Question

It's 3:30 p.m. in Dallas and Big Bank of Big D Financial Advisor Elaine McGinty is just finding time to grab a quick lunch when her phone rings yet again. In the last few days, with the stock market soaring, the number of calls coming in has tripled.

She is hoping to have a peaceful few minutes to eat her lunch, but that doesn’t seem to be turning into reality. As she answers the phone, she can hear the pitch of her voice go up an octave.

Let’s listen in on her conversation:

Elaine:

“Elaine McGinty”

Joe (Long-Established Client, a CFO from Mega-Biz, a Fortune 500 Company based in Dallas with tons of employees):

“Hi Elaine. This is Joe. How are you doing?”

Elaine Talking:

“Fine. What do you need?”

Joe Talking:

“I noticed an article about Make it or Break it No-Load Mutual Fund in this morning’s Wall Street Journal. It sounds like a great investment. What do you think? Have you heard anything about it?”

Elaine Thinking:

He wants to know what I think? About a no-load mutual fund from which the Bank will derive no fee/income? He doesn’t want to hear what I am really thinking!

Elaine Talking:

“I will have to get back to you on that. I have another call. Bye.”

Joe Thinking:

Well, see if I ever call her again. Who does she think she is? A prima donna! And I was just getting ready to move Mega-Biz, Inc. 401Ks to another Bank. But not to Big Bank of Big D, or to Ms. McGinty!

Points to Ponder:

• How could Elaine have handled the conversation differently?

• How is Elaine’s stress level preventing her from being productive?

• How is Elaine’s attitude hindering her from possible success in the future?

• How is Elaine’s attitude damaging the Bank’s bottom line and reputation?

• In what ways could better communications help Elaine?

• In what ways could better communications help Elaine’s supervisor or manager to coach her?

Answer 1

1) Elaine is a financial advisor and her job mandates that she has the necessary information and knowledge about the current happenings in the financial setup of the economy. The client knows that she must have the technical know-how but she still refused to answer him when he needed her advice. Elaine could have answered him with the technical details about the said mutual fund and fulfilled her duty regardless of what consequences it has on a particular bank. She should have asked him his plans with this investment idea instead of hanging up on him.

2) Elaine has been worked up and that is preventing her from working at her optimal level; she hasn't eaten and to be disturbed during lunch must make her irritable and stressed out. However, as a professional, she must learn to embrace the role that she is in and behave professionally. Her attitude towards her client does not classify as professional and might hurt her growth prospects due to unintended consequences of her actions.

3) Elaine has in most probability lost herself a client which would directly affect her career prospects in the future, since her job is one of giving financial advice, something that she refuted out of frustration.

4) Elaine is an employee of her bank and by showcasing unprofessionalism with a client (and a rather important one in this case) it reflects directly on the firm that hired her and pays her. A client would breed negativity towards the entire bank due to its one employee and reduce or cease all future transactions with the entire bank. He would tell his friends and colleagues about how things panned out and thus the bank's reputation would be marred due to a single employee who behaved unprofessionally.

5) Elaine could communicate better in many ways that would facilitate her work-life balance. For one, she could put an automated message on her phone while she wanted to dine in peace thus conveying to the other party on the call that she is unavailable at the moment and they could get back to her in a while. This would prevent untoward actions and consequences by enhancing communication between the two parties which would make clear the fact that she is busy having lunch (which is a reasonable excuse for any employee).

6) Elaine's supervisor or manager must sit with her and explain to her that the client must be dealt with respect under all circumstances since the bank is providing him a rightful service (for some fee) and that inappropriate actions in the future could threaten her position at the bank. Since they are her seniors, they reserve the right to explain this to Elaine in blunt and explicit terms. Communication is the key to any healthy relationship between two or more parties.