Over three decades of working in training and development has taught me, among other things, that many managers are skeptical about the return on investment from most training programs. So-called “soft skills” training on topics like customer service and conflict resolution are likely near the top of that list. Some
Last week I had the privilege of traveling to Philadelphia to visit the newly-opened Comcast Technology Center where I was joined by a cast of customer experience (CX) influencers: Jay Baer, Chip Bell, Jeanne Bliss, Joey Coleman, John Dijulius, Matt Dixon, Moira Dorsey, Shep Hyken, Scott McKain, Adam Toporek, Bill Quiseng, and Jeannie Walters. We were given an exclusive peek behind the
Earlier today I was the guest on a leadership podcast. Among other topics, we discussed organizational values. Too often the term “values” conjures up images of the corporate orientation video or inspirational break room posters and is otherwise widely ignored in the daily execution of job functions. Today I’d like
Several years ago, I made the following observation. In fact, it prompted me to write the book, Delight Your Customers: While employees consistently execute the mandatory job functions for which they are paid, they inconsistently demonstrate voluntary customer service behaviors for which there is little or no additional cost to their
Back in the Dark Ages of gathering customer feedback, companies distributed hard copy customer satisfaction surveys with prepaid postage to increase response rates and then waited weeks to collect, analyze, and distribute the feedback. And when warranted, it took even longer to follow up with individual survey respondents. Another common
Do you know any managers who have made these types of comments?: “Why are my people so lazy?” or “I’ve got to watch my people like a hawk!” or “If I had more people like (insert name of superstar employee here), then our customer service scores would shoot through the
During a recent Q&A session, I was asked this question: “How do you inspire employees to continue to offer excellent customer service when they are not recognized by supervisors when they do?” It’s no different than when employees are not recognized for executing their job functions: the duties and tasks
During a recent Q&A session, I was asked this question: “How do you motivate employees to go above and beyond who are complacent and content to simply go through the motions at work, do the bare minimum, and collect a paycheck?” First of all, I don’t believe it’s possible to
Last week, our family dined for the last time at The Broker, a Denver restaurant founded 46 years ago by my father-in-law, Ed Novak. Dozens of family members joined us from across the country to honor Ed and the legacy of his restaurant. Several toasts and tributes were offered to
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