LSA Global Insights Newsletter: 2012

December 24, 2012

Top Ten Downloads for 2012

Happy Holidays

Here are the Top Ten downloaded published tools, insights and whitepapers for 2012.



About LSA Global
Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

November 30, 2012

Don't Drop the Baton - 5 Keys to Winning at Succession Planning

Ping...Ping...Ping!

While the sound is barely audible in the stands, it is the most feared sound in relay racing - a dropped baton.
Four years ago at the Beijing Olympics, the United States men's and women's 4x100-meter relay teams both dropped batons.

The failure caused the chief of USA Track & Field to publicly promise a "comprehensive review" of the entire relay program.

Do not let your team drop the baton on the track of your organic talent management efforts.

Runners struggle with the collaboration required in a relay race because their sport is deeply rooted in individuality. Leaders have a similar struggle with the goals of individuals versus the company goals; they must wrestle with matching the aspirations of their top talent with what they know the company will need in the future.

But make no mistake; a well-developed succession planning process pays off. Done right, it increases the attraction, engagement, and retention of high performing employees and improves your ability to execute future strategies and respond to change. An effective succession planning process requires understanding what it will take to make people ready when you need them to step into critical roles.

Successful programs are an important long-term investment: they increase employee tenure, drive higher engagement and productivity, and create the bench strength required to prepare for the turnover and growth likely to occur over the next few years.

Read more about the five guidelines for putting a new succession planning program in place or for breathing life into your existing system....


About LSA Global
Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

Use 3-Way Career Development to Succeed

Successful career development requires a three-pronged approach.

(1) Managers, (2) employees and (3) career coaches all have critical roles to play.

Effective career development programs should provide bench strength for key positions and provide training and support for employees to progress in their careers.

It starts with managers creating an environment where employees readily take ownership for their own career development.

This foundation is then supported by career coaches who have the tools to work one-on-one with employees to help them clarify their talents and uncover career paths which maximize both personal and company productivity.

Here's the payoff: employees who are more engaged, work harder and stay longer

Employees Navigating their Career

Managers Developing Top Talent

Certified Career Coaches Providing Support


About LSA Global
Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

October 31, 2012

Becoming a New Leader - 5 Common Traps to Avoid

Congratulations... but beware!

You have been newly promoted to a leadership role.
Maybe you are the new head of sales or customer service. Perhaps you have taken over a team of engineers or a new project team.

Hopefully you received a nice new title and a raise. But these probably come with a lot more responsibility.

If you don't start off on the right foot, you risk undoing all of the hard work, sacrifice, and influence that worked for you in the past and earned you this new position.

Everyone is watching. Your first few moves are critical.

So, as a new leader, what are the top five traps to avoid in your first 90 days?

Read more about the top 5 new leader traps to avoid...


Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

How to Navigate Change with the 5 Leadership Lenses

At some point during your career as a leader, you will be required to successfully guide others through change.

The larger and more complex the changes, the greater the challenge. Based upon over 25 years of change research, we have learned that successful leaders navigate change through Five Lenses.

The lenses enable leaders who are pursuing corporate change to expand beyond their preferred lens to increase the likelihood for success. The lenses are:

  1. Relationships
  2. Culture
  3. Stakeholders
  4. Structure
  5. Information

Each lens is directly related to the primary reasons that change efforts fail. Using all the lenses together ensures a complete picture of the change. By using different lenses separately, you can bring various aspects of the change into greater focus.

Successful Change Leaders understand and utilize each of these lenses.

Read more about the 5 Lenses of Change Leadership

Learn more about successfully navigating change...


Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

September 29, 2012

Top 4 Avoidable Change Risks as a Leader

Can your leaders successfully implement the important changes required to execute your strategy?

Since the buck stops with you, it is imperative that you keep your company and your leadership team one step ahead of the competition.

In a world where nothing seems to stay the same for long, leaders constantly face resistance to the very changes that are required to meet targets.

