Customer Service

So today was market day. Saturday mornings around here mean the Peterborough Farmers Market is a must visit. I have been going there for over 40 years and during that time you find your favourite vendors. I dragged kids there over the years, bribing them with cookies to fill my belly with fresh produce.

One of my favourite vendors is the potato lady and her son. She has been filling bags of potatoes for over 60 years at the market. For fresh corn I have visited Stapleton's for years. Always with a great smile and terrific corn and he has a certain salesmanship about him I like.

Well, now the next generation is helping at the stand. His 9(?) yr old daughter was helping out this morning. As she took the basket of peas I had chosen and put them in the bag several pods fell off to the side. My mind immediately went to that place...sure now I will get less peas. (Like I really need each and every one) but this young lady has been well trained by her dad in customer service.

Without missing a beat or even noticing my look she immediately picked up a whole HANDFUL of peas and added them to the bag! 

Now that is knowing your customer and treating them right! I looked at her and said " how many times has your dad told you that was important?" She just smiled and said "about a million". I chuckled and then thought how often do we miss the opportunity to treat our customers so well? 

Next time I wonder if going the extra mile for a client is worth it, I will remember a nine yr old's lesson. 

5 Ideas for Engaging Employees

How do we engage employees in the workplace? Here are 5 suggestions you might find helpful...

1. Listen. How often do we pass off a comment made in a meeting or session and not really hear what the person is asking for? By increasing our active listening skills we can better understand what the employees are asking. Happily the majority of workers in today's world say they do have input and are listened to. This is a good start but not the ultimate answer. 
2. Share Values. Do your company values reflect your employees values? How often do you review these with new staff? Do they have input when joining a team? Perhaps a semi annual review is in order to ensure these two match up.
3. Ask. When our son hires a new employee, he asks the employee the following questions after a couple of weeks. What do we do here that does not make sense to you? How can we improve our systems? This is a brilliant idea as you get fresh eyes to view existing methods. Often what we think works really well can be improved and it all starts with asking.
4. Coach, Train, Mentor. Do you provide professional coaching to your staff? Why not? Expensive? Much less than inefficiency and lack of self confidence on the job. What about the retirees who are now leaving the company? Do you have a system in place to gather and use that knowledge? Most retirees I know would love to make an extra couple hundred dollars to share their information and wisdom. After all it pays for the golf fees...
5. Teamwork. Such an overused phrase, but we know for Gen Y's it is all about collaboration. What kind of team environment are you building that encourages collaboration? These future leaders are not looking for another meeting, they will use social media, the internet, and work groups to solve issues in a fraction of the time. If they feel part of the team how much more will they share?