I was recently asked to submit the following for a magazine article. While we are always promoting proper behavior (what TO DO) to the leaders of an organization the following offers what NOT TO DO. Sometimes looking at workplace dynamics from this perspective is helpful. It may appear as common sense, however, it is remarkable how many so-called leaders abuse their position.

1. Leaders never cross the line: It is so easy to participate in office humor and discussions that are inappropriate. However, real leaders never do. Leaders must realize that they are perceived differently, and therefore must behave differently. Some may ask if it is appropriate for the leaders to adhere to a higher standard? I would insist the answer is yes…that is why they are the leaders.

2. Leaders never sacrifice a teammate to protect themselves: One of the greatest weaknesses in the workplace today is the lack of loyalty toward one's employees or co-workers. I am specifically referring to the desire for the so-called leader's actions and decisions that result in failure, to be blamed on a subordinate. In multiple surveys it is apparent that the one issue that employees want from their leaders and fail to receive is trust. Many employees believe that they are supported in good times and blamed in bad. But great leaders always assume responsibility for failures. As well, they give credit to their team for successes.

3. Leaders never criticize individuals publicly: Praise should be bestowed upon one's co-workers or staff publicly, while criticism should be shared privately. Leaders that criticize individuals publicly lose the respect of their team. People want to feel safe at work. They want to know that their contributions matter and their shortcomings are dealt with privately. Leaders that do not behave accordingly never gain the real support of their team.

4. Leaders never shy away from realistic challenges: In the workplace real leaders are always prepared to move forward. They understand that progress requires it. However, they do not go blindly into battle. They create an environment in which the team always trusts the leaders judgment. The team understands that they may not always win but they are convinced their leader's plans are not foolhardy and offer them a fair chance to succeed.

5. Leaders never give up: Napoleon said, “The greatest attribute of a soldier is not loyalty nor courage…it is endurance.” Leaders never stop trying. They may regroup or change their plans but they never quit. To do so would be to undermine the team. The leader's team looks to him/her for inspiration and guidance. If they believed that their leader would quit on them then they simply would not even try themselves. Leaders always persevere. Temporary setbacks and small failures result in a greater resolve to find a way to win. Anything short of that is a recipe for disaster.

Vision is the basis for the best kind of leadership. Instinctively, most of us follow a leader who has real vision and whom we sense can transform that vision into meaningful, effective and inspirational strategies. Vision is not simply projecting what the sales targets should be for the next quarter. Vision is not just seeing things as they are. Vision is the ability to see things as they can be.

Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said: “The task of the leader is to get his people from where they are to where they have not been. Leaders must invoke great vision. Those leaders who do not are ultimately judged (to be) failures.”

A leader with vision, embarks on voyages to new worlds.A vision looks ahead to the future and analyzes it . . .anticipates it. A vision, almost by definition, does not run from change as so many people do, but embraces change as absolutely essential. A leader without vision eventually loses his or her followers. An organization without vision, whether that organization is a business or a church or team or a family eventually stagnates and perhaps even wastes away.

Leaders need an ability to look through a variety of lenses.We need to look through the lens of those who follow us. We need to look through the lens of change and innovation. We need to look through the lens of our own hard experience and failure. We need to look hard at our future.

I encourage you to write a vision statement for your own life. I did, and I trace much of my success to it. So what makes a good Personal Vision Statement? A Personal Vision Statement has the following seven characteristics:

Number one: It is from the heart.

A Personal Vision Statement should project your passions. What are you passionate about accomplishing? What do you absolutely love to do? Your vision should lead you to a place, a position in life, where you want to be more than anywhere else in the world.

Number two: A Personal Vision Statement should be inspirational.

It needs to inspire your energies and your intellect. If a Personal Vision Statement fails to inspire you, then it probably doesn’t accurately describe the destination you want to reach.

Number three: Your Personal Vision Statement should be simple and direct so you can readily communicate it to others who you may want to join you in your quest to fulfill your vision.

