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When managers are asked to “act” like a leader, they are often puzzled about the difference between managing and leading. The Leadership Pickle, a short (18-minute) video and DVD, offers a fun yet substantive introduction to learning to lead when you are a manager.

You might be wondering why this program refers to a “leadership pickle.” Bob Farrell, the video narrator and on-camera expert, excelled for more than 30 years in the restaurant industry. He and his business partners opened more than 150 restaurants without a single failure, an amazing achievement since the industry failure rate is reportedly 80%. Farrell has maintained a customer service mantra, “Give em’ a pickle,” ever since he received a letter from a loyal customer explaining that he would not come back after a waitress wouldn’t give him an extra pickle free of charge. He is the narrator of a previous Media Partners video, Give 'em the Pickle, on customer service reviewed by TMR in 2002.

While Farrell doesn’t say it explicitly, the pickle has come to represent something extra. In leadership that means:

• Spread enthusiasm.
• Inspire confidence.
• Demonstrate integrity.

Two of these concepts are dramatized by real stories from Farrell’s experience. Inspiring confidence is illustrated by a story about a dishwasher in one of Farrell’s his ice cream restaurants. A childhood accident disfigured the dishwasher’s face. Naturally, he was hesitant to work in front of people. Bob saw his potential and worked with him to inspire confidence until he grew beyond his fear and discomfort. This story implicitly addresses diversity and could be used as a discussion point even though it is not listed in the workshop notes as a point to explore in more detail.

Product description
The video comes with a trainer’s guide, a 12-slide PowerPoint presentation, a self-study guide, pocket cards, a gold pickle lapel pin, green pickle lapel pins, and a pickle sticky pad. The trainer’s guide is a key source of information on how to use the materials in this training package. The learning objectives are as follows. When managers have successfully completed this program, they will be able to:

• Identify the three Leadership Pickles.
• Explain why spreading enthusiasm, inspiring confidence, and demonstrating integrity are important leadership skills.
• Self-assess their proficiency in each of the three key Leadership Pickle skills.
• Determine how to increase their effectiveness in each of the three key Leadership Pickle skills.
• Track their progress over 30 to 60 days as they work to increase their Leadership Pickle proficiency.

Evaluation
Because of its simplicity and light touch, this program appeals to an audience less sophisticated than senior leaders. However, there have been many executives who didn’t mind learning about change using the cute concept of mice and cheese in the bestselling book and video, Who Moved My Cheese? And the story of the dishwasher takes the concepts presented to a depth that belies cute. So it is critical that the person who selects the program knows the audience well and can deal with the package this message comes in.

The program is designed well in terms of sticking to three basic skill areas. The executive function of the brain used when focusing on new skills cannot work on too many skills at once. The fact that there is an assessment and follow-up steps is a strong plus. The program designers know that changing leadership behaviors is a process and watching a video alone will not have much of an impact.

The Leadership Pickle Holds user interest      Acting/presenting      Diversity      Production quality      Documentation      Value of Content      Instructional Value      Value for the money      Rating