TextCopyright2019ColinShawAllRightsReserved

Copyright2019byColinShaw.Allrightsreserved.PublishedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica.ExceptaspermittedundertheUnitedStatesCopyrightActof1976,nopartofthispublicationmaybereproducedordistributedinanyformorbyanymeansorstoredinadatabaseorretrievalsystem,withoutthepriorwritten

permissionofthepublisher.

ISBN:978-1-54397-046-3

Dedication

Thisbookisdedicatedtomyfamily;mywonderfulwife,Lorraine,andmykids,Coralie,Ben,andAbbie.

Ialsodedicate thisbook tomy team,whowork tirelessly tokeepour trainingandconsultationsrelevantandmeaningful.Furthermore,Idedicatethisbooktoour clients, who honor us with their trust and loyalty. We will never stopworkingtokeepit.

Finally,thisbookisdedicatedtomyfollowersandreaders.Withoutyou,writingwouldn’tbenearlyasmuchfunasitis.Thankyouforsharingyourthoughtsandideas,andprovidinginsightImightnothaveconsideredotherwise.

AboutBeyondPhilosophy

Beyond Philosophy LLC was founded by Colin Shaw in 2002. We provideconsultancy, training, and specialized research. Beyond Philosophy helpsorganizations:

AssesstheircurrentCustomerExperience(CX)UnderstandwhatdrivesanddestroysvalueDefinestrategyPutinplacearoadmaptoimproveCustomerExperienceDesignanemotionallyengagingCustomerExperience

We viewCX in four parts: the rational, the emotional, the subconscious,andthepsychological.

We’reveryproudofhowweworkwithourclients.

1. We are practical thought leaders. We take a scientificapproach.Wedon’tjustlookattherationalexperience,butalsowhat drives human behavior—emotions, subconscious,behavioraleconomics,andpsychology—andthenmixthiswithapracticalimplementation.Thoughtleadershipwithreal-worldresults.Henceourname“BeyondPhilosophy.”

2. Ourexperience is extensive.Weare the first operationalCXconsultancy and training company in the world. Since 2002,we’vehadthepleasureofservingmanyofthetoporganizationsacrosstheglobe.

3. We act as your guide and partner.We’ll help you developstrategy,guideinitiatives,andeventrainyourCXteamonourtools andmethodologies.We do notwish to embed or “campout”inyourorganization.

4. Wefocusonwhatwilldrivevalueforyou.Wedon’tbelievein“exceedingcustomerexpectations”ateverypointofcontact.

Wedobelieve in identifying and focusingon those aspectsofyourexperiencethatwilldrivethemostvalueforyou.Tohelpachieve this,wehave theworld’s largestdatabaseofcustomeremotiondrivers.

5. Wereduceriskandincreaseperformance.Wehaveavarietyofproventoolsandtechniquestoapplytoyouruniquesituation.Webuildaprogramaroundwhatwillgetyou thebest results.Through our vast experience, we knowwhatworks andwhatdoesn’t.

Publishing

Beyond Philosophy LLC and its leadership have written and published sixinternationallybestsellingbooks.

Building Great Customer Experiences, by Colin Shaw and John Ivens(ISBN-10:1403939497;ISBN-13:978-1403939494)

Revolutionize Your Customer Experience, by Colin Shaw (ISBN-10:140393603X;ISBN-13:978-1403936035)

TheDNAofCustomerExperience:HowEmotionsDriveValue,byColinShaw(ISBN-10:0230500005;ISBN-13:978-0230500006)

CustomerExperience:FutureTrendsandInsights,byColinShaw,QaalfaDibeehi, and Steven Walden (ISBN-10: 0230247814; ISBN-13: 978-0230247819)

UnlockingtheHiddenCustomerExperience:ShortStoriesofRemarkablePracticesThatEnsureSuccess,byColinShaw(ISBN-9781495136931)

The Intuitive Customer: 7 Imperatives for Moving Your CustomerExperiencetotheNextLevel,byColinShawandRyanHamilton(ISBN:978-1-137-53428-6)

These books are available through the company’s website and through mostmajorbooksellers.

CorporateAddress

BeyondPhilosophyLLCGlobalHeadquarters

677NWashingtonBoulevardSarasota,Florida,34236

www.BeyondPhilosophy.com

USAOffice:+19419525816LondonOffice:+44(0)207993-8459

PraiseforBeyondPhilosophy

“Colin is a true expert in the field of customer experience management. Hisclient-side experience combined with his thought leadership in the area ofmeasurementofemotionslendhimandhisfirmveryuniquecapabilities.HeisalsooneofthebestpublicspeakersIknow!”

StephanSigaud,President,HarrisInteractiveLoyalty,HarrisInteractive

“Colin spoke at our Net Promoter conference in London and San Diego andconsistently delivered the highest Net Promoter scores. His speech wasengaging,humorous,andinspiredourattendeestothinkabouttheemotionalandbehavioralsideof theircustomerexperience.IwouldhighlyrecommendColinas a keynote speaker and you can expect to see himback on our stage in thefuture!”

DebEastman,ChiefCustomerOfficer,Satmetrix

“Inspirational, challenging, out of the box thinking,Colin’s companyprovidesnewinsightsintounderstandingandworkingeffectivelywithcustomers.”

ChrisJephson,Director,APMollerMaersk

“Colin is an excellent speaker and a great author, always providing real lifeexamples.Workingwith his colleagues atBeyondPhilosophy, they have beenable to establish a frameworkwith good analytical foundations into providingsuperb insight to the emotionsof customers.As customer experiencebecomesmore important to the futureofbusinessprofitability throughgreatercustomerloyalty,ifyouignoretousetheknowledgethathewishestopassontoyouthenyouareinthewrongjob!”

PaulHopkins,GroupDirectorofCustomerExperience,ThomasCook

“Colin and his team at Beyond Philosophy are true thought leaders andinnovatorsinthecustomerexperiencespace.Truetotheirname,hisorganizationpushesthinkingbeyondtheacademicintopractical.Hisexperienceallowshimto foresee barriers and propose realistic solutions to drive organizationaltransformation. He is equally comfortable and effective in understanding and

influencing theC-suite and as he iswith front-line employees. If youwant tounderstand how to improve the experience your organization is delivering toyourcustomers,you’llwanttotalkwithColin.”

JohnLanphear,ExperiencedCustomerStrategyLeader,Merck

“ColinandtheteamatBeyondPhilosophyaretrulythoughtleadersinthefieldof customer experience.Their approach to solving one of themost significantchallengesinbusinessis transformationalandrelevantacrossmultipleindustrysectors. The team is knowledgeable, professional and insightful before duringandafterourengagement.IattributealotofmyviewsonthenextgenerationofcustomerexperienceanalysisandexcellencetoBeyondPhilosophy.”

LorenBarton,GlobalInnovation,Barclaycard

AboutColinShaw

Colin is recognized,byothers,asa thought leader incustomerexperienceandhaswrittensixbest-sellingbooksonthesubject.LinkedInrecognizedColinasoneof the“World’sTop150Business Influencers.”Henowhasover275,000followers.BrandQuarterly readers voted him one of the “Top 50MarketingThoughtLeadersOver50”fortwoyearsinarow.

As Founder and CEO of Beyond Philosophy, Colin leads one of the world’sleadingcustomerexperienceconsultancies.InfactBeyondPhilosophyhavealsobeen recognized by theFinancialTimes as being one of the bestmanagementconsultanciesintheUKin2019.

Headquartered in Sarasota, Florida,BeyondPhilosophy specializes in creatingdeliberate,emotionallyengagingcustomerexperiences thatdrivevalue, reducecosts, and build organizations’ competitive advantage. Previously, Colin heldseniorexecutivepositionsatXeroxandMars.HewasSeniorVicePresidentofCustomer Experience at British Telecom (BT) where he led a team of 3,500

employeesworldwide.

Beyond Philosophy has worked with some of the world’s biggest companies,including Aflac, American Express, Aviva, Caterpillar, FedEx, IBM, MaerskLine,andT-Mobile.WithBeyondPhilosophy’sguidance,MaerskincreasedtheirNet Promoter Score, an index that measures how willing a customer is torecommendthecompanytootherpeople,by40pointsin30months,whichledto a 10% growth in shipping volume. Colin has also advised governments,visited the Cabinet Office at No. 10Downing Street onmany occasions, andspoken to the U.S. Republican party Chiefs of Staff about improving theirconstituents’experiences.

As a sought-after keynote speaker, Colin’s interactive presentation style usesthought-provoking questions, humor, and real-life anecdotes to entertain andinform his audience. CNN, BBC TV, Sky News, and BBC Radio have allfeaturedColinasanexpert.Hehasbeenquoted inmanypublications,suchasTheTimes,Marketing,MarketingWeek,andCustomerManagement, tonameafew.

Colinnowindulgesinhisrealpassions,whichincludemanagingorganizationalchange, thinking strategically, developing original concepts, inventinginnovative but realistic solutions, and devising practical implementations foreach.

ColinisadevotedfamilymanandlivesinSarasota,Florida.Heisakeenboater,angler, and supporter of theTampaBayBuccaneers andLutonTownFootballClub.Colinalsocollects1966WorldCupSoccermemorabilia.

TABLEOFCONTENTS

IntroductionTheBigMistakeMostOrganizationsMakewithEmployeeEngagement

Chapter1EmployeeExperienceMattersMoreThanYouThinkIt’sTimetoListentotheVoicesGettingandKeepingEmployeeEngagementDesigningExperiencesforHumansRequiresaHuman-CenteredApproachFindingtheAnswertoEmployeeEngagement

Chapter2HiringtheRightEmployeesfortheJobAHighEQisEssentialtoCustomer-ReadyEmployeesTheAddedBenefitofaHighEQWhenIQGetsintheWayofEQ

Chapter3TrainingYourWaytoSuccessThreeImportantConsiderationsWhenTrainingforaNewProgram

Chapter4:ManagingaGreatEmployeeExperienceAreYouMakingTheseMistakeswithYourEmployeesToday?ToxicEmployeesDestroyCompanyCultureGettingPeopletoDoWhatYouWantGettingTopPerformancewithPerformanceReviewsKeepingEmployeesEngagedWhenThingsGoWrong

Chapter5

EmployeeEngagementIsNotOnlytheEmployer’sResponsibilityStartingYourEmployeeExperienceoffRightImproveBEQtoIncreaseYourCareerOptions

Chapter6:CEOsWhoGetThatEmployeeEngagementIsTheirJobVirginShowsLinksBetweenEmployeeExperienceandCustomerExperienceUnderstandingtheHighCostofEmotionalLabor

Chapter7GoodExamplesofEmployeeExperiencesHowCompaniesHelpPeopleFeeltheLoveEmployeeCulture:ThedifferencebetweenthebestandtheworstofemployeeexperiencesEmployeesCanMakeorBreakYourExperienceTheExperienceEconomyRequiresaNewWayofThinking

ConclusionBestAdvice:StopResearchingandStartActing

INTRODUCTIONTheBigMistakeMostOrganizationsMakewithEmployee

Engagement

Photoby:TashaTuvango

Most organizations are making a big mistake with employee engagement:neglecting their employee experience improvement program. While manycompanieshaveacustomerexperienceprogram,andanincreasingnumberhavestartedemployeeengagementprograms,thetwoareoftenneithercombinednorcomplementary,creatingproblemsforboth.

Employeeengagementoccurswhenemployeesfeelastrongcommitmenttothecompany’smission and aremotivated to contribute to the company’s success.Engagedemployeesalsoenjoypersonalsatisfactionfromdoingso.

Likecustomerengagement,achievingemployeeengagementrarelyhappensbyaccident. If you want employee engagement, you have to develop a workexperience that produces it. The same principles that apply to improving

customer experience also apply to improving the employee experience. Thedesiredemployeeexperiencemustbedesignedintothecultureanddeployedbyleadership.

Thefactis,theexperienceyougiveyourcustomersisthesameexperienceyoushouldgiveyouremployees.It’snotonlygoodforemployeeengagement,butitalso increases customer satisfaction—and how much money they spend withyourbrand.

ForeSee, a customer experience analytics firm, examined the results of twostudies that used their analytics technology in the summer of 2015. The firststudy looked at the employee experience ofAmericanworkers at all levels ofemployment. The second examined the retail experience of 40,000 customers.ForeSee discovered customer satisfaction was highest in retailers with highemployeeengagement,whichtranslatedintoincreasedrevenuesforthosestoresthroughreferrals,returnvisits,andpurchasesfromotherchannels.1Clearly,theidea that employee engagement isn’t as important as customer experience isoutdated.

Combiningimprovementprogramsfor thecustomerandemployeeexperiencesbeginsbydefining theexperienceyouwant forboth–and it’s thesameone. Inotherwords,ifyouwantyourcustomerstotrustyou,feelvalued,andthattheirexperiencewaseasy, thenyouremployees should feel that seniormanagementtruststhem,valuesthem,andmakestheirexperienceeasy,too.

However, many organizations don’t trust their employees. Employeeempowerment is inadequate,which sends the strongmessage, “We don’t trustyoutomaketherightdecisions.”Thisattitudeisneveracatalystforemployeeengagement.Butbygivingemployees the tools todo the joband thengettingout of their way while they do it, you empower employees and establish afoundationoftrustforbuildingemployeeengagement.

Creatingengagedemployeesrequiresdiscoveringwhatemotionsdrivethemostvalueforthembyundertakingsomeformofresearch,similartoourEmotionalSignature®forcustomers.AnEmotionalSignatureforemployeesidentifieshowyouremployeesfeelabouttheirworkexperienceandtheemotionstheyassociate

with it. Using these defined values, we then design emotionally engagingexperiencesforemployees.

In thisbook, I’llexplore the interconnectednatureof theemployeeexperienceandthecustomerexperience.I’lldemonstratehowyoucannothaveonewithouttheother,howeachchampionsthesuccessoftheother,andhowtocombinetheimplementationofboth foryour team.Furthermore,we’ll lookat examplesofcompaniesthatgetit,andthosethatdon’t.I’llalsoexploretheresponsibilitiesofleadership and employees in creating a relationship that facilitates the bestpossiblechancesforsuccess.

Iwant to thankyouforchoosingmyebookoutof themanyoptionsyouhavefromtoday’scustomerexperiencephilosophers.Myhopeis that thisbookwillnotonlyhelpyouseewhatwe’retryingtoachieveforyourcustomers,butwhatis possible for your employee experience aswell.All it takes is amindset ofputtingthecustomerfirstineverythingyoudoandvaluingthepeoplethatmakethathappen.

Duringmylastcorporategig,Ialwayssaid,“Happyemployeesgiveyouhappycustomers.”BasedonthefindingsbyForeSee,Imightnowamendthat tosay,“Happyemployeesgiveyouhappycustomerswhospendmoremoney!”

Andwhodoesn’twantthat?

ColinShawFounderandCEO,BeyondPhilosophyLLC

1Feinberg,Eric.“RetailsFuture:WhereCustomerExperienceandEmployeeEngagementConverge.”www.foresee.com.Web.23July2015.<https://community.digitalanalyticsassociation.org/blogs/eric-feinberg/2015/01/20/retails-future-where-customer-experience-and-employee-engagement-converge>

CHAPTER1EmployeeExperienceMattersMoreThanYouThink

Employeeexperienceandcustomerexperiencearelinked,andwhataffectsonewill affect the other. They’re like an old married couple.When it works, it’sbeautifulandinspiring;whenitdoesn’t,it’suglyandbewildering.Ensuringyouremployeesareengagedindeliveringyourbrandpromise,trainingthemhowtodeliver it, and investing in its success are critical concepts for delivering anexperiencethatsurprisesanddelightscustomers.

Photoby:PhotonPhoto

During my corporate life over a decade ago, I oversaw 3,500 people in callcenters around the globe, and I learned that if you want to provide a greatcustomer experience, you must focus on your employees as they deliver thatexperience.WhenIstartedBeyondPhilosophyin2002andwrotemyfirstbook,Building Great Customer Experiences (PalgraveMacMillan, 2004), I devoted

oneofourSevenPhilosophiestothisconcept.PhilosophyFourstates:

Great customer experiences are enabled by inspirational leadership, anempoweringcultureandempatheticpeoplewhoarehappyandfulfilled.

I now realize this needs updating, because you can have individuals who arehappyandfulfilledbutdolittlework.So,employeehappinessisapart,butnotall of what you want to achieve. The important word that was missing is“engaged.”

Great customer experiences are enabled by inspirational leadership, anempoweringcultureandempatheticpeoplewhoarehappy,fulfilled,andengaged.

You don’t deliver the customer experience you design, your team does.Therefore,ensuringtheyareengagediscritical.

But,engagedinwhat?Theanswertothisquestionistwofold.

1. Theyshouldbeengagedinthepurposeoftheorganization.

2. Theyshouldbeengagedindeliveringyourbrandpromise.

It’sTimetoListentotheVoicesInourcustomerexperienceconsultancy,werefer to theVoiceof theCustomer(VOC). The VOC refers to the feedback you get from customers about theirexpectations and experience with your organization. Employees have a voice,too.TheVoiceof theEmployee (VOE)refers tohowemployeesparticipate inthedecisionsofyourorganization.Ifyouemployaneffectivelisteningprogramtoeach, thevoiceswill tellyouhowoneaffects theother.Bothare invaluableassetsfordeterminingspecificactionstotake.

In listening to the VOC, organizations have realized that improving anindividual’sexperiencerequireshearingwhatyourcustomersexpect,whattheyappreciate, and what they want to avoid. These same organizations would bewisetolistentothesesamethingsfromtheVOEaswell.Toomanyignoretheirownemployees’opinions.

Employees are uniquely qualified to tell you ways to improve your customerexperience.Whobetter to showyouways to improve thevariousmomentsofyour current experience than the people who have those moments withcustomerseveryday?Whobettertoseetheproblemsandpitfallsinyourprocessthatcreatenegativeemotionsforcustomersthanthepeoplewhonavigatethemdayinanddayout?Youremployeesknowtheproblemsyourexperiencecausescustomers,andtheyhaveideashowtofixthem.What’smore, listeningtoandactingonwhatemployeesreportwillimprovetheVOEfeedbackyouhear.

