The Sid Story Video

Rating ***** (4 out of 5 stars)

Initial Thoughts
The Sid Story Video is a motivational management training video that follows the story of a grumpy guy named Sid who does a turn around with his department- taking it from the worst in the business to the best.

The Pros
I've seen plenty of poor acting in training videos and it's often a distraction from the content. But this one has Dennis Franz of television's NYPD Blue in the leading role of Sid. So already this video has a leg up on the competition because it's a well acted and well written story. Franz knows how to play a no-nonsense tough guy role on TV and he pulls off a good performance in this video, too.

The Training Points are pretty basic, but still relevant. Letting your employees know where they stand (giving them measurable feedback), increasing positive observations, and giving them the opportunity to be winners instead of losers is a very powerful message that many managers still don't follow. Too often, managers still think that the stick is better managing than the carrot.

Another great point is that the story seems believable. Again, unlike other training videos, this feels like a real story- and a good one too. We want Sid to change and become a good boss and we want his team to succeed and become better at what they do. And when Sid, the uneducated tough guy boss, gets to tell the President of the company how to reward and motivate people, we're really rooting for him and on his side. Way to "stick it to the man."

The Cons
The video is a "classic" which is a nice way to say that it's really dated. The music, the camera work, the clothing... it all SCREAMS for an update. It's a real shame that a great story like this would get ignored because it feels like the 80's, but honestly it feels like the 80's. And just like it's painful to watch reruns of the Cosby Show (even though the jokes are still funny) it's painful to watch this video, too. It's not quite the "Jets and the Sharks" dated, but another couple years and it will feel as if Sid and his team are from the West Side Story Era.

The only downside to the script is that they had to condense Sid's Story into 10 minutes. There are a few moments where it's a little corny and it almost seems like his team turned around overnight and suddenly he's a changed man. But, that's too be expected in a training film, and honestly, they did a much better job than I would have done.

Who Would Want It
This is a great resource for managers who are new or jaded. It's probably a great tool for any development course because it will surely spark some good conversations with the leadership teams in an organization.

The Bottom Line
Even though The Sid Story Video is a little dated, the story is good and principles are relevant. It's a great resource for managers- especially managers who have been around a while (and are jaded) or new managers who might not understand the power of positive reinforcement.

Check it out here: The Sid Story Video