Number four: The Personal Vision Statement says something that applies uniquely to you.

A Personal Vision Statement is not generic. It should be unique to you.

Number five: A Personal Vision Statement must give clear direction to you so that a year from now you can evaluate how much progress you have made toward achieving your vision.

Number six: A Personal Vision Statement must have staying power… it should hold up over time.

A Personal Vision Statement is not like a newspaper that you read in the morning and then throw away at the end of the day. A Personal Vision Statement will be useful to you as a guide for years to come.

Number seven: Your Personal Vision Statement needs to be a statement that you adhere to and follow with fierce determination.

It must be a statement that you are absolutely committed to. In a sense, you should be prepared to cling to your vision the way you uphold your marriage. It’s “for better or worse, in sickness and in health, till death do you part.” That’s how strongly you should feel about your vision.

I have found that people who demonstrate an understanding of this important attribute of leadership become the greatest leaders within the confines of an organization. They know how to blend their personal goals within the fabric of the corporate mission. They understand that one person with an ambitious vision can move thousands into action.

Effective vision provides a context for action.Vision gives purpose and establishes meaning. Visions are clear and challenging and about excellence. A vision should be able and stable enough to stand the test of time and flexible enough to embrace change. A vision empowers other people for the future while, perhaps, having roots in the past.Remember, as Sir Isaac Newton said: “I have seen so far because I have stood on the shoulders of giants.”

A vision inspires people to accomplish feats that may never before have been attempted. A strong vision replaces the fear of the unknown. Fear and resistance to change are replaced by a sense of purpose, by excitement, by desire and courage. Most of all, a vision replaces fear of the unknown with action.

Keep It Simple
Find your focus: Fine-tune your business with our ideas for simplifying and streamlining your operations.

Entrepreneur magazine - February 2006
By Chris Penttila

View this article online by clicking here.

It's your typical day at the office. Like every other day, it started at 7:00 a.m. When you sat down with that first cup of coffee, you were hoping to get to work on some meaty stuff-strategic planning, ideas for that big project, a thorough review of your staffing needs for next quarter--the kind of long-term thinking that helps your business grow. But you'd barely gotten started when... it started. Urgent phone calls from clients. Personnel crises. Last-minute meetings. Stacks of documents, checks and other paperwork that need your approval or signature. Suddenly, it's 7:00 p.m., and all you've done is put out fires. Want tomorrow to be different? Then read on for 25 easy ways to simplify your business so you'll have time for what really matters. Put these ideas to work, and before you know it, you'll be finishing up that strategic plan... and maybe even have time left over for a life.

Technology
Streamlining your business technology can make life less of a headache for everyone. Entrepreneurs often "don't realize they can make things easier," says Kevin McElligott, founder of iTech Developers, a Nevada City, California, technology consulting firm and hosting provider. Here are a few ideas to get your technology in tip-top shape:

1. Serve it up. A server can act as a digital filing cabinet for your growing piles of documentation. Compared to daisy chaining several PCs, "Servers give you a lot more reliability and improve your business," says Mike Beltrano, supervisor of product management for servers at CDW Corp., a Vernon Hills, Illinois, server company. Another bonus: By keeping important documents on a central server, it's easier to back up all your important documents daily.

2. Phone it in. Are you wasting time running between voice mail on your cell and office phones? VoIP systems offer a great deal of personalization and features for a rock-bottom price. In fact, VoIP can be up to 40 percent cheaper than a traditional small-office phone system, and it offers useful features for any small business. Voice mails, for example, can be handled just like attachments--clicked, dragged, dropped and passed along. "Voice mail is becoming e-mail that can be forwarded where you want it," says Henry Kaestner, CEO of Bandwidth.com, a Cary, North Carolina, firm that provides VoIP services to companies. These systems are fairly new, but they're getting more popular and more reliable every day.