When we undertake our journey mapping, we always involve frontlineemployees. Making their voice part of your strategic planning encouragesemployees to take ownership of their work. During what can be a painfulcustomer experience implementation process, this strategy encouragesemployeestomeetthechallengeschangecanpresent,howeverdifficult,becausetheyhelpeddesignthechanges.

Wecanseewhathappenswhenorganizations ignoreemployees’voices. In thesummerof2015,Walmartworkerswerestrikingallacrossthenationdemandingbetter pay and benefits, more full-time employment opportunities, and a safeenvironment in which to voice their complaints to management.2 Notsurprisingly, the customers’ experiences in Walmart at that time weren’t ashiningexampleofwhat’spossibleinCX.

We can also seewhat happenswhen employees’ voices are valued, rewarded,andempowered.Googleisroutinelyatthetopof“BestPlacestoWork”lists.It’san organization famous for its unusual and perk-rich employee experience.Googlers feelvalued,andeven lucky towork there.ButGoogle isn’t theonlycompany that excels at valuing what employees bring to the table. The toporganizationsinthesesurveysallconnecttheconceptsofexceptionalcustomerandemployeeexperiences,andserveasthebestexamplesofwhat’spossible.

It’s fantastic thatmorecompaniesare listening to theVOC.However, it’salsovitaltoheartheVOE.Inextricablylinked,hearingbothisessentialtoprovidingexcellentexperiencesforcustomersandemployeesalike.

GettingandKeepingEmployeeEngagementWhenwe train organizations to improve their customer experience, employeeengagement is a critical part of this effort and forms a major part of ourCustomer Experience Management (CEM) certification live webinar training.Engagedemployeesbelievetheycontributetothecompany’ssuccess.Theyalsobelieveinthecompany’sbrandpromiseandworkhardtofulfillit.Engagementatanemployeeleveliscriticaltocreatingagoodcustomerexperience.

Engagedisanimportantword.Beingengagedatworkmeansyourpeople:

BelieveintheorganizationanditsgoalsCareabouttheorganizationanditscustomersCommittotheirjobandcustomersChoosetogivemoreofthemselves

Perhapsmostimportantly,beingengagedatworkmeansyourpeoplehavebuiltanemotionalbondwithyourorganizationanditscustomers.

Use the influence of your most engaged employees, the EmployeeAmbassadors. Employee Ambassadors are the most positive and activeemployees on your team. They make your company perform and grow.Ambassadorsknowthatthefirmtheyworkforisterrific,hasaworthwhilemission, and has fabulous customers. Their energy is contagious andinfiltratestheteam.Thisenergyistheresultoftheirthreemaintraits.

1. They are devoted to the company. These employees feelproudofthecompanyandaboutparticipatingintheculture.

2. They are committed to the value proposition. Ambassadorsownit,too.

3. Theydowhatever it takes tomake ithappen.Ambassadorsunderstandcustomers’needsanddoeverythingpossibletomeetthoseneedswhiledeliveringthehighestvaluesinbothproductandservice.

AllofthesetraitsresemblewhatyoufindinEngagedWorkaholicbehavior.

EngagedWorkaholics,per theLosAngelesTimes, differ fromcompulsiveworkersthatalwaysfeelsliketheyshouldbeworkingbecausetheycannotunplug. Instead, the Engaged Workaholic always wants to be workingbecause they love what they do.3 This enthusiasm aligns with theachievement of company goals and stronger emotional bonds with thecustomers.

DesigningExperiencesforHumansRequiresaHuman-CenteredApproachTheNewYorkTimesrananarticle,“WhyYouHateWork,”whichexplainsthatthewaymostofusareworkingisn’tworkingfortoday’semployees.4

Thearticle reports thatamere30%ofAmericans“feelengagedatwork”according to the 2013 Gallup poll, leaving the remainder somewherebetweenindifferentanddisgruntled.

Human beings are emotional. Customers’ emotions drive their behavior.Emotions also drive over 50% of what occurs during a customerexperience. When you want to improve an experience for humans, weadvocatetakingahuman-centeredapproach.

Incustomerexperiencedesign,wefirstdefinetheexperienceyouwant todeliver to your customers. Then, we identify the emotions you need toevoketodeliverit.Next,wedesignyourexperiencetoachievethesegoals.Ifyouwantyourcustomerstotrustyouandfeelyouvaluethem,thenyoushould develop your experience to evoke emotions that inspire trust andfeeling valued. It alsomeans you should look at your current experienceand recognize themoments in it that don’t achieve these goals (there arelikelymorethanyouthink).

So, how does all this customer experience advice apply to the employeeexperience? You achieve your employee engagement goals in the sameway.You need to define the employee experience youwant, identify theemotionstoevoketodeliverit,anddesignyourexperiencetoachievethesegoals. However, it is imperative the customer experience and employee

experienceyouprovidearethesame.Afterall,ifyouwantyourcustomersto feel theycan trustyouand thatyouvalue them,doesn’t itmake sensethatyouremployeesfeelthesameway?

Successstartsatrecruitment.Youmustensureyouhavetherightpeopleinthe right positions. Some people might not have what it takes to feelengagedwithyourorganization,ortheemployeeandcustomerexperiencesyou want to deliver. People who don’t have the skills needed can’t getengaged enough todeliver this experience for customers.Youcan’t put asquarepeg ina roundhole.Youcan’tdo itwithpeopleeither.My friendPeter(nothisrealname)isagreatexample.Peterishilariousandthelifeoftheparty.However,Peter isalsoacompulsive liar.So, ifyou’re trying tocreateanexperience forcustomers to trustyou (roundhole),don’t recruitPeter (square peg).However, if youwant a fun experience (square hole)then,byallmeans,hirePeter.

Therecruitmentconceptwon’tsolveyourproblemswhenyou’reworkingwithanestablishedteam,asIlearnedfirsthandwhenconsolidatingourcallcenter andmoving to a “frontoffice/backoffice”working style atBritishTelecom(BT).Wedefinedourdesiredcustomerandemployeeexperienceandthenusedapsychometrictesttoensurewehadtherighttypeofpeopleinthefrontoftheorganization.Here’stheshocker:over50%ofthepeoplewehadtalking tocustomerswere thewrongpeople.Aftershiftingpeoplearoundabit,wefollowedthroughwithourplantohavethebestpeopleforthejobtalkingtoourcustomers.Ourcustomersatisfactionscoresincreaseddramatically.

AsIsaid,theemployeeexperienceandthecustomerexperienceyoudesignand provide should be the same. However, we see organizations do theopposite. For example, one of our clientswanted their customers to trustthem.However,wequickly learned that theydidn’t trust theiremployees,which is a common problem. We conducted Customer ExperienceManagement(CEM)trainingremotely,butthefinalportionoftheprogramwasaface-to-faceevent.Thebureaucraticproceduretheteammembershadto go through to book their travel was stunning. At every turn, their

organization’stediousauthorizationprocessdeclared,“Wedon’ttrustyou!”

OneoftheworstmanagersI’veeverworkedforisanothergreatexampleofwhatnottodotoemployees.Hearrangedamonthlydevelopmentmeetingwithme.For the first session, hedidn’t show.For the second, he arrivedlateandspentmostof thetimefiddlingwithhisphone.Themessagewasclear; he wasn’t interested. I didn’t feel valued. As a result, I wasn’tengaged.

Thesetypesofpoliciesandbehaviorsendoutimportanthiddenmessagestoyour employees. They say, “we don’t trust you,” “you’re not important,”“we’recleverer thanyouare,”andeven“wedon’tcareaboutyou.”Whatkind of customer experience will you deliver when your employees arebombarded with these subtle messages every day of the week? Howengagedwouldyoubeifthiswasyourworkenvironment?

Employees’ emotions influence their perception of the work experience.Actionsthatseeminnocuoustomanagementcanbeinterpreteddifferentlybyemployees,resultinginemotionsthatdonotdrivevalueandcandestroytheir relationship with your organization. To provide an exceptionalcustomerexperience,youneedhappyemployees.

However,creatinghappyemployeesisn’tenough.Youalsoneedthemtobemotivatedbytheiremployeeexperiencetofeelengagedenoughtodowhatit takes to deliver the desired customer experience. Keeping employees“happy”and“motivated”arebuzzwordsoneveryone’slips,but it’srarelysupported with action. As a result, employee engagement sees littleimprovement,whichunderminesthecustomerexperience.

Therefore, as a review, the practical steps to improve your employeeengagementare:

Definetheemployeeexperienceyouaretryingtodeliver.

Alignthistoyourcustomerexperience.

Recruitpeoplewiththeskillstodeliverthatexperiencetoyourcustomers.

Implement psychometric tests to ensure you selected the rightpeople.

Design your employee experience as you would a customerexperiencetoachievethedesiredoutcome.

Measureemployees’engagement,nothowhappytheyare.

Our regular Employee Engagement Course focuses on how to makeemployeeengagementhappen,aswellashowtomeasureitseffectonyourbottomline.Theideahereisthatifyoucanmakeyouremployeeshappieratwork,you’llgettheirbestwork,whichproducesthebestresults($$$).

FindingtheAnswertoEmployeeEngagementHowwefeelaffectshowweperform.Ifwefeelempowered,focused,andappreciated,we’regoingtodoabetterjob,whetherit’sstockingshelvesatWalmartorinnovatinghowtheworldgetsinformationatGoogle.

There are three pieces of research which, along with my businessexperience, contributed to my view on employee engagement. Theyinclude:

1. Happinesscostsabout$75,000peremployee.

2. Psychological consequences occur when the sole focus ismoney.

3. Spendingmoneyonotherspromotesindividualhappiness.

1.Happinesscostsabout$75,000peremployee.GalluppublishedanarticleexplainingthatinNorthAmerica,earningover$75,000ayeardoesnotincreaselevelsofhappiness.5Sowhydosomanyemployeesstillsaymoneyisoneoftheirkeydrivers?

Thisdichotomyisaclassicexampleofpeoplenotknowingwhattheywant.Inourcustomerexperiencework,weseeresearchshowingthatcustomerssay price is the most important factor in their customer experience.

However,whenweconductourEmotionalSignature®researchforclients,wediscoverthisisn’tthecase.Priceisnevertheprimaryfactor.Similarly,with employees, money is never the key element in the employeeexperience.

MyinterestinthistopicoccurredwhenItookoveralargeunitforoneofmyformeremployers.Iquicklydiscoveredmoralewaslow.Mydictatorialpredecessor treated the employees poorly. To turn things around, Icommissionedasurveytodeterminewhatmotivatedmyteammembers.Ithoughtmoneywouldcomeoutontop,sincethatwasthetopcomplaint.Tomy surprise, the survey results showedmoney didn’t motivatemy team;theyweredrivenbythecustomersayingtheydidagoodjob.

2. Psychological consequences occur when the sole focus ismoney.Asmyinterest inthistopicgrew,IfoundastudyinScience thatsuggeststhat reminders of money (as in constantly talking about it) make peoplemore selfish.6 The authors assert that, “Participants primed with moneypreferred to play alone, work alone, and put more physical distancebetweenthemselvesandanewacquaintance.”

Constant discussions about revenue, targets, profits, and productivity canhaveasimilareffect.Theseubiquitousdiscussionsleadtoteammembers’increasedconcernabouthittingtheirnumbersanddecreasedconcernaboutothers on the team or initiatives across the company. In other words,constant focus on revenue and sales goals makes people more selfish,creates an “us vs. them” situation, and reinforces organizational silos(departments that work well together internally, but not with otherdepartments), all of which are not suitable for creating an extraordinarycustomerexperience.

3.Spendingmoneyonotherspromotesindividualhappiness.Wefeelgoodwhenwedonatemoneytocharities.Thisprosocialbehavior

isembeddedinempathy.Empathycanhelpanorganizationprovideabetterexperiencefortheircustomers.It’salsoadeep-rooted,altruisticwaytofeelgoodaboutyourself.Another interestingstudyfromSciencedemonstratesthat,“spendingmoneyonotherpeoplemayhaveamorepositiveimpactonhappiness than spending money on oneself.” 7 This study shows thatspending even small amounts of money on others makes you feel goodaboutyourself.

Irememberaparticularinstanceofthisfrommylife.Ihadpurchasedtwosoccer tickets to theLeagueCupFinalatWembleyStadium.Icouldhavegone with a friend, but instead, I gave them to my daughter and father.They’rebothsoccermad,andIknewtheywouldenjoyit.Forme,hearingthe report of the gamewhen they got backwas farmore rewarding thanattending the gamemyself, and, yes, I felt good aboutmyself for givingthemthetickets.

Youmight be thinking, “That’s so nice of you, Colin, giving away yoursoccer tickets, butwhat does all thismean for employee engagement andcustomer experience?” I’ll tell you: too many senior managers focus onmoney and the rational aspects of the business. Senior managementdemands hitting revenue targets, holding profit margins, and meetingefficiencyandproductivitygoals.Theydependonbonuses,promotions,orincentives,oralloftheabove,tomotivatepeople.However,researchshowsthat focusing onmoney creates selfish and siloedwork activity,which isneithergoodforemployeeengagementnorforthecustomerexperience.

Heskett, Sasser, and Schlesinger told us in their best-selling book, TheService Profit Chain, that certain firms really get this concept.8 Theseorganizations (e.g., Southwest Airlines, Ritz-Carlton, and AmericanExpress, to name a few) understand that increased profits and customerloyalty link directly with employee happiness and motivation. Theirresearch reveals the strongest relationships exist between profits andcustomer loyalty, employee loyalty and customer loyalty, and employeesatisfactionandcustomer satisfaction.They showhow these relationshipscreateamutuallyreinforcingrelationshipbetweenthem.Or,inotherwords,

thebookillustrateswhatI’vesaidforyears:

Happyemployeesgiveyouhappycustomers.

Peoplelikedoingagoodjobforcustomers.Organizationsshouldrecognizethatemployeesarethekeytocustomerrelationships.Skiptherevenuetalkand instead discuss how their products and the employee’s role helpcustomers, tappingintothefeel-goodnotionofhelpingothers.Employeesfeel happier and more motivated than if they’re only focusing on fiscaltargets. In turn, happy employees will make the customers feel moresatisfiedandmoremotivatedtoremaincustomers.

Itcomesdowntothis:ifyouwanthappycustomers,youfirstneedtohavehappy employees. Happy employees are the product of inspirationalleadership and an empowering culture. When these two elements arepresent,employeesarefarmorelikelytoengagewiththemissionofyourorganizationand theneed todeliveron thatmission thanwhen theyhavelacklusterleadershipandamistrustfulworkingenvironment.

Employeeshaveavoice,and it tellsyouwhatyouneed toknow.But thecatchis,youhavetolisten.Whentheyhaveasayinwhatneedstochange,they champion that changewhen it comes. Some of them, the EmployeeAmbassadors, will perform as if they had a stake in the success of theorganizationaswell.ThegoodnewsisthattheAmbassador’senthusiasmiscontagious.Havingthistypeofculturebuildstrust,createsanempoweringculture, and fosters the employee engagement necessary to create anexcellentemployeeexperience.

So now you see that employee experience is more valuable than youthought itwas. In thenextchapter,we’ll lookathowyoucan facilitateagreat employeeexperiencebyhiring the rightpeople.After all,youcan’tget blood out of a stone.Hiring the right people is an essential first steptowardcreatingtheemployeeexperienceyouneedtodeliverthecustomerexperienceyouwant.

2Peterson,Hayley.“Wal-MartWorkersPlanStrikesAheadofCompany’sShareholdersMeeting.”

www.businessinsider.com.29May2014.Web.2June2014.<http://www.businessinsider.com/wal-mart-workers-plan-strikes-2014-5?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+businessinsider+%28Business+Insider%29

3Doheny,Kathleen.“Workaholisim:Maybenotsuchabadthing.”Articles.latimes.com.13February2012.Web.26October2017.<http://articles.latimes.com/2012/feb/13/health/la-he-workaholics-20120213>.

4Schwartz,Tony,andChristinePorath.“WhyYouHateWork.”www.nytimes.com.30May2014.Web.30December2015.<http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/01/opinion/sunday/why-you-hate-work.html?hp&rref=opinion&_r=1>

5Robison,Jennifer.“HappinessisLove--and$75,000.”www.gallup.com.17November2011.Web.30December2015.<http://www.gallup.com/businessjournal/150671/happiness-is-love-and-75k.aspx>

6Vohs,KathleenD.,NicoleL.Mead,andMirandaR.Goode.“ThePsychologicalConsequencesofMoney.”Science17(2006):1154-1156.<http://www.sciencemag.org/content/314/5802/1154.abstract?maxtoshow=&HITS=10&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=psychological+consequences+of+money&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&resourcetype=HWCIT

7Dunn,ElizabethW.,LaraB.Aknin,andMichaelI.Norton.“SpendingMoneyonOthersPromotesHappiness.”Science21(2008):1687-1688.<http://science.sciencemag.org/content/319/5870/1687>

8Heskett,JamesL.,andW.EarlSasser.TheServiceProfitChain:HowLeadingCompaniesLinkProfitandGrowthtoLoyalty,Satisfaction,andValue.NewYork:Free,1997.Print.

CHAPTER2HiringtheRightEmployeesfortheJob

Inthelastchapter,wediscussedtheimportanceofcreatinghappyandengagedemployees to improve your employee and customer experience. Now, we’llexplore thehiringphase.Hiring the rightpeople shouldbe apriority formostorganizations, particularly when filling a position that works directly withcustomers.

Italwayssurprisesmehowfeworganizationsdothegroundworktoattractandrecruittherightpeopleforthesepositions.Manyorganizationsdon’tevenknowwhothe“rightpeople”arethattheyseek.

JayForte,theworkplaceconsultantwhowroteFireUp!YourEmployees,coinedtheterm“customer-ready.”Thesearethepeoplewhoarereadyto“deliver(the)exceptionalservice”thatyouwantforyourcustomers.9But,headds,whilemostorganizationshavea strongdesire for customer-readyemployees, theyhaven’tdefinedwhatthatexceptionalserviceis.

