Blog

Steve

How to create an inspired workforce: Reveal

This post is the fourth in a series devoted to creating an inspired workforce. I will share additional posts over the coming weeks to support leaders, managers, and supervisors in this effort. In summary, the first three steps are to 1.) discover the total job role, which consists of both

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Steve

Increase your customer service strength

I recently received a delivery of a weightlifting system by a local fitness equipment company. I met the delivery truck in my driveway and gave the foreman a quick orientation about the best door to use, location of the weight room containing the old universal weight machine that required dismantling

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Steve

The Curse of Knowledge Can Derail Innovation

I heard a story on the Manager Tools podcast that stuck with me. In the late ‘70s the chairman of Sony Corp., Akio Morita, noticed a lot of young people walking around carrying a boom box on their shoulder during a visit to New York City. He immediately thought to

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Steve

The Commitment Quadrant

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

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To ignore customers is to ignore principles

Last Friday, Alfred Angelo bridal retail stores filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy protection and abruptly closed its retail stores leaving throngs of brides in the lurch – most of whom had either paid in full or left a deposit. While there was internal communication to its stores (to shutter), there

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Why I fired Orbitz

I will apologize in advance for the detailed account that follows of an Orbitz service failure. It’s my preference to avoid long-drawn-out accounts of customer service stories – whether chronicling heroic triumphs or abysmal failures. Let’s face it: we all have plenty of experience with both. And while the details

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Does your website promise more than you deliver?

Over spring break last month, like many Colorado families, we headed to Breckenridge for the week to ski and board. I had booked a 3-bedroom condominium through VRBO (Vacation Rental by Owner) at a lodge at the base of Peak 8. I booked this unit in particular because of the

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More Proof That Perception Matters

I recently developed a learning activity for a client who wanted his team of 60 commercial property managers to recognize the influence that biases, preconceived notions, and assumptions had on the quality of their tenant interactions. My client was motivated by the recurring conflict that arose whenever property managers had

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Customer feedback: a gift that keeps on giving

A study by Maritz Research and Evolve24 revealed that of 1,298 Twitter complaints, only 29 percent were replied to by the companies in question. Yesterday, during a phone interview, I was asked, “Why do you think company representatives choose to ignore feedback from customers – whether through Twitter, Facebook, or

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