3. Take it online. If you've taken the leap of setting up an accounting package to handle your bills, take the extra step of automating the process. See if your accounting software can automatically generate invoices as well as e-mail reminders for late payments. "The system will literally tell me when it's time to call," says McElligott, whose automated billing process alerts him after each late notice has been e-mailed to a customer, and it automatically suspends the client's hosting services as of the third notice. Likewise, your accounting software (and your bank) can handle electronic transfers so you never have to worry about a late electric bill.

4. Hit the web. Your website is a potential client's main access point to your business. Don't worry as much about fancy graphics as making sure visitors can get the information they need. An online FAQ list can cut down on the time clients spend calling with basic questions and prevent a frustrated client from going elsewhere. You don't have to be a techno-whiz to set up a good website. Many web hosting companies can provide reliable websites for relatively little money, and many provide tools to help even technophobes set up online purchasing and billing.

Money
Money might not be the root of all evil, but it is the cause of many headaches for business owners. Here are five tips for managing your money better:

5. Bank on it. "One of the assets business owners have is their cash," says Manny Calzon, vice president and finance manager for the central district of Merrill Lynch in Tampa, Florida. But many entrepreneurs don't understand how much they're paying in service charges to their banks every month. Request a bank analysis statement that breaks down the generic service charges found in your monthly statement. "You can make an educated decision as to whether you need [all the services you're] being charged for," Calzon says, "and if not, [ask the banker to] streamline and reduce costs associated with this account." You can then reinvest the savings in ways that take the business to the next level.

6. File taxes electronically. Companies with $10 million or more in total assets that file 250 or more returns a year are now required to file their 2006 taxes electronically. "Small businesses are going to be scrambling," says Bradford Hall, managing director of Hall & Company CPAs in Irvine, California. "They're going to [need] an automated payroll service that files electronically for them." So get a head start now to make life easier later on.

7. Pay now, not later. Can you pay smaller bills in advance? If you have a monthly bill for $15 but opt to pay $90 for six months of service, you'll save $1.95 in stamps and you won't incur late fees. Best of all, you're not wasting time paying bills.

8. Upgrade your accounting systems. "A business that's projecting $10 million-plus [in sales] should be on a sophisticated system," Hall says. Software packages such as BusinessWorks, Enterprise, Great Plains (which was recently acquired by Microsoft) and MAS 90 offer increased sophistication for a growing company and will make life much easier come tax time or, heaven forbid, an audit.

9. Make your (bench) mark. It's common for growing companies to do business without understanding how they stack up against similar companies in their industry. Most likely, your accountant has industry profit and overhead statistics at the ready--data you can keep on file for future strategy sessions without having to do your own legwork. Says Hall, "Businesses aren't taking advantage of it."

10. Obey the urge to merge. You might pay slightly more, but renewing all your insurance policies on the same date with the same agent lets you sit down once a year to review insurance for the entire business instead of having different renewals pop up three or four times a year. You'll save time, and your insurance agent "will do better with the full picture," says Scott Simmonds, owner of Insurance Consultants of Maine, a Saco, Maine, company that helps small-business owners navigate their insurance plans. Check out Simmonds' site or InsuranceBuzzer for tips on 40 types of insurance.

Management
Day-to-day management of employees and processes is probably the single toughest job for any entrepreneur. Want to simplify? Here's how:

11. Hire strategically. Create an online application form, and have elimination criteria related to scheduling, salary and educational level. "Select out vs. select in," says Suzanne Zuniga, COO of CorVirtus, a Colorado Springs, Colorado, HR consulting firm. Being more selective means you'll hire sooner and get back to work.

12. Stay on schedule. Creating a schedule for employees is a time-consuming nightmare for every employer, especially in retail. But there are software packages--Asgard System's Time Tracker, TimeClock Scheduler and TimeCurve Scheduler, to name a few--that let you scan for scheduling errors and track employee hours and earnings in real time. Some, like TimeCurve Scheduler, also integrate with QuickBooks to make payroll easier. Scheduling software packages range in price from around $125 to more than a thousand dollars with site licenses depending on the size of your staff and what you want, but it's an investment that will save you time in the long run. Many of these companies provide free demos on their websites for you to try, too.

