<![CDATA[ engage]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com en-us CopyRight 2010, LoudClick http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/5993.jpg <![CDATA[ engage]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:53:15 GMT <![CDATA[ Our Book]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/NeverByChance.aspx Today's business leaders are working harder than ever to execute their business strategies, yet many lay awake at night with a nagging sense that their organizations should be creating better results faster.


Great business performance doesn't happen by chance. You can have all the cost-cutting initiatives, employee engagement programs, and technology upgrades that you want, but unless every resource and employee are intentionally aligned with a compelling vision, you'll leave too much on the table and lose out to competitors. So what is the key to getting breakthrough results in this age of "doing more with less"?


Never by Chance gives you a top-to-bottom guide on how great businesses accelerate their strategies in spite of today's resource-constrained environment. Forgoing the usual miracle cures, this realistic approach will help leaders catalyze their organizations by adopting the leadership mindset that "every resource that can be valuable, will be valuable."


In Never by Chance, you'll find:
- How to accelerate your vision and strategy
- Why a purposeful customer experience is absolutely necessary
- How to tell if you areas relevant to your customers as you think you are
- How to create a culture that is a competitive advantage
- Why intentional leadership matters

A strong quarter, a hot product, or a sudden sales bump can always be a fluke, but sustained excellence is never an accident. Written by three seasoned experts on aligning people and strategy to drive measurable results, Never by Chance gives you and your team an engaging and empowering road map to create clear competitive advantage and distinguish your company in today's ultra-competitive market.



To order Never By Chance:


What Leaders Are Saying About Never By Chance:

"Joe Calloway, Chuck Feltz and Kris Young have joined forces to write the book that senior management at companies large and small have been waiting for. Highly readable, loaded with innovative ideas and filled with seminal insights from both a consulting and CEO perspective, Never By Chance lays out a plan for aligning people and strategy to dramatically improve market share and ROI. If you're only going to read one business book this year, this is it!"

              - Kevin Clancy, PhD, Chairman, Copernicus Marketing Consulting


"Calloway, Feltz and Young offer a fresh perspective on what it takes to drive business strategy to its successful conclusion. This is a compelling contribution to the literature on the application of strategy and the importance of those things that really matter. It's a must read for all those who labor in the vineyards of corporate America and those who aspire to it."

              - Benjamin Ola. Akande, PhD. Dean, School of Business and Technology, Webster University

"Never By Chance is a real-world, pragmatic guide to authentic alignment, vision and strategy. If you want to create enduring value for your customers that drives shareholder value, then read this book, A great read that lays out a foundational approach to aligning people, resources and strategy."

              - Kevin Cashman, Senior Partner, Korn/Ferry Leadership & Talent Consulting, best-selling author of Leadership from the Inside Out

"Everyone ends up somewhere, but few end up somewhere on purpose. Doing things on purpose and for a purpose are critical to business success. Never By Chance makes a compelling case for intentional leadership in bringing all of a company's resources to bear on delivering the stakeholder value your organization exists to provide."

              - Steve Tourek, SVP and General Counsel, Marvin Windows and Doors

"Never By Chance is exactly the message that leaders today need to not only hear, but implement. There is no more powerful catalyst for a company than a compelling vision that empowers and aligns the resources of an entire organization. Never By Chance is a very powerful reminder of just how important this is for any organization."

              - Kevin Blair, President & CEO, NewGround


To order Never By Chance:


To download a free chapter:

Introduction.pdf

Culture As a Competitive Advantage.pdf

To contact us about speaking at your employee or leadership event, click here

]]> Tue, 19 Jan 2010 12:11:45 GMT <![CDATA[ ContactFormSuccess]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/ContactFormSuccess.aspx Contact Form Submit Success

Your contact form has been submitted successfully. We will contact you very soon.

If you require more immediate assistance, please call us at 612-803-9190.

Thank you for your interest in Engage Consulting Group.
]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:06:48 GMT <![CDATA[ SiteMap]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/SiteMap.aspx Site Map ]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:06:21 GMT <![CDATA[ Consulting]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Consulting.aspx Consulting

Our Point of View

There is nothing more powerful than an organization whose resources are laser focused on a vision that is clearly understood by every employee who gets up every morning knowing how they matter in personally making the vision become a reality.

Achieving this requires an intentional "never by chance" leadership approach to strategy, people and resource alignment.

Organizations that drive this level of alignment between their people and strategies are able to avoid the "strategic churn" that occurs when one poorly executed strategy is layered on top of another year after year with the unintended consequence of grooming their teams to wait for the next "strategy of the moment". Equally important, they reduce the frustration that comes from having many disconnected initiatives in place that do not move the organization quickly enough toward their goals. Their intentional style sends the clear message that every resource that can be valuable, will be valuable and nothing will be left to chance in their pursuit of excellence on behalf of their employees and stakeholders.

Engagements


Diagnostic Engagements
Sometimes the most obvious symptoms do not reflect the key underlying cause. A rapid and accurate look at the root cause of misalignments between resources and strategy can give you peace of mind to continue on your current path or make the valuable course corrections to accelerate your strategy. Our partner's combined history of strategic development, accountability and results delivery uniquely position them to help your organization pinpoint the areas of highest return.


Leadership Meetings
Leverage our background to add new strategic perspective and insight to your leadership meetings that complements your existing strategies, provokes innovative thinking  on your most intractable issues, and helps your team develop the most effective way to execute and communicate your strategy.

Workshops
Joe and Chuck will work with you to custom design large or intimate workshops to deliver the skill building, problem solving and orientation necessary to think differently about your market challenges and build the internal strategy you need to increase your competitive distinction.

Strategic Planning
Engaging executive teams in new ways to look at strategy is at the core of what Chuck and Joe have done throughout their careers. Their background in strategic development, execution ownership and success in results delivery uniquely position them as resources for you and your team.

Please contact us to see how we can accelerate your strategy.
]]> Tue, 19 Jan 2010 12:12:44 GMT <![CDATA[ Speaking]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Speaking.aspx Speaking

















Never By Chance: An Interactive Session with Joe Calloway and Chuck Feltz

This live session with Joe and Chuck can be a catalyst for leaders who want to take a fresh look at how they do business, and at how to maximize their ultimate resource - their people - in advancing the company's strategy. It's a session about generating ideas to take performance to the next level.

"Everyone ends up somewhere, but few end up somewhere on purpose. Never By Chance makes a compelling case for intentional leadership in bringing all of a company's resources to bear on delivering the stakeholder value your organization exists to provide."
- Steve Tourek
SVP & General Counsel
Marvin Windows and Doors

Based on their new book on intentional leadership, Never By
Chance is much more than just a speech. It's an interactive session
designed to act as a catalyst to help leaders answer the questions:
- "How do we drive our business strategy faster and more
   effectively?"
- "How do we make sure that every resource at our disposal is
   working to advance our strategy?"
- "How can we simplify our business, align our resources, and
   engage our employees as we move towards success?"

The Never By Chance session can help you:
 - think differently about your business
 - encourage new ideas about doing business differently
 - take a fresh look at who you are and where you're going
 - engage your people in meaningful conversations about
    leadership, alignment, and strategy
 - learn from the best practices of market leaders

Never By Chance helps you with ideas on how to leverage powerful intangible assets in order to create value. Those assets include:
 - Vision: Begin With The End In Mind
 - Culture As A Competitive Advantage
 - Relevance: Does Your Company Matter?
 - Customer Experience: It IS Your Brand
 - Events As Strategy
 - The Intentional Leader Mindset

In times when resources are constrained (and they almost always
are) and leaders are still held to incredibly high standards for
creating value, it is a mistake to leave the strategic leverage of
these resources to chance.

In companies that do this well, it is less about a tactical approach
and more about a mindset. Leaders who successfully deliver in all
types of conditions and economies take an aggressive approach
that says, "Any resource that can be valuable will be valuable."

Kevin Cashman, Senior Partner, Korn/Ferry Leadership & Talent
Consulting says that "Never by Chance is a real-world, pragmatic
guide to authentic alignment, vision and strategy."

Benjamin Ola. Akande, Dean, School of Business and Technology
Webster University says that Never By Chance offers "a fresh
perspective on what it takes to drive business strategy to its
successful conclusion."

About Joe Calloway and Chuck Feltz, co-authors
of Never By Chance:

Joe Calloway has been a popular business advisor and speaker for
almost 30 years, helping literally hundreds of companies and
thousands of people create and sustain success. He has studied
success factors across a wide range of business and has spoken on
performance issues at literally thousands of business meetings and
events. Joe is a member of the Speakers Hall of Fame and is the
author of three other books: Indispensable - How To Become The
Company That Your Customers Can't Live Without; Work Like
You're Showing Off!; and the best-selling Becoming A Category of
One: How Extraordinary Companies Transcend Commodity And
Defy Comparison.

