For the month of September I thought I would make it “Ten Tips Month.”   I will share with our readers ten tips to enhance team building ideas, customer service skills, leadership development and sales coaching skills.  Some of these tips may be new ideas to you and others may be reminders of the importance of the things you are already doing.  As I say in my workshops “We all know things, what is most important is what we do with what we know.”

Sales Coaching

Coaching sales people can be very rewarding for a manager.  It is a model that will tap into the sales person’s inner drive to succeed.  I can also help identify any blind spots that may prevent the sales person from reaching their full potential. 

1)      Develop an internal coaching program – it can prove to be very beneficial to have your sales executivesdevelop an internal coaching model.  Using a coaching program to manage your sales people help set the expectations for performance and hold sales reps accountable for their results.

2)      Allow for creativity – effective coaching allows for the art of creating possibilities and opportunities that didn’t exist before.  This can be truly inspiring.

3)      Coach with no agenda – this concept is sometimes difficult for managers to understand.  After they have their targets and numbers that need to be met, right?  This is not what I mean by agenda.  I mean that during a coaching session the manager does not have any expectations of the outcome of each session.  This allows for more creative ideas to flow and for the salesperson to come up with their own solutions.

4)      Eliminate excuses for non performance – often the sale manager themselves have their own limited beliefs around what can and cannot be done.  It really comes down to choice.  I always say “reasons or results.”  Let the sales person choose and as a manager monitor and explore the validity of your own beliefs.  You might be pleasantly surprised at what is possible.

5)      Build trust – the backbone of all relationships is trust.  With trust comes respect.  When you enter into a coaching arrangement trust is paramount.  Do you trust them?  What have you done to earn their trust?  If you don’t trust them or they don’t trust you, then it is highly unlikely you will be able to effectively coach them. 

6)      Tracking performance – critical to success in every area of our lives, this is very important with coaching.  Tracking actions and results is mandatory for any successful coaching arrangement.  It keeps things documented and accountability where it belongs – with the sales person.

7)      Must be coachable – not everyone is coachable.  There has to be a willingness on the part of the sales person to participate in a coaching relationship.  Are they open, willing and determined to succeed.

8)      Clearly identify the “Gap” – the gap is the difference between where the sales person is and where they need to be.  As a coach you need to identify if they have the skills, beliefs and attitude to succeed.  A manager can co-create the strategy to achieve the desired outcome, then track the milestones. 

9)      Be selective –much like we are not able to sell to everyone and need to identify our niche customers, the same applies to coaching.  Be vigilant about who you spend your time and energy coaching.  Only work with those with the willingness and committed to the process.

10)   It’s an inside job – to be an effective sales coach you may have to change what you do and how you think.  Very successful people think and do things differently and this is large part because they are able to manage their mindsets and beliefs.

by Cindy Stradling CSP, CPC

For the month of September I thought I would make it “Ten Tips Month.”   I will share with our readers ten tips to enhance team building ideas, customer service skills, leadership development and sales coaching skills.  Some of these tips may be new ideas to you and others may be reminders of the importance of the things you are already doing.   As I say in my workshops “We all know things, what is most important is what we do with what we know.”

Customer Service

Building and maintaining excellent customer service takes focus and due diligence.  Every customer interaction has the opportunity to communicate how much your organization cares. 

1)      Good enough never is – I love this saying by the Debbi Fields the founder of Mrs. Fields Cookies.  If you ever hear yourself say “good enough” stop and ask yourself “Has this been done to the best of my ability?” or “Has this been done the way it was meant to be done?”

2)      First impressions count – The saying “Your never get a second chance to make a positive first impression” is very true and I think companies need to have a great “first impression” attitude always.  Your relationship with your customers can never be taken for granted or assume once you have them they will be loyal to you.  A few bad experiences can undo a positive “first impression” very quickly.

3)      Sweetest sound – Our name – people love to hear their name.  When interacting with a customer use their name at least once during the conversation.  Caution here, do not over use or it can actually have an adverse effect.

4)      Everyone is your brand 24/7 – sometimes in a workshop when I say this people look at me like I am crazy.  Think about it, you work all day in a company and you sing their praises, then go out for drinks with colleagues and bash and complain about the company.  What are you communicating to your colleagues or anyone else who might be listening?  It is my personal belief when you represent a company (we are all really in customer service) we need to be responsible about what we say both at work and during our time off – 24/7.

