Baking Bread as a TeamIn the old days — when I was young — I remember watching with awe as my mother made bread from scratch. It was a process with many steps. Some of the steps were great fun for an 8-year-old. I loved the egg breaking and mixing all the ingredients in a bowl. Several of the steps were engaging at first but wore thin very quickly. Kneading the dough soon became tedious and tiring. There were other steps that required interminable patience like covering the dough and allowing it to rise. The thing I learned, however, is that each step is necessary in order to make the delicious loaf.

In implementing the Winning@Business™ process in many different businesses, I see many parallels to my early days of baking bread. When we start the process, there is great enthusiasm to make the necessary changes to bring everyone into the process of leading the business forward. As we go through the process, there are steps that are exciting and interesting. There are also steps that are difficult and others that require patience. The importance of the Management One® facilitator and trainer from outside the company is critical to maintain focus and momentum to see the entire process through until the “bread is baked” and the rewards are ready to enjoy like fresh bread straight from the oven.