Chuck Feltz has been a successful C-level leader of several
companies in multiple industries ranging in size and scope from an
international start up to a Fortune 500 company, both public and
private. He has had been widely recognized for his visionary
leadership and innovative strategies to drive maximum value in the
companies he has led. His operating and leadership experience
brings a "feet on the ground" perspective to Never By Chance - An
Interactive Session On Intentional Leadership.

To have Joe and Chuck speak at your next engagement, please contact us here.




]]> Tue, 09 Feb 2010 01:01:11 GMT <![CDATA[ Contact Us]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Contact.aspx Contact Us
Contact Kris Young to discuss how Engage Consulting can accelerate your success.

Kris Young
Phone: 612-803-9190




Name:
* required
Email:
* required
Message:

Offices:

Minneapolis (MN)
713 5th Street South
Stillwater, MN 55082

Saint Paul (MN)
8362 Tamarack Village Suite 119-169
Woodbury, MN 55125-3392

Nashville (TN)
PO Box 158309
Nashville TN 37215


]]> Thu, 28 Jan 2010 01:00:26 GMT <![CDATA[ About]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/About.aspx About


Simplify. Align. Engage.

These three words were the basis for the formation of Engage Consulting Group.

We believe today's leaders and their teams are working harder than ever. Yet we continually hear their frustration about not making progress as fast as they want. It keeps them awake at night wondering, "With everything we have going on, why aren't we making better progress? Is it time to just start all over?"

Only in rare cases do we think starting over is the right approach.

But we do believe that far too much value is being left on the table in spite of heroic efforts and that at this rate many organizations will exhaust employees and resources long before they realize their vision.

Why? Because companies have created unnecessary complexity by layering strategy upon strategy, year after year, complicating their message, execution, and results.

We have found that it's not a question of doing more, but rather developing an approach that allows you to get more from the assets you already have. Simply, to accelerate your business strategy by intentionally aligning your existing resources with your vision and strategy in the most effective way.

Our partner model brings a unique profile steeped in decades of C-level company leadership, strategic and change management consulting, and results delivery. We bring this on behalf of our clients in order to thoroughly diagnose business issues, provoke new shifts in thinking and align each organization's people and strategy to deliver the greatest sustainable value in the shortest time possible.
contact us here
]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 05:31:46 GMT <![CDATA[ Home]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/home.aspx Engage Consulting Group

Ask any business leader how tough today's environment is and they'll tell you they've never worked harder. Many talk of an environment where the pressure to deliver has reached a "white hot" level of intensity, where careers that used to be measured in decades are now measured in months and where company life cycles move from differentiated to commodity status in record time.

The "more with less" mantra has never been more prevalent and it is imperative that leaders deliver greater results with fewer resources in record time. "Daunting" would not be an overstatement of the challenge.

Our goal is to help leaders answer the question, "How do we increase the speed and effectiveness of our business strategy?". We want leaders to be confident in their ability to deliver in today's resource-constrained environment, not paralyzed by it and to rest easier knowing that every resource they have is laser focused on making their business strategy a reality.

We have one focus: the acceleration of your business strategy. We leave nothing to chance in making your vision a reality.


Click on a thumbnail below to see how we think about the work we do on your behalf:

Vision Drives EverythingCulture as Competitive AdvantageThe Work We DoEvents as Strategy

 
]]> Mon, 01 Feb 2010 04:01:34 GMT <![CDATA[ Strong Client Focus]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/StrongClientFocus.aspx Strong Client Focus

Chuck's blend of operating strength and strategic acumen were the powerful combination that led to the record operating performances his team turned in while he led Deluxe Financial Services. His ability to create a compelling vision and engage all employees during a period of significant change were key to that success. In addition, his strong client focus, from his extensive sales and marketing leadership roles, adds a valuable and unique perspective to his engaging leadership style.

Arnold Angeloni, CEO Northcott Hospitality, LLC ]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:56 GMT <![CDATA[ Enthusiastically Embrace a Plan]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/EnthusiasticallyEmbraceaPlan.aspx Enthusiastically Embrace a Plan

Chuck is truly an exceptional corporate leader. He managed to get his entire organization - from the folks in the corner office to the people on the front lines with customers - to enthusiastically embrace a plan to transform the business. No small feat for a mature company in a mature industry. He understands the big picture, approaches decisions in a tempered and deliberate manner, seeks advice, builds consensus, and, most importantly, cares about the people who work for him. If there were more people like him in corner offices, we wouldn't be in the financial mess we're in today.

Kevin J. Clancy, Chairman, Copernicus Marketing Consulting and Research ]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:53 GMT <![CDATA[ Relate the Message]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/RelatetheMessage.aspx Relate the Message

I heard nothing but raves about Joe Calloway's presentation.  What made it particularly effective was his ability to relate the message to what our audience does in building and maintaining stores.

Chain Store Age Magazine ]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:51 GMT <![CDATA[ Outstanding Expertise and Guidance]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/OutstandingExpertiseandGuidance.aspx Outstanding Expertise and Guidance

Chuck is an exceptional executive coach. He provides outstanding expertise and guidance in the areas of business strategy, change and culture management and talent development to ultimately drive growth and profitability on behalf of shareholders. His insights and practical advice have been extremely valuable to me in relation to how I lead and focus my team at UnitedHealth Group.
 
Cris DuBord, Vice President, UnitedHealth Group
]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:49 GMT <![CDATA[ Consistency Differentiation Culture]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/Consistencydifferentiationculture.aspx Consistency, differentiation, culture
 
I heard great feedback from the attendees on Joe's presentation.  I particularly liked the discussion of the three elements of consistency, point of differentiation ("prove it") and the need for a clearly defined culture.  The notion that the numbers are not the primary focus but the end result of building upon what people believe in is a necessary message for business today.

Linens N Things
]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:46 GMT <![CDATA[ Energy to Improve]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/EnergytoImprove.aspx Energy to Improve

I have known and worked with Chuck during several of his career stops. He is one of the most thoughtful and intelligent CEO's I have met. He is personable and passionate. That combination creates energy to improve every organization or project he touches.

Karen Makowski President & CEO Panther Community Bank, N.A. ]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:44 GMT <![CDATA[ Positive Outcome]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/PositiveOutcome.aspx Positive Outcome

Joe, you might remember a few years ago you worked with Bobby Bradley, Donna Bell and me during our Computer Systems Technology, Inc. branding effort in Huntsville, Alabama. We reached our goal of 1000 employees and $100M per year in 2002 and successfully sold the company to SAIC. Thought you might want to know about the positive outcome from your effort. I wanted to thank you for your help and insight into what we needed during your effort with us. I believe it was one of the keys to our success.

Jay Newkirk ]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:41 GMT <![CDATA[ Stimulated and Challenged]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/StimulatedandChallenged.aspx Stimulated and Challenged

Chuck Feltz is an engaging and eloquent speaker, allowing participants to learn from his ethical leadership at the companies he has led.  Those present were stimulated and challenged by his candid and thoughtful remarks.  His comments reinforced the Center's fundamental premise that organizations that build ethical cultures outperform those who don't.

Ronald James - President and CEO, Center for Ethical Business Culture ]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:39 GMT <![CDATA[ Unique Interactive Style]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/UniqueInteractiveStyle.aspx Unique Interactive Style

Joe Calloway has a unique, interactive style of working with the audience....asks questions and puts them in a conversational mode which does a great job in making a connection with them.  It's the first time I've seen this done, and it was a definite success.

CCC Information Services ]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:36 GMT <![CDATA[ Immediate Impact]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/ImmediateImpact.aspx Immediate Impact

Chuck has provided useful advice at a key time in our company's development. Chuck is a rare talent that can make an immediate impact. He has challenged us to rethink, reposition and ignite our sales and marketing efforts and helped us deal with issues that I don't know if we would have been able to recognize without him. Companies lucky enough to work with Chuck will know what I mean, he can make a real difference in a very short amount of time that will have a lasting change on the business and accelerate growth significantly.

Alex Huff CEO LoudClick, Inc. ]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:34 GMT <![CDATA[ Adds Value]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/AddsValue.aspx Adds Value

Witty, energetic and engaging, Joe Calloway's message adds value to companies who love to think or to be challenged on their long-held assumptions. The core message is crucial for these challenging times -- you thrive when you genuinely and deeply take care of your customers in ways that no one else can. The best integration of a conference theme that I have ever experienced.

Casella Waste Systems
]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:31 GMT <![CDATA[ Tangible Results]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Testimonials/TangibleResults.aspx Tangible ResultsI am a leadership coach at a $1 billion credit union and have facilitated leadership book clubs in various organizations. This is the first time however, that a book I've recommended received such rave reviews from our frontline employees all the way to our Executive Vice Presidents. It started when I loaned my copy of Becoming a Category of One to our CEO, who then wanted his senior management team to read it and then the managers and now all 230 employees have a copy of your book (thanks to Wiley Publications who worked with me to get a discount).

I have so many more comments from our managers that I have not experienced in previous leadership book clubs. As a result, during our monthly managers meetings, they share some of the things they've implemented in their branch/department and it's exciting and I'd be happy to share all of that with you.

