As much as we try to complicate what great service is...
it's really pretty simple: It is giving more than the customer expects...consistently.
You notice I said simple, not easy. There is a big difference!
Here is an example to illustrate that :
Now I'm a big fan of Nordstrom. My wife is a bigger fan! For many years we've been impressed with the “Nordstrom attitude” when it comes to servicing their customers. A few years ago, we were in Nordstrom doing some last minute Christmas shopping. As we were walking through the men's department, an employee came out of nowhere and said, “Sir, wait right here, I'll be right back.” I watched him run over to the next counter about 100 feet away, grab something and start running back. When he got back, he said, “Sir, I think you've been trying on sweaters.” I said, “How'd you know?” He said, “The back of your black shirt looks like it's been snowed on, and it's not snowing in here!”
We both laughed and he proceeded to remove the fuzz with his lint roller. After about 10 seconds, he said, “That's it...You're free to buy more stuff! I hope you and your wife have a wonderful Christmas!”
After spending about one hour in the store, we each had 3 Nordstrom bags, and as we were walking out the exit into the rest of the mall, another employee ran over and said, “Let me keep all these bags here while you do the rest of your shopping. They'll be right here, just ask for me.” He introduced himself and he handed me his card.
About one hour later, with more packages from the mall, we came back. As we walked into the store, I saw the gentleman who had taken our bags walking towards us and with a big smile, “Welcome back Mr. and Mrs. Anderson.” He then looked at our new shopping bags and said, “My goodness, you're going to have a load. Can I help you take these bags to the car?” Now please understand, it's Christmas, the store is full of people, it's cold outside, the parking lot is full...and this gentleman is asking if he can help take our bags to the car! Even though I said, “No thanks” I knew his intentions were 100% sincere.
I have to tell you the whole service experience on that day blew me away, but I've learned over the years, it's business as unusual at Nordstrom!
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Cause of Turnover ?
WHY EMPLOYEES LEAVE ORGANISATIONS ? - Azim Premji, CEO- Wipro
Every company faces the problem of people leaving the company for better pay or profile.
Early this year, Mark, a senior software designer, got an offer from a prestigious international firm to work in its India operations developing specialized software. He was thrilled by the offer. He had heard a lot about the CEO. The salary was great. The company had all the right systems in place employee-friendly human resources (HR) policies, a spanking new office, and the very best technology, even a canteen that served superb food. Twice Mark was sent abroad for training. "My learning curve is the sharpest it's ever been," he said soon after he joined.
Last week, less than eight months after he joined, Mark walked out of the job. Why did this talented employee leave ?Arun quit for the same reason that drives many good people away.
The answer lies in one of the largest studies undertaken by the Gallup Organization. The study surveyed over a million employees and 80,000 managers and was published in a book called "First Break All The Rules".
It came up with this surprising finding: If you're losing good people, look to their immediate boss . Immediate boss is the reason people stay and thrive in an organization. And he's/she's the reason why people leave.
When people leave they take knowledge, experience and contacts with them, straight to the competition. "People leave managers not companies," write the authors Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman. Mostly manager drives people away?HR experts say that of all the abuses, employees find humiliation the most intolerable. The first time, an employee may not leave, but a thought has been planted. The second time, that thought gets strengthened. The third time, he looks for another job.
When people cannot retort openly in anger, they do so by passive aggression. By digging their heels in and slowing down. By doing only what they are told to do and no more. By omitting to give the boss crucial information. Dev says: "If you work for a jerk, you basically want to get him into trouble. You don 't have your heart and soul in the job." Different managers can stress out employees in different ways - by being too controlling, too suspicious, too pushy, too critical, but they forget that workers are not fixed assets, they are free agents. When this goes on too long, an employee will quit - often over a trivial issue.
Talented staff leaves. Dead wood doesn't.
Every company faces the problem of people leaving the company for better pay or profile.