5)      Train your employees – give your employees the adequate training and resources to effectively manage all situations that may arise to satisfy any customer issues.  If there is the occasional situation that needs special attention, make sure your employees know the proper channels to go to so they can get things resolved quickly.

6)      Keep in the loop – most customers are understanding when things go wrong.  It is not so much that a problem has occurred, more important how it is handled.  If the situation takes time to resolve make sure you keep the customer updated daily so they are never left with the feeling that no one cares or you have forgotten them.

7)      Online reviews – customers may not complain to you directly and if you have a place for feedback on your website, they may feel more comfortable letting you know this way.  It is also a great practice to perform periodic satisfaction surveys.

8)      Track challenges – when there has been a challenge it is a good practice to debrief what happened and explore ways to change processes to prevent another occurrence.  By tracking and monitoring changes you will have an audit trail of your improvements.  Also letting a customer know that you have addressed the issue will show them you take their loyalty seriously.

9)      Apologize first – when there is a customer complaint – apologize first, then correct the problem.   By telling the customer you are sorry they had this experience, it will show you are willing to take responsibility and it also lets the customer know they were heard.  In some situations the customer may be wrong but they should always have the feeling that you are there to support them.

10)   Employee input – often managers miss the opportunity to solve some of their customer service issues by not asking employees their input.  I learned this the hard way, years ago when I was a Customer Service Manager of a manufacturing company.  I thought I had to have all the answers and solutions.  Not so.  Once I started to ask for suggestions, things moved a lot smoother and new procedures were implemented much quicker when the ideas came from the employees.

By Cindy Stradling CSP, CPC

For the month of September I thought I would make it “Ten Tips Month.”   I will share with our readers ten tips to enhance team building ideas, customer service skills, leadership development and sales coaching skills.  Some of these tips may be new ideas to you and others may be reminders of the importance of the things you are already doing.  As I say in my workshops “We all know things, what is most important is what we do with what we know.”

Leadership Development

There many books, articles and programs on being an effective leader.  I think that this is an area where most of us have growth opportunities.  We are all leaders in our own lives and the following tips on effective leadership can apply in both personal and business situations.

1)      Be the Change  – it is very important to walk your talk and model the attitudes and behaviors you want to inspire and have demonstrated in others.  Be true to your vision/mission.

2)      Listen more – the greatest gift you can give to anyone is the gift of listening.  Giving someone the experience of being heard is a very powerful way to build rapport and respect.

3)      Clear Communication– the ability to clearly communicate your message is paramount to being a successful leader.  One needs to ensure their message is understood.  I often think about the number of mistakes that could be prevented if all of us were more careful with our communication and taking responsibility that the listener has understood us.

4)      Can-Do Attitude – having a positive attitude is much more than thinking positive thoughts.  (although that is extremely important) It also important to consistently communicate what you want versus what you don’t want.  Often people focus on what is missing or what they can’t do.  Focusing more on what you can do is very important and can yield surprising results.

5)      Know yourself – we all have our areas of strengths and areas for improvement.  Take the time to understand yourself and learn the most effective ways of doing things and look at effective ways to manage those areas that you are less proficient in.

6)      Inspire others – we all have leaders that inspire us.  Ask yourself.  “What is it about that person that touches me?”  Then look at ways to develop those attributes in yourself so you can also inspire others.  Most people are inspired by leaders that are authentic.

7)      Open to new ideas – sometimes we can get stuck in a rut in our thinking or our actions.  Often we can stretch ourselves more when we are open to new ideas that may take us out of our comfort zones.

8)      Give regular feedback – letting people know how they are doing is very critical to encouraging employees to continue more with what is working and change what is not.  I frequently hear that the supervisor/manager doesn’t provide any feedback to an employee.  This can be one of the causes of an employee becoming disengaged.

9)      Have  fun – personally I think work should be fun.  As a leader if employees see you smiling, laughing and enjoying your job it can send a strong message that although everyone works hard, it is OK to have fun at work.