Photoby:Ilixe4

IblamethelackofaCustomerExperienceStatement(CES),whichdefinesthecustomerexperienceyouwanttoprovide.TheCEStellsemployeeswhattheendgoal is for any decision they make. The CES describes how an organizationwants to create customer loyalty and retention.TheCESdefines the emotionsyouaretryingtoevokeinyourcustomers.Onceyoudeterminewhatyouwant,youhirepeoplewhohavethetalentforevokingtheseemotions.Theability toevoke this particular set of emotions is what your organization defines as“customer-ready.” If you’re hiring customer-facing employeeswithout a CES,how can you knowwhat type of employee you’re looking for?The answer issimple: you can’t.Tohire the right people, youhave to definewho the “rightpeople”are.

In our third book, The DNA of Customer Experience (Palgrave MacMIllan,2007), we explored how some of our clients accomplished this featextraordinarilywellusingaCES.Build-A-BearWorkshop’sgoalistosupplyaconsistentexperience thatmakescustomers feelcared forand focuseson theirindividualneeds. Ifyouhaven’tvisitedoneof theirstores, the idea is thatyoucustomizeastuffedanimalwithdifferentaccessoriestorepresentyouridealtoy.When thefounderof thecompanyandformer“ChiefExecutiveBear”MaxineClarkhiredemployees,shesearchedforpeoplewhocouldguidetheircustomersdown the path of their experience so that “by the time they [customers]weredone,theyhadcreatedthemostpersonalizedgiftpossible.”Inotherwords,shesought peoplewhomade Build-A-Bear’s customers feel cared for, one of theemotionsthatdrivevalueforanorganization.Clarksaidthisinourbook:

“Wehirepeoplewith thiskindofpassionandenergy.Thefirst thingwelook for ispeoplewhocare.Youcantrainpeoplehowtoworkregistersand how to do numbers, but you can’t train people to care, that’swhattheycomewithfromtheirbackground,fromtheirworkexperience.”

Clark’s strategy worked. The company grew to 400 stores worldwide. Herstrategy of matching the right people to these positions earned her FastCompany’s“Customer-CenteredLeader”in2005’sCustomerFirstAwards.Also,atthetime,Build-A-BearWorkshopmadeFortune’slistof“BestCompaniesto

WorkFor”fiveyearsrunning.

Hiringsomeoneforajobtheycan’tdoresultsinchallengesforeveryone,frommanagerstoclientstoemployees.Youcan’tidentifytherightpeopleandmatchthemtoapositionunlessyouknowwhatyouthinkcomprisesacandidatewhoiscustomer-ready.AtBeyondPhilosophy,therearetraitswelookforincandidates,qualitiesweallagreeareessentialtosuccessonourteam.Whatcustomer-readymeans to youmight be different, but I offer this list as an example ofwhat Imean by this concept. The following five characteristics have served themembersofmyteamwell.

1. Emotional Intelligence. People with high emotional intelligence(EQ)cancontroltheiremotionsandinfluencetheemotionsofothers.Research indicates they are also good at gettingpeople to dowhattheywant. I hire candidateswithhighEQsknowing fullwell theirability togetpeople todowhat theywantapplies tome.However,I’mokaywith that,because they’realso themost likely todevelopemployee engagement, an essential ingredient of delivering theBeyondPhilosophybrandpromise.

2. Positive Attitude. Does the candidate have that positive, can-doattitude?You can train a lot of things, but an attitude isn’t one ofthem.

3. Initiative.Personal initiative iscriticalwhenhiring.We like toseehowthecandidateusestheirinitiativetopreparefortheinterview—or doesn’t. Many people turn up for interviews without doing thepreparation.Thecandidates that impressmemostare theoneswhoareproactive,notreactive.

4. SoundReasoning. I ask people to come in with a 100-day plan,which, as thename implies, is theplan for their firsthundreddayswithourorganization.Ijudgetheideabyhowtheypresentitandthethoughtbehindit.Ihavepeoplewhowingit.Ialsohavepeoplewhospend a great deal of time and give a professional presentation.GuesswhichcandidateIhire?

5. IndependentWorkingSkills.Ihaveavirtualteamwithofficesallover theworld. In this virtualworld, youmustdelegate a task andtrustthepersontodoit.Ioncehadanassistantwhoworkedwellintheoffice.However,whenweconvertedtoworkingfromhome,shecouldn’thandle it.Whenever I spoke toher, shewasalwaysdoingthewashing or ironing or something else. Shewas an independentworker, justnotonmystuff. Ifyou’regoing to runavirtual team,you need to trust they will work. I say to my staff, “I don’t carewhereyouworkintheworldaslongasyouwork.”Somepeoplearegoingtodothis,andsomearen’t.TheonesIhirearetheformer,notthelatter.

Myjobistoselectcandidateswiththeseskillsandnaturaltalentsandthenmatchthemtotheproperjob.Ifitisn’taqualitymatch,thecandidatemightfail,andIwillhavefailedthecandidate.ButIhaveaconfessiontomake.Peopleswaymewithoutdifficulty,makingmeaneasy interview.Despitemystatusasahiringwally,however,I’vehiredmanyfantasticpeopleinmycareer.How?ToquoteafellowBrit, “Iget bywith a littlehelp frommy friends.” I enlist people fromacross the organization to interview the person as well. It also helps thecandidate,astheycanspeaktoacross-sectionofpeoplehere.

AHighEQisEssentialtoCustomer-ReadyEmployeesI’vealwaysbeenanadvocateofpsychologicaltestingduringthehiringprocessto measure the candidate’s emotional intelligence. Also, look for essentialcharacteristics of the type of EQ you need to deliver your experience. Usingtheseguidelines,youcanidentifycustomer-readycandidates.

EQisoneofthekeyattributesofnotonlygoodcustomer-readyemployees,butalsoforthecustomerexperienceprofessionalthemselves.HavingsomeonewithahighEQisanadvantageinmanyways.TherearefivedomainsofEQ.10

1. Knowingyouremotions

2. Managingyouremotions

3. Motivatingyourself

4. Recognizingandunderstandingotherpeople’semotions

5. Managingrelationships,i.e.managingtheemotionsofothers

IndividualswithhighEQscanreadtheirownemotionsanddiscoverwhytheyfeel that way, a useful skill for a customer experience professional. A sharpcustomer experience professional will also recognize the emotions in others.This ability is useful both externally and internally. Externally, the customerexperience professional interprets customers’ emotions by their behavior.Internally, the same professional understands the team members’ feelings bytheirbehavior.Weallknowthatimprovinganexperiencemeanslotsofchangeandworkingacrossmanyorganizationalsilos. Inevitably,politicswillcome tothe fore.Somepeople seeyourproposal to improve theexperienceasa threatandwillresistit.

Managing your emotions is also crucial. The role of a customer experienceprofessionalcanbechallenging.Youmayneedtomanageyourfrustrationatthelackofengagementfrompeopleintheorganization,orensureyoudon’tpanicatthesizeofthetaskahead.

Finally, working cross-functionally means you need skills in managingrelationships at all levels of the organization. The customer experienceprofessionalneedstheabilitytogetthingsdonewithoutbeingseenasapoliticalthreat. They need to show they have a balanced approach to all parts of theorganizationandcanbeevenhanded.

If having a high EQ is a distinct advantage for customer experienceprofessionals, it’s even more vital for your customer-facing employees. As Imentioned in thepreviouschapter, employeeengagement isacritical factor inhavingagreatcustomerexperience.Sincesomuchofemployeeengagementishavingtherightpeopleintherightposition,today’sleadersshouldhirepeoplewithahighEQforpositionsthatinteractwithcustomers.

TheAddedBenefitofaHighEQWe know that people with a high EQ manage both their emotions and theemotionsofothersmoreeffectively.Buttheseskillscandoevenmorethanthat.In an article fromScienceDaily, researchers asserted that peoplewith a higherEQcould“facilitateinterpersonalbehaviorsforachievingtheirgoals.”11

For the article, researchers atKyotoUniversity put together a social behaviorexperimentthatmeasuredhowpeoplewithhigherEQwereabletomanagetheirfellowsubjectsinagame.12Thegamewasmanipulatedsothattwoparticipantswould purposefully ostracize the third player. Later, the subject who wasostracized would drive the action that could either increase or diminish therewardsforalltheplayers.

TheresearchersdiscoveredthatsubjectswithahighEQattemptedtomanagethemotivationoftheostracizedsubjecttoincreasetherewardsforallthesubjects.ThestudydeterminedthatwhileahighEQwasn’tnecessarilygoodorbad,itdidenable people to achieve their goals by managing the emotions of others. Inother words, individuals with high EQ can use their awareness to get theoutcometheyseek.Orinthecaseofyourhiringmanager,theoutcomeyouseek.As emotional connections become even more crucial to creating customerloyalty and boosting the bottom line in today’s globalized and commoditizedeconomy, the ability to manage emotions will be a more valuable asset on aperson’sresume.

Aswediscussedinthelastchapter,engagedemployeesareemotionallybondedandrationallyonboardwithyourgoalsandprocesses.Theysupportandupholdthe brand promise that you’ve created for your company. Engaged employeesencourageloyaltyfromyourcustomers.Your jobis to identifythestrengthsinyour teamandyournewcandidatesandmatch themwithappropriate jobs thatcreatetheemotionalatmosphereyouwant.

EmployeeswithahighEQaremorelikelytoexcelindifferentareasthanthosewith a low EQ, an important consideration when you’re hiring your team.Excellent customer experience relies on individualswith highEQs controllingthesituationtoanoptimalemotionaloutcomeforthecustomer.

Thinkbackonarecentcustomerserviceinteraction,evenonewhereyouweredisappointed or frustrated. If it was unsatisfactory, can you pinpoint where itwentwrong?Ifitwasexceptional,whatmadeitso?Manytimes,theanswertoeitherofthesequestionsisthatthepersonyouweretalkingto(orworkingwith,emailing,chatting,texting,etc.)didsomethingthatmadeyoufeelacertainway.If the customer service representative had a high EQ, then he or she couldmanageyouremotionstotheirdesiredoutcome.

Looking for people with a high EQ is a magnificent strategy when you’rebuilding your team. These individuals have the power to help manage apotentiallydamagingsituationtoasuitableoutcome.Providedthatpeopleareonboardwith your brand promise, high EQ employees can improve interactionswithyourcustomers.Yourexperiencecanbecomethebestpartofacustomer’sday instead ofmaterial for the rant posted later on socialmedia aboutwhat aterribleexperienceheorshehadwithyourorganization.

WhenIQGetsintheWayofEQWhywedowhatwedoisafascinatingscience.Thebrainhasinterestingwaysof interpreting theworld around us and spurring us into action. Knowing thebraindrivesourbehavior, youwould think thosewithhigh intelligencewouldhavetheupperhandinmakingsounddecisions.Studieshaveshown,however,that this is not the case.A recent article onBig Think highlighted threemainreasonswhythisistrueforsmartpeople,13whichinclude:

1. Intelligence breeds hubris. Smart people can develop excessiveprideorself-confidence(hubris)intheirdecision-making.

2. Smartpeopletendtodevelopasuperioritycomplex.Notonlydothey have a high opinion of themselves, but they also form lowopinions of those around them. Feeling superior, smart peopleassumetheymakebetterdecisionsthantheirpeersanddon’tcheckinfromtimetotimetoseeifthisistrue.

3. They overlook their bias. We all have biases that influence our

abilitytointerprettheworldaccurately.Thesebiasesaretheresultofoursystemsofthought,whicharen’talwaysrational

Ourintelligenceisanimportantpartofhowwemakedecisions,butitisn’ttheonlypartcontributingtooursuccess.Otherimportantfactorsincludewhatkindofthinkingweusetoarriveataconclusion,self-awarenessofournaturalbiases,andahealthydoseofhumility.Let’stakeaquicklookateachofthesefactors.

Your type of thinking in decision-making has a tremendous impact on itsaccuracy. In his book,Thinking, Fast and Slow, Professor Daniel Kahneman,winner of the 2002 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, lookedcarefullyattheideathatourmindshavetwotypesofthinking.14Thefirsttypeofthinking,calledSystemOne,isintuitive,basedonyournaturalassociationswithinformation, which make decision-making quick and easy. The other, SystemTwo,isslowandmethodical,basedontherationaluseofinformationtodrawaconclusion, which takesmore time and concentration. He determined that weaccess System One more often than System Two, because it’s easier. In ourbook, The Intuitive Customer: 7 Imperatives for Moving Your CustomerExperience to the Next Level (Palgrave MacMillan 2016), we call them theIntuitive(SystemOne)andRational(SystemTwo)Systems.

OneofthejobsoftheslowerRationalSystemistogoverntheconclusionsoftheIntuitiveSystem.IfweuseIntuitiveSystemthinking,and theRationalSystemdoesn’t validate these decisions, our conclusions are not as fact-based as webelievetheyare.Moreover,thiswayofthinkingisconsistentacrossallpeople,fromintelligenttodumborsomewhereinbetween.

Self-awarenessisalsoparamounttomakingagooddecision.Whenyourealizedthatyouhavebiases,youcanspot theminsomeofyourSystemOne/Intuitivedecisions. Intelligent people suffering from hubris forget that their quickerdecision doesn’t have all the information, believing instead that it’s theirconsiderablewitandintellectthatarrivedatsuchanefficientconclusion.

Weallmakemistakes.Mistakesarevital,becausetheycanteachusalesson.Wesuffertheunpleasantconsequencesresultingfromthem.Itmakesanimpression.Whenapersondoesn’tbelieve theymadeamistakeor thinks themistakewas

nottheirfault,theydon’tlearnfromit.They’redoomedtorepeatit,evensmartpeople.

High intelligence is an outstanding personal quality. However, temperingintelligencewith rational, logic-based thinking, self-awarenessofbiases, andahealthy dose of humility is essential.Otherwise, you can end upwith a smartpersonwhomakesalotofdumbdecisions.

Layingthegroundworkforattractingandrecruitingtheright talent isacrucialpart of hiring the right employees for the job. Thatmeans definingwhat youwanttheseemployeestodowithcustomersanddeterminingwhatcharacteristicsareimportanttothisgoal.Inotherwords,youmustdefinewhatcustomer-readymeans to your organization. In any customer-facing position, EQ is a criticalcriterion your candidates must possess. From the ability to read a customer’sfeelings,totheskillsofmanagingtheseemotionstoabetteroutcome,EQisvitalto creating an excellent customer experience. Employees with high EQ betterfacilitate emotional bonding between your organization and your customers,which is a necessary factor for differentiation in today’s competitive globaleconomy.

Nowthatyou’velearnedinthischapterwhatyouwant,whoyou’relookingforandhowtoevaluatetheircustomer-readiness,nextI’lladdresshowtotrainthemtodotheirjob.Allthegreatpotentialintheworldisuselesswithouttheskillstousethatpotentialwell.

9Forte,Jay.“HiringEmployeesWhoAre‘CustomerReady.’”www.eremedia.com.3February2014.Web.4January2016.<http://www.eremedia.com/ere/hiring-employees-who-are-customer-ready/>

10“EmotionalIntelligence(EQ)”www.businessballs.com.Web.4January2016.<http://www.businessballs.com/eq.htm>

11PublicLibraryofScience.“Emotionallyintelligentpeoplemayinfluenceemotionsofothersbasedontheirowngoals.”ScienceDaily.ScienceDaily,23October2013.www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131023183252.htm

12Nozaki,Yuki,andMasuoKoyasu.“TheRelationshipbetweenTraitEmotionalIntelligenceandInteractionwithOstracizedOthers’Retaliation.”PLoSONE,10(2013)e77579DOI:<http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0077579>

13Jones,Orion.“IntelligenceisaBurdenonMakingGoodLifeDecisions.”bigthink.com.Web.5January2016.<http://bigthink.com/ideafeed/intelligence-is-a-burden-on-making-good-life-decisions>.

14Kahneman,Daniel.Thinking,FastandSlow.Farrar,StrausandGiroux,2015.

CHAPTER3TrainingYourWaytoSuccess

By now, you see that many elements must come together for a brilliantexperience, from committed and supportive leadership, to a culture thatempowers employees to get engaged with the company mission, to a soundrecruitment strategy that matches natural talent with job responsibilities.However,evenanextraordinary focuson theseareas isn’tenough tocreateanidealexperienceforemployeesorcustomers.

Photoby:mkabakov

Oneelementoftenneglected,butindispensabletoyoursuccess,issoftskills,orinterpersonal communication training for your customer-facing teams.Moreover, when there is soft skills training available, it’s too basic andinfrequent. Addressing some common interpersonal communication areas inyourcustomer-facingemployee trainingwillhaveasignificant impactonyour

effectiveness.Ifyoufailtoacknowledgethese,thenyourtrainingisincomplete,andyourexperienceisunevenatbest.

Successfulcompanieswidenthegapbetweenthemselvesandtheircompetitionbytrainingtheiremployeesinthefollowingfourareas.

1. Understandingwhatrepresentsanexperience

2. Identifyingwhatyoushouldkeepandwhatyoushouldchange

3. Recognizinghowacustomerisfeeling

4. Furnishingthetoolstomanageadversesituations

Let’stakeacloserlookateachoftheseareas.

Area#1:Understandingwhatrepresentsanexperience.Understandinghowyourcustomers thinkandhowtheiremotional reactions toyourexperiencedrive theirbehaviorhelpsyoudesignanexcellentexperience.More than 50% of what determines the outcome of a customer experience isemotional, so this concept is foundational. Employees must understand theseinnerworkings, too,at leastfromapracticalaspect.WhenwewroteCustomerExperience:FutureTrendsandInsights(PalgraveMacmillan,2010),wesawthefuture of customer experience was neuroscience (the study of how the brainworks)andbehavioraleconomics(thestudyofhowourpsychologydirectsourbehavior as customers). Our new book, The Intuitive Customer (PalgraveMacmillan,2016),explorestheseconceptsinmoredetail.

When it comes to a customer experience,wepay attention to the rational andconsciouselementsofanexperience,likepriceorshippingtime.Then,thereareemotional and subconscious elementswe feel and sometimesnotice, butdon’talwaysknowhowtodescribe,e.g.,feelingfrustratedorhassled,orsurprisedanddelighted, etc. These parts of the experience work together to determine howyour customers feel. Excellent experiences are born of understanding therelationshipbetweenthesepartsandthentrainingtheteamtousespecificwordsandactions tomanage themtoaconsistentandpositiveconclusion.Wecall it

Experience Psychology, and deploying its insight in your team’s soft skillstrainingisimperativeformovingyourcustomerexperiencetothenextlevel.