Just to let you know, I've had people roll their eyes because they think, "here's the training person making us read another book," but this one was different (I've recommended Good to Great, First Break all the Rules, The Leadership Engine and more). I'm also certified to facilitate 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and get great responses to it, but your book is less "touchy feely" and without the "kumbaya".

One of our more skeptical VPs said "I'm surprised how much conversation we're getting around this book at our department meetings."

I'm sure you hear this often, but we have seen some tangible results because of the leadership support in reading this book. Some of the exciting things we've seen/implemented:
  • Our IT department has put in some new programs to make it easier and faster for our members to enroll online
  • Branches opening a few minutes early if members are waiting at the door
  • Departments implementing small changes to improve member service
  • Tellers talking about "brand" and saying things like "we want to be the best employee" and "if you're as good as you're going to get then find another place to work!"
It is a challenging year for our organization as with many credit unions and financial institutions, but because we started this journey with Becoming a Category of One, our employees feel that they can make a difference by being the best at their job. I'm looking forward to recommending your other books!

Roz Gil
Learning & Development
562.598.9007 ext. 5206
rgil@lbsfcu.org

Jeffrey Napper - Pres. & CEO
LBS Financial Credit Union
]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:29 GMT <![CDATA[ Events as Strategy]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Video/EventsasStrategy.aspx Events as Strategy

Rethink how you use your company events and meetings in the most effective way possible. Move from "events as we've always done them" to events that accelerate your strategy, engage your employees and increase your market share.

]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:53:06 GMT <![CDATA[ The Work We Do]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Video/TheWorkWeDo.aspx The Work We Do

As leaders, driving long term value is one of our most important obligations and one of our greatest challenges. Learn how Joe and Chuck can partner with you to accomplish this through their speaking and consulting methods.

]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:53:03 GMT <![CDATA[ Culture as Competitive Advantage]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Video/CultureasCompetitiveAdvantage.aspx Culture as Competitive Advantage

A company cannot not have a culture - it's just a question of how purposeful it is. Your culture can become one of your strongest competitive advantages and distinguish you with your customers.

]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:53:01 GMT <![CDATA[ Vision Drives Everything]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Video/VisionDrivesEverything.aspx Vision Drives Everything

Learn how your clear and compelling vision can accelerate your business strategy, engage your employees and increase the value of your company. See why this is one resource that must never be left to chance.

]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:58 GMT <![CDATA[ Kris Young]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/People/KrisYoung.aspx Kris Young For twenty years Kris Young has helped design experiences that engage employees and customers with a company's vision. Kris has worked with the top business speakers in the world on a wide range of corporate meetings and events. In 2007 she was named National Speakers Association Meeting Partner of the Year.
]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:26 GMT <![CDATA[ Joe Calloway]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/People/JoeCalloway.aspx Joe Calloway For almost thirty years, Joe Calloway has helped great companies get even better. Joe believes that it's the "mindset" of the people in an organization that drives greatness. 

A popular speaker for corporate events (over 2,000 presentations), Joe is a member of the Speakers Hall of Fame, and he is the author of the popular business books:

Becoming A Category of One: How Extraordinary Companies Transcend Commodity and Defy Comparison; Indispensable: How To Become The Company That Your Customers Can't Live Without; Work Like You're Showing Off! and Never By Chance - Aligning People And Strategy Through Intentional Leadership
(co-authored with Chuck Feltz and Kris Young).

Sales And Marketing Management Magazine called Joe "an expert on developing customer focused teams," and a National Customer Services Advisory Board called Joe "one of the most innovative and compelling people in customer service."

Joe's client list reads like a "Who's Who" in business.  From Saks Fifth Avenue and BMW to American Express and IBM, a wide range of companies depend on Joe for insight into today's marketplace.]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:24 GMT <![CDATA[ Chuck Feltz]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/People/ChuckFeltz.aspx Chuck Feltz Chuck has been a C-level executive leader of 5 companies during his career, ranging in size and scope from an international start up to a $1 billion Fortune 500 organization. He is a founding partner of Engage Consulting Group and co-author of the soon to be released Never By Chance - Aligning People And Strategy Through Intentional Leadership, (John Wiley and Sons).

His innovative B2B strategic work has been featured in CMO Magazine, Marketing Management magazine and in the books Indispensable: How to Become the Company Your Customers Can't Live Without; Becoming a Category of One and The Case For B2B Branding. He is a regular lecturer at several graduate schools of business and has been featured as a speaker at numerous business conferences including the American Marketing Association, Brand Manage Camp, and The Conference Board in New York.

Chuck is the co-founder of KidsToTheRescue.org, a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering children to leverage their collective voice in issues affecting children. Their work was cited in Bill Clinton's book, Giving.
]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:52:21 GMT <![CDATA[ Tiebreakers]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/Tiebreakers.aspx Tiebreakers

What's Your Tiebreaker?

I'm trying to decide who to do business with.  Should I choose you or one of your competitors?  You all look pretty much the same to me.  One of you has to have something that will tip my decision in your favor.  That's the tiebreaker.  Whoever's got the winning tiebreaker gets my business.  So, what's your tiebreaker?  What can you point to with confidence and say "This is the reason that you should choose us.  I rest my case." 

In the chapter "The Commodity Trap" I talk about getting beyond price and quality to more powerful differentiators.  In this chapter we'll look at some examples of how companies create powerful tiebreakers in ways that may surprise you.  Perhaps the biggest surprise may be that by simply doing what you said you’d do, but doing it with absolute consistency, you can create the greatest differentiator of all.

Whatever your tiebreaker is, or, if you’re really good, whatever your tiebreakers are, rest assured that it's got to be there in plain sight.  You can't make your customer guess or have to work to figure out what your difference is.  One of the most valuable exercises you can do for your business is to have everyone answer the question, "Why choose us?"  In my case, as basically a one man business, I ask that question all of the time.  I never assume that the answer is obvious to a potential customer.

Here's a dose of reality:  my competitors are good.  Really, really good.  I never fall into the trap of thinking that I’m the obvious choice because I am just so much better than the other guys.  I look at who I'm stacked up against and all I can see are competitors who know their stuff and deliver the goods.  The ones that aren't very good aren't my competition.  Remember that.  If you actually are obviously better than someone else in your category, then they aren't your competition.  Pay attention to the best in your category and know that this is who you're up against.  
   
Remember the premise of this book - becoming a Category of One.  What you want to do is create such a clean break from your competition that customers and potential customers quite literally believe that there's no comparison between you and the other guys.  That’s an extremely ambitious goal, but one that you must pursue every day.  In  my own business, I am constantly working towards the position of being able to truthfully say "I don’t do what they do' when it comes to my competition.  For you, it may be a case of being able to say "We do what our competition does...BUT..."  Then you go on to identify one differentiating factor that is so compelling that it gets you the win.  That's your tiebreaker.

The Ultimate "Wow" Factor

It seems that every business today is looking for the "wow factor."  I hear it all of the time.  People are wringing their hands and running around frantically saying "What's our 'wow factor?'  We've got to find a 'wow factor.'  We can't compete without a 'wow factor'."  Okay.  Fine.  Let's think about this "wow factor" idea.  
   
A friend of mine is in the business of matching up companies with outside experts.  His job, in effect, is to help companies get better by putting them with the right resource.  I asked him what he thought about the whole "wow factor" frenzy.  He said "Quite honestly, I'm getting really tired of all of this 'wow factor' stuff.  I think everyone pretty much knows what they have to do.  They just need to do it."
   
There's your "wow factor."  Just do what you know you have to do.  But let me take it a step further and really get to the ultimate "wow."  Do what you do, extremely well, every single time, with every customer.  Relentless, attention-getting, differentiating consistency of performance.  This can be your ultimate tiebreaker and is, for some Category of One companies, if not their key differentiator, certainly the foundation upon which everything else is built.

Beyond Table Stakes

Another popular term being bandied about along with "wow factor" is "table stakes."

What this means is that there are some basic expectations that you must fulfill just to get in the game.  That's absolutely true, of course.  As noted elsewhere in the book, you have to come to the marketplace with a minimum standard of value pricing, product quality, and good service.  
   
Often I will advise a client that what they should be focusing on is to provide really good service every time to every customer.  That's when I hear the argument that good service is just "table stakes," and that what they are interested in is a "wow factor."  Here's the problem.  Most of the time, they aren't delivering really good service every time.  It's just most of the time.  Or, more likely, just some of the time.  But the same can probably also be said for their competition.  The great challenge for any company of much size at all is to deliver quality and service consistently.  And therein lies your potential differentiator - consistency.
   
If you deliver on those "table stakes" factors of basic customer expectations, but do it with incredible consistency, that differentiator alone can quite possibly take you to Category of One status.  Companies that do what they do extremely well every time, with every customer, are exceptionally rare.  If you can get to that level of consistency, chances are very good that you will find yourself in a Category of One.

