On the Job

FACING A COMMUNICATION DILEMMA AT AMERICAN EXPRESS

Taking Charge of Business through Teamwork

Don't leave home without it! That says it all—a powerful message about the dangers of traveling without an American Express Card tucked into your pocket. Millions of customers heed that advice each day, relying on the company to meet their financial and travel needs and, in the process, making American Express not only the world's largest travel agency but also a leading provider of global financial services.

However, the slogan could as easily apply to the 84,000 American Express employees who must work together on behalf on their customers. Wherever they go, whatever they do on the job, American Express employees need one crucial element at all times—teamwork—and they better not leave home without it. Managers are leaders, not bosses. Employees are partners, not competitors. The team concept permeates American Express. Just ask David House, president of American Express Worldwide Establishment Services, the division that signs up merchants to accept the American Express card.

To ensure the success of his division, House relies heavily on effective communication among team members and between teams and upper management. It's up to House to get all employees to contribute to and participate in the team approach, whether they're telecommuting from home in Los Angeles or working from company offices in London or Lisbon. If you were David House, how would you develop an effective team? What would you need to know about getting team members to collaborate? And how could you help your team members improve their listening, nonverbal communication, and meeting skills?¹