10)   Celebrate – publically celebrate and acknowledge the day to day victories of your employees.  I was recently in the lobby of a large organization waiting for an appointment and noticed a large TV screen on the wall.  A video was playing and it was acknowledging employees various contributions during the last month.  Big happy smiling faces on the screen communicated to me that this company looked like an engaging place to work.

By Cindy Stradling CSP, CPC

For the month of September I thought I would make it “Ten Tips Month.”   I will share with our readers ten tips to enhance team building ideas, customer service skills, leadership development and sales coaching skills.  Some of these tips may be new ideas to you and others may be reminders of the importance of the things you are already doing.

Building Powerful Teams

Often companies will take their team offsite for team building exercises.  There are many activities for building teams at the workplace and while these events are very effective, it doesn’t stop there.   To build a powerful team requires a congruent message from management back at the office too. I have listed ten ways to build stronger teams:

 1)  Clearly defined goals – employees need to have the company and manager’s performance expectations defined in a way that the employees know what is expected of them and have the support and resources to their job effectively.

2)  Know area of responsibility – strong teams are built with the support of many people and it is critical that each person knows their area of responsibility.  It also helps employee motivation when they understand how their contribution affects the success of the whole company.

3)  Regular feedback – effective managers know the importance of regular feedback versus waiting for the annual review.   Acknowledging for a job well done will communicate to the employee they are a valued member of the team.

4)  Have regular meetings – getting your team together periodically to update status is another effective way to keep the lines of communication open.  It is important the meetings are scheduled, relevant, have an agenda and stay on track for people to be motivated to attend.

5)  Set reasonable due dates/deadlines – make sure when you are setting timelines for projects that timelines are reasonable.   If the majority of your projects have reasonable timelines then when you need your employees to go above and beyond they are more likely to jump in and go the extra mile.

6)   Encourage activities that develop relationships – regularly conduct activities (possibly after hours) where employees can socialize and get to know one another.

7)  Reward and Recognize – have a program to reward and recognize performance and tenure.   Many companies have programs to publically recognize outstanding achievements and years of service.  Effective managers don’t wait for these events and will recognize accomplishments regularly.

8)  Empowerment and Encouragement – having employees who feel empowered in their positions and managers that encourage (mentor/coach) them will increase employee engagement.  Often employees don’t feel like they are heard.  While you may not be able to implement everyone’s suggestions, having employees who feel they are contributing will increase engagement.

9)  Ongoing training – ensuring your employees have the skills to do their job is critical.  Often when employees are promoted from within they don’t get the proper training to succeed.   Regularly scheduled training for all employees is another great way to communicate their importance to the organization.

10)  Be open to feedback – effective managers are not perfect and sometimes they may do things that negatively impact their team.  Be open to hearing from your team areas were you too can improve your performance and leadership.

By Cindy Stradling CSP, CPC

One Introduction – Many Resources

It’s funny how I first met this client at an aerospace company.  I had called her many times over the period of a couple years.  She was always very pleasant and would never agree to meet with me.  One day when I connected with her, she said “Cindy, I used to be in sales and I know how long it takes to follow up with people before they will agree to meet with you and you have now earned the right.”  I often share this story with the participants in my sales training programs to demonstrate never giving up.

She was a delight to meet and we connected right away.   She had no immediate needs and thought there might be a need for a coach for one of their senior team at some point in the future.  I left her my brochure and we agreed I would follow-up in a couple months.  When I followed up she said they were closer to moving forward with a coach, could I please send her a few options.

I sent her profiles of four of our coaches, advising that the next step would be to have the executive meet with various coaches to determine the best fit.  She arranged this and the executive chose one of our very senior coaches who had worked extensively with leaders both as a trainer and a coach.

A few weeks after the coaching contract had started I got a call from the alliance member.  She was very excited to share with me that she had conducted one of her Emotional Intelligence leadership profiling tools with the executive and he was so thrilled with the results he wanted the entire executive team to take it as well as coaching.  There was five modules in the training and was supported by one-on-one coaching.

That was over a year ago and during a recent conversation this client shared with me how our coach has made a significant impact on the culture and ongoing relationships of their executive team.  Bravo!

More recently I was able to connect her with my partner in Chicago and we were able to provide her with powerful facilitator to deliver an internal program at their Wisconsin office.

They still do a lot of their training in-house and I know that should another need arise that this client will definitely give us the opportunity to work with them again.

