Loyalty comes from service; and Service starts with a smile...

 

                            serv·ice

                                                /ˈsərvəs/

                                                    noun

                                        1.

                                            the action of helping or doing work for someone.

                                "millions are involved in voluntary service"

                                        2.

                                            assistance or advice given to customers during and after the sale of goods.

                                "they aim to provide better quality of service"

 

The most important factor in customer satisfaction is the customer service provided by employees. A company doesn’t provide customer service – its employees do and complimenting a company for its fine service should be conveyed directly to its employees. A company may set and maintain service standards – these are often what people are referring to when expressing their opinion that service there is great. The key is making employees feel like they own and are responsible for delivering service at the levels articulated in the standards. You must be clear when describing them. Arranging silverware properly on a restaurant table is a business practice; making eye contact, smiling, and being genuinely interested in a customer’s experience is customer service.  Hospitality companies often adhere to what is referred to as the 10-5-3 rule: make eye contact with a guest at a distance of 10 feet, smile and greet them at 5 feet, and inquire if assistance is needed or give a friendly salutation at 3 feet. If that’s all the customer service you want your employees to provide, explain it just that way and leave them to perform it. Then catch them doing it right or coach them if they don’t. And maybe even put some money where your mouth is when they continually do it right. Then enjoy your customer’s loyalty today.

 

Ken Blanchard (born 1939): American author, business consultant and motivational speaker who wrote The One Minute Manager.

Make someone smile...

                                    loy·al·ty

                                                            /ˈloi(ə)ltē/

                                                            noun

1. the quality of being loyal.

                        o a strong feeling of support or allegiance.

 

Not many other names evoke such a vivid picture in your mind as this man and the company he founded. When we started at the Golden Nugget in the early 1980s, we talked about creating Disney like magic and actively studied their concepts and practices. Like making employees feel and act like they were on stage and creating lasting experiences for customers. The smiles they put on people’s faces created strong loyalty among customers and employees. They manage the lines people wait in exceptionally well, but the magic is a whole lot deeper than that. Everything their employees do is focused on making people feel good. And treating employees the same way ensures that they know and understand how it feels and how and why their job is to make the customer feel the same way. They do that so well that people want to see it (their parks, their movies, their channels) again and bring friends. Or come back to work every day and try to get their friends to work there. That’s the concept – while it’s easier said than done, it is doable. Start small. Talk to your employees. Show them you care. Build their trust. And keep doing that every day. That’s how to create loyalty today.

 

Walter Elias Disney (1901 – 1966): American animator, film producer, and entrepreneur. Founder and owner of the Walt Disney Company known today as just Disney.

Listen to you conscience...

white lie

noun

1.     a minor, polite, or harmless lie; a fib.

 

We’re raised to believe that little white lies are harmless. I suppose they are, but how do we then teach the distinction between these and the kinds that are harmful. It’s a slippery slope. We must teach our children and our employees to always tell the truth, even when it hurts. Those times should then be treated as learning opportunities (often for both parties) rather than reasons to yell at them. It they know that they can learn from experiences like that in a safe way then lies can more easily be uncovered and remedied. In the past, I’ve been on the receiving end of the kind of tirade that made me think twice about coming forward and fessing up – but that little voice in my head made me take the high road and face the music. And I must confess that I too have been guilty of starting one of those tirades… only to stop in the face of that same little voice. So, try not to be careless with the truth in small matters lest that lead to the same with important matters. And when lies of any sort are found, be gentle and forgiving. And help people to learn from their mistakes or misstatements today.

 

Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955): German-born theoretical physicist who is widely held to be one of the greatest and most influential scientists of all time.

Be of good character...

char·ac·ter

/ˈker(ə)ktər/

noun

1.

the mental and moral qualities distinctive to an individual.

·       a person's good reputation.

·       a statement of someone’s good qualities.

·       if someone is of good character, they are reliable and honest.

