Categories for Operations

Improving customer satisfaction: Take care to focus

by | October 12, 2011

Mike Pritchard is President of 5 Circles Research, providing full-service market research and also helping clients improve their own surveys. —————————– While there is plenty of evidence that customer satisfaction is linked to profitability (e.g. https://www.burke.com/Library/WhitePapers/B.WhitePaperVol5Iss3.pdf ) , some wonder if profits will decline by doing too much. One reason for these concerns is when... View Article

Building Customer Loyalty From Within

by | October 4, 2011

What drives customer loyalty? Customers are loyal to businesses when their expectations are met time and time again. In my opinion, the execution doesn’t even need to be exceptional – it just needs to consistently deliver on the promises made. The biggest challenge faced by business owners is how to deliver consistently every time. A... View Article

Feeling overwhelmed? Need to reduce risks… have too many big issues in front of you?…. Do something! You’ll feel better

by | July 12, 2011

Today’s guest blog comes from Dave Shapiro, a group leader at Excell CEO.  Dave mentors CEOs and business owners throughout the Puget Sound and West Coast to help them gain clarity about what is holding their company back and what will propel it to even greater heights. —————————————— One of the toughest issues to face is uncertainty…... View Article

Hiring and Promoting the Best People that Fit into Your Organization

by | June 21, 2011

Our guest blog post is from Bert Holeton, President of The Mastermind Group (www.the-mastermind-group.com).  ————————– When it comes to choosing the right individual to join your organization, or the right individual to promote into a key position, or the right combination of individuals to form a team – it’s all about performance and fit. To... View Article

People Don’t Leave Companies, They Leave Managers

by | June 8, 2011

Our guest blog post comes from Julia Robinson, Managing Partner of Steller Solutions, a Seattle-area consultancy that helps clients implement changes that produce rapid bottom line results, allowing their business to beat out the competition while using fewer resources. “People don’t leave companies, they leave managers,” a colleague and mentor recently shared with me. The more I... View Article

The People Side of Business Law

by | June 1, 2011

Business owners know the value of hiring and developing a strong workforce – a workforce that can accomplish the business’ goals efficiently and effectively.  Yet much of the hiring that’s done is informal.  The process of selecting the employee typically includes interviews focused on whether we “like” the person and the person’s hands-on experience, more... View Article

Thrive in the Upturn – a legal perspective

by | May 4, 2011

We keep hearing about the “new normal” and that the business environment has changed and we must change with it.  It’s still not clear what this “new normal” looks like; but we’re all working toward getting back to business.  In doing so, we are looking at how to communicate our value to customers and get... View Article

What is CAPACITY?

by | January 18, 2011

Our guest blog post comes from Bert Holeton, Founder and President of The Mastermind Group, a network of master consultants with expertise and proven results in all areas of business.  Bert will lead our January 26 Equinox Focus program on “Evaluating Capacity in Your Organization.” ————————– Ask a businessperson about capacity, and you’re likely to... View Article

Balancing Capacity and Sales for Profitability

by | January 12, 2011

Our guest blog post comes from Julia Robinson, Managing Partner at Steller Solutions, a consultancy that partners with organizations to improve profitability, lower operating costs, and develop loyal customers. ——————— What’s the link between sales, profitability targets and capacity planning?  How do you grow your sales, optimize capacity and maintain the level of quality and... View Article