Own An Expectation

We spend so much time worrying about thinking “outside the box” that we may be overlooking the potential returns if we look inside the box for tiebreakers.  Think about your customers’ basic expectations of you.  I’m talking about what your customer expects in every transaction and in all aspects of his relationship with you.  If you sell hamburgers, then the basic expectations might be for a good tasting hamburger, at a competitive price, delivered to you quickly, in a clean environment, by friendly, professional people.  What if you chose one of those basic expectations to absolutely master.  What if you, in the minds of the customers, owned that expectation?  What if you delivered on that one fundamental expectation so incredibly well that it truly set you apart from your competition?
   
In the western United States there are thousands upon thousands of customers who would say that In-N-Out Burger is such a company.  In-N-Out Burger was started by the Snyder family, and, according to the company website, they had a clear vision about what they intended to deliver to customers:  “Give customers the freshest, highest quality foods you can buy and provide them with friendly service in a sparkling clean environment.”
   
The great thing about In-N-Out Burger is that their customers could pick any of the elements of that vision statement as something that the company “owns.”  They consistently excel in quality, friendly service, and a clean environment.  Wait.  Not just clean.  “Sparkling clean.”  What a difference in power that one word, “sparkling,” adds to the intention.
   
But I would wager that most customers would say that the one basic customer expectation that serves as In-N-Out Burger’s tiebreaker and main differentiator is the quality and taste of the hamburger itself.  Customers rave over these hamburgers and will even wait longer for them than they would for any of their competitors’ hamburgers.  
   
If you can establish product superiority in today’s marketplace, that’s a differentiator that almost automatically puts you in a Category of One.  All you have to do is be respectably competitive in everything else.  Clear product superiority is exceptionally rare today and rarer still if you can sustain it for a long period of time.  If you can get there – you rule.

Wild Goose Chase

Many companies get so distracted by their search for the “wow factor” that they take their eye off the ball.  The ball, of course, being the foundational elements of your business – those basic customer expectations.  It’s easy to find yourself in search of what amounts to a “wow factor” gimmick instead of doing your job exceptionally well, every time, with every customer.  You end up on a wild goose chase and your customer ends up taking her business elsewhere because you forgot to tend to the basics.
   
My wife had lunch the other day with a friend at a casual dining restaurant.  She ordered a salad as her entrée.  When the waiter brought her salad, she literally said, “Wow.”  The salad was the most impossibly vertically ambitious structure she had ever seen.  This was basically a lettuce based salad that went straight up.  It was a tower.  She had never seen a salad like it.  She said to the waiter, “That’s the tallest salad I’ve ever seen.”  The waiter replied, “That’s our wow factor.”
   
As the waiter left the table my wife thought, “No.  That’s your ‘wow, what a completely stupid way to serve a salad’ factor.”  She told me later that the salad was practically impossible to eat.  You just couldn’t get to it without making a mess.  But somebody, somewhere in that restaurant company had decided that just being different would be a competitive differentiator.  Sometimes being different is just goofy.  First, make a good salad that people can actually eat.  Forget the gimmicks and concentrate on good food.  

Hotel Bathroom Origami

I travel a lot.  When I say I travel a lot, I’m talking about twenty-five years of airplanes, restaurants, and hotel rooms.  For someone like me, who studies what creates success in business, travel is the perfect real world laboratory.  If you travel enough you will experience the entire spectrum of service and quality, from extraordinary to wretched.  As a frequent traveler I have been the beneficiary of fabulous service and the victim of service so bad it almost seemed like someone were playing a practical joke on me.

I have a particular interest in hotels.  It’s very much a love/hate relationship in that no one love a great hotel more than I do.  At the same time, a hotel that misses the mark can drive me absolutely crazy (see my adventure with the hotel in Austin, Texas in the chapter “Your Brand Is Everything”).  What I have discovered in over two thousand stays in hotels around the world, is that it’s never a “wow factor” gimmick that wins me over.  It’s not the hotel origami. 

Although I’d seen hotel bathroom origami for years, it wasn’t until I heard my friend Lou Carbone talk about it that I really began to take note of this strange, exotic, and rather peculiar hotel art form.  Lou is a customer experience management expert, and author of the fabulous book “Clued In, How To Keep Customers Coming Back Again And Again.”  In a presentation he did about customer experience, Lou had photos of some of the most insanely elaborate hotel bathroom origami I’d ever seen.  
   
Hotel bathroom origami is the art of turning tissue, toilet paper, or towels into amazing sculptures of dragons, orchids, clouds, fire trucks, or other intriguing shapes and forms.  What never ceases to amaze me is that often the hotel that puts this much effort into turning tissue into white, fluffy bouquets of delight is the same hotel that didn’t have enough people at the front desk during check-in rush hour, had two burned out light bulbs in lamps in my room, and made me wait over ten minutes in the restaurant before a waiter showed up to take my order.
Instead of figuring out how to significantly reduce the time required to check in guests, which would truly delight me, the hotel does toilet paper origami.  They think that their “wow factor” of having paper and cloth orchids and dragons around the room will win me over.  
  
You want a “wow factor”?  Stop it with the origami toilet paper and just get me checked in in less than three minutes.  Make sure the room is clean.  Use light bulbs that are over 50 watts so that I can see what I’m doing.  Do the basics well and I promise not only to be wowed, but to come back.  Hey, I love the warm chocolate chip cookies at Doubletree Hotels, but what I love more is that they generally do a really good job with the basics.  

How To Get Rave Reviews

On a business trip to Chicago, I was delighted to find that I would be staying at The James hotel.  The James had been listed as number 29 on Travel + Leisure Magazine’s “World Best Awards” top 100 hotels in US and Canada.  The New York Times said “The James is now the only game in town” and one reviewer called it “the city’s hippest lodging.”  It was featured as a 2007 Conde Nast Traveler magazine “Hot List” hotel.  The magazine also listed The James as one of the “world’s top new 138 hotels,” being one of only 19 in the United States to make that list.  It’s review said that The James had set a new standard for service.
Talk about rave reviews!  I wanted to know the secrets of The James.  I was ready to crack the code of incredible service and blow the lid off the story of how to create an extraordinary customer experience.  In short, I was ready for “wow factors.”  
   
The punch line to this story is underwhelming.  Nothing “wowed” me.  There was no single moment when a hotel employee did something so over the top that I would tell the story for years.  There were no special gifts waiting for me in my room.  The elevator didn’t have my favorite song playing.  There wasn’t even any bathroom origami.  All they did was their jobs.  And they did them extremely well, all day and all night long.  The doorman smiled.  The people at the front desk were professional and delightfully friendly without being overbearing.  The design of the interior spaces throughout was beautiful.  The room was clean.  The bed was great.
 


The James just got everything right.

I’ve since stayed at The James many times and I have yet to see them miss a beat.  I’ve asked other guests there what impressed them about the hotel and every person had pretty much the same response, “It’s just a great hotel.”  There was the occasional story of, for example, a desk clerk who helped a hotel guest work out a complicated travel challenge.  But, for the most part, everyone I spoke with about their experience at The James just tended to agree that it was a rock solid hotel that did a great job time after time.  They’ll be back.  And so will I.

Happy Birthday.  Our Price Is Low.

Think about the companies that we read about in all of the popular business books as being examples of “wow factor” masters.  These are the companies that the motivational speakers point to as inspirations for us all.  Look at the covers of the business magazines and make a list of who’s been there in the past few years.
   
Start with the grand champion of them all – Southwest Airlines.  I write about Southwest Airlines and often hold them up as fabulous example of a Category of One company.  Their record of customer satisfaction and loyalty, profit, and performance dependability speaks for itself.  It’s the dependability part of the mix that is their foundation.  The rest is icing on the cake.
   
While working with a group of financial services managers, I asked them for examples of companies that they felt had achieved Category of One status through clear differentiation.  Predictably, one of the first stories offered was about Southwest Airlines.  A woman said that she and her friend recently took a trip to celebrate the friend’s fiftieth birthday.  As they boarded the plane, the flight attendant asked her if this was a fun trip for her or a business trip.  She whispered that it was her friend’s birthday.
   
About an hour into the flight, the flight attendant announced on the public address system that today was a very special occasion as it was the birthday of one of the passengers.  He proceeded to hand out “birthday peanuts” and then said that he was going to dim the lights in the cabin.  “We can’t have candles on an airplane,” he said.  “But if each of you would reach up and turn on your flight attendant call button, we can make the inside of this plane look like a birthday cake full of candles.”  He then lead them in a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday” and the entire plane erupted in cheers and applause.
   
Great story.  I just get goosebumps.  Now that’s a “wow factor” if there ever was one.  But there’s more to the story.  I asked the woman why she and her friend had chosen Southwest Airlines in the first place.  She said “Mostly price.  And we didn’t want to be delayed.  Southwest seems to be on time more than the other airlines.”  
   