By
Cindy Stradling CSP, CPC

So Much to Do in So Little Time!

As I have shared in many of my previous blogs, I am so grateful for the opportunities we have to work with the training and development professionals in organizations.  This story I am sharing is no different.

I had the pleasure of meeting with the learning consultant and his colleague of a large retail chain.  I met with these two gentlemen much the same as I meet with most of my clients, by prospecting.  During our initial meeting they shared that they had no immediate needs and were quite happy they chose to meet with me.  I explained everything about how the alliance worked and how we have consistently been able to provide the right fit training partners.  At the end of the meeting we agreed I would follow up in three months.

Two weeks after our appointment I received a call from one of the consultants explaining they had a rush need for an instructional designer.  They had just got approval to roll out a new program and did not have the internal resources to make it happen on time.  During my conversation with him I learned that they needed this in less than a two week turnaround. They had to design the program and conduct a train the trainer so it could be rolled out in several locations across the country by their internal staff.  I said I had several instructional designers in my alliance and I said I would get to work on it right away.

I called one instructional designer and she was just heading out the door to an appointment.  We continued the call while she was enroute to her appointment.  In order for this to happen, it would mean she would have to work the weekend.  She said of all the weekends, this would be the perfect weekend for her to work on such a project as her husband and son were out of town at a hockey tournament.

She needed a little more information than what I had at the time so we agreed I would virtually connect the two of them so they could determine the fit.  I got a call back the next day advising me that they were going ahead and she was excited for this opportunity.

When I did my follow up call after the completion of the project, the consultant shared with me that our alliance partner was such a delight to work with and she came through above and beyond what he could expect.  He said he was so impressed with her level of commitment to their project, so much so that she actually came and sat in the pilot program on her own time.  Pretty awesome!

 By
Cindy Stradling CSP, CPC

WOW!!!  What an Alliance!

When I first started the Athena Alliance seven years ago I had no idea what great relationships and wonderful people I would have the privilege of working with.  I often hear from my partners what wonderful customers we have.  I couldn’t agree with them more.  We have been able to support small , mid-size and large organizations with a plethora of various training programs, coaching agreements and Human Resources consulting support.

I can remember the first time I met one of my long standing customers.  She was new in her position and had a mandate to create a learning culture for this mid-size construction company.  Her energy and passion for creating a powerful college was infectious.  Every alliance partner has consistently commented on how fantastic it is to work with her and their employees.  She loved the alliance concept right from the beginning and could see how aligning with me could save her a lot of time and also have trust that the trainers and coaches I introduced her to would be able to deliver the customized solutions she required.

To date she has contracted our alliance partners to provide training in the following areas:

• Leadership (many areas)
• Listening skills
• Power hours
• Empowerment programs for the Admin team
• Priority/time management
• Business writing
• Disc
• Presentation Skills
• Mentoring program
• Outlook

Every year we sit together and discuss what they have accomplished in the past year and what they want to focus on in the coming year.  I then get to work with my partners to make sure she has the partnerships she needs to make it happen.   She is such a delight to work with and we are all grateful for the opportunity to provide the ongoing support for this organization. 

Just one more reason I love what  I do!!!

By
Cindy Stradling CSP, CPC

Timing is Everything

When I initially called this manufacturing company two years ago the Human Resources Manager informed me that they only do internal training and never outsourced.  At the time I sent her the information on our training alliance and I said I would follow up.  I called a year later and the situation was still the same.  I called again this past spring and everything had changed.  There was a new person in Human Resources who was delighted that I called her.  She said they had recently does an assessment with their first line supervisors and managers to identify any training gaps.  I booked an appointment to meet with her.  During the assessment I discovered that although they had done their training internally in the past, it primarily consisted of mandatory health and safety training.

She shared that most of their front line supervisors and managers had been promoted from within. None of them had any formal training on how to be effective leaders.  She shared about a specific incident that a supervisor had given an employee a great review and then 2 months later wanted to fire them for poor performance.  She interviewed this particular manager only to find out the reason he gave him such a great review was because he was uncomfortable giving feedback on the areas where the employee was not performing.  The Human Resources Manager knew this was just one of the many areas where these supervisors and managers lacked the training and skills to be effective.