To excel (and in some cases to survive), we believe that companies and leaders must have the capability to successfully navigate change. This is especially true for large change initiatives where the majority (up to 70% by most accounts) fail.

The typical list of culprits includes integrating mergers and acquisitions, reorganizing the business, executing new strategies, opening new markets, implementing new technologies, transitioning to new leadership, and handling regulatory and market changes.

Based upon over 25 years of organizational change and alignment experience, we consistently run into the same inherent risks during the four primary phases of change.

Effective change leaders understand the need to anticipate and mitigate these four key risks with proven change leadership approaches, acumen and techniques.

Read more about the top 4 risks and how to overcome them... 


Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

Leaders: Change that Works

For most companies and leaders, major change means major disappointment.

For every organization, changes (planned and unplanned) are inevitable. The good news is that the breadth, complexity, and the speed of today's change provide a unique opportunity for organizations that get it right.

Just think about these common big changes:

  • Merger or Acquisition
  • Technology Implementation
  • Leadership and Organizational Changes
  • Shifts in the Marketplace

When you need to remake your company through a major change effort, it appears that the odds are not in your favor. A recent IBM global study cited a 59% failure rate with the biggest obstacles to successful change being rooted in people and corporate culture. For those who have been part of major change efforts, this should come as no surprise.

If you talk to leaders who have led major change initiatives, they will tell you that the technology, financials, and operational "stuff" sure feels easy compared to the people and culture "stuff" that seems to always get in the way.

Experts know that the "soft" stuff is the hard stuff when it comes to change.

Learn more about successfully leading and implementing change... 


Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

August 31, 2012

Disengaged at Work...Is the Grass Greener Elsewhere?

If you feel dissatisfied with your current job, you are in good company.

Many employees feel restless; they feel they are not learning anything new and that their career is at a standstill.

But is the grass really greener on the other side?


Before you walk away, take some advice from a seasoned employee engagement and retention expert. Ask yourself the following questions first and then take responsibility for improving your job situation...on this side of the fence.

Consider your time, emotional, and financial investment:

  • How long did it take you to find this job?
  • What level of anxiety did you experience during the interviewing and hiring process?
  • How long and steep was the learning curve?
  • What work relationships and rituals would you miss if you left?
  • Will you recoup an ROI that is greater than the time and energy you have already invested?

We believe that most employers DO care about their employees' satisfaction and engagement (it directly links to productivity and profits).

We also think it's worth giving them a chance to re-energize your commitment to your job.

You need to have a frank conversation with your manager who (according to our research) is likely unaware of how you feel.

Read more about three simple steps to prepare for meeting with your manager... 


Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

Navigate Your Career: Helping Employees Take Responsibility for their Own Job Satisfaction


Who is responsible for career development?

We have heard all the arguments. We have seen fingers pointed at the company, leadership, managers, HR, and employees.

In order to build internal bench strength and have skilled employees who can be moved into the right roles at the right time, we believe that employees must take ownership for their own career development.

Employees need support and alignment from all of the typical characters listed above, but every employee should proactively take charge of their own career development if they want to excel.

And the higher up you go on the career ladder, the more you need to aggressively ask for what you want.

To succeed, companies should use career development approaches to facilitate workforce "readiness," to develop employees who are engaged in the business, and to improve employee tenure. This includes designing career development programs to provide employees, their managers, and internal career coaches with a clear roadmap of how to develop a career within their unique culture.

The payoff for developing careers within the organization is immense: longer tenure, lower cost of recruiting, higher levels of contribution as employee potential is realized, and improved employment branding as an employer of choice.

The payoff to employees is priceless: less job stress, higher motivation, and the pride and satisfaction one experiences when making full use of one's strengths and natural talents.

Learn more about career development for employees...

Learn more about career development for managers...



Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

July 31, 2012

The ONLY Selling Style that Succeeds Long-Term


Traditional wisdom and many successful sales people argue that sales are ALL about relationships.

We disagree.

