VISUALIZING THE SLAPPEY PLEDGE: ACT WITH INTEGRITY


I WILL ACT WITH INTEGRITY. I will do the right thing. I will tell the truth. I will admit when I'm wrong, ask forgiveness, and do what I can to make it right. I will do what is right, even when no one is looking.

WATCH THE VIDEO HERE:


Great story from Bill about Briarwood: Over 25 years ago we had a contract with Briarwood to cable their new building and move them. We had 6 miles of cable to pull and it was a six month contract. The customer said, "Make sure you get us moved before Christmas." We committed to complete the job by Christmas, because it was their busiest time due to the large number of phone calls with end of the year contributions.

When we got within a couple of days of the move I realized that we were not going to complete on time. I went to Tom Leopard and told him that I let him down, I had told him I would get him moved and completed on time. We were going to get him moved but it was going to be very messy—not all the phones were going to be working because the cabling hadn't been punched down. I thought I would get fired and loose the customer. I told him I would stay on-site until the job was completed. I literally stayed on-site around the clock for 2 or 3 days. We got the customer moved. Obviously there was a lot of pain that first day that they moved, and we worked through it.

About 5 years later I got a call from a person that said they had been checking our references and wanted to get a quote from me. I asked who the reference was from and they said Briarwood. I asked what they said and he told me that Tom Leopard had told him that "Whatever I said he could take it to the bank." I was very surprised by the high compliment. I thought to myself that it was just exactly the opposite of what had happened. I didn't complete it on time. I didn't do what I told him we would do, yet I took ownership and didn't deny it or blame anyone.

In the customer's eyes, my owning up to the problem before they felt the pain allowed them to adjust their expectations. In the end, it built integrity.

It was amazing the impact this had on me. I was convinced that I was going to lose their business. I could have waited until the cutover, but that didn't seem like the right thing to do. I wanted them to have time to make another decision. If they wanted to fire me, they could. That was 25 years ago and an experience that really shaped me early on in business. It made me realize the importance of owning the problem and telling the truth. 

Luke 6:31 "Do unto others as you would have them do to you."

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