PMO MBWA: Managing By Walking Around - The Ross Perot way

What is MBWA..? Chances are, if you are a manager and are over 50 years old, you know what MBWA is. Back in the days when we had our business departments, in some cases divisions, all in the same office building and we managed face to face, MBWA was just one of many leadership techniques. But, in today's business environment with all of its organizational constructs such as satellite offices, remote offices, virtual offices, home offices, corporate "hoteling - desk and phone on demand" offices, if you are a new manager or just a young guy or gal, you might not have ever heard this term, MBWA - Managing by Walking Around.

Though I formally learned about MBWA in new manager training years ago, I experienced it first hand even before that. The year was 1983 and I was an Account Manager in Dallas. I was having lunch with my customer, a value added reseller of ours, and point of contact for our relationship. We were at their company cafeteria and it was a Wednesday. Now, you might be thinking, after twenty-five years, how could I possibly remember that it was a Wednesday? Well, I remember for a fact that it was a Wednesday because on Wednesdays the company cafeteria served Prime Rib and every Wednesday we would have our customer/vendor status meeting and working lunch. Just me, from the vendor side, and my point of contact, from the customer side.

On one of these Wednesday’s and for no particular reason, a well dressed gentleman sat down and joined us for lunch. I immediately recognized this gentleman, though he had no reason to know of me. The only thing stranger than his sitting down and joining us were the two egg rolls and small ice tea on his tray. Not that I have anything against Chinese food, but it was Wednesday, prime rib day. The finest prime rib in Dallas and at a price of less than five dollars.

After joining us, this gentleman proceeded to ask us our names. He needed no introduction. He went on to ask us about our areas of responsibilities and our measurements as well as how business was going. And by how business was going, he didn’t mean good or bad.  He asked for details such as "Year- to-Date" percent of plan, forecast for the year, and top three opportunities for the month. Throughout the conversation, he offered ideas and suggestions. And as our little lunch chat was coming to an end, he gave me his business card and offered that if I ever needed any help or had a problem in working with the company to give him a call. He also asked for my business card and told me how important my efforts and support were to the company. He then told the two of us to give him a call as soon as we achieved our reseller objective for the year so he could congratulate us. And, the sooner the call, the better. We learned quite a bit from this man’s suggestions and ideas. We are also quite inspired to achieve our goals and we continued on with our working session with renewed vigor and resolve. We were pumped up and it felt great.

That is the effect that MBWA, Managing By Walking Around, can have on others. It is a leadership technique that has withstood the test of time and that can be used by any manager, from first line to executive. And, in today's businesses, MBWA doesn't need to be limited to just walking around as there are far more opportunities, tools, and techniques for "informal" management. The key is to be involved and to add value. Making a habit to share expertise and inspire others is a management technique that just about any organization will benefit from.

Oh, a few more details of that day some twenty-five years ago:

• The company I was with - IBM
• The customer I was with - EDS
• The gentleman who MBWA'ed us over lunch - Ross Perot, the founder and Chief Executive Officer of EDS
• What I had for lunch - Prime Rib (it was Wednesday at the EDS cafeteria)

MBWA - Managing By Walking Around. Give it a try..!