I typically arrive on campus very early in the morning. It allows me to get a lot of work done while things are still quiet and the hustle and bustle of the day has not yet arrived. Most of the time there are very few people at work that early in the morning. Most of the time it is custodial staff, grounds crews, and a few faculty members like me.

This is not a great revelation, but occasionally I see a few people I don’t really expect to see. March 29th I saw an example I will not soon forget. It was simple really. The time was 6:15 am and one of our staff members was out for a walk through the quad and around campus. He was just getting some exercise dressed in sweatpants, tennis shoes, and a light jacket. He was friendly as he greeted me with a smile in his voice. Again this is not a great revelation as I have seen others do the same before I ran into him that morning.

Two things made this encounter different. First, he was carrying a large white paper bag with twine handles, much like we see coming out of a retail store. He was also carrying one of those contraptions designed to pick up trash without having to bend over. I teased him about having to take a part-time job on the grounds crew. He responded by telling me (with a smile in his voice) that he was just out for his morning walk and thought he might as well do something else productive while he was getting his exercise. I was inspired by his commitment to do the little things to keep our campus looking beautiful. I was moved by his inability to do the easy thing and say, “That’s not in my job description.”

I teach operations management and constantly remind my students that a narrow view of operations espoused by the statement, “that’s not in my job description,” is the road to poor quality, poor service, and competitive deterioration. I teach my students (and try to live the same lesson), that quality, service, and competition is everyone’s job. It was really refreshing to see that in practice right here on campus.

The second thing that made this encounter different was the identity of the staff member. He is NOT on the grounds crew. Picking up trash is NOT directly in his written job description.

Yet he found the motivation, took the time, and made our campus a better place in a simple way. I have been on plenty of campuses. I have never seen anyone with his job title and position picking up trash. But yet there he was…Chancellor Nick Dunagan. It was simple. He was friendly. Very few people were even around to notice. But I NOTICED. It was motivating.

All of us on campus (including faculty, staff, and students) could take a wonderful hint from OUR leader. This campus and all it is belongs to all of us. We are all responsible for its appearance and how we make it look by our actions and words daily. The little things are in the unofficial job descriptions of EVERYONE! Thanks for the reminder and the simple leadership lesson, Nick!

Dr. Dan Tracy is an Assistant Professor of Management at UTM.