Apple’s customer-facing training is an excellent example of how ExperiencePsychology can help you evoke specific emotions from customers.Years ago,GizmodoobtainedApple’sGeniusTrainingworkbook.15TheexhaustivemanualaddressedhowApplewantedtheiremployeestodressandstand,whatwordstouse, and what words to avoid. To appeal to the customer’s subconsciousexperience,AppleinstructsGeniusestostroketheirchintoindicateheorsheisevaluatingthesituation.Apple’s teamalsouses the“ThreeFs”(Feel,Felt,andFound)toshowtheyheardthecustomer’sconcernbeforesteeringtheinteractiontoapositiveoutcome.

Forexample,acustomerhasconcernsthattheMacwillbedifficulttoadjustto,becauseitusesdifferentcommandsthantheirPC.TheGeniusmightthensay,“Icanseehowyou’dfeelthatway.WhenIfirststartedusingMacproducts,Ifeltfrustratedby thedifferences frommyPC, too.But I found afterworkingwithMacforashorttime,thosefrustrationswentaway,andnowIcouldn’tworkanyotherway.”Thistacticis,well,genius.

LikeApple,Disneyalsodefinesthepsychologicalmomentsoftheirexperience,including body language. Disney uses mystery shoppers, or people hired toevaluate the quality of service by posing as customers buying products orservices. If a Disney employee (also called a cast member) is seen leaningagainstawallratherthanstandingstraight,theemployeewillbemarkeddowninthemysteryshoppingsurvey.Thesecustomer-focusedideashelpDisneykeepitsbrandofmagicuptoastandardthatmakesanyoftheirparks“TheHappiestPlaceonEarth.”Disneyalsohasfouremployeetrainingkeys,whichinclude:

1. Safety.Castmembersarecommittedtomaintainingtheirsafetyandthesafetyofothersinalltheydo.

2. Courtesy. Cast members are committed to maintaining a positiveattitude,exhibitingrespecttoguestsofallages,andgoingaboveandbeyondtoexceedguests’expectations.

3. Show.Castmembersmaintaintheircharacterandareshow-readyatalltimes.

4. Efficiency. Cast members employ wise use of their time andresourcessoguestscangetthemostoutoftheirvisit.

WehaveasimilarbehavioraltrainingapproachcalledMemoryMakerTraining.Thistraininggivescustomer-facingpersonneltheskillsneededtoidentifyhowacustomerisfeelingbyobservingtheirverbalandnonverbalcues.Then,weteachthe employee to use psychological memory building concepts to structure aninteraction that evokes the desired response. The team can then convert thecustomerintofeelingthedesiredemotionsdefinedintheCES,whichhavebeendeterminedtodrivethemostvalue($$$$)fortheorganization.

Area#2:Identifyingwhatyoushouldkeepandwhatyoushouldchange.Providing the elements in your experience to produce a desired emotionalresponse requires first understanding what elements already exist in yourexperience.WerecommendundertakingaCustomerMirror,whichispretendingyou’reacustomerandseeing theexperience throughtheireyes.TheCustomerMirrorexerciseanswerstwofundamentalquestions:

Whatisourexperiencelikenow?Whatdoweneedtochange?

CustomerMirrors help identify the causes of a poor experience.Whetherit’showthird-partyvendorsareinvolved,orhowyourin-housecallcentergreets you, you’ll see where you’re harassing or frustrating people. Thegoodnewsisthatyoumightalsoseewhatyou’redoingright.Whateverthecasemaybe,onceyou seeyourcurrent experienceas a customer sees it,you’llknowwhattochangetogetwhereyouwanttogo.Identifyingwhatyou have now is where to start fixing the experience to “feel right” tocustomers.

Area#3:Recognizinghowacustomerisfeeling.Theory,understanding,anddesignarecrucialelementsofanyexperience.However,youmustcommunicatetheseconceptstothepeoplewhoprovidethe customer experience. Take the time to train your people about howfeelings influence behavior. Follow up with an example of how yourpresent experience creates these feelings. Then propose a way to changethosepartsofyourexperiencetobebetter.Manytimes,itmeanstraininginempatheticlistening,bettercommunication,andspecificactionstoapplyinthemostfrequentcustomerinteractionexperiences.

Anexcellentexamplecouldincludehowyouwantyourteammemberstorespondtoacustomer’ssigh.Youreadthatright,asigh.TheUniversityofOslo researched the motivation and interpretation of sighs in a series ofthreestudies,andconcludedthefollowingabouttheactofsighing.16

Asightypicallysignifiesanegativemood(e.g.,disappointment,frustration,defeat,ennui,orwistfulness).

It happens with equal frequency in public and private, anindicationthatitmightnotbeintentionalcommunication(read:asubconsciousreaction).

People mostly interpret sighing from others as conveying anegative emotion (in the study, ten times more often thanpositiveemotions),usuallysadness.

Peopleinterprettheirownsighsasfrustration.

When participants were observed assembling a complicatedpuzzle,77%ofthemsighed,butmostofthemdeniedtheydidit.

Isigh,butlikethepuzzlersintheOslostudy,Idon’tnoticeeverytimeIdoit. Also, I’m not always negativewhen I sigh—sometimes I’m happy orcontent,ormaybejustgladtobesittingdownforaminute.Inastudyfromthe University of Leuven, researchers suggest that sighing can also be aphysical and mental reset for your body.17 They looked at the breathing

patternsofparticipantsfortwentyminutes.Theyfoundthatrightbeforethesubject sighed, theirbreathingpatternvaried.Sometimes itwasshallowerthanbefore,andsometimesitwasfaster.Whenyoubreathethesamewayallthetime,yourlungfunctionislessefficient.So,asighcanstretchyourlungsoutagain,andcreateafeelingofrelief.

Sighs are a form of nonverbal communication, whether they’re intendedthatwayornot.Itturnsoutthatmostofthetime,thenonverbalmessageofasighisthatyou’refeelingsomethingnegative,likeimpatienceorsadness.

We readnonverbal communicationall the time; it’spartofouremotionalintelligence.Weknowwhenoursignificantothercrossestheirarms,they’refeelingstern (orcold. Iprefercold,because it’susuallyeasier to fix thanstern).Weknowthatwhensomeone isn’tmeetingoureye, they’rehidingtheirfeelingsfromus.Weknowthatwhensomeonespitstheirwordsout,they aren’t happy. How many times have you heard, in the midst of anargument,“It’snotwhatyousaid! It’showyousaid it!”? InourMemoryMaker Training, we train people to read nonverbal communication. It’scriticaltointerpretnotonlywhatcustomers’nonverbalcluescommunicate,butalsowhattheycommunicatewiththeirownclues.

Area#4:Furnishingthetoolstomanageadversesituations.Rudeness can occur at many points in a customer interaction, and fromeitherside.Whileyoucan trainyouremployees to respondpolitely, thereisn’t much you can do about the customers. At the risk of stating theobvious,beingpolitetocustomersiscritical,evenwhentheyaren’tpolite.In some extreme cases, you can fire the customer. The customer isn’talways right, after all.However, you can’t fire all the customerswho arerude,aseveryonehasabaddaynowandthen.

What’s more, customers might not be aware of why they are behavingrudely. A study from theUniversity of Florida proved that being rude iscontagious.18When you’re rude to two people, then they’re rude to twopeople,andsoon,andsoon,andsoon.Inotherwords,rudenessspreads

fasterthanaFabergeOrganicsshampooendorsementbetweentwofriendsin the ‘80s—and it can destroy your customer experience. Researchersshowedthatduringanegotiationexercise,whenoneoftheparticipantswasrude, it offended their partner. The offended partner then took a spitefulactionagainstthem(therewasamoneysplitaspartofthenegotiationthatcouldbeequal,selfish,orspiteful.)However,whatwasinterestingwasthatthe offended partnerwas alsomore likely to be rude to their negotiationpartner in the next interaction. Researchers posit that the initial rudeinteractionbringstheideaofrudenesstofront-of-mindawareness.

In a second experiment, researchers had participants recognize “rude-related”words.Theydiscoveredthatwhentheparticipantswitnessedarudeconfrontation between an experimenter and someonewho arrived late (itwasstaged), theparticipantsrecognizedthewordsmuchfaster.Moreover,inathirdexperiment,iftheysawarudeinteractionbeforehand,participantsdidn’t give people the benefit of the doubt if their comments could beinterpretedasrude.

Your team needs the skills to stop the flow of rudeness.Help your teamrecognizewhenthey’refeelingthecompulsiontospreadtherudeontothenextcustomer,andgivethemawaytostopthemselves.Itcanbespecificlanguagetouse,adistractiontoemploy,oranescapevalve.Butwhateveritis,itneedstobeavailabletotheminthemoment.Itneedstogivethemaway togive thenextcustomer thebenefitof thedoubtandallow themtosay, do, and perform what’s necessary to evoke a better emotion goingforward. It’s a skill that facilitates better decisions fromyour team in themomentandmightsaveacustomerwhoishavingabaddayfromhavingabad experiencewith your brand.Because you know if the customer doeshave a bad experience, they’ll tell two friends, and then they’ll tell twofriends,andsoon,andsoon,andsoon.

ThreeImportantConsiderationsWhenTrainingforaNewProgram

Iwrote about howApple is genius at training theirGeniuses.Of course,other organizations excel in employee engagement, too.WeworkedwithCaterpillar to improve their customer experience. Part of thatimplementation has included employee training, which has meant manychangestothestatusquo.

Managing the difficulty of change is important in training. Improvingcustomer experience starts with improving your employee experience bymanaging the pain of change for the team. One of Caterpillar’s leadingdealers in the US, Carter Machinery, realized their business model waschangingastheresultofmoreexpansiveproductlinesandanincreasinglydiverse customer base. Carter Machinery’s vision was, “Enabling everycustomer toachieve theirhighest levelofsuccess.”ButCarter’scustomerexperienceteamlearnedthattoenablecustomers’success,theyfirsthadtoenabletheirteam’s.

KellyMcAteer,CustomerExperienceManagerforCarterMachineryatthetime,wantedtochangebusinessasusualwithoutlosingsightofwhatmadethemsuccessful.However,withatenuredworkforce(employeeswith30to40yearsofexperience),McAteerlearnedthatchangingevenatrivialitemwasdisruptive tocustomer-facingemployees.Hesaid the following threeconsiderationsshouldplayabigroleinchangingtheprocessforemployeestodeliverabettercustomerexperience.

1. Communicateoftenandclearly.Explainboth thebigpictureandthesmallpictureforyourteam.Theyshouldseethehigh-level ideas andhow their day-to-day actions contribute to thisidea’ssuccess.

2. Make it manageable. When it comes to sharing the vision,balance is needed. If you do a complete information dump, itcanbetoomuchtoprocess,andyouloseyouraudience.Ifyouhold back too many details, the motivation to endure theinconvenience of change is lost. If you’re tasked withinformationdissemination,youshoulddeliveritinmanageablechunkstotheteam.

3. Don’t underestimate the impact. People have a naturalresistancetochange,particularlywhenitcomestochangingtheway things have always been done. It’s difficult to accept thepainofchange.Whenyoumakeeventrivialchangestoprocess,listentotheirconcernsandworkwiththemtodeliversolutions.

OurMemoryMakerTrainingweavesintheseconsiderationsfortheteam.Itinstructs the team how to create great memories of the experience forcustomers. Itnotonly teaches teammembershow to recognizeemotions,butitalsoshowsthemhowtorespondappropriatelytocustomerfeelingstoevokeadesiredemotionaloutcome.

Here’sanexampleoftheseskillsinreallifethatmanymarriedpeoplewillrecognize.When I come home at night, I call out “Hello!” to my wife,Lorraine.Icantellbyhertoneofvoiceandrhythmhowshe’sfeeling.IfIcan see her, I can tell evenmore from her body language—especially if

she’snothappyat thatmoment.Fromyearsofmarriage, Iknow thatmyfirst priority is to listen empathetically. I know that jumping in too earlywithmy“clever”solutionstoherproblemsisnotmybestcourseofaction.Usually,onceshe’sexpressedherself,thereareafewdifferentthingsIcandotohelpherfeelbetter.Icandothis,becauseIknowher.

I share this story because the idea behind Memory Maker Training issimilar.Weteach the teamhowtoknowtheircustomerswellenoughthattheycanrespondinanappropriatewaytohowtheircustomersarefeeling.MemoryMakerTrainingteachesemployeesto:

Readthecustomer’sverbalandnonverbalcues.

Recognizethefeelingsbehindthecues.

Decide the best verbal and nonverbal cues to send to thecustomertoresolvetheirfeelings.

Implement the best course of action to evoke the desiredresponse.

Thesestepsarerepeatedwiththeemployeeuntiltheybecomehabit.

MemoryMaker Training also uses variousmethods tomake this changeeasier for the team. We use role-playing in a controlled (read: safe)environment.Wealsohaveonlinemodulesthatreinforcetheconceptsandcanbeusedasneededafterthetraining.Weteachthefront-linemanagershow to train people on the concepts. Therefore, using practice, repetitionthroughonlinetraining,andreinforcementfromthemanagers,wehelpthechange become a habitual response. We cover this topic in much moredetailinTheIntuitiveCustomer.

These training elements remain essential to the success of your program.First,understandhowexperiencesworkandinfluencehowyourcustomersbehave. Second, understand how your experience evokes emotions atpresent.Third,communicatethistotheteamtohelpthemreachthatsamelevelofunderstandingandgivethemthetoolstomanagetheemotionsofasituation, even negative ones. Finally, listen to and have patience and

empathyfortheteamwhiletheylearnnewwaysofdoingthings.

All successful companies recognize that training is an essential part ofhavingagreat experience and that emotionsplay a significant role in theoutcome of both the employee and customer experience. Knowing theprecisemomentswhereemotionsaffectyourexperienceisalsovital,andisbest achieved by pretending you’re a customer yourself. Teaching youremployeestorecognizecustomeremotionsgivesthemthetoolstheyneedtomanagethesituationtothedesiredemotionaloutcome.

It’s important to understand how employees feel during a trainingimplementation.Whetheryoujusthiredthemlastweekorthey’veworkedthere for years, change is difficult for anyone.Managing the difficulty oftrainingisanimportantgoalforyourorganization.Communicating,makingit manageable, and not underestimating the impact of change are threeessentialelementstohelpingyourteamsucceed.

With the rightmindset about the importance of employee experience, therightpeopleintherightpositions,andtherighttrainingprogram,wehaveeverything set up for the right kind of success.What’s left? In the nextchapter,we‘llput together theelementswe’vediscussedso far,andshowyouhowtomanageagreatemployeeexperiencestartingatthetop.

15Biddle,Sam.“HowtoBeaGenius:ThisIsApple’sSecretEmployeeTrainingManual.”gizmodo.com.28August2012.Web.4January2016.<http://gizmodo.com/5938323/how-to-be-a-genius-this-is-apples-secret-employee-training-manual>

16Teigen,K.H.“Isasigh“justasigh”?Sighsasemotionalsignalsandresponsestoadifficulttask.”ScandinavianJournalofPsychology1(2008):49-57.<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18190402>

17VlemincxE.,I.VanDiest,P.M.Lehrer,A.E.Aubert,andO.VandenBergh.“Respiratoryvariabilityprecedingandfollowingsighs:aresetterhypothesis.”BiologicalPsychology.84(2010):82-7.<https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19744538>

18Andersson,LynneM.andChristineM.Pearson.TheAcademyofManagementReview.24(1999):452-471

CHAPTER4:ManagingaGreatEmployeeExperience

During the holiday shopping frenzyofDecember 2014,Target suffered a databreach of epic proportions. The credit and debit card information of over 110millioncustomerswascompromised.Target’sfourthquartersalesdroppedintheperiod just after the breach, which is usually the biggest quarter for mostretailers.Theirstockpricewasalsodown.Chairman,President,andCEO,GreggSteinhafelresigned,statinginalettertotheboardthatwaslaterprovidedtotheAssociatedPresspublishedintheLosAngelesTimes:19

“ThelastseveralmonthshavetestedTargetinunprecedentedways.Fromthebeginning,IhavebeencommittedtoensuringTargetemergesfromthedatabreachabettercompany,more focused thaneverondelivering forourguests.”

PhotofromBigStock

Target suffered a hit to customer loyalty. Customers felt neglected and

disappointed after the breach, two emotions that destroyvalue. It also drainedTarget’s emotional bank account, which is another way of describing thecustomers’emotionalengagement,andtheresultingloyaltyyouenjoybasedonthecustomerexperienceyouprovide.

However, the data breach affected employees, too. It hurtmorale. Employeeswhomighthavefeltunhappybeforethebreachwerelikelymoreunhappyafterit, and those on the fencemoved to the dark side. If happy employees makehappycustomers,whatkindofcustomersdodisgruntledemployeesmake?

Leadership is essential to creating a great employee experience, from the big-headlinechangestotheday-to-dayinteractions.Steinhafel’sresignationwaspartofTarget’s“cleanslate”strategytowinbacktheconfidenceoftheircustomers.But his resignation wasn’t as impactful for customers as it was for Target’semployee engagement. Before the data breach, I would wager few, if any,customerscouldnametheCEOofTarget.Employees,ontheotherhand,wouldostensiblyknowwhowas the captainof the ship—particularly after theyhit afraudicebergthatthreatenedtosinkit.

Trustistricky.Ittakesalongtimetobuildandjustonedatabreachtodestroy.Asitpertains tocorporateculture,however,Steinhafelwaswisetostepdown.Rather than blaming others for the problem, leadership took responsibility.Responsibilityiscriticaltoeffectiveleadershipandspeakstothequalityoftheorganizationtheylead.Ittellsemployeesthat“thebuckstopshere”withseniormanagement,andtheyexpectthesamekindofresponsibilityfromtheirteam.

