This year we started off the Podcasts with a terrific recording on Conflict Management with John Mattock.  As anyone who has been in service for any time knows, conflicts are a permanent part of the landscape.  Whether you’re dealing with a frustrated customer, a burdensome colleague, or a unfocused boss, conflicts surround us and learning how to manage them is perhaps one of the most financially and personally rewarding skills in your repertoire.  Enjoy the recording!

I recently had the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Janelle Barlow. Janelle has been deeply immersed in the field of service for 30 years, gradually moving from Service Excellence to the topic of this podcast, Branded Customer Service. She’s a speaker, a businesswoman, and author of the best selling book, A Complaint Is a Gift, available in two editions, the most recent just released a year ago. She’s also the coauthor of Branded Customer Service – The New Competitive Edge.  Janelle makes the point that it’s not just best in class service — but service that is aligned with an organization’s brand promise — that can differentiate an organization and its products and services in a world overloaded with consumer choices. She and her company, TMI US have worked with dozens of companies helping them to define their customer service experience and then partnering with them to better engage both their staff and their customers.

Janelle will quickly point out that branded customer service work is really about creating an organizational culture that reflects the brand. When that is accomplished, then the organization is much more likely to deliver the promise it makes with its brand. These questions are topics she deals with on a daily basis in the two companies she runs in the United States:  TMI US and TACK USA.

I hope you enjoy the podcast!

I recently had the honor of chatting with the Service Superstar Chip Conley.  Chip is the CEO of joie de vivre hospitality, the USA’s second largest boutique hotel chain, as well as the author of several books, including Peak, Marketing That Matters and Rebel Rules.

What makes Chip’s contribution unique, and why I am selecting him for the Service Superstars series, is that during the dot-com crash his was one of the very few companies who didn’t define their survival strategy around lay-offs.  Instead he cut compensation for management, took a three year salary hiatus for himself, and grabbed the bull by the horns to challenge conventional thinking by making his organization one driven by passion instead of fear.  Instead of layoffs there was a deep and serious questioning of the key human drivers and how to rationally and intelligently apply them to the business setting.

The result was nothing short of spectacular, as joie de vivre gained market share throughout the dot-com crash and exited the crisis stronger and more focused than ever.

In this interview, we’ll be digging into his book, PEAK – How Great Companies Get Their Mojo from Maslow, in which he developed a business model tied to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs as his answer to an economic downturn.  I hope you enjoy the interview!

On Tuesday evening, November 17th, I sat down with the authors of the book “Who’s Your Gladys?”, Marilyn Suttle and Lori Jo Vest. In this book and during our podcast Marilyn and Lori discuss how to most effectively deal with your most challenging customers and turn them into your most vocal advocates.  The result is a very engaging hour of discussion.

I hope you enjoy it!

On Monday, October 12th, 2009, John Mattock and I sat together and discussed Virtual Teamwork. Here is the result!