Early this year, Mark, a senior software designer, got an offer from a prestigious international firm to work in its India operations developing specialized software. He was thrilled by the offer. He had heard a lot about the CEO. The salary was great. The company had all the right systems in place employee-friendly human resources (HR) policies, a spanking new office, and the very best technology, even a canteen that served superb food. Twice Mark was sent abroad for training. "My learning curve is the sharpest it's ever been," he said soon after he joined.
Last week, less than eight months after he joined, Mark walked out of the job. Why did this talented employee leave ?Arun quit for the same reason that drives many good people away.
The answer lies in one of the largest studies undertaken by the Gallup Organization. The study surveyed over a million employees and 80,000 managers and was published in a book called "First Break All The Rules".
It came up with this surprising finding: If you're losing good people, look to their immediate boss . Immediate boss is the reason people stay and thrive in an organization. And he's/she's the reason why people leave.
When people leave they take knowledge, experience and contacts with them, straight to the competition. "People leave managers not companies," write the authors Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman. Mostly manager drives people away?HR experts say that of all the abuses, employees find humiliation the most intolerable. The first time, an employee may not leave, but a thought has been planted. The second time, that thought gets strengthened. The third time, he looks for another job.
When people cannot retort openly in anger, they do so by passive aggression. By digging their heels in and slowing down. By doing only what they are told to do and no more. By omitting to give the boss crucial information. Dev says: "If you work for a jerk, you basically want to get him into trouble. You don 't have your heart and soul in the job." Different managers can stress out employees in different ways - by being too controlling, too suspicious, too pushy, too critical, but they forget that workers are not fixed assets, they are free agents. When this goes on too long, an employee will quit - often over a trivial issue.
Talented staff leaves. Dead wood doesn't.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
The Power Within
"Believe in yourself and in your dream,
Though impossible things may seem;
That some how, some way you'll see it through to the goal you have in view.
Mountains fall and seas divide before the one who in his stride
takes the hard road day by day sweeping obstacles away.
Believe in yourself and in your plan;
Say not I can not but rather I can.
The prizes of life we fail to win
Because we doubt the power within
Anonymous
Though impossible things may seem;
That some how, some way you'll see it through to the goal you have in view.
Mountains fall and seas divide before the one who in his stride
takes the hard road day by day sweeping obstacles away.
Believe in yourself and in your plan;
Say not I can not but rather I can.
The prizes of life we fail to win
Because we doubt the power within
Anonymous
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Art of Listening
Listen and Learn from Others
Have you ever been in a situation where someone in authority starts talking about the workplace, and you think “This person has no clue!” because his words bear no resemblance to reality? Well, you’re not alone.
All too often we forget one of the basics of leadership: Listening.
Of all the leadership attributes, listening may be the most important. You can have all the other leadership skills, but if you don’t listen to people, it’s all for naught.The leader who listens knows what’s going on around him or her because listening opens the doors to genuine communication.
It demonstrates respect and caring for others. But listening only gets you part way to better leadership.
You must also learn from it and use that learning to guide your actions. It’s only through learning that we are able to change, grow, and prepare for the future. Listening and learning help make a leader credible because they compel the leader to put people first. And that’s when really good things can happen. Here are three tips to help you be a better listener…and a better learner:
1. Know the difference between hearing and listening. To hear means “to perceive by the ear.” To listen means “to pay attention.” There’s a big difference.
2. Get into the ACT of listening. Employ body language. Look at the person who is speaking. Make and keep eye contact. Position your body in a way that shows you are open and receptive to what the person is saying.
3. Adopt the 2/1 rule: Listen twice as much as you talk. Why do you think we have two ears and one mouth
Have you ever been in a situation where someone in authority starts talking about the workplace, and you think “This person has no clue!” because his words bear no resemblance to reality? Well, you’re not alone.
All too often we forget one of the basics of leadership: Listening.
