Category: Company Culture

The culture of your company is perhaps your most important competitive advantage. For the most successful companies they build their culture as often as they breathe.

If you let them … instead help them with tools, training, and a process that works.

Paul Wagenaar

Nothing about difficult situations and angry people is ever simple.

Rarely is there one trigger and one solution. Nuance, exceptions, and the lack of anything resembling black and white all are factors in finding solutions to their problems. There is never just one or two sides to a story, there are usually forty-two sides!

This post is about a process, the tools, and the training required to anticipate, avoid, and ultimately how to deal with these situations when they occur.

Customer Service is not a Profit Center

Paul Wagenaar

Customer service is not a profit center. Ironically, quality customer service has more in common with advertising and marketing than most organizations realize.

Today’s post is about giving the people who dedicate their careers to solving problems for our clients and customers, the tools and support they need.

What are the things you don’t see?

Paul Wagenaar

A famous racecar driver once said that races are won by how fast you get through the corners, not how fast you go in a straight line.  Many organizations focus on the flash and sizzle of their worlds, ignoring at their peril the routine and perceived “basic” things.  Failure to acknowledge and overcome Organizational Vulnerabilities are the things that will cause your team to fail. 

Surviving a bad boss

Paul Wagenaar

Having a bad boss can cause very real stress and anxiety. Remember, you have rights and you have options.

If you feel stuck because of family obligations, financial pressures or because there is a lack of opportunities, do not despair. There is help and there are choices.

IT IS PART OF THE JOB – PLAN, PREPARE, and GET IT DONE

Paul Wagenaar

Encountering difficult staff … is only a matter of time in any organization.

People working together are going to disagree. Add pressure, deadlines, and even situations outside of work and – as an owner or supervisor – you will have to have a difficult conversation with one or more of your associates.

Plan and prepare for when that time comes.

HOW TO UNITE YOUR TEAM – Scheduling

Paul Wagenaar

For most of my career, I was tasked with creating schedules for whichever organization I was a part of. From that, I learned many lessons … usually the hard way. A schedule is a compromise between the needs of the organization and the needs of the associate. If done fairly, consistently, and with a degree of accommodation, schedules can be made to work for almost everyone. What follows is a compilation of some lessons and tips for scheduling that work.