Duke Guiding Principles: Respect

On a Sunday last winter, Deb Johnson found herself in charge of transporting 50 students to campus.

Johnson needed a bus to shuttle the students to the Winter Forum, a two-and-a-half day non-credit curricular experience for undergraduate students held just before the start of the spring semester. When it became clear campus buses were not running that day, Johnson, assistant vice provost for undergraduate education, scrambled and called a colleague she didn't know.

Help arrived in the form of Marian Brown, an off-duty adjudications officer for Duke Parking and Transportation Services. Brown arranged for a bus, and Johnson was quick to acknowledge Brown for her assistance.

Johnson made sure Brown's work was recognized in the "Making a Difference" blog in February. It wasn't the first time Johnson put extra effort into seeing the extra efforts of those around her go acknowledged.

"Marian was amazing," Johnson said. "She didn't even blink an eye."

By valuing contributions and recognizing accomplishments, Johnson illustrates the Duke Guiding Principle, Respect.

"Peer recognition is a big motivator for people," Johnson said. "The little things mean a lot."

Johnson attributes much of her interest in paying respect to colleagues to a weeklong seminar on customer service at the Disney Institute in 2000 when she learned about Disney's customer service philosophy and, among other things, how they train employees to take a tragic moment and make it into a magic moment.

"If an employee at Disney sees a child crying because he dropped his ice cream cone, he is empowered to go get another cone for the child and change that experience," she said.

Johnson said peer recognition is another way to help change a person's experience and make a difference. While at the School of Medicine, she incorporated staff recognition as a regular part of her monthly meetings and often takes time to write handwritten notes to people who have worked with her on projects or to recognize their efforts in other ways.

"Nowadays, things move so quickly," Johnson said. "We don't often take the time to actually write or do something to say thank you. It is a way to show respect for the work someone has done and celebrate that success. That kind of recognition really makes people feel valued."