AreYouMakingTheseMistakeswithYourEmployeesToday?In my second book, Revolutionize Your Customer Experience (PalgraveMacmillan, 2004), I talk about how people in an organizationwill follow theleader,forgoodorill.Sometimestheleadervalueshisemployeesandwhattheycontribute, such as Julian Richer, Founder of Richer Sounds, who put hiscompanyinatrustthatturnsovertohisemployeesafterhedies.20Otherleadersneither understand nor value the customer experience, such as CEOMichael

O’Leary of Ryanair. As a result, the experience at the airline is, in a word,wretched.21

Managingyour relationshipswithyouremployees isachallenging task. I readthat the secret to relationships of any kind is to be truthful and keep yourcommitments.22Ilikethesimplicityofthis.Notonlydoesitmakeiteasysinceyou don’t have to rememberwhat you told each particular person, but it alsogives you direction on planning your time, because you have to keep yourcommitments.

Asacareermanagermyself,I’velearnedathingortwoovertheyears,includingwhatNOT to do. I’ve prepared a simple list that can help you learn frommyexperience(read:mistakes)andbeabettermanagerofpeople.

Mistake#1:Tryingtolooklikeyouhavealltheanswers.Like any quality relationship, mutual trust and loyalty is the basis of yourrelationshipwithemployees.Ifyou’realwaysstrivingtoappearlikeyoucandoitallandknowitall,thenyou’llrevealtheopposite.Insteadoftherespectyouwereseeking,youcanexpectridicule.Trustyouremployeestounderstandthatyoudon’tknoweverything.Trust that they’re reasonableenough toworkwithyouonasolutiontothechallenge.Trustingyourteamstrengthensyourworkingrelationshipandtheirrespectforyourleadership.

Mistake #21: Not always telling the truth about theirperformance.Yourdissatisfactionwithanemployee’sperformanceshouldneverbeasurprise.Instead, you should discuss your concerns at the outset with a direct report.Furthermore,shoulditcometothepointoftakingaction,theemployeeshouldneverbeblindsidedbythenews.Ifyou’rehonestwiththemfromthebeginningabouttheirperformance,theyhaveachancetofixitbeforethebehaviorgetstoofardowntheroad,aroadthatcanendinworkplacestress,angst—andinsomecases,court.

Mistake#3:Overpromisingandunder-delivering.Avoid the over-commitment pitfall. Keeping your commitments to youremployeesisessential.Reliabilityconveysthatyouvaluethem.Somemanagersovercommittoaprojectorarewardsystem,whichislaterdroppedorforgotten.Many times, this behavior occurs to impress others.However,what impressespeoplemostiswhenyoutellthemwhatyou’regoingtodo,andthenyoudoit,everytime.Youmighthaveheardthesaying,“Underpromiseandoverdeliver.”Iwouldarguethatthisbrilliantstrategyworksnotonlywithcustomers,butalsowithemployees.

Mistake#4:Forgettingtoappreciatethelittlethings.Doyoulikeitwhennoonenoticesallthethingsyoudoright,andinsteadonlypoint out all the things you didn’t? Well, neither do employees. Beingappreciatedisoneofthemostmotivatingthingsforemployees.Sure,moneyisgreat,buta simpleaccoladeor recognition fora jobwelldone isoften justaseffectiveatpositivelymotivatingyourteam.Besuretonoticemanyofthelittlethingsthatyourteamdoesrightandmentionthemoutloud,whetheryousayitatameeting,emailthemdirectly,orevenwritethemahandwrittennote.

Mistake#5:Notapologizingwhenyoushould.Let’ssayyoumadeoneoftheseerrors.Nowwhatdoyoudo?Whenyoumakeamistake,it’sbesttoadmititandapologizeimmediately.Therearesixstepstoarealapology.23

1. Actquickly.Soonerisalwaysbetterthanlater.

2. Apologize.Usetheactualwords,“I’msorry.”

3. Apologizeinperson.Itmeansmorewhenyou’rephysicallypresent.

4. Explainwhathappened.Includethefactsandavoidblame.

5. Show how you’re going to prevent the problem in the future.Mistakesarenothingifnotopportunitiesindisguise.

6. Makerestitution. If possible and appropriate, dowhat you can tomakeitright.Becarefulhere,however,becausesometimesyoucanunwittinglydotoomuchtocompensate,whichcanunderminefutureloyalty.

Theonlyother thingIwouldaddisforyoutoexpresshowyoufeelabout themistake.Acknowledging your emotions is key to communicatingwith people.Bybeinghonestabouthowyou feel about the situation,youcreateapersonalrelationship thatcontributes to theotherperson’ssenseofbeing importantand“caredfor.”TheonlytimeIwouldcautionagainstthistacticisifyoudon’tfeellikeyouaretoblame,andtheincidentleavesabittertasteinyourmouth.Thesefactorswillleadtoaninsincereapologyandnothinggood.

Thisstrategyforapologiesworksformost relationships. It’shonest,proactive,andthebestyoucandointhesituation.Mostofall,itoffersanopportunityforyour team to decidewhat to do and strengthens the relationship between you(most of the time, anyway). If you want the kind of employees that makesomeone’s day,who build relationships of trust and loyalty, andwho dowhattheysaythey’regoingtodoforthecustomer,thenyoumustshowthemthatinhowyoutreatthem.

ToxicEmployeesDestroyCompanyCultureSomepeople,nomatterhowyou treat them,arenotgoing tocontribute to thecustomerexperienceyouwanttodeliver.Theseemployeesarealwaysgoingtobeunhappy.Wecall them“toxicemployees,”andmanaging themiscrucial tobothyourcustomerandemployeeexperiences.

Toxic employees arepeoplewhopoison the culture atwork.Toxic employeescan cause the following symptoms in your organization, according toEntrepreneur.com.24

Decreaseinoverallproductivity

Lossofmorale

Moreargumentsbetweenemployees

High frustration levels accompanied by negative, antagonisticattitudes,comments,andattacks

Unwillingnesstoworkovertimeorworklate

Lackofefforttodomorethannecessaryandencouragingcoworkerstodothesame

Sometoxicemployeesareoutright toxicandvocal incommunicatingit.Thesearetheeasyones,however.Secretlytoxicemployeesarefarmoresinisterthanthe loudmouthed bad apples. Secretly toxic employees may or may not workhard, but they do create an environment of antagonism.They’re not on boardwithmanagement’s vision for the future.Theydon’t feel anyownership in itsdeployment.Theyoftendisguisetheirtoxicityas“constructivecriticism”orbycalling themselves “realists.” Isolating the problem before secretly toxicemployees spread their poison throughout the organization is imperative topromotingapositiveworkenvironment.

Inc.comdescribedfourtypesoftoxicemployees.25

1. TheChameleon. An employee who works on many projects, butdoesn’t contribute toanyof them, shirking responsibilitywheneverpossible, but quick to claim accolades for their contribution to theproject’ssuccess.

2. TheOrnament.Anemployeewhoiseasyontheeyesbutlackstheskills and experience to perform the job they’ve been assigned,relyingontheirgoodlookstogetotherstodotheirworkforthem.

3. TheBallandChain.Theseemployeesareriskaverseandwillseedany new idea with doubt, often playing the role of “devil’sadvocate,”causingothersintheorganizationtowaffleontakingonnewventures.

4. The Vampire.While these employees tend to be well-liked andwell-connected within the organization, they introduce negativity

intosituationsandthriveondrainingtheenergyfromtheroomandkillinganyrealmomentum.

Misery loves company. Toxic employees tend to bemiserable, so they ensurethey have company. Like a virus, toxic employees infect others with theircondition. Other staff that might have been happy at one time now share thetoxicemployee’sviewoftheworkplace.

ManagingToxicEmployeesMost experts agree that eliminating toxic employees is paramount to youremployeeexperience.It’seasytodowhenthetoxicemployeeisbrazenaboutit.However, it’s complicated when an employee is secretive. What’s worse,secretlytoxicemployeesmightnotknowthey’retheproblem(youcouldevenbeoneyourself!).It’salsoanissueifyourculturebreedstoxicity.Itwillcontinuetomanifest, no matter how many times you try to remove it from yourorganization. The strategy for managing toxic or secretly toxic employees isthreefold.

1. Define your desired employee culture. If you don’t know whereyou’regoing,anypathwill takeyou there. Icannotoveremphasizethe importance of having established the culture for yourorganization.Ifyouhaven’tdefinedthepathforyouremployeestotakeatwork,theycouldwellenduponatrackoftoxicity.

2. Recruit andhire employeeswho are best for the position.As IsaidbeforeinChapter2,employeeshavenaturalskills;besurethatthey’re suited for the position you’re filling. For customer-facingemployees, it’s important to hire thosewith a high EQ (emotionalintelligence)sotheycanusethoseskillstoguidethesituationstotheoutcome you want. Be sure that employees who don’t want to becustomer-facing aren’t. Remember how at BT we discovered thatover50%ofourpeopleincustomer-facingpositionsdidn’thavetheskillsordesiretobe?Howmanyofthepeopleinyourorganization

areinthesamesituation?

3. Keep your Employee Ambassadors happy. Ambassadorscounteracttoxicemployees,encouragingmorepeopletoembracethecompanyvisionanddomoreforthecustomertodeliveronthebrandpromise.Iftherearetoxicemployeesinyourculture,hopefullyyoucan balance themwith Employee Ambassadors. Once you find anambassador,keepthemhappy.

Toxic employees,whether they’re secretly soornot, arebound tobringdownyour company culture and poison the customer experience.Ensure you definethe culture you want, recruit the right talent to promote it, and reward theambassadors of your vision. Employing this threefold strategy will create theculturethatyouwantandnottheonethattoxicemployeeswouldgiveyou.

GettingPeopletoDoWhatYouWantMymumalways toldme,“Youcancatchmore flieswithhoney thanyoucanvinegar.”Inotherwords,peoplerespondbettertorewardsthanpunishments.Ifyouwantanemployeeoracustomertochangebehavior,researchsaysthebestthingtodoisgivethempositivereinforcementwhentheydowhatyouwant.

Severalstudiesconcludethatpositivereinforcementisthebestwaytoencouragebetterbehavior.Let’slookatacoupleofthem.

Study#1:Punitiveconsequencesencouragedeception.Astudyby theMcGill researchers indicates thatkids lie to theirparentswhenthey face punishment.26When encouraged to tell the truth about misbehaviorwithout punishment, however, kids tell the truth. Victoria Talwar, a childpsychologyprofessor, studied four- to eight-year-olds,whereparticipantsweretoldnottopeekataconcealedtoywhentheadultlefttheroom.Ifthekidsweretold therewould be a punishment, kidswho peekedwould lie about it.Whentold telling the truth about whether they peeked would help the situation thechildren then confessed to peeking. Talwar’s conclusion was that kids lie to

appeaseadults.

While you aren’t theirmom or dad (and they’re not four- to eight-year-olds),yourteammightwanttoappeaseyouanyway.Ifyouthreatenyourpeoplewithpunitive actionwhen theydo somethingyoudon’twant, you could encouragethemtolietoyou.Unfortunately,youhavetwoproblemshere.First,theyarenotdoingwhatyouwant.Second, they’re lying toyou,destroyingtherelationshipoftrustyouneed.

Study#2:Rewardsworkbetterthanfines.Human behavior is driven by many factors, including emotional rewards andpositive feelings. Negative feedback has its place, of course, but the bestmotivatorsarepositive.Findwaystogivepeoplepositivefeedback,andyou’llbesurprisedhoweffectiveyoubecome.

Daniel Pink, host of Crowd Control and author of several books on humanbehavior, examined how to discourageminor law breaking.He definedminorlawbreakingasspeeding,jaywalking,andparkinginhandicapspaces.Eachofthese offenses traditionally is enforced with a fine. Pink discovered offeringincentivestocomplywiththelawswasfarmoreeffectivethanthethreatoffinesatgettingthesewaywardsoulstochangetheirlawbreakingways.27

GettingTopPerformancewithPerformanceReviewsPositivereinforcementcantakemanyforms.Itcanbeacommentinpassingorat a meeting. It can be an email that you copy to their personnel file. Old-fashioned typesmight fancy a handwritten note.However, not everyone takesthe time to do these activities on a regular basis (though they should). Butperhaps the most common opportunity for positive reinforcement is theperformancereview,whicheveryonedoesonaregularbasis.

Annual performance reviews are likely to get a resigned sigh out of mostmanagers. After a less-than-insightful review, most employees might sigh as

well (and we all remember what those sighs mean). If there wasn’t a raiseattachedtoit,chancesaremostcompanieswouldskipannualreviewsaltogether.Thetraditionalsystemusedforannualreviewstendstoresemblebusywork,togeneratelesspositivemotivation,and,inmorethanoneway,toseemoutdated.Youremployeesneedtobeinthepropermindsettobereceptivetoyourdesiredbrandpromise and customer experienceoutcome.Doyou thinkgiving themareviewwithoutanyrealvaluewillgetyouthere?Googledoesn’teither.

Google came up with an ingenious way to handle employees’ reviews. Theyseparatetheperformancediscussionandthepaydiscussionbyonemonth.Inhisbook, Work Rules!, Laszlo Bock, Google’s Senior Vice President of PeopleOperations, explained that Google hopes employees want to improve for thesake of contributing more to the company, not just to make more money.ScientificresearchsupportsGoogle’sseparationofreviewandraise.Bockreferstoastudyfrom197128thatfound:

“The first two experiments suggest that when money is used as anexternalrewardforsomeactivity,thesubjectsloseintrinsicmotivationfortheactivity.On theotherhand, the thirdexperiment suggests thatwhenverbal reinforcement and positive feedback are used as the externalrewards,thesubjects’intrinsicmotivationseemstoincreaserelativetothenon-rewardedsubjects’.”

GoogleusesOKRs,whichstandsforObjectivesandKeyResults.29TomakethisOKRsystemwork,employeesfirstsetagoalforthemselves,andthenaseriesofquantifiable results that show they achieved the objective. Co-Founder LarryPagedoesthesameforthewholecompany.ThisapproachtoannualreviewsisanotherexampleofhowGoogleempowerstheiremployees.

Thesamegoalsdonotmotivateeveryemployee.Moneydoesn’talwaysevokethe same determination and drive to improve from individuals. Many times,people are inspired more by accolades and appreciation than by money—althoughmoneyisnecessary.Kindwordsdon’tpaythebills.

Separating themoney from the review is an essential first step, followedby acleargoalandmeasurementsystemforsuccess.Theseareevenmoreeffective

when theemployee isempowered tohavea say in them.Using thisapproach,youhaveamuchbetterchanceofmakingtheannualreviewavalueinsteadofjustanannualwasteoftime.

KeepingEmployeesEngagedWhenThingsGoWrongAllofthisadviceisperfectforwhenbusinessisgood.Buthowdoyouleadintimes of turmoil? The Steinhafel case that starts this chapter is an excellentexample.However, all too often, leaders run and hidewhen things gowrong.Herearetenthingsleadersshoulddoinstead:

1. Beseenandseenoften.Teamsneedtoseeleadershipasaconstanteven when everything else is changing. A constant leadershippresencehelps employeesdigest the chaos.Without it, nounifyingelementexiststoeasepeoplethroughthetransition.

2. Embracehonesty.It’sbesttoacknowledgetheissuesandmistakesthat led to the situation. When you’re honest—especially whenhonestyisdifficult—youbuildafoundationoftrustwithyourteam.If they trust that you’re directwith them about the severity of thestorm,they’remorelikelytoweatheritwithyou.

3. Setouttheplan.Strategizeandcommunicateyourplantotheteamwithestablishedframeworksandguidingprinciplesthatforgeapathto success. Also, have an ear open for suggestion. I always say,“Noneofusisascleverasallofus.”

4. Roll up your sleeves. Leaders need to work hard and be seenworkingashard,ifnotharderthaneveryoneelse.

5. Situate yourself on the front lines. The image of the leadershipfromafarremindsmeofthelinefromaPinkFloydsong,“Forwardtheycriedfromtherearandthefrontranksdied.”WhilstIlovethelyric,Idisapproveoftheleadershipstyle.

6. Communicateregularly. If youhave anydoubts about howmuchcommunicationistoomuch,erronthesideofover-communicating.

7. Encourage,don’tdiscourage.Rememberwhatmymumsaid(andyoursprobablydidtoo,inherownway):Youcatchmoreflieswithhoneythanvinegar.

8. Putyourfeelingstooneside.Atrueleaderputshispeoplefirstandhimorherselfsecond.

9. Stick to your principles. Principles are easy to keep until they’retested.Youmusthavethecourageofyourconvictions.

10. Findyourpatience.Hastemakeswaste,andintimeslikethese,youcan’taffordwaste.

Leaders keep it together when everything is falling apart. Show your teamyou’retheleadertheyneedwhentheyneedyou,andthey’llrewardyouwithanorganizationthatwillfollowyoutogreatness.

ThebestmanagerIeverhadwasNeilHobbs,andhetaughtmemanythingsandI would have followed him anywhere. I still admire the way he leads teams.WhenIhadmyfirstmeetingwithNeil,Iwasnervous.Neilhadareputationforbeingatoughboss.Neilsethighstandardsandexpectedpeopletoachievethem.He didn’t “suffer fools gladly.” He asked me what I thought about theorganization.ItoldhimwhatIthought,bothgoodandbad.Ithittherightchord.Neil offered me the role of running marketing then and there. To say I feltsurprisedwouldbeanunderstatement.

After working for him for a while, I realized Neil spotted hidden talents inpeople,talentstheydidn’tseethemselves.Iwasnoexception;hesawsomethinginmeIdidn’tseemyself.Neilremovedmefrommycomfortzone.Heexpectedmetodeliver.Heneveracceptedanythinglessthanmybesteffort.Hegavemetheconfidencetoexpressmyselfandencouragedmetotakerisks.ItturnedouttobethebreakandtheenvironmentIneededtofindmystrideasaleader.

Neil was demanding, but in the right way. His style of management wasinclusive,butyouknewwhothebosswas.Hehadaprocessthatincludeddebate

andthendecision.Hisphrase(whichIoftenusetoday)was,“Onceweagree,wedo.”Totheoutsideworld,hewasatoughbusinessman,buttohisteam,hewasprotective,understanding,andloyal.Hewouldputhisneckonthelineforyou.