Of all the leadership attributes, listening may be the most important. You can have all the other leadership skills, but if you don’t listen to people, it’s all for naught.The leader who listens knows what’s going on around him or her because listening opens the doors to genuine communication.
It demonstrates respect and caring for others. But listening only gets you part way to better leadership.
You must also learn from it and use that learning to guide your actions. It’s only through learning that we are able to change, grow, and prepare for the future. Listening and learning help make a leader credible because they compel the leader to put people first. And that’s when really good things can happen. Here are three tips to help you be a better listener…and a better learner:
1. Know the difference between hearing and listening. To hear means “to perceive by the ear.” To listen means “to pay attention.” There’s a big difference.
2. Get into the ACT of listening. Employ body language. Look at the person who is speaking. Make and keep eye contact. Position your body in a way that shows you are open and receptive to what the person is saying.
3. Adopt the 2/1 rule: Listen twice as much as you talk. Why do you think we have two ears and one mouth
Purpose Driven Life
THE GREATEST ADVICE -Rick Warren, the Purpose Driven Life
Don't date because you are desperate.
Don't marry because you are miserable.
Don't have kids because you think your genes are superior.
Don't philander because you think you are irresistible.
Don't associate with people you can't trust.
Don't cheat. Don't lie. Don't pretend.Don't dictate because you are smarter.
Don't demand because you are stronger.
Don't sleep around because you think you are old enough & know better.
Don't hurt your kids because loving them is harder.
Don't sell yourself, your family, or your ideals.
Don't stagnate!Don't regress.
Don't live in the past. Time can't bring anything or anyone back.
Don't put your life on hold for possibly Mr. Right.
Don't throw your life away on absolutely Mr. Wrong because your biological clock is ticking.Learn a new skill.Find a new friend.Start a new career.
Sometimes, there is no race to be won, only a price to be paid for some of life's more hasty decisions.
To terminate your loneliness, reach out to the homeless.
To feed your nurturing instincts, care for the needy.
To fulfill your parenting fantasies, get a puppy.Don't bring another life into this world for all the wrong reasons.
To make yourself happy, pursue your passions & be the best of what you can be.Simplify your life.
Take away the clutter.Get rid of destructive elements: abusive friends, nasty habits, and dangerous liaisons.
Don't abandon your responsibilities but don't overdose on duty.
Don't live life recklessly without thought and feeling for your family. Be true to yourself.
Don't commit when you are not ready.Don't keep others waiting needlessly.Go on that trip. Don't postpone it.Say those words.
Don't let the moment pass.Do what you have to, even at society's scorn. Write poetry.Love Deeply.Walk barefoot.Dance with wild abandon.Cry at the movies.Take care of yourself.
Don't wait for someone to take care of you.You light up your life.You drive yourself to your destination. No one completes you - except YOU.It isn't true that life does not get easier with age.It only gets more challenging.
Don't be afraid. Don't lose your capacity to love.Pursue your passions.Live your dreams.
Don't lose faith in God.Don't grow old. Just grow YOU!When you give someone your time, you are giving them a portion of your life that you'll never get back.Your time is your life. That is why the greatest gift you can give to someone is your time.
Relationships take time and effort, and the best way to spell love is T-I-M-E because the essence of love is not what we think or do or provide for others, but how much we give of ourselves .
Don't date because you are desperate.
Don't marry because you are miserable.
Don't have kids because you think your genes are superior.
Don't philander because you think you are irresistible.
Don't associate with people you can't trust.
Don't cheat. Don't lie. Don't pretend.Don't dictate because you are smarter.
Don't demand because you are stronger.
Don't sleep around because you think you are old enough & know better.
Don't hurt your kids because loving them is harder.
Don't sell yourself, your family, or your ideals.
Don't stagnate!Don't regress.
Don't live in the past. Time can't bring anything or anyone back.
Don't put your life on hold for possibly Mr. Right.
