Are you giving your lowest-level employees the power to make crucial customer-relations decisions without supervision? If not, you’re making a huge mistake.

Within a four-hour period on Friday I witnessed both excellent leadership and an abject failure of it. These experiences occurred with the leaders absent, so I’m basing my assessment of their leadership on the performance of their team members.

I needed a new tap for my beer keg because mine was busted. It was a crisis situation. I called the beer distributor at 4:47 p.m. and spoke with Kenny.

“How late are you open?”

“We’re open until five, but I’ll be here until six, so no worries. Here’s my cell number. Just call me when you get here, and I’ll hook you up.”

When I arrived, I called Kenny’s cell. A skinny 24-year-old with an awesome Mohawk came around the corner and said, “Hi, I’m Kenny. Don’t shake my hand, I’m covered in grease. Let me see what’s wrong with your keg.” At this point, things got interesting.

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