Women in Business
Growth leader
How Joni Burton manages rapid growth at CIBER
By Kathy Simmons
Smart Business Cincinnati | December 2006
When Joni Burton was in college,
she never imagined herself with a
career in the computer field.
“I majored in marketing at Ohio State
University and actually found the required
computer coursework frustrating,” says
Burton, area director for CIBER Inc.
But after graduation, Burton’s first job
involved selling computer systems. She
quickly realized that although she had
not enjoyed developing computer programs, she did like consulting with companies on how to use technology to meet
their business objectives. CIBER is a systems integrator that builds, integrates
and supports mission-critical business
applications for private and public
clients.
Founded in 1974, CIBER serves client
businesses from offices in the United
States, Canada, Europe, Asia and India.
Burton manages the Cincinnati operation
and its 85 employees, and has grown the
operation 200 percent in the past two
years.
Smart Business spoke with Burton
about how she manages growth and keeps
her staff motivated.
Q: How do you get employees to buy in to
your vision and make it a reality?
There are three keys to generating support from staff: passion — you must
demonstrate a clear and genuine belief in
the value of the business; ongoing communication — employees cannot get behind
what they do not understand; [and] willingness to solicit feedback — the team
must perceive the strategy and vision as
their own.
I have seen managers simply tell
employees what to do. Sure, they can do
that, but the end result is a less-committed staff. It takes effort to communicate
and uphold an open-door communication
policy. However, you will get more than
100 percent from your employees in the
process.
The test of effective communication is
that nothing should come as a surprise to
your employees. This can involve difficult
discussions, such as addressing negativity,
or acknowledging employees who are not
a good fit for the organization.
Q: What professional mistakes have you
personally made and learned from?
Early in my career, I realized that you
have to be close to your employees, but
not too close. It is easy to lose your objectivity and to be affected negatively if you
don’t respect boundaries that must exist in
a healthy employer/employee relationship.
I also learned the hard way that it is important to speak up and trust your instincts.
There have been times when I let others
guide me, even though I knew in my heart it
was not the best approach. I ended up going
down the wrong path — when I knew better — and that was not a good feeling.
I try to instill in my employees the importance of being open and honest about their
thoughts. It can be a double-edged sword
because when employees challenge the
status quo, it can be a management
headache. However, the rewards are well
worth the trouble.
Q: How do you grow your company?
I can’t do this by myself, obviously. When
I first came to CIBER, I took a hard look at
the team and made necessary changes. To
grow a company, it is essential to have the
right team assembled.
Once the team is in place, turnover
must be minimized at all levels. You
cannot undervalue the relationships
that develop between your employees
and clients. It takes time to develop
trust. Once it is there, clients will take
the recommendations of the consultants. Turnover forces this process of
building trust to start over again, and
that is costly.
Typically, 20 percent of your
clients will bring in 80 percent of
your revenue. You must always be
on the lookout for new opportunities, because your current revenue
stream could change tomorrow.
Cold calling is difficult these days,
since there is so much competition,
and everyone has voice mail to
screen their calls.
So we concentrate on attending
local seminars, networking, and providing technical education and
thought leadership in order to get
our name out in the community.
Q: How do you set and review goals?
Goals should be attainable, but they need
to be a stretch. If goals are too easy, there
is not incentive to put forth effort. If goals
are too difficult, employees give up before
they even get started.
Goals also must be measurable. They cannot be vague or open to guesswork.
Consultants need to know the billable hours
you expect, recruiters need to know how
many new hires they must bring in and your
sales professionals need a concrete sales
goal. Without these, they are not sure if they
are successful or meeting expectations.
Setting the goals is just the first step.
Good managers have ongoing dialogue
with their staff on the goals agreed upon. If
the employee is struggling, draw from your
own experiences and others, and give
them practical tips for getting their performance back on track.
HOW TO REACH: CIBER Inc., (513) 489-6366 or
www.ciber.com
The Women in Business series
is presented by Smart Business
through the support of Fifth Third Bank.