13. Rent a CFO. At some point, a bookkeeper won't be able to keep up with your burgeoning bottom line. "One of the biggest mistakes business owners make is they don't realize they need the sophistication of a CFO," Hall says. Today, there are employment agencies that specialize in hiring out CFOs. You can "rent" a CFO who will come in one day each week or month, depending on what you need. A temporary CFO's services can be expensive--$1,000 or more per day--but is worth the cost if he or she helps focus your business and make it more profitable.

14. Tighten your supply chain. "Strong partnerships with suppliers and service providers [are] critical in the supply-chain excellence area," says John DuBiel, managing partner of Raleigh, North Carolina-based Supply Chain Edge, a firm that helps companies identify, develop and execute their supply-chain strategies. Keep relationships strong by leveraging your buying power with as few service providers as possible. Says DuBiel, "Simplify and leverage all the volume you can."

15. Outsource your HR function. Entrepreneurs spend up to one-third of their time doing payroll and benefits administration. They're also risking penalties if tax payment deadlines aren't met or filings are incorrect. "When you pay a company that you outsource to, you're paying for the benefit of their mistakes on their dime, not yours," Zuniga says. So outsource HR, and make your time count.

16. Have fewer staff meetings. Do you really need a staff meeting every week when an e-mail update might do? Fewer staff meetings mean less talk and more action. Workers will thank you for your brevity: In one survey, 60 percent of executives complained about the time they waste in meetings, and 74 percent doubted the meetings they attended were effective.

Marketing
Catching consumers' attention is only getting harder. Here's some advice for revving up your marketing efforts:

17. Do some data mining. What do customers think about your company? "You don't build your brand by yourself anymore; your customers are equally involved," says Michael LeBeau, CEO of Byte Interactive, a South Norwalk, Connecticut, digital marketing company. Simple customer comment cards or web-based survey forms can save market research costs.

18. Leverage partnerships. Strategic partnerships with local businesses will help you rise above the noise. Picking the right partner, however, can be very time-consuming. Simplify the process by looking to your own customers, vendors and suppliers first. You already know each other's strengths in terms of services, products and marketing, which will let you move more quickly to develop effective cross-promotions and sponsorships.

19. Go directly to the consumer. Are you spending all your time knocking on big retailers' doors and saving for TV ads when half of U.S. consumers have lightning-fast broadband connections? "I'm seeing more entrepreneurs starting to market their products directly to the consumer," says Peter Koeppel, founder and president of Koeppel Direct, a Dallas direct-response TV media buying agency that works with clients including Cigna, Columbia House and DirecTV. It's never been cheaper or easier to make your own commercials and post them on your website. "There's technology now [so] that when someone goes to your website, the commercial automatically comes up," Koeppel says. "That's a way for a small business that maybe can't get on TV to advertise."

20. Get the message. It's easy to lose brand focus in a world of in-person, over-the-phone, online, catalog and direct-mail sales. To simplify, divide your business into five main channels (website, catalog, direct mail, employees and customer service) and have one main marketing message every week (a sale, a new product, a new partnership and so on) that you communicate and track for consistency across all channels. You'll see fewer customer-service hassles and less turnover from frustrated employees who can't read your mind.

21. Consolidate your advertising legwork. Most business owners invite random interruptions from advertising representatives throughout the week. Instead, set aside a block of time--Monday afternoon, for example--when advertising people know they can reach you. Everyone will save time, and you won't have to hide anymore.

Personal Time
"It's very easy to let work consume you," says Bo Short, president of the American Leadership Foundation, a Charlottesville, Virginia, nonprofit organization that offers leadership conferences and seminars. "But if you do, will it eat you alive?" Here are five ways to create a more balanced life:

22. Decide what to outsource. You don't need to have your hand in every single pie anymore; let someone else carry part of the load. Outsourcing a few tasks gives you time to focus on something else--even if it's a round of golf now and then. Plus, "You're the customer, and they'll treat you better," Short says. Learn to delegate to employees, too.