Here’s the point.  Southwest Airlines takes care of the customers’ basic expectations in terms of value, quality, and consistency.  Then, and only then, will the birthday celebration make any difference at all.  If the coffee at Starbucks isn’t consistently what the customer wants, then who cares about the oh-so-hip music playing in the store?  If I have to wait in line for what seems like forever every time I go to the bank, then the fact that someone runs out with an umbrella to help me in when it’s raining doesn’t impress me much.  
   
All of the “wow factor” tricks in the world will never be more important than this one foundational plea from every customer on the planet:  Just do your job!  THEN you can impress me with really cool gestures and above-and-beyond feats of service.
 

What Tiebreakers Look Like

My own approach to tiebreakers is to establish a foundation of rock solid reliability.  I know my business, I’m really good at it, and I will deliver value consistently.  That foundation gets me even with all of my other competitors who can do the same thing.  The big mistake that the non-competitors in my industry make is that they assume that they’re really good when the market has said, “No.  You’re really not very good.”  The market will tell you if you’re competitive or not.  The system works perfectly.
   
I spend the great majority of my time working on one thing:  creating value through quality.  I never say “I’m there.  It’s good enough.”  For me, the product and service that I deliver are never “good enough” so I work on them relentlessly.  That’s my primary tiebreaker.
Beyond that, I endeavor to create tiebreakers everywhere I can.  
  •     Be extremely easy to work with:  Tiebreaker
  •     Return calls and emails immediately:  Tiebreaker
  •     Resolve issues in the favor of the client whenever possible:  Tiebreaker
  •     Keep reimburseable expenses as low as possible:  Tiebreaker
  •     If I’m not the right fit for a job, recommend a competitor who is:  Tiebreaker
  • And the list goes on.
Let’s take a look at some great companies with a wide range of tiebreakers.  The idea isn’t to necessarily copy them, but to let their ideas inspire your own ideas for how to differentiate from the competition.
Be On Time.  Is That A Big Deal?
   
Go back to the idea of thinking of your cusomers’ basic expectations and picking one to absolutely master.  What if you owned it?  What if you staked your claim on being the absolute best in the business at one aspect of what customers want?  That’s ‘inside the box” thinking at its best and it could very well get you a huge return.
   
Almost everyone has had the experience of setting up an appointment for a service person to come to their home.  It might have been someone from the cable tv company, the phone company, a plumber, or an electrician.  You’ve taken off from work in order to be there to meet this person at the appointed time.  In that situation, what’s one of the most infuriating things that can possibly happen?  They’re late.  The later they are, the madder you get.  
   
We’re talking about the most basic of basic customer expectations.  Be on time.  Show up when you said you’d show up.  Because this is such a common experience it begs the question that there might possibly be an opportunity for competitive advantage here.  What if you owned the expectation of showing up on time?  What if that was your flag in the sand?  What if you even built an entire brand around it?  In my town there is a plumbing company that has done just that.
   
They own being on time.  It’s their turf.  They have staked their brand on their mastery of this one basic customer expectation.  They will be there when they said they’d be there or they’ll pay the customer five dollars for every minute they’re late.  Their advertising absolutely hammers you over the head with this one focused, precise differentiator.  Obviously, they are also good at plumbing and they’ve been in business enough years to prove that.  But their tiebreaker is being on time.
   
Is being on time a big deal?  Oh yeah.  Every homeowner, me included, who has grinded teeth while waiting for a late service person to show up can attest that being on time is a big deal.
It’s not that being on time should be your tiebreaker, although you could probably do worse than that.  It’s what it might inspire in you that holds the payoff.
   
One of my clients is a multinational company that sells industrial and commercial safety equipment and alarm systems all over the world.  In the great 2009 recession they asked the question “What if we owned delivery?  What if we were absolutely the most reliable vendor in our industry when it came to dependability of delivery?  What impact would that have not only on our existing customers, but on the customers of our competitors?  Some of those customers may be feeling a little neglected right about now and being the rock solid vendor could very well create some market share opportunities for us.
If You Lose Your Job
   
In a time of unprecedented layoffs and economic uncertainty, what’s it worth if a compny can remove a significant potential financial worry from your life?  How powerful is taking that worry away as a tiebreaker?  One company seized the hard reality of a recession and used it to create a powerful and unique differentiator.
   
In 2009 the fifth largest automaker in the world was Hyundai.  They began the year with a 7 percent market share in the United States.  Hyundai has worked for years to change the public perception that they are just a little auto company from Korea making inexpensive little cars. In the middle of one of the worst slumps in the history of the car business, they’re doing just that.
Starting at the foundation, which is doing your job well, Hyundai started off  the year with a bang.  Their first luxury sedan, the Genesis, was named North American Car of the Year at the Detroit auto show.  Remember that without quality at the basic expectation level, there’s no chance to use a tiebreaker because you don’t even get to compete.  Hyundai also claims to offer America’s Best Warranty, which adds substance to their claim to product quality.
   
In a time of intense uncertainty and financial worry, what’s your tiebreaker?  For Hyundai it was their Hyundai Assurance program, which lets buyers return their vehicles, at no cost and with no penalty to their credit rating, if they lose their job or income within a year.  
Did it work?  Among all auto manufacturers sales in the U.S. in January of 2009 fell 37 percent, the industry’s worst since 1963.  Sales of the Hyundai Sonata surged 85 percent.
   
After the initial success of the Hyundai Assurance program, they upped the ante with Hyundai Assurance Plus.  The promotion for the program stated “At Hyundai we think it’s easier to find a job when you’ve got a car.  That’s why, for a limited time, we’ve added something extra.  If you lose your income, we’ll make your payments for 3 months while you get back on your feet.  We're all in this together, and we think it'll be a little easier to get through it with a good set of wheels.’
   
Again, as with other tiebreaking strategies, the point isn’t the specifics of the Hyundai Assurance program.  The future of Hyundai and all auto companies remains filled with uncertainty and anything can happen.  The point to be learned from Hyundai is that any of us can and should think in terms of “What is my customer’s problem?  How can I stop the pain?”  In order to differentiate we simply have to move towards outside-in thinking, looking at the reality of the world around us and embracing it and the opportunities each business cycle presents.
Easy To Do Business With
   
One tiebreaker that wins over and over again is to simply be easier to do business with.  Whether it’s an easy-to-navigate web site, a bank that’s open on Sunday afternoon, or a concrete pipe manufacturer that writes contracts the way the client wants them written, the positive power of the “easy” factor can’t be overstated.  Relationships are everything and if you’re a pain to deal with, you’re fired.  The customer’s perception is that somewhere, somebody wants my business more than you do and I’ll go to them in a heartbeat if you make life difficult.
Easy-to-do-business-with tiebreakers are everywhere.  Think about these businesses, what their tiebreakers are, and what your version of each tiebreaker would be for your business:
  • Jack In The Box:  Breakfast served any time of day.
  • Zappo’s:  Free shipping on orders and returns.
  • Southwest Airlines: No change fees and a ridiculously easy to use website.
  • Google: The entire reason the company exists is to make the internet easier to use.
  • Your neighborhood bartender:  Remembers your drink.  Asks about your kids. .
  • W Hotels:  Many of them offer free car service, in a joint promotion with Acura, to wherever you’re going in the city.  Sure beats waiting for a taxi.
  • iTunes:  When I play a song, iTunes shows me a list of similar songs that I might want to buy.  I play “All The Time In The World” by the Subdudes, and they suggest I might want to check out The Meters, The Radiators, or The Neville Brothers.  It’s an optional feature that I can turn off if I like, but personally, I love learning about other music I might be interested in, and they sell me a ton of songs because of that service.
  • Netflix:  They’ve got a greater selection of independent films than any other movie rental service than I’m aware of.  
  • Mapquest:  They make it easier for me to get from here to there.
  • California Pizza Kitchen:  Kid-friendly.  I have a three year old and a seven year old.  Believe me, being kid-friendly is a monster tie-breaker.

What’s Your Version Of That?

Here’s where most people get stuck.  They look at that list and think, “OK.  He’s got a fast food restaurant, a movie rental company, some internet companies, a hotel and an airline.  What do any of those businesses have to do with mine?”  Well, you tell me.  If you can’t see potential ideas for your own tie-breakers in that list then I submit that you’re really not trying.


Let’s just take a couple of them and play around for a minute.

Jack In The Box offers breakfast any time of day.  To me, that means they let the customer do business in a way that works for them, not necessarily in the way that best suits Jack In The Box.  For a bank that might mean greatly extended hours.  For a consultant like me, it might mean giving each client your home phone number and 24/7 access (try it – you’ll be amazed how little they use it.  But they love knowing they could.)
iTunes offers gives you options to buy music that they think you might like.  If you have a range of products and services that you’re not telling your customers about, what favor are you doing them?  I am absolutely tickled to death when iTunes shows me a song that I hadn’t thought about in twenty years, but that used to be one of my favorites.  I get more cool music.  They make more sales.  Do you make your customers happy by giving them even more of what they want?  

