, but only one person takes the fall when things turn bad. Back to decision making.

In this collaborative world we're in, all ideas are good and everyone's a winner.  That's great, but what's important is a clear process of how to choose the best path/product/idea before you get started otherwise it becomes a free for all, wastes time, and drains morale.I love efficiency and logic and it seems to make so much more sense to get this process defined first before the fun begins. It's okay to make it democratic (most votes wins) or autocratic (one person based on data chooses) just choose and gain agreement up front. This however, requires leadership.

People are afraid of assuming leadership in a group situation, but when done well, is the most effective way of driving to a decision. Companies, both big and small need leaders that can both lead and collaborate. They need people who can step up and move the business forward in a variety of situations and gain the trust and confidence of the people in the room. So look for the leaders in your organization, nurture them, support them and provide an environment where they and the organization can thrive.