Don't throw your life away on absolutely Mr. Wrong because your biological clock is ticking.Learn a new skill.Find a new friend.Start a new career.
Sometimes, there is no race to be won, only a price to be paid for some of life's more hasty decisions.
To terminate your loneliness, reach out to the homeless.
To feed your nurturing instincts, care for the needy.
To fulfill your parenting fantasies, get a puppy.Don't bring another life into this world for all the wrong reasons.
To make yourself happy, pursue your passions & be the best of what you can be.Simplify your life.
Take away the clutter.Get rid of destructive elements: abusive friends, nasty habits, and dangerous liaisons.
Don't abandon your responsibilities but don't overdose on duty.
Don't live life recklessly without thought and feeling for your family. Be true to yourself.
Don't commit when you are not ready.Don't keep others waiting needlessly.Go on that trip. Don't postpone it.Say those words.
Don't let the moment pass.Do what you have to, even at society's scorn. Write poetry.Love Deeply.Walk barefoot.Dance with wild abandon.Cry at the movies.Take care of yourself.
Don't wait for someone to take care of you.You light up your life.You drive yourself to your destination. No one completes you - except YOU.It isn't true that life does not get easier with age.It only gets more challenging.
Don't be afraid. Don't lose your capacity to love.Pursue your passions.Live your dreams.
Don't lose faith in God.Don't grow old. Just grow YOU!When you give someone your time, you are giving them a portion of your life that you'll never get back.Your time is your life. That is why the greatest gift you can give to someone is your time.
Relationships take time and effort, and the best way to spell love is T-I-M-E because the essence of love is not what we think or do or provide for others, but how much we give of ourselves .
Saturday, September 6, 2008
“Things turn out the best for those who make the best of the way things turn out
In Kangundo, Kenya, there are two seasons, rainy and dry. Farmers plow and plant corn during the dry season when the soil is loose and easy to turn. With the corn seeds in the ground, farmers know their crop will germinate when rain falls. Planting in the dry season also ensures that the corn seeds are not unearthed by squirrels because it impossible for them to tell which spots have seeds and which do not when the soil is dry.
This metaphor applies to many aspects of life. When we do things because we are forced to, it is like planting after the rain falls. The soil is heavy, and “social squirrels” may interfere with our progress. Anxiety, panic or illness may set in and curtail our success.
Here are key perspectives to ponder and plant in your dry season.
You must not use past failed “rainfall” or “harvests” as reasons why not to plant. You don’t invest for the past. You invest for the future. Your past failures are successes if you learned the lessons.
Determine the future you expect and invest. Farmers have to determine the harvestthey want whether of corn, beans, or millet, and then plant the seeds. Goals withoutexecutable plans are mere wishes. It has been said that the only place where successcomes before work is in the dictionary. It is also the place where the word harvestingcomes before the investing word. When last did you read a book or attend a workshop onwhat you want to do in the future?
Crops that germinate shortly after rainfall are planted in dry season. To survive and thrive in the present turbulent workplace, one has to prepare with foresight rather than hindsight. Chance favors those who are prepared. It is easier to learn the skills foryour next position while you are at ease with your current one. Unspectacular preparation is the springboard of spectacular performance.
Farmers in areas with erratic rainfall survive by mixed cropping. They plant crops thatcan do well with limited rains and crops that do well with adequate rains. That way theyare promised of some harvest with or without adequate rains. Diversifying yourbusiness, skills and strategies also reaps benefits too.
Find business or professional networks where you can share resources and marketingefforts. If Marriot hotels can partner with Expedia.com to keep people in their hotels,why won’t you find strategic allies?
Faith, believing that your decisions and actions will culminate in a harvest, is the fuelthat keeps you “planting” even when there are no clouds in the horizons.
This metaphor applies to many aspects of life. When we do things because we are forced to, it is like planting after the rain falls. The soil is heavy, and “social squirrels” may interfere with our progress. Anxiety, panic or illness may set in and curtail our success.
