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Be Outstanding ... Do Not Get
Fired!
News!
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We all know that organizations fire people, but as we say in Outstanding!, people fire organizations.
Recently, while conducting a "Be Outstanding!" day of training
with a senior management team representing a well-known appliance
manufacturer, I asked them to each identify an organization they’ve fired;
that is, one they will never
do business with again—and why. Every single person in the room had an
example. Here are some:
- Car
dealer: Pushy salesperson using 1970’s strong arm closing tactics.
- Hair
salon: Stylist left chemicals in client’s hair too long while on cell
phone. Hair had to be cut off!
- Wireless
carrier: Billed customer three times after payment made.
- Fast
food: Manager and assistant manager using foul language at counter.
- Barber:
New owner disregarded customer’s longtime loyalty, insisting he make
an appointment.
- Satellite
TV: Complete and total apathy on phone regarding customer problem.
- Doctor:
Arrogance and haste, resulting in misdiagnosis of a child’s illness
(not life-threatening).
- Golf
course: Comment made by employee that felt insulting to member.
- Auto
body shop: Overcharged … didn’t stay within the estimate.
- Gas
station: Cheap gas advertised outside but the price could only be
obtained by paying inside—and maybe buying mints, coffee, and a
newspaper.
- Health
club: Messy, dirty.
- Tailor:
Cold personality, condescending tone. Never greets customer.
I shared an example, too. I’ve fired a
post office.
Where we live 15 miles northeast of Denver, Colorado, I can choose between
four PO’s to use. That’s right—four.
Some, of course, are closer than others. They are 9 miles south, 7 miles
northwest, 5 miles west, and 10 miles north. And that northern one has a
built-in logistical advantage for the Millers: It is only blocks from the
school we take our kids to and pick them up from five days per week,
thirty-six weeks per year, year in and year out. How convenient!
But I will never go
back.
Why? Well, it’s hard to pinpoint, but let me try. Slow. Apathetic. Solemn.
Lethargic.
Did I mention S-L-O-W???
I’ve felt this way for a long time, but a couple years ago I decided to
risk it again on a Saturday. I had to get some books shipped that weekend
and with other errands to run in town, I thought, Well, I’ll give the Brighton,
Colorado P.O. another shot. How magnanimous of me!
And this I what I saw: http://twitpic.com/4scr8x
Never. Again.
Very few consumers in any arena have no choices or options. Said
differently, most customers can “vote with their feet” and take their
dollars, time, and energy someplace else. That’s right—it’s not always
about free market goods and services for payment. Churches, government
offices, and nonprofits can all be fired, as well.
So here’s a critical question:
Does the postmaster of my non-favorite P.O. gets out of bed every morning
thinking, I really hope
today is the day someone posts a picture on the Internet of us not doing our job and labels my shop
as the worst
post office in the world!
I doubt it.
We’ll give this postmaster credit and assume he or she has high standards,
cares about the customer, and wants people to flock to that location.
So what’s gone wrong? Lots of stuff—and you can find so much of it right
here. If nothing else, just read the Table of Contents ...
http://outstandingorganization.com/inside_book.php
I apologize if it sounds like “pride of authorship” to say that, but this
is exactly why we wrote Outstanding!:
PEOPLE DO FIRE
ORGANIZATIONS.
But they don’t fire
the outstanding ones.
As my wife, Karen, would tell
you, I’ve never had an opinion I failed to share. That’s probably why I
write books and speak for a living. After working with thousands of
organizations since entering the training industry in 1986, I have lots of
opinions. No surprise to those of you who know me! But that’s what Outstanding! really
is: A collection of my opinions.
And here’s one person’s opinion on the opinions expressed in Outstanding!:
“John, Outstanding! is outstanding! I’ve listened to
the audio CD several times and I get something new out of it each time!
Having read both QBQ!
and Flipping the Switch, this may be the best of the three! I’m
ordering the hardcover for my customers and colleagues. The ideas put forth
in Outstanding! are fast becoming part of the
culture our team is creating in our organization."
Craig Johnson,
Lincoln Financial Group, Minneapolis, MN
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So, as we close this QuickNote,
here are some take-away questions worth discussing with your team:
- Does
our organization get fired? If so, why?
- Specifically,
what do we do poorly? Average? Outstanding?
- What
in our culture needs to change?
- How
can each of us help the organization improve?
Have at it. It’s
always worth the time, effort, and energy to work toward becoming
outstanding. At the very least, it beats having a negative picture of us
posted on the Internet, eh?
Wait! I
can’t resist. One more example: I fired a veterinarian.
During a heated exchange stemming from my objections to the cost of all the
procedures the doc wanted to do to treat our aging dachshund, the vet
proclaimed, "Your dog is my customer!" I responded. "Doc, my dog
does not have a credit card." After that we found a new vet—one
who "never forgets who pays the bills." (Ch. 24 of Outstanding!)
PS: If your
organization is interested in a “Be Outstanding!” learning session like the
one mentioned above, just email me.
Note: Outstanding!
is ideal for TEAM DISCUSSION. Grab a carton of 12 here (http://tinyurl.com/5u2erqa)
and we’ll email you exceptional discussion questions to generate true team
learning.
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