So do the majority of executive buyers.

Recently, we've been interviewing potential vendors (they have not earned partner status yet) to help us with some technology and branding projects.

As a company that helps our clients with defining their sales strategy and the implementation of that strategy, this recent vetting process has been a good reminder of why successful sales people are effective. It has also caused us to rethink what kind of business sales culture supports successful sales growth.

Over and over you may hear from peak sales performers that "people buy people." The problem with this philosophy is that it's not scalable. It's not a framework or methodology that allows organizations to coach to it, support it, or even to hire for it. While relationships may get you in the door, it does not, by itself, win the business.

How many times have you had a:

  • "Sam" on your team who had a great network, built great client relationships, and brought key clients over but, after the network and contacts were exhausted, Sam couldn't produce and moved on?
  • "Sue" on your team who met a client's need (sometimes even to the detriment of the company), received the highest evaluations on customer satisfaction, made things happen, but never seemed to be able to cross the quota threshold?
  • "Bob" who worked 10-12 hours per day, every day, never took vacation, but couldn't meet his quota, no matter how many times you reset it and how hard he tried?
  • "Jill" on your team who missed team meetings, ignored administrative tasks, and while she met quota, you had to question her value and cost to the psyche of the sales team and organization as a whole?
And then, have you ever had a "Laura"?

She has a finely tuned sense of individual customer objectives and value drivers. She positions her conversations effectively to different customer stakeholders and agendas within the organization. She becomes invaluable to her clients and thus, invaluable to you and your organization.

Can't think of the last time you hired or retained a "Laura"? Don't believe a "Laura-type" sales person will make the difference in your ability to reach and exceed your sales' goals?

Leading companies know that hiring, developing and retaining Business Strategists will change the way you operate, the way you define success and your ability to achieve and exceed your goals.

Learn more about creating business sales strategists...

Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

June 30, 2012

Customer Service: Technology vs. Relationships...Who Wins?

When it comes to customer service, loyalty, and cross-selling, does technology trump relationships? 

As Eric Schmidt, Google's Chairman, recently remarked at Boston University's graduation ceremony, "I believe fully in the power of technology to change the world for the better. And I believe even more fully in the ability of your generation to use that power to great effect-to rule technology...You can't let technology rule you...Take your eyes off of the screen...Have a real conversation...Life is not lived in the glow of a monitor..." 

Customers are not necessarily won and retained because they can "tweet" you or "friend" your company or chat with or email you at 2 am. They are won and retained because they feel important; they believe their business is valued and their voice is genuinely heard and acted upon. Technology, even in Eric Schmidt's opinion it seems, does not trump relationships. 

Recently, we spoke at two major Contact Center Conferences, the Contact Center Association Conference and ICMI's Annual Call Center Exhibition (ACCE). For both conferences, which attract Senior Leaders and Executives nationally and internationally, the prevailing themes/sessions focused on technology with these questions at the forefront: 

  1. How can technology enable your strategy?
  2. How can technology serve your customers more efficiently by enabling self-service?
  3. How can technology capture customer and corporate data that facilitate decisions around future strategies? 

What seemed to be covered in only a cursory way, however, is the keystone question, the one we believe is fundamental to your organization: "How do I equip my talent to truly leverage our technology and culture to implement our most critical strategies?" 


Read more about how to equip your talent to best leverage your technology and unique culture... 

Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

Do You Have a Clear Enough Picture of your Service Climate?

An unclear brand promise in the eyes of your customers harms loyalty, retention, and revenue. 

Successful service organizations have a clear and impartial picture of their organization's sales and service climate. 


Aberdeen's latest research reports an almost 2-to-1 difference in service margins for best-in-class organizations compared to all others. These service organizations use an internal and external perspective to provide the comprehensive and objective data necessary to help make the key decisions to prepare for successful change. Both now and in the future. 

