Archive for June, 2010
Wednesday, June 30th, 2010
 No matter how well informed you may become, no matter how much knowledge you acquire in your field, it is important to remember that very few have ever accomplished more or gone far in any endeavor without the assistance and cooperation of many people. Leadership, goal achievement, and effective communication are inseparable, and they are all inextricably tied to trust. Valueship provides the values, direction, and strategy that support and guide behaviors.
Open and honest communications are always important, but in times of major change, communication is critical. When people are unsure and insecure and feel as if they don’t know what’s going on rumors and innuendos abound, and blame generally gets placed on management. Not knowing is worse than knowing (even bad news). Take the time to communicate face-to-face if possible, one at a time. This gives you an opportunity to show your concern and respect. It also gives you and them the opportunity to address questions and feelings, as well as discover the best solutions. What and how you communicate is critical.
Communication is the exchange of ideas between two people. It involves more than telling. Effective communication is “connecting.” Effective communication results in understanding and it involves feeling. It is an active two-way process. It is not accurate to think that when we communicate with others, we transfer a precise piece of information from one mind to another. Words in and of themselves do not have explicit meanings that are unaffected by other influences. Instead, people have meaning for them. The meaning that any one person places upon words is influenced by gestures, expressions, intonations, and beliefs.
It is in the sharing of ideas and thoughts and emotions between 2 or more people that communication occurs. Exchanging facts or data is only part of the process. The feelings and emotions that develop during the course of any transaction strongly influence the behavior of those involved, and ultimately the outcome of the conversation. Human behavior is rarely a result of strictly logical and rational thought. Effective communication hinges on our ability to make emotional contact with the listener.
Once you understand the role that emotions play in communication, you can begin to put yourself in the other person’s shoes. This is called empathy, and it is a quality that can be cultivated by developing genuine interest in other people. It is far easier to do this when you are authentic, genuine, and honest.
Empathy is not to be confused with sympathy, nodding your approval, or simply agreeing with another person’s point of view so as to appear understanding. Empathy is recognizing the fact that others are entitled to their beliefs, just as you are, that they have certain needs to satisfy and goals to achieve, just as you do. Communicate with both words and actions that reveal genuine interest in people as individuals and in what they say and feel. They need to know you appreciate their efforts and their accomplishments are recognized. Knowing their needs, you can chart a career path designed to give them what they want and contribute to the overall achievement of the organizational goals. People respond positively to this type of leadership because they realize that they are actually only doing what you sensed they wanted to anyway.
For some reason, many people believe that the ability to speak articulately is an important prerequisite to successful communication. St. Francis of Assisi said that we should “Seek first to understand then to be understood,” It is impossible to find out what someone is thinking or feeling unless we listen to what they are trying to tell us. In valuing others, what others are trying to tell us, we establish value for what we are trying to communicate to them. By valuing others we add value to ourselves.
Tammy A.S. Kohl is President of Resource Associates Corporation. For over 30 years, RAC has specialized in helping businesses and individuals achieve high levels of excellence and success. Learn how at www.resourceassociatescorp.com or contact RAC directly at 800.799.6227.
Tags: communication, empathy, Francis of Assisi, Leadership, RAC, resource associates corp, Resource Associates Corporation, strategy, Values
Posted in Communications, Leadership | No Comments »
Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010
 “Your listeners won’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” - Anonymous
One fundamental truth about effective communications is that people will not believe what you say if they don’t believe in you. Credibility is the cornerstone of successful communication. To be an effective communicator, you must be believed. To be believed, you must be credible. To be credible, you must be authentic. To be authentic, you must be genuine. You must be you! Accordingly, authenticity is a state of constant evolution. The authentic person is someone who knows who they are, who they want to become, and what their core values are. Authentic people value themselves and give value to others. They are usually confident and open, trusting, trusted, and believable.
Authentic also means genuine and trustworthy, and trust is vital. People trust you when you are honest with them. Honesty is a critical leadership trait. People need to know you have no hidden agendas and that you honor your commitments and promises. Trustworthiness and believability are synonymous. You can’t have one without the other. To communicate persuasively and effectively you must earn trust, and to earn trust, you must be believable. So, how do you do it?