23. Create boundaries. Set aside 10 minutes after lunch to make and return personal calls. Set a time for leaving the office every day, no matter how busy you are. And spend at least two hours doing something fun before you burn some late-night oil. Your family will thank you.

24. Shorten your to-do list. "A to-do list is nothing but a wish list," says Barry Izsak, president of Arranging It All, an Austin, Texas, firm that helps companies get organized. A long to-do list leaves less time to focus on revenue-generating ideas. Instead, focus on the top three urgent tasks for the day. The rest can wait.

25. Love your inner Luddite. Entrepreneurs who become slaves to gadgets "are running reactive businesses and being reactive with their time," Izsak says. Try working unplugged--this means no internet connection and absolutely no phone calls--for one hour every morning. It will give you a sense of accomplishment that lasts all day.

Chris Penttila is Entrepreneur's "Smart Moves" columnist.

View this article online by clicking here.

Rosemary Barnes
San Antonio Express-News

URL: http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/stories/MYSA091705.badservice.EN.2139441b.html

The friendly, comforting customer service that most U.S. businesses were known for just a few years ago has fallen on hard times.

The concept of apologizing to a customer who has been inconvenienced by bad service or a defective product has all but disappeared from the culture of big and small companies alike, giving rise to the growing phenomenon of "consumer rage."

It's been a difficult adjustment for consumers already stressed to the max by their busy schedules, the war and the economy. They're mad and getting angrier at each bad customer service experience.

Studies show the problem has escalated into a national crisis. A Purdue University study revealed that 80 percent of U.S. companies provide "poor customer service."

A Better Business Bureau telephone survey of 1,000 households last August found that 73 percent had experienced customer rage recently.

A recent survey by Customer Care Alliance showed that 33 percent of customers had shouted at a customer service representative in the past 12 months and 10 percent had cursed.

A Mobius Management Systems study named poor customer service as the reason for 60 percent of canceled bank accounts, 36 percent of insurance company switches, and 37 percent of Internet service provider cancellations.

The bottom line is that growing numbers of angry customers are seeking revenge against companies responsible for their nightmarish customer service experiences.

Standing their ground on bad service, disgruntled consumers are getting back by posting their complaints on the Internet for the whole world to view.

But that's not all. They're also boycotting businesses for unresponsive service.

Most customers who have been handed a defective product don't just want their money back; they want to be heard.

It's ironic that customer service systems originally intended to reduce costs are now reducing revenue because angry customers take their business elsewhere.

Rage has become an all-too-familiar emotion for Donna Gould Pellegrino. It started for the Matawan, N.J., resident on June 5, when the central air conditioning unit she purchased from Sears last year shut down.

Pellegrino, 56, soon learned from several air conditioning technicians subcontracted by Sears that the unit was "a pile of junk," beyond repair, and had to be replaced.

The technicians also informed her that the unit was not a top-of-the-line system made by Trane or Carrier that the Sears salesman had promised her, but rather a low-end product manufactured by Goodman.

Loyal to Sears' appliances for decades, Pellegrino was confident that Sears would immediately replace the $5,400 unit, which was still under warranty.

But Pellegrino, a home-based public relations specialist for more than 30 years, said she was stunned by the level of frustration she has experienced in trying to find someone at Sears to speak with about her failed air conditioning system.

Over the next two months, Pellegrino was ping-ponged to 34 Sears representatives in divisions all over the country. A few promised assistance, but it never materialized.

All of this transpired during one of New Jersey's hottest summers, with temperatures peaking at 102 degrees.

"I wonder what happened to their 'satisfaction-guaranteed-or-your-money-back' policy?" Pellegrino said. "This is a horrible ending to a lifelong relationship with Sears. They've lost a very good customer."