Done right, a clear perspective provides a:
  • Comprehensive understanding of your performance strengths and weaknesses
  • Clear benchmark to track as the initiative progresses
  • Targeted training and sustainment plan that links your critical goals to specific manager and employee behaviors
Learn more about Living the Brand Promise... 

Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

May 30, 2012

Five Key Steps to Defining & Attracting Top Talent

It is all about performance. 

We believe that this is a good thing.   
  
Over the past seven or eight years, we have seen a steady increase in organizations devoting more time and effort to defining and measuring employee performance.

As business practices and profits continue to come under more intense scrutiny, we believe that the focus on performance will only increase.

No organization can afford people who do not contribute and who cannot perform consistently at a high level.

For most growing and changing companies, talent performance starts with attracting and hiring the right people in the first place. Jim Collins calls this "getting the right people on the bus in the right seat." 

While we all know that bad hires are very expensive and preventable, we continue to find frequent disconnects between employee performance and the traits that recruiters and hiring managers look for in candidates. Far too often, recruiters and hiring managers base their interviews and selection on a generic job description that has little relation to the reality of the position or the culture. 

To attract and hire talent that will best execute your strategy and thrive in your specific environment, you must first define great performance. Once defined, you can identify the specific competencies, skills, and traits that candidates must have to succeed. Only then will you be set up to get the right people on the bus in the right seats.

If you and your company are counting on new people to achieve your goals, and if you are serious about avoiding the hiring mistakes that keep so many great strategies from succeeding, here are five steps to finding the best people with the talent you need: 

Read more to find out the five steps defining and attracting top talent... 

Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

On-Boarding: How to Accelerate New Hire Speed to Productivity

Finding and hiring the right talent is difficult enough. 


Once you acquire the right talent, leading companies put them in a position to succeed as fast as possible.

According to Aberdeen's latest research, best-in-class onboarders have a 53.5% better retention rate, create 57% higher performance, and report 20% greater hiring manager satisfaction.

That adds up to greater productivity and significant cost savings.

In a recent survey, 210 CEO's estimated the time for a typical mid-level manager to reach "breakeven" as 6.2 months. Using an average salary of $100,000, the difference between a 3-month ramp and a 6.2-month ramp is approximately $26,500 per employee. 

This does not account for differences in revenue, margin, utilization, or productivity. It is only the salary side of the equation. For a company hiring a minimum of 100 new employees per year, this creates a $2.6m window of opportunity for an improved new hire process. For companies closer to the 24-month mark, the opportunity is as large as $17.5m. 

In addition to the financial side of the equation, making first impressions count and getting new employees up to speed quickly can make or break a strategy or project.   

Despite the compelling impact the effective on-boarding has on customer retention (4X), customer satisfaction (2.8X), and revenue (2.6X), 36% of organizations surveyed lack a formal on-boarding process.  Where do you stand?


Learn more about key on-boarding best practices... 

Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

April 30, 2012

Five Warning Signs of a Bad Project Leader

As Project Leaders, we rarely think that we are the Captain of the project version of the Titanic or that the problem lies with us. 

We blame any problems on our teams, clients, stakeholders, sponsors, or other external factors-not on ourselves. 

The story of the Titanic is an interesting example of how the blame game can work. Though up to now the Titanic's Captain (project leader) has taken much of the blame for the collision and 1,523 deaths, there has since been a lot of finger pointing in other directions. 

Some scientists recently arrived at a new theory that a full moon caused the disaster rather than the Captain. National Geographic's Richard A. Lovett wrote in March, "That full moon, on January 4, 1912, may have created unusually strong tides that sent a flotilla of icebergs southward-just in time for Titanic's maiden voyage." 

One historian believes that the chairman of Titanic's owner (a key project sponsor and stakeholder), the White Star Line, persuaded the Captain to continue sailing after encountering problems and is the main culprit for the tragedy. 

Yet another book on the subject claims that the Titanic had plenty of time to dodge the iceberg but the collision was the result of a helmsman (a project team member) who turned the ship the wrong way after misinterpreting instructions. 