The first step in being more believable is being yourself. By knowing yourself and understanding your own fears, anxieties, goals, and aspirations, you will be able to relate more closely to others. The key to understanding others is self-understanding. People are more inclined to hear and believe someone who is honest and genuine. Belief is acceptance on faith. Some people will believe you on first impression. Others will need more time. They’ll want to get to know you and need to realize promises kept and will want to know that you walk the talk.
Most people learned early in life who should be trusted. Generally it was those people who were easy to understand and read. People who were happy, warm and caring made you feel good, and you trusted them. Others whose competence and confidence in you and gave you confidence to grow, were also people you trusted to help you achieve goals. These are the same qualities you look for today. These are the qualities others look for you to exhibit. Learn to recognize and speak the language of trust. Strength in your voice, confidence and openness in your posture, and genuine interest in your expressions are all qualities you can use to create trust. Use your personal energy, enthusiasm, and facial expressions along with your words. When you coordinate your vocal tone with your words, with your actions, and with visual messages, you are more likely to be trusted and believed. Trust is one of the most basic but most powerful tools for change.
Many will hear everything you do and say. Your words and actions should be consistent to send the message you want to send. Your personal values and beliefs will be evident through your actions and behavior more than by your words. The only way to communicate values is to act in accordance with them. You can write volumes about the right way to treat people or speak about customer focus or cost containment, but if you publicly berate a staff person, or make a customer wait while you finish a personal matter, or blatantly waste supplies, your message will be what your behavior shows, not what your words say. The more congruency there is between your words and your actions the more people will trust you. As Jack Welch said, “Trust is enormously powerful in a corporation. The only way I know to create that kind of trust is by laying out your values and then walking the talk. You’ve got to do what you say you’ll do consistently and over time.”
Tammy A.S. Kohl is President of Resource Associates Corporation. For over 30 years, RAC has specialized in helping businesses and individuals achieve high levels of excellence and success. Learn how at www.resourceassociatescorp.com or contact RAC directly at 800.799.6227.
Tags: Authenticity, communication, Jack Welch, Leadership, RAC, resource associates, Resource Associates Corporation, trust, Values
Posted in Communications, Leadership | No Comments »
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010
 Significant changes in customer retention rates have resulted in extraordinary improvements in profitability. One survey found that a 5% increase in customer retention consistently resulted in a 25% to 100% increase in profits. These almost unbelievable results would suggest that there must be a powerful force, (your emotional connection to your customer) which needs to be understood and effectively managed.
Creating a new business model that focuses on loyalty would then suggest, in fact, a linkage between all elements of a business system: your employees, customers, and investors and the generation of profits. Providing customer value begins with a management philosophy that supports the cultivation of strong customer relationships and is implemented by having properly trained and motivated employees who know how to deliver value. Research has shown that customers who have an emotional connection and feel valued will repeatedly come back and do business with your organization as well as provide a strong referral base for new customers. Loyal customers repeatedly purchasing your product or service are what generate sustainable business growth and profit. However, your practices and processes that generate loyal customer relationships must be in place before you will begin to see a profitable impact. This model does not work in reverse, although many organizations by their actions appear to think the reverse is possible.
This new business model is important because it initiates a series of steps that can cascade through an organization as follows:
- Revenues and market share grow as your best customers (loyal customers) build repeat purchases and recommend you to others who also become loyal.
- Employee retention increases due to job pride and satisfaction, which in turn creates a loop that reinforces customer retention through familiarity and better service to the customers. Customers like doing business with people they know and your employees want to do the right things because it makes their job easier and far less stressful.
- As costs go down and revenues go up, profits increase. Improved profits provide resources to invest in employee development and compensation (further increasing retention), and in new features and products that enhance customer value. Profits are important not just as an end in themselves. They also allow the organization to improve value and provide additional incentive and reasons for employees, customers, and investors to remain loyal to your organization.
- Costs begin to shrink as the expense of acquiring and serving new customers and replacing old customers declines.