Ononeoccasion,Itookariskandthingswentwrong.Hedidn’tchastiseme,butinstead applauded me for trying. Then, he protected me, putting himself inharm’swaypoliticallyashedidso.Asaresult, IwouldhavewalkedoverhotcoalsforNeil.Hetookgreatpleasureinseeingthepeoplehementoredmoveontobiggerandbetter things.Hemovedmefrommarketingtocustomerservice,whichwasquiteasurpriseformanypeople.Thisposition, incidentally,setmeonthepathtocustomerexperience.

Hewouldsaythattogetthemostfrompeople,theyneedtofeelmotivated;theyneedtobuyintowhatyouaredoing;theyneedtofeelinspiredtoworkhardandgoaboveandbeyondthecallofduty.Youneedtooperateademocraticstyleofleadership. I employ this strategy. I involve people in decisions. We debatethingsandargueourpoints.Wheneveryonehashadtheopportunitytoputtheircaseforward,debateditandagreeduponanapproach, thenweimplement.Noexcuses.Nomoredebate.Justaction.

However,Neilalsousedtotellmethathumannatureissuchthatthisapproachdoesn’talwayswork.Sometimestheteamcan’tagree,orthedebategoesonfortoolong.Whenthishappens,youneedtotellpeoplewhattodo.Irarelyresorttothis tactic, but the teamknows that I reserve the right to do so.When peopleknowyoutypicallyworkinademocraticway,theytendtorespectitwhenyoutakeadifferenttack.Toomanybusinessesleadwithdictatorships.Theythinkbyshouting and scaring people you get the most from them. You don’t. Theamusingthingis,manyofthesedictatorsareinsecureandimmature.Democraticleadershiprequiresconfidenceandmaturity.

A significant part of the success I have achieved is down toNeil, forwhich Ithankhim.IhearhiminthebackofmyheadwhenI’mmanagingmyteamorpresentingtoanaudienceorlisteningtoaclient.IaskmyselfwhatNeilwoulddowhenfacedwithatoughdecision.IhearhimquestionmyreasoningwhenIargueapointwithmyself.Hiswisdom,fierceloyalty,anddemandingdemeanorshaped me into the leader I am today. I can only hope to live up to his

estimationsofmyabilityandbetheleaderhealwaysbelievedIcouldbe.

Employeeexperienceisahugepartofthesuccessofyourcompany’sculture.Asignificantpartofthatculturecomesfromyourorganization’sleadership.Whenyou create a work environment that makes them feel cared for and pleased,you’ll lead themtohappiness.Havinghappyemployees leads tohavinghappycustomers, andwe all knowwhere happy customers lead (Hint: it has lots ofthese:$$$$).

However, no matter how great a leader is and how much they give positivereinforcement and excellent feedback, no matter how well they do underpressure,theycanonlytakeitsofar.Whenitcomestoemployeeexperience,ittakestwototango.Iftheleaderisleading,thentheemployeemustfollow.Inthenextchapter,I’llexploretheemployee’spartintheemployeeexperiencedance.

19“TargetCEOSteinhafelresignsinwakeofdatabreach.”www.latimes.com.5May2014.Web.30December2015.<http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-mo-target-ceo-resigns-20140505-story.html#axzz30r5SZrqQ>

20Roland,Denise.“RicherSoundsfounderbequeathsbusinesstostaff.”www.telegraph.co.uk.19November2013.Web.30December2015.<http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/10460918/Richer-Sounds-founder-bequeaths-business-to-staff.html>

21“MichaelO’Leary’smostmemorablequotes.”www.telegraph.co.uk.Web.30December2015.<http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/travelnews/9522319/Michael-OLearys-most-memorable-quotes.html>

22Gagnon,PhD,LMHC,ChantalM.“TheSecrettoGreatRelationshipsofAnyKind.”psychcentral.com.26June2014.Web.30December2015.<http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2014/06/26/the-secret-to-great-relationships-of-any-kind/>

23O’Malley,Kerry.“TheRightWaytoAdmitYouMadeaMistakeinBusiness.”www.marketectsinc.com.1August2011.Web.5January2016.<http://www.marketectsinc.com/the-right-way-to-admit-you-made-a-mistake-in-business/>

24Javitch,DavidG.,Ph.D.“RecognizingToxicEmployees.”www.entrepreneur.com.3April2006.Web.10September2014.<http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/159444>

25James,Geoffrey.“4EmployeesWhoAreSecretlyToxic.”www.inc.com.8August2014.Web.21August2014.<<http://www.inc.com/geoffrey-james/3-employees-who-secretly-kill-productivity.html>

26Shoemaker,Natalie.“KidsLieMoreWhenThreatenedwithPunishmentforBadBehavior.”Bigthink.com.9December2014.Web.11December2014.<http://bigthink.com/ideafeed/study-the-threat-of-punishment-makes-kids-lie-more>

27Shoemaker,Natalie.“Rewards(NotFines)MayHelpReduceSpeeding.”Bigthink.com.Web.24November2014.Web.11December2014.<http://bigthink.com/ideafeed/rewards-not-fines-may-help-reduce-speeding>

28Deci,EdwardL.“EffectsofExternallyMediatedRewardsonIntrinsicMotivation.”JournalofPersonalityandSocialPsychology18(1971):114.

29Lebowitz,Shana.“Here’showperformancereviewsworkatGoogle.”www.businessinsider.com.15June2015.Web.15June2015.<http://www.businessinsider.com/how-google-performance-reviews-work-2015-6>

CHAPTER5EmployeeEngagementIsNotOnlytheEmployer’s

Responsibility

Whenitcomestoemployeeengagement,successisatwo-waystreet.Thusfar,I’ve focusedon thecompany’s role in this relationship.However, it’snotonlytheemployer’s job tomatch idealcandidates to suitablepositions, it’salso thecandidate’sjobtomatchthemselvestoapositiontheyknowtheywilllike.

First,youshouldfamiliarizeyourselfwiththecompanyculture.Forexample,ifyouaremoreofan“early-in,early-out”typewholikestoeatlunchatyourdesk,are you going to do well at a company that regularly schedules five p.m.meetings?Ifyoulikeyourspace,areyougoingtoadapttoanopen-officeformatwhereyoushareaworkspacewithfourotherpeoplewhoworkonyour team?From the employee’s perspective, learning about the company culture is animportantpartoftheinterviewprocess.

You should also understand the brand promise of your potential employer.Ensureyouknowtheiruniquesellingproposition,orwhatthecompanyprovidesits customers. Most of all, you should feel these both provide value to thecustomer. If youdon’t believe inwhat the company is sellingnow,you likelynever will. Also, research what customers say about the organization todeterminewhetheryouwouldbeproudto tellpeoplewhereyouwork. Iknewsome employees of a utility company in Englandwho never said where theyworkedbecauseofthefloodofcomplaintstheywouldheariftheydid.

It’sagoodideatoknowinadvancethemetricforsuccessandtherewardsforit.Isitsales?Customersatisfaction?Margins?Ionceworkedforacompanywheresales were the primary measure of success. It created a culture where anemployeewouldsellhisorhergrandmother for50cents. Ididn’t last long,asmyethicswouldn’tallowmetodothat(granwasworthatleastafiver).Makingsurewhatyouremployervaluesissomethingyoucanandwanttodo.Also,findout how they award achievement. Is it a monthly or quarterly bonus, stockoptions, an all-expense paid trip, or a hearty handshake and your name on aplaque?Whateveritis,makesureit’ssomethingyouwantandwillbehappytoearn.

What is the company’s development plan for employees? Ask about yourpotential for advancement. Ask about success stories of past employees in apositionsimilartotheoneyou’reinterviewingfor.Also,askthetopreasonwhypeopleleave,aswellastheturnoverrateofyourpotentialrole.Thisinformationcan tell youmuch about the company’s overall culture.However, turnabout isfair play.When I interview people, I ask themwhat job theywant next. Theanswer shows whether the candidate has thought about their career path, orwhethertheyhaveaplanatall.

Discovering the essentials about your potential new employer starts with acomprehensive investigation into their online presence (it’s a safe bet they’redoing the same thingwith you).Asking questions in the interviewwill revealmanyofthethingsyouwanttoknow.Inadditiontotheinterviewer,trytalkingtoacurrentemployee.However,arrange it througha friendoracquaintance ifpossible,togetthemostcandidanswers.

Spendingtimeintheofficedoingajobshadoworride-alongwithanemployeeis criticalbeforeyouwork there. Itwill notonlygiveyouagood feel for theplace,butitwillalsogodownwellwithyourpotentialemployerthatyouwanttoinvestthistime.Itdifferentiatesyoufromothercandidates.Moreover,itcouldhelpyouunderstandtheofficepolitics,fromtheoveralldynamicsoftheroomtothe existing internal networks. What you discover in these early stages canbenefit your decision whether to accept the job and how you can succeed ifemployed.

StartingYourEmployeeExperienceoffRightFirstimpressionsarevital.Theactionsduringthefirst90daysofanybody’snewjobareessential to forminga lastingrelationshipwithyournewemployerandcoworkers. There are a few things you should know to start your employeeexperienceoffright—twenty,infact.They’retheDOsandDON’Tsforthefirst90daysatyournewjob,whichIlearnedasbothanemployeeandanemployer.

TheFirst90DaysDOs

1. Understand “how things get done around here.”What are theunwrittenrules?Whatarethetaboosubjects?Howdopeoplegetoninthecompany?Itshowsyouthecultureoftheorganization.

2. Understand what your boss expects of you. Expectations areimportant to meet (and exceed) when this person decides whetheryoustayorgo.

3. Familiarizeyourselfwithhowyourbossworks.Doesshelikeyouto set an appointment, or to drop by the office? Does hecommunicatethroughpaperwork,orbyemail?Doesyourbosswantyou to check in at the beginning of the day, or just get straight towork? Determining and adopting these details will solidify yourrelationship.

4. Strivetobeopentonewideas.Youbringafreshperspectivetothesituation.Keepitpositivetoenergizetheteam.

5. Deliver on your promises.Talk is cheap; they’re paying you foraction.Yournewemployerassesseseverythingaboutyou,includingyourreliability.Ifyoupromisetodosomething,doit.Don’tblowit.Itsoundssimple,butyoumightbesurprisedhowmanypeoplefailtodoso.

6. Clarify questions you have. You know what happens when youASSume (if not,Google it).Make sure you ask any questions youhavebeforeyouendupinthattransformationalsituation.

7. Learntheofficepolitics,butresistinvolvement.Yourstatusasthenewhireaffordsyoutheopportunity to learntheinnerworkingsofthe organization without having to choose a side. Exploit thisopportunityforaslongasyoucan.

8. Becomeateamplayer.Assimilatingintotheteamiscriticaltoyoursuccess.Showyouarewillingtopullyourweight.Dothingstohelp

yourcolleagues.Don’ttrytoscorepointsoffthem.

9. Beappropriateandprofessionalatwork.Savethewisecracksforyourblog.

10. Request feedbackearlyandoften.Ateachmonth’send,askhowyou’re doing and what you can improve. Take the opportunity tocorrectanyissuesbeforetheycreateproblemsdowntheroad.

TheFirst90DaysDON’Ts

1. Don’tbethe“lastin,firstout”memberoftheteam.Youshouldneverbethispersonwhetherit’syourfirst90daysornot.

2. Don’tmissyourfirstdeadline.Oranydeadline.Youmightnotgetasecondchancetoshowyoucandeliverthegoods.

3. Don’t complain.Mymum taught me if you don’t have anythingnicetosay,don’tsayanythingatall.She’sright,particularlyinthefirst90days.

4. Don’tisolateyourinfluencetothenegativemembersoftheteam.Be pleasant and non-committal, and find other work friends asquicklyaspossible.

5. Don’t indiscriminately default to “Yes!” There’s a differencebetweenbeingpositive andbeinga sycophant.Find that balance. Ivalue people who challengeme in a positive way, not just saying“Yes!”Ifiredapersonthatalwayssaidyesbutthendidn’tdeliver.Itriedtocoachhertosaynoinapositiveway,butshecouldn’tmaketheadjustment.

6. Don’tindiscriminatelydefaultto“No!”Inimprovisationalacting,no is abadword.Onemust always sayyes toyourpartner, or thescenecan’tprogress.Thesameappliestowork.Suggestanalternatecourseofactionwithoutjustsayingno.

7. Don’tfail toshareagoodidea.Goodideasarealwaysafantasticwaytoestablishyourpresence.

8. Don’tshyawayfromchallengingyourbossinapositiveway.The“in a positive way” is critical. As a boss myself, I tell my teamthey’repaidtogivetheiropinion.

9. Don’t rely on thephrase, “Inmy last jobweused todo it thisway...”Nodoubtyouhavesomegoodstufffromyouroldjob.Bringitwithyou,butembrace thisnewopportunity.Noonewants tobe

comparedtoyourex,includingyourcurrentemployer.

10. Don’t ask yourmanager how long your lunch break is. If thisdetailisimportant,itwillcomeupnaturally.

ImproveBEQtoIncreaseYourCareerOptionsIn today’s dynamic economy, having particular skills makes you moremarketable in any industry,whether it’s dayone, day37, or day3,865.Everyemployee needs a high EQ. It might be that in the changing nature ofcompetitiveadvantage,EQwilltrumpIQforjobsecurity.

But issomeonebornwithacertainEQand that’s it,orcan they improve theirEQ?ItturnsoutthatusingBehavioralEmotionalIntelligence(BEQ),amethodfordevelopingskillsthatuseEQtomanagerelationships,youcanincreaseyourEQ.

InBuildingGreatCustomerExperiences(PalgraveMacMillan,2004),IdiscussthefiveareasofEQ:Self-Awareness,Self-Regulation,Empathy,Motivation,andSocial Skills.Let’s take a look at each of them, and howBEQ developscompetenciesineach.

Area #1: Self-Awareness. This area represents knowing one’s emotionaltriggers and recognizing your emotional state at any givenmoment, which iscrucialtomaster.

How to improve it: The next time you’re feeling a strong emotion,particularlyfrustrationoranger(twoemotionsthatdon’tleadtoanythinggoodintheworldofcustomerandemployeeexperienceoneithersideofthetable),trytostepoutsideofyourselfandrecognizewhattriggeredit.If you’re getting angry in a traffic jam, do you feel out of control? Ifyou’re about to lose it when you’re trying to fix a problem with thewebsite, are you anxious aboutmaking amistake? Identify the emotionyoufeelandhowyougot there tocultivateamuchbettersenseofself-awareness.

Area #2: Self-Regulation. A foundational principle of EQ, self-regulation

manages your emotions before they do any damage. In otherwords, it’s self-control,askillwebegintolearnfromtheageoftwo.

Howto improve it:Thereareacoupleofexercisesyoucanemploy toimprove your self-regulation. The first is visualization. Picture thesituation that raises your emotional state to a breaking point and thenimaginehowyouwant tohandle it properly.Having this image inyourheadwillmakeiteasiertorecreateinthemoment.Thesecondishavingago-to technique that distracts you.Maybe you like to name the first 16U.S. presidents (or, for Brits, reciting the first few lines of theMagnaCarta). Whatever you choose, the activity should be engrossing so itdistractsyoufromtheemotionalsituation.

Area#3:Empathy.TheremaynotbeabetterEQskillthanempathy.Empathyis recognizing emotions in others and using that recognition to do what youknowtobetherightthing.

How to improve it: Listening is a critical skill here. You can’t beempathetictoapersonwithoutlisteningtothem,andittakespractice.Tryhavingaconversationwithacoworkerorfriendwhereyoudon’tleadthediscussion. Practice asking open-ended questions and being silentafterward.Thesilenceisnecessary,asitindicatestheotherpersonshouldspeak.Resisttheurgetofillinthelulls,andyoumightbesurprisedwhatyoudiscoverduring theconversationwhen theotherpartydoesmostofthetalking.

Area #4:Motivation.While the three previous parts of EQ have an inwardfocus, motivation has an outward focus. This area could also be calledEnthusiasm,whichiscontagious.Peoplewhofeelenthusiasticaboutwhattheydocreatepositiveexperiencesforthosearoundthem.

Howtoimproveit:Repetitivejobtaskscansetyouonautopilot,whichisneither engaging nor enthusiastic. Consider the safety instructions on aflight.Someairlinesdroneonwith thesameoldmemorizedspeech,butotherspresenttheminfunanddifferentways.Ifyoupresentoften,recordyourspielonyourphoneandwatchyourself.Areyouengaging?Ifyou

aren’t, remember thatpeoplecantellwhenyou’resimplygoingthroughthe motions. Challenge yourself to change or approach the repetitivesituationfromanewangle.

Area#5:SocialSkills.Anotheroutward-facingEQarea,socialskillsdescribeshow you use empathy to identify and then manage others’ emotions to theoutcomeyouwant.

Howtoimproveit:Considerthesituationbeforeyouengage.Planaheadbylookingforpotentialpitfallsandhavinggo-tophrasesandactivitiestoease the tensionor awkwardness that could occur. If you regularly dealwith problems, separate thewhat,which is the problem, from the how,whichishowyouhandleit.

Few people excel in all five areas. Each is a core attribute for your career intoday’sglobaleconomy,fromatop-levelmanagementpositiontoanentry-leveljob to anyone who’s customer-facing. Every employee should work on thesenecessary skills for the job you have now—and the job you’ll have next.Employeeengagementrequirescompaniestofindandrecruittherighttalent,butitalsorequiresacandidatetodohisorherhomeworktoensurethattheycangetonboardwithwhatthecompanyisselling.Failtodothis,andyou’lllikelybelooking up this chapter in a fewmonthswhen you start your new job search.Again.

In the next chapter, we’ll look at some great examples from CEOs whounderstandtheimportanceofleadershipinemployeeexperience.Thelengthstowhich some have gone to ensure better employee engagement might surpriseyou.Butwhat’sevenmoresurprisingishowwellitworks.

CHAPTER6:CEOsWhoGetThatEmployeeEngagementIsTheirJob

Photoby:Ilixe48

Whenthestockmarkettanks,mostCEOsfocustheirworriesonfallingrevenueandshrinkingofthosehugeCEObonusesthemediaisalwaysreporting.MostCEOswouldsuggestpeopleworkhardertoweatherthestorm.