 

In the workplace, it’s especially true that people of character are trusted. During the past 3 days, I volunteered my time at a SHRM Talent Acquisition Conference. It was billed as showcasing the newest and best ways to recruit people. That’s a topic seemingly on everyone’s mind so I thought I’d hang out and see what the latest best practices were. Here’s what I learned: do everything you can to keep the employees you have, and you won’t be so stressed in this tight labor market. Speaker after speaker focused on what you can do to make that happen. Things like training your managers to practice emotional intelligence, having clear communications, paying attention to your employees, giving lots of feedback, coaching them when needed, helping them reach their full potential, and catching them doing things right. That’s not touchy-feely stuff – those are the things that make all leaders effective. And those are the things that increase employee satisfaction and retention. That’s the most effective recruitment tool today.

 

Alfred Adler (1870 – 1937): Austrian medical doctor, psychotherapist, and founder of the school of individual psychology. His emphasis on the importance of feelings of belonging, relationships within the family, and birth order set him apart from Freud and others in their common circle.

Trust your peeps...

·      Competence and confidence go hand in hand.

·      Both are needed for personal and professional success.

 

The best companies spend time and effort to make employees competent in the skills needed for their jobs; but if they don’t trust them to grow into and use those skills, they’ll never gain the confidence to spread their wings and fly. That kind of trust is shown by coaching them to meet expectations and catching them doing things right. Do your outstanding performers know what you think of them and their work? How about those struggling to get into their groove – paying attention to them, giving them the benefit of your experience, and letting them know you’re there for them can give them the confidence to keep going and improve. It all comes down to knowing your employees, walking among, and working with them, mentoring, and coaching them, and treating them the way you wanted your boss to treat you when you were in their place. They’re your human capital, without whom you couldn’t get things done. Show them your trust and let them display their confidence today.

 

Patrick Mosher: Chemical Engineer, M.A in Organizational Communication and M.S. in Human Resources, Global Lead for Sales and Marketing Talent Solutions for Accenture, and Executive in Residence at Purdue University.

Get up Stand up...

·      What kind of impact do you have on those around you? 

·      That question should be woven into every leader’s evaluation. 

 

It’s more than just making sure their people are effective, as it must also be viewed on how their careers fared on his or her watch. We tend to view corporate leaders through a lens of monetary worth, but it’s more than that: did he or she help those that worked for them to be as good and go as far as they could. Integrity is about character, about whether they care, and what they’re willing to do about it. Too many companies think the ultimate measure is the bottom line – too often that leads to attrition of the people that should have been encouraged to stay, to quality issues that ultimately affect customer satisfaction and loyalty, and deferred capital and human investment that weakens sustainability. All that needs to get factored in too. It all starts with how much you care and what you do about that. Get answers to questions like that if you want to assess someone’s greatness today. 

 

Robert Nesta “Bob” Marley (1945 - 1981): Jamaican reggae singer, guitarist, and songwriter, considered one of the pioneers of the genre.

Never be jealous of other's success

·      Sometimes you’re in the right place at the right time.

·      And you create something that takes on a life of its own. 

·      And becomes better known for itself rather that its creator.

 

It’s a leader’s responsibility to create an environment where good ideas flourish. To nurture their employees to think outside the box and look for ways to improves processes and services. To make things better for other employees and customers. I may have had a vision for high volume/high touch hiring practices, applicant tracking, and paperless systems, but it was the people working with me who ran with those ideas and made them great. And all these years later, the people who developed them have faded into the glow of their utility and effectiveness. Today the name “Eiffel” is associated mostly with the tower, not its creator. Don’t hold back with your good ideas – let them create excitement among the peeps working on them, give them both the time and space to flourish, and allow everyone to bask in the glow  as they become more famous than you. That’s how great thinks get started and gain notoriety today.

 

Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (1832 – 1923): French civil engineer best known for the world-famous Eiffel Tower, and his contribution to building the Statue of Liberty in New York.