Blog Archives
-
Achieving Accountability in Service Organizations
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Wednesday December 28, 2011Imagine if the engineers who were responsible for Apollo 13 just stood around waiting for someone else to do something when they heard those immortal words, "Houston, we have a problem"? No way! Everyone was scrambling to find a way to bring our astronauts home safely. It was not someone else's problem. It was everyone's problem and they all took ownership of finding a solution. Imagine if everyone took ownership of problems and obstacles that occur each and every day in the workplace of our organizations! How do we create an environment where team members collectively step up to achieve results and engage others in doing the same? In today's complex work environment, it is very easy to feel that we have no control over situations... -
The Elements of Collective Ambition
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Wednesday December 21, 2011Some companies come through hard times stronger than ever. How do they do it? They do not focus only on one goal (for example: profits or engagement). Instead, they form a shared sense of purpose. As referenced in last week’s article, a recent three year study of companies that have defied conventional logic was recently reported in Harvard Business Review. This study provided results on a model called Collective Ambition. According to the study, there are seven elements that must be carefully integrated in order to achieve Collective Ambition: Purpose : the company’s reason for being; the core mission. Vision : the position or status the company hopes to achieve within a specified time frame. Targets & Milestones... -
Collective Ambition
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Wednesday December 14, 2011
A recent three year study of companies that have defied conventional logic was recently reported in Harvard Business Review. This study provided results on a model that was deemed Collective Ambition. The companies that were studied do not pursue a single ambition, such as profits. A collective ambition supersedes individual goals and incorporates key elements required to achieve and sustain excellence within the organization. Collective Ambition is not a new concept. It has been around for years in organizations that are engaged with employees and other stakeholders while still maintaining profitability. Engagement is the latest concept that everyone is trying to incorporate into their organizations. But for many, the topic is too... -
The Stressed Traveler
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Wednesday December 7, 2011
We have all been there in that seat--the seat that has grown increasingly smaller over the past years of air travel. The same seat that holds the stressed traveler returning home from another business trip across the country. This traveler who purchased a flight that cost $99 (plus $622 taxes and fees!). The traveler who purchased pre-boarding rights, and then was stuck on a late shuttle bus in traffic between the hotel and airport. While going through security, the traveler got stuck in line behind someone who knew nothing of the TSA rules for liquids, lighters and sharp objects. After three tries, the bag and passenger ahead of the traveler was finally cleared. The traveler gathered his bag; put on his shoes and belt; then raced through... -
Aviation Customer Service Stories
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Wednesday November 30, 2011As mentioned in last week’s article, passengers are more stressed and weary as they travel through America’s airports. Many of the amenities travelers enjoyed on airlines now have to be purchased or they have been taken away completely. The question, “What are airports doing to help relieve this stress and weariness, and make up for the service that has been taken away by the airlines?” was posed. Keep your responses coming to info@serviceelements.com (or comment below on this article) and we will report on those over the next couple weeks. In the meantime, here are a handful of tips from a company (that we all know!) that gives its customers exemplary treatment while creating an experience each time they return... -
Response to No Pillows in Coach
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Wednesday November 23, 2011This week there will be thousands of travelers taking to the airways on their routes to Thanksgiving turkeys around the country. Most every one of the travelers is aware that their service will not be what it was in the past on airlines---especially in coach class. The airlines are trying to attract more first class and business class travelers by offering more amenities to those high paying customers*. But what happens to the majority of passengers—the coach travelers? Amenities have been stripped away and can only be accessed by paying ala carte fees. There are additional fees to bring bags along; fees to get a meal; fees to get water; even fees to get a few extra inches of seat space. This list could go on and on. The service that... -
Leadership Skills – The Samurai Leader
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Wednesday November 16, 2011The Samurai were considered the ultimate warriors for over 700 years in Japan. Their code, Bushido , which means “to serve”, was a value system that defined their core values and how they lived. The Samurai became known for their rigid adherence to the Samurai code, in fact, their lives depended on it. The characteristics that made a good Samurai warrior in the 17th century can be applied to good leaders in the 21 st century. Here are just a few: Good Warriors are made, not born Good Leaders are made, not born – Just as the Samurai learned their code day in and day out, so must good leaders. Leaders learn by observing other leaders, by training in management training programs, by experiences on the job, by trial and error. It... -
Leadership Skills – Mother Teresa
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Wednesday November 9, 2011
Mother Teresa is not the first person when we ask line service, maintenance personnel or other aviation professionals “who comes to mind as an effective leader”? But the petite nun from Albania started and ran an organization that became one of the largest in the world. Today that organization: Conducts operations in over one hundred countries; Has a loyal full-time workforce of 4,000; Has over one million volunteer team members; Is one of the most recognized brands in the world; and Has raised and deployed billions of dollars in capital. There are many principles that Mother Teresa lived by as a leader. There are too many principles to include in this short article. But we will focus on two of those... -
Leadership Skills
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Wednesday November 2, 2011
When asking ourselves how we can improve as leaders, it is important to understand that leadership is a journey. Some may say that leadership is intuition guided by common sense (which is not quite as common as we would like)! But many have found that if they really strive to improve as leaders, and realize that being a good leader is an art that requires ongoing thought and work---then they can find success in the journey. Sociologists tell us that the most introverted of people will influence 10,000 others in an average lifetime. If that is so, then what span of influence could people have who become intentional about it? Leadership is a 360 degree proposition. We all influence others around us. We lead up, we lead around and we... -
Service Commitment
By ServiceElements, Christine Hill - Wednesday October 26, 2011People who are committed to service excellence know why their jobs are important. They know their work has meaning. They know that they are providing something to the customer, something that is important and meaningful. If people feel like they are giving something of value, then they will also find value in how they provide it. In a recent workshop on motivation and teamwork held at a Las Vegas hotel, there was a wide variety of hotel employees: chefs, cocktail waitresses, poker dealers, human resources and other professional staff. It was quite a mixture of folks. Prior to the start of the workshops, when asked why he liked his job, one of the chefs replied that he like his job because he “made creations” that satisfy people and...
Sign Up
for FREE newsletters
Events
-
- 06/03/13 - 06/03/13
- Ultrasonic Testing Level 1 Course
-
Training, Lewistown, PA
-
- 06/03/13 - 06/06/13
- ACI-NA Marketing & Communications and JumpStart & Air Service Development Program
-
Conference/Expo, Atlanta, GA
-
- 06/04/13 - 06/05/13
- 2013 Small Airports Conference in conjunction with the JumpStart & Air Service Development Program
-
Conference/Expo, Atlanta, GA
-
- 06/05/13 - 06/06/13
- ITQI: Improving Training Provision Conference
-
Conference/Expo, London,
-
- 06/10/13 - 06/10/13
- Ultrasonic Testing Level 2 Training Course
-
Training, Lewistown, PA
