leadership Archives - Essence Communications

Wednesday, January 23rd, 2019

How Do Customers and Employees Feel about Your Organization?

customer service, decision making, experience, honouring employees, leadership, recognition

What company do you like to buy from again and again? How did your last experience with them make you feel? Feelings and behaviours are closely tied. Make sure your employees and customers know how special and important they are. Individuality Is Important Everyone feels special when their uniqueness is recognized and celebrated. In the … Continue reading How Do Customers and Employees Feel about Your Organization?

Wednesday, August 15th, 2018

Summer Fun Makes for Strong Relationships

leadership, relationships, risk management, team building

I recently read an editorial that concluded “team building” events like social gatherings, rope courses and such are momentary enjoyments and do nothing to build a team. While I can see the point about their temporary nature, I disagree with the conclusion that they don’t benefit teams. We are human beings first, and by our … Continue reading Summer Fun Makes for Strong Relationships

Wednesday, July 18th, 2018

Why, What & How Do You Collaborate?

behaviour, collaboration, engagement, leadership, Time Management

Like so many professionals, I’m challenged to have enough time to respond to requests from others and get my own work done. It felt like the authors of the Harvard Business Review article “Collaboration Without Burnout” were speaking to me with this gem: “Much overload is driven by your desire to maintain a reputation as … Continue reading Why, What & How Do You Collaborate?

Monday, December 18th, 2017

Tis the Season for Appreciation!

acknowledgement, appreciation, communication, engagement, leadership

December is a great time of year to show the people in your life – including your work life – that you appreciate them. Research consistently shows that acknowledgement and appreciation are tied to both employee satisfaction and employee engagement. It also shows that employee satisfaction is closely tied to customer satisfaction. When you do … Continue reading Tis the Season for Appreciation!

Wednesday, September 20th, 2017

Who Cares about High-Performing Teams: The Round Up

employees and customer service, hiring, leadership, reputation, rewards and recognition, values and culture

Employers, team members and customers care! High-performing teams can look different from each of these perspectives, but there are two key similarities: They all benefit from the results. They all experience that “feel good” vibe! Here are some highlights from my three-part series: Create the Conditions for High-Performing Teams You can’t “make” high-performing teams, but … Continue reading Who Cares about High-Performing Teams: The Round Up

Wednesday, July 19th, 2017

High-Performing Teams: a Few Good People (Part 3/3)

communication, hiring process, integration, leadership, orientation, productivity, team building, team work

This is the third and final part in my series on high-performing teams. The first article talked about the critical conditions necessary to create such teams, and the second discussed leading and motivating them. Even though Google’s Project Aristotle found that the people on high-performing teams were less important than how they work together, anyone who has … Continue reading High-Performing Teams: a Few Good People (Part 3/3)

Wednesday, April 19th, 2017

United Airline’s Fiasco is a Symptom of Underlying Issues

communication, customer service, leadership, process, reputation and brand, training, values and culture

The bodily removal of a passenger from an April 9th United Airlines flight got people talking, especially about customer experience. The experience wasn’t limited to the customer who was physically removed from the plane. It was experienced by all the passengers who witnessed it firsthand and all the prior or potential customers who witnessed it … Continue reading United Airline’s Fiasco is a Symptom of Underlying Issues

Wednesday, January 18th, 2017

3 Steps for Planning to Learn

leadership, needs assessment, training

1. Assess Your Needs You likely have organizational goals to consider. Either they’re in place or you may be working on them right now. Going directly from goals to training needs can lead to quick conclusions about what’s required. For example: “A key company focus for the next year is customer service, so we … Continue reading 3 Steps for Planning to Learn

Friday, October 7th, 2016

5 Things We Can All Learn from Small Business

customer service, employees, growth, leadership, learning, small business

#1. Keep it Real What’s the difference between eating at that great little independent restaurant you love and a chain restaurant? It’s authenticity! It has a character all it’s own. Part of that is the people who work there, whose main concern is making you happy. The things that make up the decor – whether … Continue reading 5 Things We Can All Learn from Small Business

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