For a long time I was contemplating whether to post this or not; but it made a big difference to me, and you may learn from it.
At SAP Shai Agassi is about three hierarchical levels removed from me and responsible for a couple of thousand employees. Once in a while we chit chat: for example before we present SDN prizes on stage at SAP TechEd.
To my surprise I found a beautiful handwritten card in my company inbox with the following words:
Card Text: With deepest sympathy
Handwritten: Mark, While we cannot ease your pain, we all share your sorrow. Shai Agassi & Team
I am not sure how he heard about the death of my father, my guess is that Petra his excellent assistant was involved. This was pleasant surprise number one.
Two weeks later at the SAP Christmas party. Shai was suddenly standing next to me shaking my hand expressing his sincere sympathy, and for 10-15 minutes he gave me all of his attention. We talked about fathers, death, and how to live in the present. It really made a difference and helped me in my grief.
It taught me how important it is to pay attention to where people are in their lives right now and to really be there, to take the extra step.
Comments 2
…that’s the was a boss should treat her/his employees (even if she/he’s a member of the executive board)!
Ja, es gibt tatsaechlich lobenswerte Ausnahmen, manchmal sogar bekannte!