NotStarbucksCEOHowardSchultz. Instead,Schultz sentabrilliantmemo tohis190,000retailemployeesduringa2015stockmarketdip.Headdressedtheemotionsbothhisemployeesandcustomersfeltinthefallingmarket.30Hesaid,“AlthoughwearenotimmunefromtheglobalstockmarketselloffthathasnowmadeitswaytoWallStreet,myconfidenceinourcompanyandinallofyouhasneverbeengreater.”

Abouthowhewantedhispartners(retailemployees)totreatcustomers,hesaid:

“Today’s financial market volatility, combined with great political

uncertaintybothathomeandabroad,willundoubtedlyhaveaneffectonconsumer confidence and perhaps even our customers’ attitudes andbehavior. Our customers are likely to experience an increased level ofanxietyandconcern.Please recognize thisand–as youalwayshave–rememberthatoursuccessisnotanentitlement,butsomethingweneedtoearn,everyday.Let’sbeverysensitivetothepressuresourcustomersmaybe feeling, and do everything we can to individually and collectivelyexceedtheirexpectations.”31

Ilovethelinethatsays,“Rememberthatoursuccessisnotanentitlement,butsomething we need to earn, every day.” No truer words have been spoken,particularlywhenyou’readdressingcustomerexperience.

Schultzunderstandsthatemployeesandcustomersfeelemotionscausedbytheworld around them, and these emotions affect their behavior. He values hiscustomers enough to care how they feel coming into his experience and takesstepstohelphisemployeeshavetheappropriatetoolstoreact.

Schultzalsoleadshiscustomer-centricculturebyexample.Howemployeesfeelabout their job shows in the customer experiences they provide. Therefore,Schultzworkstoensureemployeesfeelvaluedandcaredfor,sothey’llcontinuetodelivertheexperiencethatmakesacustomerfeelcaredforandvalued.Whenitcomestoemployeeengagement,there’snoquestionthatSchultzgetsit.

VirginShowsLinksBetweenEmployeeExperienceandCustomerExperienceRichardBranson,FounderoftheVirginGroup,isanotherCEOthatgetsit.Heledthechargeforbetterparentalleavebenefitsforhisemployees.ThepolicyatVirgin allows new parents one year of fully paid leave following the birth oradoption of a child. The company’s parental leave policy is for parents in thefirst year following the birth of biological children or after adopting children.Theone-year timeframeapplies toone family,meaning that ifboth fatherandmotherworkatVirgin, theytaketurnsonleaveoverthatyearwiththeirchild.The fullbenefit,meaning100%pay, isavailable toemployeeswhohavebeen

withVirgin forat least fouryears.Virgin isoneofonlya fewcompanies thatofferthiskindofbenefitforemployees.

ManyofyoureadingthismightbeshakingyourheadwonderinghowonearthVirgin will turn a profit with employee benefit packages like this one. Theexpenses associated with this new policy are high. However, Branson isn’tconcernedaboutthecost.AccordingtoBranson’sstatementaboutthepolicy,“Ifyoutakecareofyouremployees,theywilltakecareofyourbusiness.”32

The policy reflects two critical elements for the link between employeeexperienceandcustomerexperience.First,itshowsVirginvaluesemployeesandwantsthemtofeelliketheiremployercaresabouttheirpersonallivesandneeds.ValuingemployeesisthefoundationforEmployeeAmbassadorship,whichyouwillrecalldescribesthemostdedicatedemployeesatanorganization,andwhoseexistenceiscrucialforcreatingthecustomerandemployeeexperienceyouwantforyourbrand.

Second, itshowsthatVirginunderstandsanemployee’semotionalstatecarriesoverintotheemotionalstateheorshecreatesforcustomers.

Emotionsplayalargepartinhowday-to-dayinteractionstranspire,andevokingthe rightones is essential tohavingagoodexperience,whether lookingat theemployee’s experience or the customer’s. When an employee is friendly andsmiling, it’s contagious. It spreads, like a happy virus that infects customers.However, it takes energy on behalf of the employee to sustain the pleasantdemeanortheydisplaytocustomers.Employerswhorecognizethisandbuilditinto their employee experience as part of their plans for a better customerexperiencearefarmorelikelytoachievetheresultstheywant.

UnderstandingtheHighCostofEmotionalLaborAetna made headlines when they gave their lowest-paid workers a raise to$16/hr.33Whoaretheselowest-paidworkers?They’rethecallcenteremployees,or, in other words, some of the most (if not the most) customer-facingemployees.

Aetna’s CEO, Mark Bertolini, believes the investment in his employees willimprove their state of mind at work, and because of that, improve theirproductivitylevels.Hemadeamove“tomakesurethattheywerebringingtheirbest selves towork every day.”While he can’t say for sure if itwill increaseprofits,hefeltitwastherightthingtodo.Bertolinibelievesit’simportanttodothistohelprestorethemiddleclassbypayingemployeesafairwage.Infact,hesendspacketstootherCEOsencouragingthemtodothesamethingwiththeircompensationplans.

So,howdoesraisingwagesforemployeescreateagoodcustomerexperience?Inaservice-basedjoblikeinacallcenter,employeesmanagetheiremotionstoproject a particular image on behalf of the company, a concept known asemotional labor. In many ways, the company culture and emotional laborexpectations dictate how theywant their employees “to feel”while they’re atwork.Thesecallcenteremployeesaren’tfacinghappycustomers,either.Oneoftheemployeesdescribedhowmanyofthecallerstheytalktoareangry,andthecalls canbe challenging.The call center team’s job is to help calmcustomersdown,andthenhelpcustomersunderstandtheirinsurancepolicy.

However,thechallengesoftheirjobweren’ttheonlythingthatcausedstressforemployees. The executive team at Aetna discovered that many of their callcenter employeeswere in public assistance programs, includingMedicaid andfood stamps. If you have stress at home, it translates into being distracted atwork. When distracted, employees might struggle to manage their emotions,makingitasignificantchallengetosustaintheemotionalmanagementrequiredforthejob.Ifalow-wageearneronpublicassistancehasmedicalbillsorcan’tfeedtheirfamily,it’ssafetosaytheemployeecansufferdistractionsatwork.

Also, it takes energy to sustain the happy demeanor employees present tocustomers. If employees don’t have the resources tomaintain that attitude, ortime to recover, they could suffer from emotional exhaustion. Investing inemployeeshelpspreventemotionalburnout.

ADestructiveCultureExposed—orNot?

JeffBezosandAmazonwereinsomehotwaterwhenTheNewYorkTimes ranan article describing a poor work culture.34 After reading the article, manypeoplewondered ifAmazonwas thecompany they thought itwas.Thearticletellsastoryofanemployeeculturewhereworkersareneverofftheclock.Italsodescribesmanagerspenalizingpeopleforhavingfamilyormedicalemergenciesand encouraging employees to tattletale on their coworkers. One employeeinterviewedsaidthatitwasroutinetoseepeoplecryingattheirdesk.

Arebuttalbyan“Amazonian”deniesthevalidityofthearticle’sclaims.35NickCiubotariu, the Head of Infrastructure Development for Amazon.com Search,said the article was complete rubbish.36 These examples of what employeesexperiencedatAmazonwerenotthenorm,butthelingeringeffectsofAmazon’sunfortunate history.He quotes a high-level executive in his article that admitsthey used to “burn a lot of people into the ground,” but they’d changed.However,there’splentyoftruthtogoaroundonbothsides,andtheproofwillbein the Amazon pudding, as it were. If Amazon’s workplace culture were asdespoticasdepicted,thentheresultingcustomerexperiencewouldbe,too.

I raisedaneyebrowduring this litanyofallegations.Could itbe thecultureatAmazonwasasunhealthyasdescribed?It’spossible,butimprobable.

JeffBezos,FounderandCEOofAmazon,alsodeniestheworkculturedepictedin the article.37 In his letter to employees two days after the article waspublished,hesaid:

“Itclaimsthatourintentionalapproachistocreateasoulless,dystopianworkplace where no fun is had, and no laughter heard. Again, I don’trecognize this Amazon and I very much hope you don’t, either. Morebroadly, I don’t think any company adopting the approach portrayedcouldsurvive,muchlessthrive,intoday’shighlycompetitivetechhiringmarket.Thepeoplewehireherearethebestofthebest.Youarerecruitedeverydaybyotherworld-class companies, andyoucanworkanywhereyouwant.”38

WhileitsaystherightthingsaboutwhatBezoshopesisthecase,thequestioninmanypeople’smindsmightalsobe,“IsBezoseasytoworkfor?”Idon’tknow

personally, but I’ve read he’s not. Great entrepreneurs tend to be demanding.Bezos,ElonMusk,andthelateSteveJobsallsharetraitsthatmakethemtoughemployers or coworkers. Did those characteristics trickle down to othermanagersandtranslateintosomeofthestoriessharedinTheNewYorkTimes?Possibly.ArethereafewpeoplewhoarepoormanagersatAmazon?Whenyouhave18,000employees,that’sastatisticalcertainty.

Amazoncontinuestostriveforexcellenceintheexperiencetheydelivertotheircustomers.They’realwayslookingforwaystobothsurpriseanddelight them,twoemotionsthatareknowntodrivevalueforanybusiness.ButAmazonisn’ta“thing” doing this; it’s only a brand name. It’s the name of the company thatemploys a group of people who make these things happen on behalf of thecustomer.Theemployeeexperienceandcustomerexperiencearelinked.Whenyouprovideaworkenvironmentthatfulfillsemployeesandempowersthemtodo their jobs, they get excited and inspired to do great things. They becomeengagedwiththecompanymissionandbrandpromise,andtheydeliveronit.

I’vealsoseenwhathappenswhenmanagementdoesn’thaveagreatworkplace.When the culture is bleak, the customer experience is, too.Don’t believeme?AskanyonewhoworksatRyanairormaybeoneoftheemployeesatWalmart.

Customerandemployeeexperienceshappeninthemoment,andthesemomentshappen every day, every hour of operation, in every channel. In all of thesemoments, an employee canmake or break a customer experiencewhich, as Imentioned at the beginning of the book, is why employee engagement isparamount to its success. It isalsowhy it’sso important tohave thebuy-inofyourseniormanagementandleadershipteamsforyourcustomerandemployeeexperience agenda. This essential engagement and training takes time andmoney, two things on which most leaders have a lot of opinions—especiallyabouthoweachwillbespent.Withoutthiscommitment,youcouldendupwithagrandplanthateveryoneignoresbecauseitisn’tthepriorityatthemoment.

TheCEOandotherseniorexecutivessetthebarforhowaculturewillbe.Theydetermine through theirwords and actionswhat the employee experiencewillbe.TheseexamplesshowussomegoodexamplesofhowCEOscan influencetheirteamswithleadership.TheseCEOshaveboughtintotheideaofleadership

by example, made the emotional state of both customers and employees apriority,and,toborrowtheslang,theygetit.

30Avakian,Talia.“StarbucksCEOtellsemployeeto‘beverysensitive’tofrazzledstockbrokers.”www.businessinsider.com.25August2015.Web.26August2015.<http://www.businessinsider.com/starbucks-ceo-tells-baristas-to-be-extra-nice-to-stockbrokers-2015-8?utm_source=feedly&utm_medium=referral>

31Roose,Kevin.“TheCEOofStarbucksjusttoldbaristastobenicetostressed-outcustomersbecauseofthestockmarketcrash.”splinter.com.24August2015.Web.5January2016.<http://splinternews.com/the-ceo-of-starbucks-just-told-baristas-to-be-nice-to-s-1793850203>

32Gillett,Rachel.“Virginjustuppedtheanteforothercompanieswithitsnewparentalleavepolicy.”www.businessinsider.com.9June2015.Web.9June2015.<http://www.businessinsider.com/virgins-new-paternity-leave-policy-2015-6>

33Ydstie,John.“HealthInsurerAetnaRaisesWagesForLowest-PaidWorkersTo$16AnHour.”www.npr.org.30April2015.Web.5January2016.<http://www.npr.org/2015/04/30/403257223/health-insurer-aetna-raises-wages-for-lowest-paid-workers-to-16-an-hour>

34Kantor,Jodietal.“InsideAmazon:WrestlingBigIdeasinaBruisingWorkplace.”www.nytimes.com.15August2015.Web.17August2015.<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/technology/inside-amazon-wrestling-big-ideas-in-a-bruising-workplace.html?_r=1>

35Kim,Susanna.“AmazonEmployeesRespondtoScathingArticleAboutWorkCulture.”Abcnews.go.com.17August2015.Web.17August2015.<http://abcnews.go.com/Business/amazon-employees-respond-scathing-article-work-culture/story?id=33137293&singlePage=true>

36Ciubotariu,Nick.“AnAmazonian’sresponseto‘InsideAmazon:WrestlingBigIdeasinaBruisingWorkplace.’”www.linkedin.com.16August2015.Web.5January2016.<https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/amazonians-response-inside-amazon-wrestling-big-ideas-nick-ciubotari>

37Solomon,DainaBeth.“JeffBezossayshewon’ttoleratea‘callous’Amazonworkplace.”www.latimes.com.17August2015.Web.17August2015.<http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-tn-jeff-bezos-amazon-20150817-story.html>

38Cook,John.“Fullmemo:JeffBezosrespondstobrutalNYTstory,saysitdoesn’trepresenttheAmazonheleads.”www.geekwire.com.16August2015.Web.5January2016.http://www.geekwire.com/2015/full-memo-jeff-bezos-responds-to-cutting-nyt-expose-says-tolerance-for-lack-of-empathy-needs-to-be-zero>

CHAPTER7GoodExamplesofEmployeeExperiences

Photoby:iqoncept

Havingacustomer-centricexperiencedoesn’thappenbyaccident.Havingagreatemployeeexperiencedoesn’teither.Ittakesalotofworkfromallpartsofyourorganizationtocreateadeliberatecustomerandemployeeexperience.Theexperiencesyoudeliverarearesultofthewaytheorganization’scultureis

WeusetheNaïvetoNaturalassessmenttodeterminewhereyourorganizationisonthejourneytowardbeing“natural,”ourtermforthosecompaniesthathaveacustomerfocus.Toreachthisstate,youmustlookatyourwholeprocess,allthepartsoftheexperience,andwheretomakechangestotransformyourstatusquo.Oneofthesepartsisyourpeopleandtheemployeeexperienceyouprovide.

Developing a great employee experience has several essential elements. As aquickreviewofourpreviouschapters,let’ssummarizewhatweknowsofar.

Recruitthosewiththerighttools,whichincludesahighEQ,asaptitudeandtechnical skills are not enough. As I explained in Chapter 2, customercentricity requires an emphasis on recruiting the right people. Manyorganizations that are considered “naive” (the least customer-focusedorganizations according to our assessment), focus on individuals who haveproduct knowledge and familiarity with the industry. These are not enough,however, nor is it enough for them to have a “positive attitude.” Being trulynatural incustomercentricity requires thatyou recruitpeoplewhoaregoodatevokingemotions. It’sbest toadministerapsychometric test that identifies thebest candidateswith innate skills at evokingplannedemotions—andweedouttheoneswhodon’t.

Use training to develop recruits’ natural ability to perform the definedexperienceyouhavedesigned.After recruiting therightpeople,your trainingshould build upon these innate skills to evoke the emotions youwant in yourexperience.Forpracticaltraining,yourorganizationmustagreeuponthedesiredemotionalexperienceasdefinedbytheCustomerExperienceStatement(CES).Employeetrainingshouldincludeanemphasisonspecificphrasesandnonverbaltechniques to evoke these emotions. Also, employees must master readingcustomers’bodylanguageand,inturn,displaybodylanguagethatenhancestheexperience.Furthermore,employeetrainingshouldidentifywhentoadapttheirinteractiontobestaddresstheircustomers’needsandexpectations.

Empoweremployeestomakedecisionsandthengetoutoftheirwaywhiletheymakethem.Thehappiestemployeesfeelempoweredtodotheirjobsandfeel a sense of greater purpose. In themost empowered cultures, there’s trustbetweenmanagementandstaffthateveryonehasthecompany’sbestinterestat

heart. Employees feel they can contribute directly to and make decisions onbehalf of the organization to optimize the experience for customers.Managementgrantsthisabilityandgetsoutoftheway.

Define your desired employee experience. We touched on how the CES isnecessaryfordesigningyourcustomerexperience,butnottheimportanceofthesame exercise for your employees. Defining what you want your employeeexperience to be is crucial. In themost “natural” organizations, theEmployeeExperienceStatement (EES)alignswith theCES.Partof thisprocess requiresyourorganizationtoidentifykeyareasofconcernforyourteam,determinewaysto measure employee satisfaction about those fields, and measure thissatisfactionregularly.Compareyourresultsovertimetoseehowyou’redoing.Senior management must allocate time and resources to this goal to keepeveryoneonthesamepage.

These steps will move your people into a culture that promotes puttingcustomers at the center of everything you do. For some reason, however, thisdoesn’t happen as often as it should.Your people are a critical component ofcreating a customer-centric culture. Putting your people to work on customercentricityisanexcellentwaytomoveyourorganizationclosertoaculturethatputsthecustomeratthecenterofeverythingitdoes.

HowCompaniesHelpPeopleFeeltheLoveExperts agree that the feelings a customer has when they’re getting excellentcustomer service are the same as the feelings they havewhen they feel love.Most exceptional customer experiences leave customers feeling valued andsignificant,or,inotherwords,feelingthelove.

Therearethreecommonthingscompaniesdotomakecustomersfeelthelove:

1. Theyalwaysdomoreforcustomers.

2. Theyknowthesetwowords:customerconvenience.

3. Theyknowaccessibilityisaninvestment,notanexpense.

Ofcourse,noneofthesethreethingscanhappenwithoutanexcellentemployeeexperience. When these elements are working in your favor at the customerlevel,thingsmustalsobeworkingattheemployeelevel.Let’stakeacloserlookat each of these areas with examples from companies that have greatexperiences.

1.Alwaysdomoreforcustomers.Amazonalwaysimprovestheirserviceswiththecustomersinmind.Amazonisnevercontent tokeep theirexperiencestagnate.Forexample, inMayof2015,Amazonannouncedsame-daydeliveryservicesformanyPrimecustomersatnoadditionalcharge.39 In2016, they launchedAlexa, theirdigitalassistant,whichtheysellataloss.In2017,theysurpassedMacy’stobecomethelargestclothingretailer in theU.S. In the last chapter, Iwroteabouthow these improvements,whichputthecustomeratthecenterofwhattheydo,areaproductofthecultureat Amazon. The employees are behind these excellent innovations andperformancerecord.

