On a recent stop at a coffee shop, I walked in and the barista was chatting with their teammates. So I stood patiently waiting to be helped. This made me pause. Were any of these employees considering, “There’s a person here who pays our paychecks” or “We should help this person because they are key … Continue reading What were they thinking? Apparently, nothing at all.

Why should I care? Why should I bother with making my work stand out? Why should I go above and beyond? I mean, it’s just a job. Reason 1: self-respect Reason 2: you sell yourself short by not pursuing it Reason 3: you can only love what you do by giving love to the work … Continue reading Why bother to deliver extraordinary?

Do you like Cracker Jack? Caramel-covered popcorn with peanuts. It’s a nice treat but it’s probably not the first thing you thought of when you saw the name. What most likely came to mind was the surprise. That little toy sitting somewhere in the box. I’ve seen kids dump out the contents into a bowl … Continue reading Diligence and vigilance. The keys to customer wow.

I just read an article stating the following: “A direct correlation has been established between customer experience and loyalty.“ Is this news somehow? Is there anyone in business that doesn’t know this…intuitively? If not…what do you not get? When you’re a customer, if you get awful service and have a terrible experience, do you go … Continue reading Customer experience has a correlation to customer loyalty … DUH.

“The death of one person is a tragedy. The death of millions is a statistic.” -Kurt Tucholsky (quoted by Joseph Stalin) Dehumanization. It’s the denial of the humanity of others to justify behavior. It’s a big deal and a big problem.  For decades, we have been chipping away at removing humans and their concerns from … Continue reading I’m for the humans.

I chuckle when I hear executives boast that 98% of their customers say they are satisfied. While that sounds really good, is it really? Imagine you sell some high-priced techno-gadget. Now, imagine you sold 100,000 of them last year. If you had 98% satisfied customers, you also had 2% unsatisfied. That’s 2000 people. 2000!  Are … Continue reading Numbers can be misleading.

Ordinary is defined as having no special or distinctive features, i.e., humdrum.  Sounds to me like ‘good enough,’ and if you are like me and want a more than humdrum world, ‘good enough’ is not ‘good enough.' I want things and experiences that make me take notice, things and experiences that are remarkable. But why … Continue reading In a world with AI, ordinary = replacement.

If you are a business leader and you have to ask what customer experience is or why it matters, I don’t “get” what you don’t “get,” but never mind, I’ll make it easy. When you’re a customer, do you like being treated with indifference? Do you like hassles? Do you like working with businesses that … Continue reading What don’t you “get” about customer experience?

I recently read A Passion for Excellence, co-authored by Tom Peters and Nancy Austin. It’s an oldie; mine says it was published in 1985, but it was worth the read. The writing oscillates between Austin’s measured, conservative style and Peters’ "don’t just sit there, do something" approach, and while one might think this would cause … Continue reading BOOK REVIEW: A Passion for Excellence by Tom Peters and Nancy Austin

Service is making coffee for the house in the morning. It is taking the kids to school. It is helping a colleague with a report. It is sharing a great idea for process improvement. It is picking up eggs and milk on the way home. Service is everywhere at almost any time in our lives. … Continue reading Service.  It’s more than customer service.