These theories could all shift the blame away from Captain Edward John Smith. However, regardless of the true cause of the disaster, as a Captain and project leader, it is your responsibility to:
  • Plan for "a flotilla of icebergs."
  • Ensure that all stakeholders are on the same page.
  • Create the circumstances of success for your team.
Unfortunately, you do not have the luxury of waiting for a 100-year anniversary to be saved by alternative theories of your project's demise. So What Should You Do? 


Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

How to Lead High Performance Project Teams


Do your project leaders have what it takes? Are you getting the results you need? 

You have been asked to lead or to pick a leader for an important project. You appreciate the opportunity and vote of confidence, but you are concerned about pulling it off. 

The team has the right technical project management skills in terms of project definition, planning, and risk management, but they seem to lack the leadership, collaboration, and team cohesion to succeed in the face of what lies ahead. Additionally, your matrix organization is adding an additional layer of complexity. 

Soon, stakeholders will tug them in a million different directions. Varied leadership, communication, and decision making styles will create rifts as the team faces increased pressure. 

Whether the team is comprised of part-time volunteers or highly-skilled professionals, their productivity and success is dramatically affected by the relationships within the team and the ability to function as a cohesive unit. Successful project teams build a positive project team environment and learn to work together to solve problems even in the face of conflict. 

Learn more about leading high performance project teams... 

Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

March 31, 2012

Five Steps to Transforming a Recruiting Function

Heroes?

We don't usually think of recruiters as heroic.
Yet there are recruiting leaders who have achieved amazing results.

HC is one of those whose modesty means he remains anonymous. He took over a recruiting function that was stumbling along, filling positions only after lengthy delays.

Job requirements were not communicated clearly to candidates, hiring managers assumed the poor performance they got was normal, and senior leaders put all their positions out to search. The career site was hidden, not engaging, and listed positions as "open" long after they had been filled. There was no sourcing function and no applicant tracking system. Potential candidates were not a good fit according to hiring managers who needed more resources to meet demand.

Sound painfully familiar?

Everything in the recruiting function was reactive. There was no talent community, no proactive sourcing strategy, and not much awareness of weaknesses in their process.

While this sort of recruiting function is not all that unusual, this one was part of a well-known organization that has a high public profile and is considered a leader in its products and services.

Although no one knew it when he was hired, HC was going to turn this situation around. And he did it without firing any recruiters and without a lot of fanfare.

Read more to find out how one recruiting leader transformed recruiting...


Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned 

Strategic Employee Branding, Staffing and Recruiting

Hiring the right talent is difficult enough. 
Getting "A" players "fast enough" to support high growth can make or break a strategy.

If you are like most fast growing companies, chances are that your staffing and recruiting process is not what it should or could be.

To hit your ever increasing and shifting targets, you need it to be impactful, efficient, and strategic. From sourcing quality candidates to meeting hiring forecasts to employee and internal branding, an effective staffing and recruiting process is a complex challenge.

Best-in-class organizations execute each strategic staffing and recruiting phase efficiently and in alignment with their business and people strategy.




Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

February 28, 2012

The Keys to Successful Prospecting: Hitting the Home Run vs. Bunting

80% of the time. 
Every sales professional dreams about connecting with the right buyer to hit that sales pitch over the fence and bring in the winning revenue.

But in over 17 years of studying customers' buying habits, our research shows that prospects are "emotionally closed" to buying 80% of the time.

That's why the old adage, successful prospecting boils down to "at bats and number of hits," can set up a sales professional for some awfully long, scoreless innings.

Most prospecting theories (and training) follow this outdated model and maintain that sales and prospecting are just a matter of simple math:


1. If you get to swing at enough pitches (make enough phone calls)
2. You'll eventually get enough hits (connect with someone) and
3. Finally score some runs (close business). 