Many W Hotels offer a free car service to locations within the city.  It’s an extra that you weren’t counting on, it makes your life easier, and it saves you money.  My version of that kind of “extra” is that sometimes I’ll offer to fly to a client company’s headquarters, at my own expense, to meet with them for the purpose of simply getting to know more about their company.  It’s an extra, it makes them feel more secure about their contract with me, and it saves them money.  Tiebreaker.  My competitors can’t understand how I can afford to do it.  I can’t understand how they can afford not to do it.  Sometimes people step over dollars to pick up nickels.

Superstar

A final word about tiebreakers – don’t fall into the superstar trap.  It’s great to have employees that go above and beyond the call of duty for a customer, but don’t let the occasional superstar story lull you into thinking that you’re ahead of the competition for more than a shining moment or two.  The following story describes how what, at first glance, seems to be a story about great service is, in fact, a story about a company with a problem. ***
I remember when I had moved my offices and made arrangements to get telephone service installed.  I made an appointment for the phone company installer to be at our offices at 8:00a.m. on Monday morning.  8:00a.m. came and went - no installer.  At 9:00a.m., I called (from a public phone) and was told that the appointment was scheduled, but they didn’t know what had happened or why the installer hadn’t shown up.  At 10:00a.m. I called and never could even get connected with the right department.  At 11:00a.m. and was told that I’d have to find out the number of the installation department and call them directly.  I’m not the brightest guy in the world, but I could see a definite pattern developing here.

My final call, in desperation, was to the general number of the phone company.  I asked to be connected with the installation department.  After a few moments on hold, a young man cheerfully answered “Accounts Payable, may I help you?”  I took a deep breath, and, as calmly as was humanly possible, asked the young man to try and connect me with installation.  He astutely detected that there was some sort of problem and asked me to explain the situation.  I gave him a brief rundown of the problem and said that I knew it wasn’t his problem and that I wasn’t his customer and I asked again to be connected to installation.

The young man said “Sir, you’ve got me on the phone.  That means you’re my customer now and it’s my problem now.  I’m going to give you my name and extension number.  If an installer isn’t at your office within thirty minutes, I want you to call back ask for me personally.  I’m going to take care of this, sir.  Don’t worry about it another minute.”

Now, that’s what it means when you say, “Our people make the difference.”  Just one problem, though.  This was one person out of the five or six I had dealt with that morning who was willing to take responsibility.  So this particular company would have been able to say, at best, “ONE of our people makes a difference.”  And that’s not nearly good enough.

*** The problem is that there was obviously no training, no coaching, no policy, and no process in place to assure that every employee was motivated and empowered to take responsibility for solving a customer’s problem.  Think it through!  If you want employees who take action like the guy in Accounts Payable then you have to create the culture and the leadership that will support such behavior.  You may want to be sure that such action doesn’t take place.  You may want any customer problem to go to the department where you’ve determined it belongs.  Fine.  Just be sure that you’ve done what you have to do to make it so.

No Matter Who

No doubt your company has received letters or emails from customers about employees who have performed at that “superstar” level.  The customer probably wrote about how “Cathy at your Main Street store went above and beyond in her service to me” or something to that effect.  That’s a great email to get.  Of course you love to hear about your employees who did something special for a customer and made a lasting impression.
   
But you know what kind of letter is infinitely better to receive?  The letter that says “I just want you to know that no matter which of your stores I go to, or which employee I deal, whether in person or on the phone, I always get great service.  Even your web site is a pleasure to do business with.”
    Companies sometimes are so proud of their “superstar” performers that they forget this simple truth – superstars don’t win games.  Teams win games.  Michael Jordan was basketball’s ultimate superstar, but without Scotty Pippin and the rest of the Chicago Bulls he might never have won championships.  I’ll trade in all of my superstars for a team of steady, consistent performers any day.  That’s the ultimate tiebreaker.  

And The Good News Is

Perhaps the greatest lesson about tiebreakers is that they’re generally made of pretty standard ingredients.  What I mean by that is that whatever business you’re in, you quite likely have the ability to stand out from your competitors starting almost immediately.  Powerful tiebreakers almost always come down to this:  consistent execution.  And the good news is that you don’t need to hire a consultant to tell you that.  If you would spend just one week taking note of every business that favorably impresses you and every company where you are a loyal customer, then you’d have all the research you need to begin to create your own powerful tiebreakers.  The great investment advisor Peter Lynch used to say that to discover good companies to invest in, start by observing whose parking lots were full.  There’s a clue.  Lots of customers is a good indication that there’s some tiebreaking going on.

I’m a big fan of taking field trips to the mall.  Your own company may work strictly in the business to business arena, but I’d advise you to pay close attention to what’s going on in retail.  What happens in the mall, the grocery store, or Target is the same set of dynamics that happens when companies do business with each other.  It’s the same hierarchy of factors that drive buying behavior.

Work Your Way Up

Whether you’re selling hot dogs, website design services, investment advice, or high school band uniforms, there’s a hierarchy of factors that you have to climb.  As you work your way up this hierarchy, you get closer to the tiebreakers.

It starts at the level of expected factors.  These are the things that anyone in a particular business has to do just to get in the game.  In the business to business arena these expected factors tend to be such things as being financially sound, having people who are knowledgeable and accessible, and that you offer competitive quality products and services.  That’s not much different than what people expect from their dry cleaner.  Be dependable, have good people, and do a good job cleaning clothes.  Okay.  If you’re covered on all of the expected factors, congratulations.  You are now the equivalent of a pound of nails.  You’re a commodity.  You are basically no different than any other minimal competitor.

Moving on up to the next level we get to the truly competitive factors.  Here’s where we start to get some separation between those who are simply competent and those who are really good at what they do.  Looking at business to business, these factors will include expertise – the ability to provide not just products and services, but solutions.  Competitive companies will be innovative, collaborative, and have the ability to help their customers improve profitability.  Going back to the dry cleaner, they’ll do such things as help you figure out how to make that dress last one more season with some alterations, give you advice on how to store sweaters properly, and advise you on how to remove spots when you’re traveling.
         
Then you reach the top level of the hierarchy of buying factors.  This is the level of true differentiation.  This is where you create tiebreakers.  Companies that do business with other companies find that there are three key differentiators.  You must establish long term relationships.  You must understand your client’s goals and be client focused in everything you do.   And, finally, the mother of all tiebreakers is to be easy to work with.
         
You may be doubtful.  You may be thinking, “That can’t be.  Surely ‘being easy to work with’ isn’t the most powerful tiebreaker in the business to business arena.”  Oh yeah.  Without question, being easy to work with is the cherry on top of the hierarchy of buying factors.  All things being equal, being easy to do business with will be the one thing that will get you the win more often than not.
         
So what about the dry cleaner?  We don’t even have to change the wording.  Establish long term relationships, understand your customer’s goals and be customer focused, and be easy to work with.  You just saved that money you were going to pay a consultant.  There it is.  Now comes the hard part.  Go do it.  
         
What we’re talking about here are really two things, culture and execution.  In previous chapters we talked about knowing who you are and the importance of your brand.  That’s all about culture.  If your culture is coming from the right place, then your strategies and tactics will tend to follow quite nicely.  That’s where we talk about getting beyond commodity and the three rules about the customer.  Then we’re down to execution.  Do what you know you should do.  Do it every time.  Do it with every customer.  That creates customer loyalty.  That’s how you sustain success.

It’s Right On The Coffee Cup

I like to write early in the morning.  Right now it's 6:05 a.m. and I've been at it for an hour.  Like many people, I have a favorite coffee cup.  As I'm writing this chapter about tiebreakers and "wow factors" and sustained success, I just looked at the writing on my cup.

It's a coffee cup from Cafe Du Monde, "The Original French Market Coffee Stand" in New Orleans.  I've been to the Cafe Du Monde and it's a great place to go early in the morning.  Lines of customers waiting for their cafe au lait and beignets.  
         
On the back side of the coffee cup it says "Cafe Du Monde, the original French market coffee stand, serving cafe au lait and hot beignets (French doughnuts) 24 hours a day, year round.  This familiar New Orleans landmark has been located in The French Quarter since 1862."  You do the math.  They've sustained success for a very long time.  Having been there, I can tell you that the only "wow factor" is that they serve really good coffee with really good beignets all day and all night.  They are pleasant people.  They are easy to do business with.

Wow.  Do you think maybe there's a lesson there? ]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:06:19 GMT <![CDATA[ A Culture of Commitment]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/ACultureofCommitment.aspx A Culture of CommitmentWe all want to do better. Whether as individuals or as business organizations we all want to be the best that we can be and take our performance to the next level. We want to do more this year than last year, accomplish new goals, and reach our potential. Companies want to win in the marketplace and create success and prosperity for employees and shareholders.

