The values conversation is the second of three critical conversations for supervisors to have with team members and prospective hires. At ITX, we are implementing these conversations across the board, with all of our team members, in order to align…
The Values Conversation
Tagged with: alignment, commitment, communication, conversation, goals, integrity, language, performance, responsibility, training, trust, value
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Choosing the Right Words:
How Language Choice Impacts Comprehension and Results When we need to discuss a less-than-optimal situation with someone, we often struggle for the right words to effectively communicate what we need to say without causing resentment. Delivering criticism, no matter how…
Workable Availability
Workable availability is about getting clear that we will be accountable for our responsibilities at all times, even when someone else is standing in for us. This includes when we are on a lunch break, out sick, on vacation or…
Rating Your Team Based on What Really Matters:
Values and Critical Behaviors by Ralph Dandrea, Frederick Beer, Jonathan Coupal, Sean Flaherty and Hernan Chiosso Determining a team member’s efficacy can be a daunting task. Traditionally, managers have relied upon their memories of recent events to critique performance during…
Tagged with: alignment, conversation, goals, integrity, language, opportunity, performance, value
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Distinguishing Superheroes from Villains
Customer service is usually perceived as a necessary evil, not something we get excited about, on either side of the phone. What if we instead viewed our part of the customer service equation enthusiastically, as an opportunity rather than a…
Introduction to Spectacular Service
A 7-Part Recipe to Move Clients from Anxiety to Joy When clients complain – in any industry, whether it’s service or product based, and whether it’s an internal client or an external client — our first instinct is to try…
Tagged with: anxiety, commitment, communication, conversation, customer service, integrity, opportunity, performance, responsibility, trust, value
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Distinguishing Specified from Important
When issues arise at the workplace, it can sometimes seem like a scene right out of an Abbott and Costello bit, as one misunderstanding begets another until we and our clients are confused and unproductive. Situations like this often arise…
When the Clock Starts Ticking
One of the key principles of customer service is understanding our clients’ perception of their interaction with us. It does us no good to do an incredible job if, at the end, a customer thinks we’ve failed them in some…
Managing Client Anxiety
A workable relationship is marked by feelings of comfort, ease and safety. If one of the partners feels too much anxiety too much of the time, the opposite of those positive sensations, the relationship will be problematic. And if one…
Tagged with: anxiety, commitment, communication, customer service, responsibility, trust
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Posted in Articles
The Case for Positive Language
Language affects our feelings. When we use normative terms to describe a person or situation, we are essentially saying that they are good or bad. If it’s perceived as the latter, we might trigger an unintended fight or flight reaction…