The Talmud teaches: “Who is wise? One who learns from every person.” Sometimes wisdom can come from an unlikely source.
Right out of graduate school, my husband was hired by a large New England department store called Jordan Marsh. Even though he had earned an MBA from Harvard Business School, my husband was asked to complete the Executive Training Program at Jordan Marsh’s main store in Boston, As a trainee, he had to learn about the store from the bottom up – literally! My husband was assigned to work as a customer service manager in the bargain basement of Jordan Marsh (usually known as “Jordan’s”). In his first few weeks at Jordan’s, from his basement post, he learned, and shared with me, that the most important action one can take to ensure the success of an organization is to “Walk Through The Store.”
It began this way. In the first year that my husband worked at Jordan’s, a courtly gentleman named Cameron Thompson was CEO. Several times a week, Mr. Thompson would leave the executive offices and visit the various departments of the store. He would go from furniture to appliances to women’s wear to men’s shoes to the bakery, all the way down to the bargain basement. Mr. Thompson would stop to chat with department managers, buyers, salespersons, and customers. He’d take note of the displays, of the merchandise selection, of the way customers were assisted, of every detail that contributed to Jordan’s success and profitability.
Then, Mr. Thompson would return to the executive offices where he and his staff (which eventually included my husband) would plan, adjust, envision, revise and restructure wherever necessary. Mr. Thompson and his staff based their actions, in large part, on what he’d observed while he walked through the store. Jordan Marsh expanded and prospered under Mr. Thompson’s leadership.
Jordan Marsh and Cameron Thompson long ago passed into retailing history. Mr. Thompson’s successors lacked his attention to detail, his ability to observe and inquire, his acumen in planning for the future and managing change. They failed to “walk through the store.” Jordan’s was eventually bought out by Macy’s!
Nevertheless, the need for leaders of dynamic organizations to “walk through the store” remains. Whether the organization is a store, a school, a synagogue, or a huge high-tech corporation, success demands attention to detail, ongoing evaluation, flexibility in adapting to change, and a fluid understanding of whom the organization serves and how well customers’ needs are met.
Even in the Judaic Studies classroom, where the Torah Text, the prayers, the Holiday cycle remain essentially the same from one semester to the next, students, teachers, and circumstances change. As professional Jewish educators, we, hopefully, strive to increase our Judaic and pedagogical knowledge over time. We watch our students grow and mature over the school year. Periodically, we,too, should “walk through the store,” observing, questioning, listening. Based on our observations, we can then seek different ways to maximize our students’ Jewish understanding, to build their skills, and to meet their learning needs. We can evaluate, shape, and re-shape our vision of a school and classroom environment that will ensure each student’s success as a life long learner.
As Jewish educators, we, too, are CEO’s – Committed to an Eternal “Organization.” Are you ready to “walk through the store?”
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