This loyalty model effectively provides insight to success versus failure in any organization. It is clear that the companies or organizations with the highest retention rates (retention of loyal customers) also earn the highest profits and maintain viability. As mentioned earlier, loyal customers reduce cost. In one study, it was found that in most service organizations word of mouth advertising accounted for one-third to one-half of all new customers. Relative customer retention also explains bottom line implications better than market share, scale, cost position, or any variables usually associated with a competitive advantage.
So what can you do differently for your business? Perhaps a good place to start would be to find better ways to create and sustain a loyal customer base. While there will be an investment, the advantages will be enormous for your customers, employees, and investors. Strictly from a financial perspective, revenues increase from improved service quality tend to be 10 to 20 times the costs associated with fixing the problem. What strategies do you need to implement today?
Tammy A.S. Kohl is President of Resource Associates Corporation. For over 30 years, RAC has specialized in helping businesses achieve high levels of excellence and success by adopting customer loyalty strategies as a critical success factor of organizational success. Learn how at www.resourceassociatescorp.com or contact RAC directly at 800.799.6227.
Tags: Customer Loyalty, customer retention, emotional connection, employee retention, margins, profits, RAC, Resource Associates Corporation
Posted in Customer Loyalty | 2 Comments »
Thursday, June 3rd, 2010
 “A financial analyst once asked me if I was afraid of losing control of our organization. I told him I never had control, and I never wanted it. If you create an environment where the people truly participate, you don’t need control. They know what needs to be done and they do it.” - Herb Kelleher, Co Founder of Southwest Airlines
High performance people see things not only as they are, but also as they could be. This is the first step in creating an environment and structure where people truly participate and genuinely believe they are integral to the organization’s success. When people expand their focus on the possible, they begin to seek new and better ways of doing things. They realize they have the capacity to shape their lives rather than accept things as they are. Leadership is the norm, not the exception. Everyone is encouraged to examine situations and lead in response to them. Previous habits of “doing it this way because we have always done it this way” give way to new attitudes, innovative thinking, and process improvements. The philosophy “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it,” gives way to “regardless of how good it is, we can make it better.”
Mentoring people to higher levels of performance requires that you establish the conditions within which performance serves both the organization’s as well as the individual’s best interests. The structure and culture of the organization must support the efforts of the individuals. Everyone needs to realize that his or her best interests and personal successes are served by the success of the entire organization. If the environment is not conducive to supporting and guiding people to new levels of achievement, new skills and behaviors will not thrive. You cannot lead people to higher levels of achievement if the structures do not support the behavior.
The way people think leads to what they do. What people do leads to results. If you want to improve results, it makes sense to improve the way people think. Significant achievement is not likely without change, and change in behavior starts with a change in thinking.
You have no doubt heard the expression, “We are creatures of habit.” There is considerable truth to that statement, for almost all that we do and most of what we think is the result of habits that have been formed during the course of a lifetime. Much of what we do in a 24-hour period demands little conscious thought because we have developed habits that help us accomplish a number of things. Just as much of our behavior is habit, so are most of our attitudes. Attitudes are habits of thought. We have thought the same way about something for so long that it is now a habit. While some habits are useful in preventing us from having to consciously figure out the mechanics each time we confront a familiar situation, many habits keep people from stretching their capabilities and trying new, inventive, and possibly better ideas or techniques. Behavior and performance are likened to attitudes. If you want to improve performance, you have to improve the habits of thought that improve performance.
How are the “we have always done it this way” attitudes and habits holding your organization back from the success you need to achieve?
Tammy A.S. Kohl is President of Resource Associates Corporation. For over 30 years, RAC has specialized in helping businesses and individuals achieve high levels of excellence and success. Learn how at www.resourceassociatescorp.com or contact RAC directly at 800.799.6227.
Tags: Attitudes, Behaviors, habits, Herb Kelleher, Leadership, mentoring, peak performers, RAC, Resource Associates Corporation, Southwest airlines
Posted in Attitudes, Behavior, Leadership | 1 Comment »
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