Together we confirmed they needed to have basic training in the following areas:

• Giving feedback
• Handling difficult conversations and confrontation
• Delegation
• Time/priority management
• Communication skills.

I connected her with one of my alliance partner who has extensive experience working with supervisors and managers within an organization.  The first round of programs has been completed successfully and a conversation recently with the plant manager confirmed that the training we provided was exactly what they needed.  We are meeting again in the fall to discuss the next level of training for these supervisors and managers.  The Human Resources Manager shared with me in our last conversation how perfect the timing was that I called and how easy we made it for her to address their immediate needs.

By
Cindy Stradling CSP, CPC

Moving Through Challenges and Up the Corporate Ladder

I love that I have such a rich diverse group of facilitators, trainers, coaches and consultants in my alliance.  I have the good fortune to work with some of the top talent in the industry.  Our customers have come to rely on me to be able to provide them with the right solutions to their challenges.  One of my long standing customers connected with me regarding a situation that she was not sure how to handle.  She and her management team had been working diligently on their company’s succession plan.  Their controller was retiring in eighteen months and she wanted to get started looking for a replacement so the current controller would have ample time to transition the new person into the role.  They typically promoted from within as part of their long term strategy and she was faced with a bit of a dilemma.  They had one individual who was currently working in their accounting department who, on paper, was the perfect candidate.  She had the academic background, had proven herself to be an excellent employee and had expressed an interest in moving up in the company.  The challenge was that English was her second language and she had quite a thick accent.  When the VP of Human Reosurces put this person’s name forward at one of the managers meetings, she was immediately dismissed due to her accent.

My client felt this was unfair and also understood why they couldn’t promote her with the communication skills she currently had.  She asked me if I had any suggestions.  I was delighted to tell her that I had an amazing partner Heather who worked with individuals to help them develop stronger English speaking skills and significantly reduce their accent.  I connected Heather with the client and Heather has been working with this employee for the past several months.  When I last spoke with my client she was thrilled at the progress this employee was making and was confident that by the time the position needed to be filled, this employee would step into the position beautifully.

As I have said many times in the past and will say in the future…I love what I do!!!

By Cindy Stradling CSP, CPC

The Many Faces of Customer Service

I have had many requests over the years for customer service training.  We pride ourselves in our ability to tailor every training program to meet the specific needs of our clients.  I spend the time needed up front during the assessment stage to ensure I clearly understand the objectives and desired outcomes from the program.

Several years ago we delivered customer service training to a local funeral home.  Initially it was for the people who interacted with the families of the deceased.  The pilot was so successful that they decided to roll it out company wide.  This included delivering to the grave diggers.  I remember calling David (the alliance partner who delivered this program) one day and he said he was on his way to visit the grave diggers to have a better understanding of their jobs and how they interact with the customers.  The program was a huge success years later they have experienced sustained changes in how they interact with their customers.

I was called by an existing client who has results from a customer service survey they wanted to discuss with me.  The survey results revealed that for the most part the customers were happy with the service they received.  There were however, several comments made about the way the truck drivers interacted with their staff.  Comments were made that the language, tone and sometimes tardiness of drivers were frustrating.  I immediately connected them to David and together they designed a program that not only addressed all the concerns of their customers, it also included a number of ways to take all their customer service initiatives to a new level.  When I spoke with the VP of Human Resources recently she was excited by the participation and the feedback she received.  Management is committed that this level of service is maintained and they are very optimistic that the next survey will deliver much more favorable results.

Often when we think of customer service, we just think of our external customers.  I have a client who was concerned about the way the employees interacted with each other, in particular the accounting department.  She shared with me that she constantly got complaints from other departments on the way the accounting staff treated and reacted to the other departments.  She was not sure what to do about it.  I suggested she provide the members of the accounting team with customer service training from the perspective of working with internal customers.  At first she wasn’t sure.  I introduced her to David and he outlined what a program like this would look like and shared the success he had had in the past.  She was then clear this was the way to address the issue.  I spoke with her several months after the program had been delivered and she said she had received positive feedback from, both, the other employees and the members of the accounting department.  Having the tools to handle the sometimes difficult conversations made all the difference.

These experiences confirm for me that everyone is in customer service, no matter what job or role in the organization.

 By Cindy Stradling CPC, CSP