We know that trust is the basis for all enduring relationships. Trust is personal and intimate. It’s fragile and requires nurturing. For your customers, the depth of that trust is dependent on more than the reliability of your offerings, or even the fulfillment of your promises. It fundamentally depends on how well your people create a human connection with your customer’s people, providing a personal touch that becomes a vital differentiator when your customer has …
For customers, it’s the first person they contact who creates that critical first impression of your business. If that person listens more than talks, probes to learn more about what the customer needs,and takes ownership for resolving that need, then it is likely that the customer will welcome the opportunity to build a trust relationship with your company. Recognizing that trust can only take root once your promise to the customer is realized, taking ownership …
Executing a new strategy involves acting in a new or different way; it’s a change process. Because the strategy is a change, there will likely be some resistance to it. Those who will implement the strategy, and those impacted by it, want to understand its objective and why this is the best way to achieve it. They will assess how well the strategy aligns with company culture, and how they will personally be affected by …
Leaders grow stronger, becoming more effective, as they collaborate with their teams to overcome obstacles and solve problems that improve results. As Warren Bennis once stated: “Leaders learn bestby leading in the face of obstacles. As weather shapes mountains, problems shape leaders.”Leaders develop their teams to meet the required challenges, and deepen their own competency, by: Earning the trust of their teams. They walk the talk, keep promises and lead from the front, engaging with …
Pursuing innovation doesn’t compel us to understand the future, except to recognize that future business sustainability relies on our relentless awareness of how customer needs and goals are evolvingover time. Successful innovations create value for customers, strengthening those relationships, while improving differentiation, increasing revenue, reinforcing company culture, and boosting employee pride and satisfaction.Only the largest of organizations can afford to invest specific resources in innovation; but innovation is a must-have” for all businesses to drive progress and secure sustainability, so: …
There’s never enough time. That’s why it’s difficult to slow down and recognize meaningful moments that require more attentiveness. Perhaps it’s a mentoring moment when your time is focused on developing the skills of a direct report. Or maybe it’s during a team meeting that’s considering a change initiative and you need theircommitment to the change.Whenever these moments occur, they are times for asking questions and listening, not assuming and telling. They are times when …
When first meeting a prospective customer, the objective is to establish rapport, a personal connection, something you have in common, that can be the kindling for igniting a new relationship. The connection might emerge from the circumstances that caused you to meet, or from a shared experience, or from something you notice about the person. It’s what launches a conversation thatreveals your common experiences and values to one another, the human touch that enables trust …
Improving business results can often feel like you’re sitting astride the fulcrum of a teeter-totter. One side of the seesaw represents the process and precedent that delivers efficiency, quality and risk aversion. The other side embodies a challenge to the status quo, a drive to innovate and improve which is mandatory for progress, customer retention and value creation. A leader has one foot on each side, striving for equilibrium. Sometimes leaders must put more weight …
The prime directive for leaders is to improve results. One way they accomplish this by nurturing a culture which understands what has produced success, challenges the status quo, and cultivates ashared commitment for embracing productive change that creates value for their customers and their business. A key component of building this culture is recognizing their responsibility to develop those they lead. Their experience has taught that the most beneficial learning is accomplished by ‘doing,’ so these leaders …
Securing a team’s commitment to a direction, decision or action, typically requires the resolving of differences within the team to identify and agree on the best way forward. These 3 steps can help: 1. Employ empathy. As the discussion begins, listen empathetically to the differing perspectives, asking questions to clarify or confirm. If the dialogue stalls, use expressions of consideration and tolerance to remove any sense of threat so the sharing of ideas may continue. A typical comment would be: …