I have a client who is an extremely large freight company with an amazing delivery-on-time ratio of over 99%. But, it is not just getting the merchandise there on time that makes them so good, it’s getting it there on-time, and undamaged. They concentrate on getting their employees to think like an owner, to try and recognize problems and take ownership of the problem rather than leave the problem for someone else to fix. (In most cases, fixing a problem after-the-fact, costs more and results in a seriously upset customer.)
I’m doing a program next week on “Embracing Change.” One of my slides asks: Fix What - Offer What - Change What - Improve What - Focus on What? For many companies defining the “WHAT” is a big problem. I have always believed EVERYTHING … decisions, products, services, policies and procedures revolve around the customer. Years ago, I made the statement, “The day we forget we are in business for the customer, is the day we start going out of business.” I believe that statement as strongly today as I did then.
We have all had a lot of “Firsts” in our lives; our first step, first day of school, first kiss, first dance, first car and our first job. The list can go on and on with the things we have done for the first time. Some were really hard, some we thought were going to be hard but turned out a lot simpler than we feared and some just happened by accident … but we got through them all. Then we all have had some pretty neat “Lasts” in our lives as well: the last time you had to ask your parent’s permission, the last time you had a curfew on a date, the last time you had to study for a French, trigonometry, or chemistry final …or whatever courses you hated. Life is full of lots of great
A while back I had the opportunity to work for a company that, in my opinion, is doing it right. They understand the importance of teamwork, camaraderie, and creating a sense of pride for everyone working at their organization. One thing they are doing that is helping to create their “One For All” culture is having a mentoring program for every new employee. Now, some people would assume that the older, more experienced person is mentoring the younger, less experienced person; if that is what you are thinking, you are half right.
The Internet has revolutionized the computer and communications world like nothing before it. This world-wide broadcasting system can disseminate information without regard to geographic locations at the speed of a “click,” and there lies a BIG PROBLEM. The “Speed-of- a-Click” has now conditioned us to how fast we expect things.