However, today's more savvy customers have learned to identify sales pitches and make it much more difficult for a salesperson to get the opportunity to even swing at the ball. "Smiling and dialing" for dollars is too costly and too ineffective to be a viable or smart tactic.

A much more strategic prospecting approach is required to succeed.

We have identified 7 key barriers to successful prospecting-from the difficulty of gaining access to the challenge of advancing the relationship-and offer tested methods and tools to overcome them.

Read about the 7 key barriers and how to overcome them... 


About LSA Global

Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

Getting More New Clients: What Does it Take to Grow Faster than Your Competition?

"We want more new clients." 
According to our Q1 Sales Poll, 45% of those surveyed said getting more new clients is their most pressing concern.

So - how do you generate new sales opportunities for your sales force?

Whether you find new customers through referrals, or through an inside sales force, our experience tells us that the new customer acquisition process is extremely client and industry specific.

Whether you are high tech software company, a medical device company, or a services firm, your approach must be aligned with how your target customers buy to help you acquire the right customers - faster.

Any way you cut it, this takes a clear Go to Market Strategy, defined target markets, and a compelling value proposition that resonates with your target buyers.

Learn more about:

Getting More Qualified Sales Meetings

Creating More Qualified Sales Leads
Inside Sales Coaching for Leaders

Selling Transactions More "Consultatively" 




About LSA Global
Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

January 31, 2012

Keys to Building a High Performance Contact Center

Just 5%.

A 5% increase in customer loyalty can boost profits by as much as 25% to 85%.

It is up to the Contact Center Leadership Team to stimulate improved performance and execution so these gains become a reality. The leaders need to create the circumstances that elicit better performance from their people.

The good news is that positive customer experiences drive repeat business, cross-selling and up-selling of services, loyal customers, and referrals. As well, positive experiences decrease the overall costs of service and sales.

The bad news is that contact center technology has not been the great equalizer between people and their performance that had been hoped. While technology has helped to mitigate poor performance and standardize overall performance, it hasn't fully resolved high attrition rates, lack of engagement, and embarrassing service and sales failures. These problems and a variety of other ills continue to plague contact centers and result in lost revenue, high service costs, and low customer loyalty.

So the key question for Contact Center Leaders and their bosses is not "why" high performance but rather "how"?

Fortunately, with the help of 16 years of research and the biggest bank of high performance environment data in the world, the "how" has become a whole lot easier.

Read how to create a high performance environment in your contact center... 




About LSA Global
Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned

Customer Service - How to Live Your Brand Promise

Brand experience does matter. 
According to the Chief Marketing Officer Council, 54% of those surveyed said they'd give up their memberships in Loyalty Clubs if they had a negative product or service experience with a brand.

It's critical that the customer service you deliver does not in any way reflect poorly on your brand. The potential loss of business is far too high, even with those customers who indicated a preference for your product by signing on as a club member.

When Harvard Business Review asked consumers what dimensions of customer service they would most like to see companies measure, the highest number (65%) said "knowledgeable employees." Consumers defined these desirable employees as being able to "answer my questions without putting me on hold, searching for someone, or transferring me."

62% said they value the customer service employee who "treats me like a valued customer" and 54% want a service person who "demonstrates desire to meet my needs." The lowest percentage, 31%, wanted "relevant/personalized service."

Any way you cut it, in order to thrive, organizations must create positive experiences for their customers with each and every interaction. These positive interactions drive the repeat business, cross-selling and up-selling of services, loyal customers, and referrals that maintain revenue growth and reduce costs of sales and service.

Customer service training should equip your service employees with targeted and effective customer service skills that allow you to truly "live your brand promise."


Learn more about:

Knowledge Management

Front Line Service Skills

Relationship Service Skills

Branding Service Skills

Customer Conflict Skills

Electronic Communication Skills


About LSA Global
Founded in 1995, LSA Global is a leading performance consulting and training firm that helps high growth technology, services, and life-science companies create a competitive advantage by powerfully aligning their culture and talent with their strategy. Learn more about getting aligned