However,youdon’thavetobeasbigasAmazonforyouremployeestodomorefor your customers. The Airport Fast Park at the Baltimore WashingtonInternational Airport also thinks of ways to do things for customers.40 Fromhelpful advice on arrival regarding the best possible parking space at thatmoment,toashuttlepickingyouupatyourcarinsteadofashelter,theylookforways to domore for the customer.They even takeyou right back to your carwhen you get back—with a complimentary bottle of water. They offercomplimentaryelectricvehiclechargingaswell.

Thesecompaniesandtheiremployeesknowthevalueofdoingmore.Theydon’taskmoreoftheircustomers,buttheygivemoreserviceallthetime.

2.Knowthesetwowords:customerconvenience.Thewords“hassle”and“confusing”arenevergoodwhenassociatedwithyourcustomerexperience.A famous story froma fewyearsback tells the taleof ayoung woman concerned about her dad not having any food when he was

snowed in around the holiday.41 After she called several stores, Trader Joe’sagreed todeliver the food to theman and refusedpayment fromhis daughter.TheTraderJoe’steamtoldherto“HaveaMerryChristmas!”

Convenience takesmany forms, however, and lately, that form is yourmobilechannel. Macy’s, Dick’s, and Taco Bell have embraced mobile omnichannelapproaches in unique ways to take their relationships with their on-the-gocustomerstoanewlevel.Macy’susesmobiletohelpcustomerswhofindwhatthey want online located it in a local store. Dick’s mobile channel lets theiremployees help customers place online orders, if necessary. Their mobilechannelenablesmarketingtogeographicareasnearthestoreaswell.TacoBelluses mobile to allow for online ordering with in-store pickup. All of theseexamples have helped these big-name retailers reach a new level of customerexperienceanddemonstratetheimportanceofconsideringconvenienceforyourcustomers.Mobiletechnologyandaccessareuppingtheanteinthatgameallthetime.

3.Accessibilityisaninvestment,notanexpense.Chick-fil-Astaffstheirincomingcustomercallssothattheaverageholdtimeisalwayslessthanfiveminutes.Anyonewho’sworkedinacallcenterknowsthatthisresponsetimeisexceptionallylow.Chick-fil-Awantsaccessibilitytobepartoftheirexperience.Theyalsocreatedanonlinesurveythatallowscustomerstosubmitfeedbackanytimeofday—withouteventhefive-minutewaitofthecallcenter.

Hiltonisalsoafanofaccessibilityandamulti-channelapproach.Inadditiontothe traditional email and toll-free number options for customer service, theyadded a “click to call” feature to their website that quickly connects them tocustomer service. They also present the option of leaving your number for acustomer service agent to call you back. From sufficient staffing, to propertraining, tocreatingnewways tocommunicatewithcustomers,accessibility isaninvestmentthat’ssuretopayoffinthelongrunwithhappycustomers.

By always doing more, minding customer convenience, and investing in

accessibility, youmake customers feel valued and important, two fundamentalfeelings associated with love. The same goes for your employees.When youhavethesefeelingsatbothlevels,youcreateanemployeeculturethatworks—literally.

EmployeeCulture:ThedifferencebetweenthebestandtheworstofemployeeexperiencesEach year, we do a Global Leader Survey of top executives in customerexperiencemanagementtoseewhoarethebestandworst.WhileIbelievethereareseveral factorsatwork thatmake thedifferencebetween the topof the listand the bottom, employee engagement is a significant part of what putsorganizationsonthetop.

Accordingtothegloballeaderssurveyed,topcompaniesareexcellentbecause:

Theydeliverexcellentcustomerservice.Theycommunicatewell.They’reeasytouse.Theyhavehigh-qualitytouchpoints.Theyhaveadefinedbrandpromise.

Also,thebestcustomerexperiencecompaniesmakeemployeesatanylevelfeel that their ideas matter, that an idea is excellent no matter where itoriginates. Senior management as these organizations listen to people’sideas, andwhen they have a goodone, put them towork onmaking it areality.Sure, theyalsohearalotofbadideastoget tothegoodones,buttheopportunities that thegood ideasuncoverareworth the investmentoftimeandresources.

Thesurveyedgloballeadersrankedcompaniesinthebottomtenbecause:

Theyhavepoorqualitycustomerservice.Theyhavesufferedfromnegativepressrecently.Theyhaveinadequatecustomercareexperiences.Theyarecrummyatcommunicationandproblem-solving.

OnethingIdidn’t listwas theydon’thaveasufficientawarenessofwhattheircurrentcustomerexperience is,andworse,don’tcare.Thiscriticismappliestomanybanks,whoareregularlyfeaturedatthebottomofthislist.Inmyexperience,banksdon’teverputthecustomerfirst.

Zhecho Dobrev, one of Beyond Philosophy’s Senior Consultants, wasblindsidedbyBankofAmericawithapastduenoticethathisdelinquencywouldbepassedalongtothecreditagencies.However,theemailtheysenthimaboutthepastdueamountwasmisleading.Itshoweda$0.00balance.Whenhebroughtthisfacttotheattentionofemployeesthere,hereceivedno sympathy. Instead, they said the email pictureZhecho referred towas“justagraphic,”andheneededtocheckthebalancehimself.Zhechowrote:

“The fact that even aftermy official complaint and talking to twoagents and amanager none of them said, ‘Thank you for pointingthisouttous.I’llpassthisasasuggestion/ideatothemanagement,’is a failure of the company’s innovation process, which eitherdoesn’t:

ProvideanopenchannelforpeopletosubmitideasProvideanincentiveforpeopletodothatTrainitsmanagersandstaffonempathy”

It isvital to evoke the right customerandemployeeemotions.Whenyoudo,yourcompanycanmakebillionsofdollarsinadditionalrevenueandsitat the top of the customer experience list.When you don’t, you have tonickel-and-dimeyourwaytoprofitswithannoyingfeesandcut importantthingslikeemployeetrainingtoeekoutaprofitforyourstockholders.It’snot hard to imaginewhich type of companywould bemore fun to go toeveryday.

McDonald’sisanotherfamousnamethatisn’tevokingtherightemployeeemotions.Mostofusarefamiliarwiththeirmenuandtheirexperience,aka,fast,cheapfoodthatyoucangetallovertheworld.McDonald’sispoisedto be the Top U.S. Restaurant Chain in the year 2020 according toanalysts.42 Theywere number one last year,with billing of $35.9 billion.

Thatnumberisprojectedtoriseto$43.8billioninthenextsixyears.Withnumbers like that, it’s hard to imagine that they’re having any problemsfinancially.

However,cheapfoodcostsalotintheemployeeexperienceitseems.Therewassomepress that suggested thatmanagersareasked tocutemployee’spay to keep tightmargins profitable,43 or evenworse, that they’re askingemployeestoclockoutandcontinueworking,44

McDonald’s workers are hardly overpaid. According to PayScale, theaverage fast food worker makes between $7 and $9 per hour,45 andspeculation is thatMcDonald’sworkersmake even less. So,when I readthesestories,Iwassurprised,toputitmildly.Cuttingthepayofthelowestpaidworkerswillprovidecustomersanythingbutahappymeal.

Imagine how concerned you’d be about the quality of your work if youwereasked(or,inthiscase,ordered)tokeepdoingyourlow-payingjobforfree? Of course, I’m speculating. I have no way of knowing what theiremployeesarethinkingordoinginthissituation.However,Ifeartheworst,andcantellyouthatifIwereinthatsituation,qualitywouldn’tbemytoppriority.

EmployeesCanMakeorBreakYourExperienceSouthwestAirlinesknowshowtomakeaboringspeechfun.YouTubehasseveralvideosoftheirflightattendants’safetyspeeches,whichareknownfor their irreverent comedy.Thismoment inSouthwest’s experience is anexcellent example of how engaged employees will add fun to yourcustomer experience, even when it involves something as tedious as asafety instruction speech on a flight. Best of all, it doesn’t cost a dime.You’llrecognizemanyoftheconceptswediscussedinthisbook,including:

1. Not all customer experience improvements cost a lot ofmoney. Companies often fall into the trap of saying that

improving the customer experience costs money. As aconsultant, I hear this objection to our suggestions a lot.Southwest’s safety speech example demonstrates that it isn’tnecessarytospendmoneytoimprovetheexperience.

2. Anecessary routine activity doesn’t have to be dull. Somecompaniesmake excuses for their bad experience because the“what”oftheirexperienceisbad.Butit’simportanttoseparatethe “what” of the experience from the “how.” The routinepresentation is not about the “what,”which is giving a safetydemo,but instead the“how,”which is todo it inanengagingway.

3. Hire both high IQ and high EQ for your customer-facingemployees.Therightpeopleintherightpositionscangoalongwaytowardimprovingyourcustomerexperience.

4. Humor goes a long way to improve a mundane situation.Humor is underused in business.Of course, you need to havegood judgment about its use and content. Plus, you shouldnever, ever use it to insult someone else. But a good laughmakesthewholedaybetterforeveryoneandconnectsyouwithyourcustomersatanemotionallevel.

5. Culture is king for employee experience. The culture atSouthwestvaluesitsteammembers.Asaresult,employeesareengagedandreadytodeliveronthepromisethatSouthwesthasbuiltintotheirbrandingandreputation.

Not all customerswill like the humorous announcements, but that’s fine;theydon’tneedtoflywithSouthwest.It’sbeenaLONGtimesinceIpaidattentiontoanyannouncementsonaflight,butIseemtorememberthatweallhave“alotofchoicesforourairtravel.”They’reabudgetairline,whichisthereasonthesesafetypresentationsarespoken.Southwestdoesn’tevenhave a video system.But despite the need to keep costs low, they aren’tcuttingcornersontheexperience.

Employees, just like customers, do their best work when they’re feeling“happy and pleased.” For employees, happy and pleased means beingfulfilledbytheirworkandfeelinglikethey’remakingadifference.Whenyouhavethistypeofemotionalconnectionwithyouremployees,customercentricityfollows.

TheExperienceEconomyRequiresaNewWayofThinkingWe’re living in theExperienceEconomytoday,a termfirst introducedbyB.JosephPineIIandJamesH.Gilmorein1998.TheExperienceEconomybuildsontheideathatbusinesseswillcompeteanddifferentiatethemselvesbased on the memorable event they provide customers rather than theservicetheyprovide.Customerswantthecompaniestheydobusinesswithtomakeitworththeirwhile,andtogivethemmorevaluethaninthepast.TheExperienceEconomysuggeststhatitisnotenoughtomanageproduct,price,promotion,andplacement.Youmustalsohaveasuperiorexperiencetogowiththatproduct.Whoprovidesthatsuperiorexperience?Employeesdo.Therefore, linkingemployeeandcustomerexperience is imperative togettingtheexperienceyouwantforyourcustomers.

In otherwords, theExperienceEconomy says it’s not enough towin thecustomers over, you also need to win your employees over. Ignore youremployee’s emotional needs, and employees will ignore the experienceexpectationsyouneedthemtodeliver.

Investing in your employees, giving them a foundation for a positiveemotionalstateatwork,isafundamentalelementofcreatingthatpositiveemotionalexperienceforcustomers.

Howcanyouinvestinyouremployeestoday?

39Chang,Andrea.“Amazonrollsoutfreesame-daydelivery.”www.latimes.com.28May2015.Web.5January2016.http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-amazon-same-day-delivery-20150528-story.html>

40Stansberry,Glen.“10ExamplesofShockinglyExcellentCustomerService.”

www.americanexpress.com.04May2010.Web.29May2015.<https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/openforum/articles/10-examples-of-shockingly-excellent-customer-service-1/>

41Stansberry,Glen.“10ExamplesofShockinglyExcellentCustomerService.”www.americanexpress.com.04May2010.Web.29May2015.<https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/openforum/articles/10-examples-of-shockingly-excellent-customer-service-1/>

42Peterson,Hayley.“TheseWillBeTheTopRestaurantChainsIn2020.”www.businessinsider.com.4August2014.Web.5August2014.<http://www.businessinsider.com/top-restaurant-chains-in-2020-2014-8>

43Peterson,Hayley.“McDonald’sFranchiseeClaimsCompanyEncouragedHerToCutEmployeePay.”www.businessinsider.com.4August2014.Web.5August2014.<http://www.businessinsider.com/mcdonalds-franchisee-complaint-2014-8>

44Peterson,Hayley.“McDonald’sManagersAdmitToMakingStaffWorkWithoutPay.”www.businessinsider.com.2April2014.Web.5August2014.<http://www.businessinsider.com/mcdonalds-managers-withheld-pay-2014-4>

45“FastFoodWorkerSalary(UnitedStates).”www.payscale.com.12September2017.Web.5January2016.<http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Fast_Food_Worker/Hourly_Rate>

CONCLUSIONBestAdvice:StopResearching

andStartActing

ItwasthefirstfewdaysaftermypromotiontoSVPofCustomerExperienceforBritishTelecom(BT).Oneofmyfirsttaskswastoattendafeedbacksessiontohear the results of our annual customer research project. This research wasorderedbymypredecessors,thethirdorfourthyearwe’dcommissioneditinasmanyyears.

Theagencypresenter’sdemeanorsurprisedme.Herattitudewasmatter-of-fact,andher body language clearly read, “I don’twant to be here.” I felt as if shewere advertising the fact this session was a total waste of her time. Abouthalfwaythroughthepresentation,Ifeltcompelledtostopher.

“Why are you delivering this presentation like you don’t care?” I asked her,challengingheronherbadattitude.

“Don’tcare?”shesaid,smilingasthoughtosaythatwasironic.“Idon’tcare?”

I could instantly see that I’d hit on something, and it was a raw nerve. Shecontinued,andwhatshesaidmadeanimpactonme.

“We’vebeenundertaking this research foryou for the last threeor fouryears.Each yearwe tell you that your customers are unhappywith theserviceyouprovideandtheywantyoutochangeit.Eachyearpeoplesithere and nod in agreement. And then, guess what? Nothing happens!Therefore,thefollowingyearwedothesameresearch,whichtellsyouthesamething;theonlychangeisit’sjustgotworse.Again,peoplenod,andnothinghappens!

“Sowithrespect, it’snotthatIdon’tcare, it’s thatYOUdon’tcare.Youdon’t care that customer service is getting worse. What I really don’tunderstandiswhyyouwasteyourmoneyindoingthisresearchifyouareonlygoingtoignoreit!”

Iwastakenabackbyheroutburst,butcouldunderstandherfrustrationandherpassion.More importantly, shewas right.Wedidn’t care.Wedid the researchbecause we were a big company and that’s what big companies do. It wasanotherboxcheckedoffona requisite form,andshowed the lackofcustomercentricityoftheorganization.

What’sthepointofdoingresearchifyou’renotgoingtodoanythingwithit?Ithoughtaboutthatconversationmanytimesoverthenextcoupleofyears.Iuseditasmotivation tochange thisbehavior formycompany.Mynewrolewas totakeaction,notjusttoreadreports,listentopresentationsaboutwhatweshoulddo,andnod.

Taking action in a large company, however, isn’t a simple task. The internalchallengesweall facedweredauntingandcouldbeverydemotivating formyteam.Aswithmanycompanies,despitehavinganinternalcompanyvaluethatsaid,“Weputcustomersfirst,”thatwasnotthecase.Therealitywasthatseniorexecutivesweremoreconcernedaboutkeepingexpenses lowandcuttingcoststhan improving the customer experience. Even though they said all the rightthings,whenpushcame to shove, itwasalwayscost cutting that tookpriorityoverimprovingthecustomerexperience.

However,here’stheinsight:It’sabouthowyoupositionthings.Ilearnedthattrying to make a case for change based solely on the philosophical merit ofimproving the customer experiencewasn’t going towork, especially if it costmoney.IhadtochangethewayI thoughtaboutandpositionedmycasetothedecision makers. After failing more than once in my efforts to persuade myseniorexecutiveteamtoinvest in theexperience,Irealizedthatpresentingmycustomerexperiencechangesunderthecost-savingsbannerwasthewaytowinthemovertomywayofthinking.Inotherwords,IneededtodemonstratehowcouldwelowercostsANDimprovethecustomerexperience.

Then, I had an epiphany.The trickwas to consider all the costs the companyincurredthroughthispoorservice,includingmanagement’stimeindealingwithcomplaintsandproblems.ThiswouldspeakdirectlytothepeopleIwastryingtosway.Wefoundtremendoussavingspotentialbyeliminatingpoorservice.Everycase we presented lead with information on how we could reduce costs and,

“Oh,bytheway,improvethecustomerexperienceaswell.”

Eureka!Itworked.Seniormanagementapprovedmyplan.Moreover,I’mproudto say that oncewe took action,wehad someexceptional results.Themarketwascryingoutfor thetypesofchangestheresearchwastellingusweneeded,andtheresultsweachievedbymakingthesechangeswereworththeeffort.

Research is excellent, important, and critical to making an action plan. Butunderstandingthesituationisonlyhalfthebattle.Theotherhalfofthebattle,themost important one in fact, is to get people to take action on the research. Inotherwords,it’stimetostopanalyzingandstartacting.

So,whatareyouwaitingfor?Youremployeeexperienceisn’tgoingtofixitself,nowisit?Putdownyourreaderoryourmobileandgetcracking—andthere’snobettertimethanthepresent.

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Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or comments aboutanything you read. We welcome your inquiries and insights. At BeyondPhilosophy,weoftensay,“Noneofus isascleverasallofus.”Your thoughtsandfeedbackarealwayswelcomeonwww.BeyondPhilosophy.com.

Ihopeyou’veenjoyed reading this ebookabout theemployeeexperience, andthatyou’velearnedmuchfromthesechaptersandexamples,bothinwhattodoandwhattoavoid.Mayithelpyoucreatethecustomerexperienceyouwantforyourorganization,wherethecustomercomesfirstineverythingyoudo,takingyou beyond the philosophy and helping you set a new standard for what ispossibleinboththecustomerandemployeeexperience.