Lots of electric fans and some recent cooler weather have let Pellegrino and her husband live without air conditioning for more than three months.

However, the heat and added stress have aggravated a chronic medical condition in her left arm called lymphadema that Pellegrino has suffered from since a bout with breast cancer several years ago. Swelling and pain in her left arm have been constants since her dealings with Sears began in June.

"What they have done to me is so horrendous, both emotionally and physically," said Pellegrino, who also serves on the Matawan Borough Council. "I've reached the point where I can't get angry anymore. But I also can't let this go. Sears needs to be held accountable."

As a last resort, Pellegrino hired an attorney, who wrote to Sears Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chairman Alan J. Lacy about her travails with the giant retailer.

An Aug. 16 letter from Sears' legal department informed her that the company planned to investigate her complaint and would make "any reasonable attempt to resolve the issue."

After spending the long, hot summer months struggling to get what she paid for, Pellegrino has altered her demands.

"Now I just want them to come take the pile of junk out of here and give me back my money," Pellegrino said. "They can keep their replacement. I'll buy one from a local company, someone I know and trust. I don't ever want to go through something like this again."

Shortly after being contacted by the San Antonio Express-News on Aug. 19, Sears spokesman Chris Brathwaite said Pellegrino's case had been bumped up in priority, meaning it was being handled by the company's national customer service staff.

"We've been in contact with air conditioning professionals today in the Matawan area to get the system replaced as soon as possible," Brathwaite said. "We appreciate the customer's patience as we attempt to resolve this issue."

As late as this week Pellegrino found herself in the same aggravating predicament she's been in all summer — the accidental owner of a broken-down air conditioning system.

However, Pellegrino's attorney notified her a couple of days ago that Sears had agreed to all of her demands. Once she receives the reimbursement and the unit is removed, her long relationship with Sears will end forever.

"Sears is wrong, and they need to come to terms with that," Pellegrino said. "I'll never give up, no matter what."

National experts who study and measure customer service issues say Pellegrino's case, while outrageous, is not an isolated incident.

They concurred with Pellegrino's succinct conclusion about the state of the nation's service economy: "There is no customer service anymore."

In all too many instances, corporate commitments to quality customer service exist only in nicely worded mission statements posted on company Web sites and on the walls of offices, hospitals, hotels and retail stores.

Corporate leaders pay lip service to the written commitments, which experts described as empty promises designed to hook customers. Actually, companies have cut back on how much they invest to preserve good customer service.

"Companies devote a lot of time to coming up with the best structure for their checkout lines," said Scott M. Broetzmann, co-founder of Alexandria, Va.-based Customer Care Alliance and president of Customer Care Management and Consulting. "They dress that up as giving better service without giving sufficient time or money to the impact of an inattentive staff."

These customer care watchdogs blame automated phone systems that bounce callers from extension to extension without ever giving them access to a human being; a leadership void in corporate America that has engendered a work force of cynical employees who don't want to help customers; and the growing trend of outsourcing customer care duties to pools of offshore or overseas workers who are not trained to give concerned customers the service they need.

"What we've got now are people who are so frustrated because they feel like they are not being heard," said Robert "Bo" Short, president of the American Leadership Foundation. "What's lacking is any response that tells concerned consumers that the company is sorry for the poor service they've experienced and that they'll try to resolve it. But that's not happening because there is a loss of understanding by corporate leaders that employees need to be connected to a company, a product and the people."

Short said most customers who lodge a complaint with company representatives have experienced surprising rudeness, encountering employees who are not only ill-mannered but also uninformed about company policies and products.

A 2004 study showed that consumer rage continues to grow. Almost three-quarters of those surveyed by the Customer Care Alliance said they were "very" or "extremely" upset about how a business handled a serious complaint.

Corporate America has yet to realize the economic reality of consumer rage. Widely read complaints on the Internet create bad word of mouth for companies and costs them customers at the front door.