High tech vs. high touch

Is your business high tech or high touch? Both have their place, but relying completely on the former is inviting doom. The best application of technology is transparent to the public, and is put in place to give employees more opportunity to enhance the oh-so-important personal element – high touch – with their customers. Some [...]

Who’s running your business?

It’s become a lunchtime ritual at this pricey establishment. Patron: “I’ll have a cappuccino.” Waiter: “Our cappuccino machine is broken.” Patron, who’s heard this story for at least five years, adds a new twist to the dialog: “Oh. OK. I’ll just go to Restaurant X and get my coffee there.” Waiter, getting defensive: “Those espresso [...]

My name is Jackie and I’m a training junkie

Hi. My name is Jackie, and I’m a training junkie. In my former life as a journalist, learning was a job requirement. But if I had to pinpoint a specific addictive incident, it would be the leadership development training my boss forced on me about years ago. Classes – in downtown Miami, no less – [...]

“It’s company policy”

“It’s company policy.” How many times have you heard that line? How many times have you used it yourself? Ninety percent of irate customers can be put off by invoking company policy. It’s the cloak of invincibility that few will try to penetrate. But ask “why,” and you may discover that there is no good [...]