My observation is that most of us are actually pretty good at thoughtfully setting our goals, carefully planning our strategies, and enthusiastically announcing our ambitions to the world. We do everything that the motivational books and speakers tell us to do. We create clear and vivid visual images in our minds of what we want to accomplish. We break our goals down into step by step plans with accompanying deadlines to mark milestones on the path to accomplishment. We cover our walls with attitude boosting posters featuring glorious color photographs of eagles soaring above the clouds, snow topped mountain summits, and runners crossing the finish line first in sweat drenched celebrations. Affirmations are written and posted on the bathroom mirror to be read each day as we keep our attitudes positive and our enthusiasm high.

Entire companies go through much the same rituals of motivation. I myself have been witness to hundreds of company meetings and conventions in which it is declared that this year we will reach new levels of sales, higher profits, total customer satisfaction, increased market share, achieve distinction, excellence, quality, exceed our personal best or whatever the goal of the moment may happen to be. And, after three days of meetings, speeches, team-building exercises on the beach, breakout sessions on new products and systems, the awards dinner and dance with the oldies band, and the closing general session with the former professional athlete motivational speaker that builds to a climax of a thunderous crescendo of wildly cheering employees as the sound system blares Tina Turner singing “Simply The Best” at warp volume….they go home.

And six months later, people stare into their affirmation covered bathroom mirrors and companies look at their less than hoped for numbers and they wonder what went wrong. The goal wasn’t reached. The eagle didn’t soar to the mountaintop. Some other company turned out to be simply the best. And what’s often most deeply frustrating in these situations is that the failure to achieve goals happens to people who seemingly have everything going for them, and companies that have great people, sound strategies, and excellent products.

So what happened? What happened is that with all the best-laid plans and all the chest-thumping motivational cheerleading…they never took the critically important first step. They never decided to go.

But wait! Surely they decided to go! Why else would they have taken the time and trouble to put up the posters and play the Tina Turner song and have the meetings and tape all those affirmations to the bathroom mirror? Because they were willing to do the easy stuff. The hard stuff is reaching deep down inside and pulling out the guts of your soul and asking “Do I really want to do this?”

What is it that you want to accomplish? I confront companies every week with a simple question about their stated goals: “Do you really mean this?” When you say that your intention is to be the best in the business or to achieve true excellence or to take your business to the next level, are you dead serious or are you really just kidding around? Because most of the time there are some major ramifications involved if the answer is “yes, we’re serious”. And you and your company just may not be willing to do what it takes to go there. Which is fine. Just be clear on what you’re committing or not committing to.

Some companies think that having a meeting with the theme “Taking It To The Next Level” means that they’re actually doing it. No. Having a meeting means you’re talking about doing it. And the first thing you should talk about is whether or not you truly want to go to the next level or double sales or whatever it is you’re saying you want to do. You should look into each other’s eyes and ask “Do we really want to do this? Really?”

A culture of commitment begins with intentional leaders who mean what they say and do what they say. They not only talk the talk and walk the talk, they “chalk” the talk. This means that they measure and reward based on results that fulfill the vision. Intentional leaders follow-through on promises made and hold people accountable for promises made. A culture of commitment begins at the top – or it doesn’t ever begin at all.

]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:06:16 GMT <![CDATA[ The Transformation of Deluxe Financial]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/TheTransformationofDeluxeFinancial.aspx

The Check's in the Mail: The Transformation of Deluxe Financial

Services Is the Stuff of Business Legend

By Kevin J. Clancy and Kevin Hartley, January/February 2005

Ask the average case-bred business school student about revolutionary marketers, and you'll most likely hear about Amazon, Dell, and perhaps Saturn - all companies that turned industries on their ears by dumping the conventional business model and taking an entirely different approach. Some might mention IBM or Intel, two companies that transformed their businesses and successfully resuscitated their brands. But there's a new case on the block, one so inspiring it may match the popularity and instructional value found in these other notable examples.

In the Beginning
The story of Deluxe Financial Services (DFS) has humble beginnings. Founded in 1915 in St. Paul, Minn., in a one room print shop with $300 in start-up funds, DFS today is a division of Fortune 1000 Deluxe Corporation, serving some 8,000 banks, credit unions, and financial services companies across America. The division's all consuming obsession and motto: printing paper checks "better, faster, and more economically than anyone else."

While commendable, Deluxe's focus on becoming the world's best check printer could not prevent growing consumer preference for electronic payment options. As it had done to hundreds of other industries before, advancing technology threatened the future of check printing. Consumers increasingly used ATM debit cards, online bill pay, wire transfers, and other electronic methods to pay for goods and services. The result: Demand for paper checks began to decline, shrinking at the rate of 3% - 4% a year with no going back.

Though consumers represented the ultimate end user of Deluxe's paper checks, financial institutions (FIs) - banks, brokerages, and credit unions - represented the division's primary customers. Historically, consumers ordered checks for personal and business needs through the FI, and the FI sent the order to a selected check printing vendor. The consumer and check printer never interacted. While check printing represented a basic service their customers required, FIs generally viewed it as unimportant, boring, and a commodity; they saw little difference between Deluxe and its competitors. Decision makers at FIs looked for vendors who would provide mistake-free checks for their customers at the best prices-end of story. They certainly didn't view their checking programs as a vehicle freighted with boxcars of potential profits.

With an industry in decline and primary customers who treated check printing as a commodity, the twenty-first century did not look all that bright for Deluxe. It had to do something, but what?

Starting From Scratch
To change what, at the time, seemed a certain and unpleasant future, DFS's president, Chuck Feltz, and his senior management team took an unusual step: They decided to throw everything they thought they knew about the check printing business - its customers, its end users, the best marketing approach - out the window. Driven by a relentless pursuit of new ideas, they refused to allow old thinking and entrenched habits to box them in and even went so far as to scrap the company's long-standing motto.

Starting from scratch, Feltz first acknowledged that DFS could not stop the decline of the check printing industry in general. Paper checks faced competition from credit and debit cards, as well as from new electronic payment methods, so check usage wasn't likely to grow, no matter what. That conclusion, however, begged the question: Was there something that checks offered (or could offer) consumers?

Next, the team wondered, given the gradual decline in the core check product, how could they help FIs solve issues larger than just running a strong check merchandising program - improving the FIs' image in the eyes of their clients, for instance, or improving their customer's satisfaction - and thereby move DFS up the value chain? They knew that, like any other business group, its FI customers wanted their companies to grow and thrive. They wouldn't think of Deluxe as anything more than just another check printing vendor unless the firm offered a solution to a significant problem. So Feltz et al wondered how they might work on behalf of their clients to solve problems beyond just check printing.

After great debate and discussion, the entire team unanimously resolved to channel the energy and passion of the division toward answering these questions and more in a relentless effort to make its FI customers more robust competitors. Their vision: We will not rest until we have become the most trusted, valued business partner for FIs everywhere. With this new raison d'être as inspiration, Deluxe set about the next phase of transformation.

Courage of Convictions
Most companies, both B2B and consumer, tend to make assumptions about customers' wants, needs, problems, and motivations to buy. Some get lucky and their assumptions hold true. Most don't, however, and their businesses falter and fail. Unwilling to leave anything to chance - the future of the division and thousands of jobs relied on making the right decision, after all - Deluxe decided to test its assumptions by talking to consumers and FIs, and really listening to what they had to say. The lock ticked on, but Feltz and his senior management team had the courage of their convictions to take the time to make sure they got the marketing strategy right.

Working with their marketing consulting firm Copernicus, Deluxe launched one of the largest and most sophisticated strategic marketing studies ever undertaken in the financial services industry among consumers and FIs. Deluxe learned as much as it could about what consumers want when it comes to checks and other financial service opportunities. This research uncovered a sizable group of consumers who were very excited about buying more designer checks with different pictures, colors, animals, and prints that allowed them to express their unique personalities and interests (something electronic payment methods could not do for them). They lamented, however, that the "retail experience" at their FIs didn't entice or excite them. Indeed, most banks and savings and loan associations were pushing new customers into "basic blue" checks, sometimes offered at no charge. ("Free checks here! Come and get them!")

Meanwhile, research among FIs revealed that, while most didn't feel particularly excited about "world-class check printing," a large group of decision makers could barely contain themselves regarding their need for assistance in creating unparalleled customer experiences. Many FIs admitted they struggled with customer relationship management. The results of this study overturned years of conventional wisdom about the commoditized state of check printing. A proportionally large group of consumers wanted more than just the standard checks and retail experiences offered by their FIs. And a large group of FIs wanted a vendor that could help them deliver exceptional customer experiences.

Deluxe realized it could leverage its knowledge about consumers and check expertise and put an infrastructure in place to help FIs with their biggest want - creating better customer experiences. Deluxe believed it could handle more than just check printing and the fulfillment needs of FIs. It could "create" the entire customer relationship when it came to checks, delivering an experience so extraordinary that it forever influenced the consumer perception of an FI. Delivering what customers wanted with a phenomenal experience would bring in higher profits for the FI and ultimately win more business for Deluxe - all while simultaneously increasing the end users' satisfaction and perception of their financial institution's brand.

