There are signs of life in the economy.
Bright glimmers of hope are starting to radiate from what had been some ominous, dark clouds of an economy that looked to be in retreat. Jobs continue to be created, industrial production is nearly back to its pre-recession levels, blue-chip stocks have re-couped their losses, and consumer confidence is finally climbing. These are the glimmers of hope that show an economy on the ... Read More
End Result: A Gap Between Intention and RealityWe leave customers scratching their heads at the gap they senses between what is promised and what they receive.
As customers, we seek value. But survey after survey clearly tell us we fail to deliver. Yes, there are a few heroes who have aligned the people working for the organization and the vision, value and customer experience. Most of ... Read More
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When Americans collaborated with one another and with people from other nations, we won a World War, we defeated the Great Depression, we put men on the moon, we cured seemingly incurable diseases, we built bridges to join people, we created some of the most innovative ... Read More
Measuring online influence using Klout, PeerIndex, and analytics from many other firms competing in the emerging influence management market is growing fast and getting the attention of large investors. Klout raised $8.5M in January, 2011 in a funding round led by two prestigious venture capital firms, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byer (KPCB) sFund™ and Greycroft Partners. From a marketing, selling, and service standpoint the value of influence scores is being debated daily on Quora and ... Read More
By Chip Bell
Wired and Dangerous: How Your Customers Have Changed and What To do About it; co-authored by Chip Bell and John R. Patterson
The news of late has been littered with dramatic reports about revolutions in the Middle East and Africa. Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Iraq, Yemen…the list grows long. All were fueled by similar events—anger citizens frightened by challenging economic circumstances and emboldened by network to channel rebellion into uprising. We all studied the French Revolution in school. Its elements provide an interesting parallel with what is happening with the Middle East revolutions as well as the customer today.
The French ... Read More
The breakdown of the customer relationship is driven by diminishing customer profitability. Sales fail due to the lack of a clear grasp of true customer needs, emerging customer segments are not effectively addressed by legacy processes, new customer service expectations are stimulated by aggressive and ongoing competitive marketing efforts. The magnitude of these failings is often first revealed when in a kind of desperation, the company finally turns to Marketing Automation (MAS) and Sales Relationship (CRM) technologies which, in addition to providing solutions, also dramatize shortcomings.
These breakdowns commonly flow from operational inefficiency. Chief among them is the “silo” effect in which departments or groups within the organization develop a proprietary attitude ... Read More
Poor execution leads to upsets. Great execution leads to victories.
Tiny Butler, the Horizon League champ, has vanquished three higher seeds from major conferences — top-seeded Pittsburgh, fourth-seeded Wisconsin and now second-seeded Florida — in succession — to join the NCAA Final Four for the second year in a row.
St. Anthony High School in New Jersey the high school had 78 students in 9th grade, 58 students in 10th grade, 60 students in 11th grade, 60 students in 12th grade for a total of just 256 students. The boys’ basketball varsity, coached by Bob Hurley, has been, for over 30 years, the most dominant high school team in New Jersey’s ... Read More
Five years ago, a Franklin Covey Survey [1] confirmed that most organizations suffer from major “execution gaps” that undermine the achievement of their highest priorities. Overall, U.S. workers gave their organizations a score of 51 out of 100 for their collective lack of focus on and execution of truly important goals. The lessons from this survey are even more essential today as they were then — because we still have not learned how to manage a team to deliver a great customer experience.
These execution gaps result from a combination of factors, including a lack of focus on key goals and a surprising lack of mutual accountability and ... Read More
A Franklin Covey Survey [1] confirms that most organizations suffer from major “execution gaps” that undermine the achievement of their highest priorities.
Overall, U.S. workers gave their organizations a score of 51 out of 100 for their collective lack of focus on and execution of truly important goals.
These execution gaps result from a combination of factors, including a lack of focus on key goals and a surprising lack of mutual accountability and follow-through.
For example, only 30% of workers plan with their workgroup how to support each other in agreed-upon goals and tasks, and just 19% say their ... Read More
Teamwork improves the experience of everyone on the team.Geese flying in formation is almost a cliché for teamwork. But it can actually be quantified. Geese in their familiar V-shaped flight pattern are 71% more effective than birds flying alone. They can travel 80% further because they don’t ... Read More
