SALENA KIRBY
COMPANY: The Lilly Company
TITLE: Regional Manager
TIME AT THE COMPANY: 13 years, 2 months
My responsibilities on any given day can be a combination of interviewing, training new employees, coaching current employees, dealing with performance problems, supporting the decision-making process, conducting performance evaluations and setting goals, monitoring performance, controlling expenses and tracking goals.
The biggest thing I keep in mind on any given day, is that no matter what I plan, it will change. Being a regional manager, my day may start by driving to one of three branches that I am responsible for. I always do a meet and greet, then I determine where all the technicians are working by checking the GPS. Then I check all emails and respond or put what needs to be completed today on my working list of things to do. All regional managers and parts, rental and service managers have a conference call by teams once a month to review the previous month’s performance and discuss any best practices or processes that need to be changed. My day may also consist of entering warranty claims for payment. I walk the facility inside and out to check for any issues that need to be addressed, from safety concerns to repairs.
Being in a male-dominated industry is always a challenge, but a lot of companies are beginning to realize that women in the 21st century are very capable of succeeding in this industry. Take The Lilly Company for instance, three of our 13 branch managers are women. If you have a sense of humor and thick skin you will fit in right away and the male employees will begin to trust you. Always seek to understand, listen and ask questions. Speak on things that you are knowledgeable about – this will help earn respect.
With good managers and leaders, I do not have to be as familiar with the product as they are. The Lilly Company sells and services everything for material handling. We have a corporate manager for each product line. I do not know specifics about all products, but, I do a lot of research or history of customer equipment before meeting with them. It is very important to have an intimate understanding or at least a small amount of knowledge about everything we deal with in material handling. You need to know what your business is; from where it came from to where it is going.
Good communication is essential. It allows me and my team to better understand our goals and processes. It helps us to know where we are and what we need to change to improve our performance. I have an open-door policy, which allows any team member to approach me no matter what I am doing. I will stop and listen, hoping to build a better relationship. Communication with my team is probably the most valuable tool of all. Email and my cell phone play an important role in my day-to-day activities. Teams for meetings with other branch managers and customers. My best skill is being able to multitask.
I am successful at anything I set out to accomplish mainly because I have personal motivation. I always see myself as a success. I constantly think about my goals and what we as a team are going to do to accomplish them. If you have fun being motivated and being a leader, it is contagious and everyone begins to be motivated. They want to do better, be better, be the best. Everyone on the team feels it and becomes it. I am always proactive, change is inevitable I have learned that failure happens, but I get up and do it again, remembering failure is a lesson I learn from and make it a success next time. I am always a leader first and a manager second. I learn by leading, teaching and doing. By being a leader, others can achieve their potential. As a leader I get to see my team succeed by sharing best practices and empowering them to be their own boss. I always try to “give ‘em a pickle.”
I am very passionate, committed to self-improvement and personal growth. I will make it happen. Most importantly, INTEGRITY. I constantly remind our team members that The Lilly Company was built on moral and ethical principles. On the back of all our work vans is “Knowledge, Experience, Integrity”
“I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions.” – Dr. Stephen R. Covey