Here are key perspectives to ponder and plant in your dry season.
You must not use past failed “rainfall” or “harvests” as reasons why not to plant. You don’t invest for the past. You invest for the future. Your past failures are successes if you learned the lessons.
Determine the future you expect and invest. Farmers have to determine the harvestthey want whether of corn, beans, or millet, and then plant the seeds. Goals withoutexecutable plans are mere wishes. It has been said that the only place where successcomes before work is in the dictionary. It is also the place where the word harvestingcomes before the investing word. When last did you read a book or attend a workshop onwhat you want to do in the future?
Crops that germinate shortly after rainfall are planted in dry season. To survive and thrive in the present turbulent workplace, one has to prepare with foresight rather than hindsight. Chance favors those who are prepared. It is easier to learn the skills foryour next position while you are at ease with your current one. Unspectacular preparation is the springboard of spectacular performance.
Farmers in areas with erratic rainfall survive by mixed cropping. They plant crops thatcan do well with limited rains and crops that do well with adequate rains. That way theyare promised of some harvest with or without adequate rains. Diversifying yourbusiness, skills and strategies also reaps benefits too.
Find business or professional networks where you can share resources and marketingefforts. If Marriot hotels can partner with Expedia.com to keep people in their hotels,why won’t you find strategic allies?
Faith, believing that your decisions and actions will culminate in a harvest, is the fuelthat keeps you “planting” even when there are no clouds in the horizons.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Improvise to Maximize
Great conversations result when there’s an easy give and take, a go-with-the-flow sensation, along with an acute sense that you are being heard at a deeper level than the normal chitchat. In this instance, good conversations resemble improvisational theatre. Improv actually depends upon all the actors paying close attention to each other and then working with whatever is presented to them. Let me repeat that: pay attention and work with whatever is presented.
Select someone you’d like to (or need to) talk to. Open up the conversation by stating either why you’ve initiated the conversation or by asking an open-ended question. Then, practice these techniques:
Encourage talking by saying, “Yes…tell me more.” This means that no matter what is stated, don’t change the subject, get defensive, fail to listen, or ignore the response. You have the opportunity to create new and positive results by building upon whatever is said.
Don’t plan your response while the other person is speaking.
Seek what is provocative, interesting, or new in what you are hearing. There’s a gift somewhere. Trust me. Ask the other person to expand on something that intrigues you – even if it bothers you.
Select someone you’d like to (or need to) talk to. Open up the conversation by stating either why you’ve initiated the conversation or by asking an open-ended question. Then, practice these techniques:
Encourage talking by saying, “Yes…tell me more.” This means that no matter what is stated, don’t change the subject, get defensive, fail to listen, or ignore the response. You have the opportunity to create new and positive results by building upon whatever is said.
Don’t plan your response while the other person is speaking.
Seek what is provocative, interesting, or new in what you are hearing. There’s a gift somewhere. Trust me. Ask the other person to expand on something that intrigues you – even if it bothers you.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Doing the right thing ?
There's Never A Wrong Time To Do The Right Thing.
Can there ever be a wrong time to do the right thing? Of course not.
There is only a right time to do the right thing and that right time is always right now. Each of us possess a clear sense of right and wrong. Even as small children, we quickly learned what we should and shouldn't do.
So why should you or I waste another moment doing the wrong things when there are so many right things that need to be done right now? Isn't it about time that each of us redirected our energy and effort on doing as much good for as many people as we possibly can?
Can there ever be a wrong time to do the right thing? Of course not.
There is only a right time to do the right thing and that right time is always right now. Each of us possess a clear sense of right and wrong. Even as small children, we quickly learned what we should and shouldn't do.
So why should you or I waste another moment doing the wrong things when there are so many right things that need to be done right now? Isn't it about time that each of us redirected our energy and effort on doing as much good for as many people as we possibly can?
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