Strategy in Action
Deluxe immediately set about transforming itself from a check "printer" to a sophisticated check "retailer." The company maintained its methodical approach to transformation, deciding to test new service concepts before a real-world launch. Deluxe presented a breakthrough concept dubbed DeluxeSelect(sm) to a sample of FIs. Powered by the richly detailed consumer segment profiles that included information about what kind of check products different consumers wanted, how they wanted to order them, how they wanted to be communicated with, and what price they were willing to pay, Deluxe would handle consumer orders and the entire customer check purchase experience. The concept explained how financial institutions could streamline their operations by letting Deluxe provide "the right check products, through the right channels, and at the right price." It also demonstrated how the service would increase the profitability of the FI's check buying program and improve the customer experience with the FI.

FIs greeted DeluxeSelectsm with open arms during the testing period, so Deluxe rolled out the service in 2002. The company planned a series of expos featuring talks by leading thinkers in marketing and change management to underscore the importance of understanding customer needs. There was also a multimedia presentation that introduced the consumer segment profiles, including check needs and proclivities, as well as their profitability to the institution. A comprehensive explanation was given of how DeluxeSelectsm worked and the benefits it provided to financial institutions, such as increasing profitability. FIs felt so confident in Deluxe's capabilities after attending an expo, they signed up for the service and allowed Deluxe to speak directly to customers on their behalf - an impressive first in the financial services industry. DeluxeSelectsm quickly exceeded sales objectives and today exceeds the $100 million mark.

Deluxe Didn't Stop There
If, by some miracle, a B2B firm develops a compelling positioning, the marketing communications program usually falls flat. Usually the program includes a new trade show booth with artwork and posters, new collateral materials (e.g., brochures, factsheets, and the like), and a training program for sales reps—pretty ho-hum for the customer or prospect. Deluxe, however, was determined not to let the strategy fall flat because of a business as usual marketing communications program.

Once again, Deluxe's senior management threw out everything they thought they knew about marketing communications. Feltz asked: What if we took that same 1%-3% of sales we put toward trade show booths, collateral, and so on, and did something that benefited our customers? What if our marketing programs made our customers better competitors, all the while reinforcing our positioning as the creators of exceptional customer experiences?

Taking an entirely new approach to B2B marketing, Deluxe decided to produce a gripping array of events exclusively for its FI customers where they learned about building better customer relationships. The Deluxe Knowledge Exchange Series (KES), launched in late 2003 as the cornerstone of the company's marketing program, combining an ongoing series of events and hands-on activities, including insightful articles, web seminars, and quarterly audio conferences written and given by leading marketing authors and customer experience consultants. "Deluxe is committed to making your brand the best it can be in the eyes of your consumer," explains the KES Web site where customers can download articles and register for the seminars.

Building on KES, in March 2004, Deluxe held the first Knowledge Exchange Collaborative, bringing together a select group of customers and leading academics to discuss approaches and tools for improving customer experiences at FIs. Held at Harvard Business School and other leading universities around the country, and hosted by leading academics in mrketing and service quality, the collaborative will tackle different customer experience issues, develop solutions, and even do some inmarket testing of solutions before sharing findings with the larger Deluxe client base.

Results again exceeded expectations. After attending a KES event, 87% of customers have indicated they view Deluxe as a strategic partner, as
opposed to a commodity vendor, and 89% report they are more likely to do business with Deluxe.

Business Transformation
Thanks to brave, forward-thinking managers, Deluxe Financial Services transformed itself from a lowly check printer to a powerhouse check retailer and valued partner to FIs across the country. The willingness of company management to start with a completely clean slate is truly something for the record books. Deluxe could easily have become yet another casualty of a shrinking and commoditizing industry, but instead it's driving the future of the company and becoming the stuff of business legend.
]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:06:14 GMT <![CDATA[ Asset Audit]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/AssetAudit.aspx Asset AuditThe intentional re-examination of existing assets in the context of how they might be viewed differently to add more value by being more relevant, ex. Deluxe Call Center in Phoenix: could be viewed as a place where we could take "lost check order" calls or a place where we could train our people to actually help banks sell more of their product, which makes us much more relevant to them than the other approach.]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:06:10 GMT <![CDATA[ Leadership Obligation]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/LeadershipObligation.aspx Leadership ObligationThe idea that there are certain actions that leaders are uniquely positioned to drive in an organization that cannot be accomplished at a grass roots level (therefore leadership is "obligated" to perform these, ex. The creation of the organization's vision, culture, etc.). When done well, these actions catalyze an organization toward greatness; when not addressed, organizational performance is significantly decreased.]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:06:07 GMT <![CDATA[ Deal in Reality]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/DealinReality.aspx Deal in Reality/Fact-based decision makingThe willingness of leaders to truthfully address the tough issues and create transparency; fact vs. opinion-based decision making; an absence of the "biggest opinion wins" old style of leadership.]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:06:05 GMT <![CDATA[ Customer Centric]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/CustomerCentric.aspx Customer Centric/Customer FocusedStarting with the customer needs in mind as the driver for deciding what you do and why you do it as an organization.]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:06:03 GMT <![CDATA[ Going All In]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/GoingAllIn.aspx Going All In
There's a cultural phenomenon sweeping America:  poker as a spectator sport.  On any given night on your television, there may be as many as half a dozen channels featuring poker players playing for big money.  The single most dramatic moment in any poker game is when a player goes for broke.  He slides all of his chips into the middle of the table and declares "All in."  It's the ultimate commitment.  It's a willingness to stake everything on your belief that, through either superior cards or an effective bluff, you will win.

There are organizations in which almost everyone works with the attitude of "all in."  This is the attitude that says I am part of a team that is united by a shared vision.  I am willing to bring my talents and attention to focus on doing every task to the very best of my ability.  I am treating every person as if my goal is to build positive relationships with everyone I meet.

That's all well and good, but how do we make it happen?  How do we get everyone on the team to commit to excellence every day, all day long, in everything we do?  It's not easy.  But it's not complicated, either.  Those organizations in which everyone is "all in" are the ones that have clarity of values and purpose, and they talk about it all the time.
That's the foundation - to talk about it all the time.  

It's not enough to talk about what's important at the weekly staff meeting, or to put posters up in the break room, or send the occasional e-mail reminder.  Great organizations create commitment, motivation, and enthusiasm for the "cause" by making it the core of every conversation about everything that's done.  Your vision or mission or purpose, even your values, become the filter through which you make every decision.

People go "all in" for what matters in their hearts, not just their heads. People go "all in" for what matters most and for what they believe in.   If you're not talking about what your organization believes in, what are you talking about? ]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:06:01 GMT <![CDATA[ Outcomes]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/Outcomes.aspx

Outcomes

The intentional end state (goal) established by leaders that set the target or context for behavior, resource decisions and functional area activity.]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:05:58 GMT <![CDATA[ Never By Chance]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/NeverByChance.aspx

Never By Chance

The idea that leadership takes a very intentional approach to the creation of the business outcomes they desire, going in with a clear plan grounded in fact-based decision making and with a very conscious use of organizational resources.]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:05:56 GMT <![CDATA[ Intentional Leadership]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/IntentionalLeadership.aspx Intentional LeadershipWhen we talk about intentional leadership, we mean a purposeful, end-in-mind orientation characterized by a clear vision that sets the context for all decisions and behavior, where all assets and resources are aligned against the outcome and every employee understand how what they do every hour of every day matters in the achievement of the vision. ]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:05:54 GMT <![CDATA[ A Meaningful Vision]]> http://www.engageconsultinggroup.com/Blog/AMeaningfulVision.aspx

A Meaningful Vision

What's the point of your work?  Is it crystal clear to you what's truly important?  Is there a feeling that you serve some higher purpose, you know what that purpose is, and you're dedicated to its fulfillment?  If so, you should be proud, because you are in the minority.

Many companies have vision statements are written in flawless corporate-speak.  It’s appropriate, usually emotionless, and therefore meaningless.  It may be printed on pocket cards that every employee is required to carry.  The vision statement is read aloud at the annual meeting.  And few, if any, employees have any personal attachment to it at all.
If your vision statement doesn’t strike an emotional chord in employees, then what’s the point?  We’re talking about a vision, not procedural guidelines.  Your vision statement should be something that any and every employee can verbalize in seven words or less, and in their own language, not as some memorized slogan.

At a managers’ meeting for a chain of emergency medical care clinics, I pressed one of the participants to tell me, in her own words, what the point of the company was.  After a great deal of resistance, because she didn’t want to give a “wrong” answer, she finally said “Hey, we help people when they’re hurt. Okay?”

Yes.  Okay, indeed.  I asked the group if any of them were particularly inspired by the company’s vision statement.  Not one said yes.  I then asked if they were inspired by this woman’s six word vision statement:  “We help people when they’re hurt.”  Every hand in the room was raised.

State your vision simply, powerfully, and with emotion.  Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. didn’t inspire anyone by saying “I have a strategic plan.”  He said “I have a dream.”  Your mission should tap into employees’ hearts and dreams.  If it doesn’t, then what’s the point?

]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:05:52 GMT