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RTM: So is it possible to put together a model for what procedural justice should really look like?
LS: Yes, and here it is. There are six things we have to do to maximise procedural justice.
The first is bilateral communications. This says that, as we are working on a problem or on issues between us, we both have the opportunity to make input. That doesn't mean that one player is not dominant, but that we can both get our oar in.
Secondly, you need correctability. If something goes wrong, there has to be an appeals process. If I am salesman and you cut my territory in half, I have to have some way of appealing against that. It may not be perfect or impartial - it could just state that I can take the matter to the national sales manager, but it has to be there.
"If Mike Tyson tells me he is going to bite my ear off I believe he means it and that he is entirely competent to chomp it up. But I certainly wouldn't trust him."
Thirdly, there has to be consistency. I follow the same policies, programmes and procedures. I don't simply change the rules of the game constantly.
Fourthly, there has to be explanation. If you change something then, at the very least, you have to take time out to explain the rationale for the change to me.
Fifthly, we have interactive justice, which is a fancy word for showing respect and being polite. Neither of these are optional extras!
Finally, we have something called local knowledge. I have to have the feeling that my supplier has actually taken the time and made the effort to understand my problems and how I view the world. I have to believe he understands how much competition I face. I have to believe that we are on a somewhat even plane of knowledge and that, when the chips are down, you know about my business.
"Mobil say that it revolutionized their relationship with their distributors!"
RTM: What I really love about this model is that it is something companies can easily and swiftly put into practice. You can very quickly start to look at how you handle your partners along these axes and at where, and how, you should be improving.
LS: Precisely. That, for instance, is what Mobil Oil has done. They went off, quantified the model and got their people working to it. They believe that it significantly improved their relationship with their distributors! None of this is rocket science, but it works.
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