Posts filed under 'Employee Training'
In his article “It’s All About Free Choice”, Ari Weinsweig reminds us that we always have “free choice”. Everything we do, including whether we go to work everyday, is a choice we make. In most cases, we make choices because there is a pay-off. We go to work; we get a paycheck. We do a great job; we get praise from our boss or our customer. But Weinsweig suggests that this notion of “free choice” can be applied to everything we do at home, at work, in all our relationships. He goes further to suggest that by understanding that we always have a choice, can reduce stress and increase joy!
Read the full article to learn how this concept of “free choice” applies to you and your business. Weinsweig says that we all make mindful choices every day, and that individuals feel freer and more fulfilled when they understand that they are always making choices. When our employees feel that they are being forced to do something, we often meet resistance. On the other hand, when they have an opportunity to “opt in or opt out”, they usually feel more invested in what needs to be done. The important point though is to make sure that they have clear understanding of the consequences of their choices.
Intrigued by these ideas? Read “It’s All About Free Choice” and think about how this might fit into your business.
July 5th, 2011
In the January/February issue of Specialty Food Magazine, Ari Weinzweig wrote an article entitled “The Spirit of Generosity”. He outlines 13 ideas for how we can weave generosity in our businesses. He believes that not only will we feel good about what we do, but we will also see positives effects on our business’s bottom line.
Following are his 13 techniques. Read the full article to get learn how the author sees these working in his own business.
- Program your giving.
- Remember: Kindness is free.
- Start with good service.
- Think abundantly.
- Have empathy.
- Create more opportunity.
- Be an active listener.
- Give the benefit of the doubt.
- Let everyone win.
- Share information.
- Give your time.
- Be generous with yourself.
- Share the credit.
June 2nd, 2011
There’s a business in Michigan that I’d like to visit: Zingerman’s Delicatessen. I’d like to stop by so that I can meet one of owners: Ari. He is a regular contributor to Specialty Food Magazine and I believe that I’ve read most of his entries over the past few years. Most importantly, I learn something from each article that I can use in business…and in life!
Ari wrote an article called “12 Natural Laws of Business” to try to answer the question he’s often asked: “What’s the secret to your success?”
So here are Ari Weinzweig’s 12 Natural Laws of Business. Read the full article to really understand how these work at Zingerman’s.
The 12 Natural Laws of Business
- You’re more likely to get to greatness if you have an inspiring and strategically sound vision.
- If you don’t give customers compelling reasons to buy from you, they won’t.
- If you don’t create a great, rewarding place for people to work, they won’t do great work.
- If you want the staff to give great service to customers, you have to give great service to the staff.
- If you want staff to give great performance, you have to give clear expectations and training tools.
- Successful businesses do the things that others know they should do but generally don’t.
- If you aren’t consistently getting better, you’re not going to get long-term greatness.
- Success means you get better problems—but there will always be problems.
- Whatever you’re good at is likely to also lead into areas of weakness.
- It takes longer to make something great happen than people think. Profit is good.
- Great organizations are appreciative and the people in them have more fun.
- Appreciate all those people with whom you work: customers, staff, suppliers….and appreciate them everyday!
March 14th, 2011
Ari Weinzweig, author of a monthly feature in Specialty Food Magazine, hit a home run with his article in the March issue. He proposes that our businesses have an energy of their own; that staff and customers can come into our stores and feel that energy….and react to that energy. If the energy is positive, customers love to drop in; staff is excited and creativity thrives. But if the energy is negative, you probably see a lot of flat faces on the part of your employees.
Does your company have an energy crisis? Are you asking yourself these questions over and over:
What’s wrong with all my employees? Why don’t they get it? Where are the customers who used to come in to shop? What happened to loyalty? Will the economy ever improve?
“The truth is that the (low or negative energy) issues starts with us as managers and owners. And, therefore, the solution starts with us: the people in leadership roles in any business, organization”. Read the full article and learn 4 key points that will help you put the energy back in your business. And let us know what you do to put the energy back into your company.
March 7th, 2011
Over the past several years, many business owners felt that they were forced to reduce employee benefits or ask employees to pick up more of the costs. But I just read a story about a company that has expanded those benefits….and the owners believe that it makes good business sense!
As described in the current issue of Specialty Foods Magazine, business owners of Clif Bar & Company have chosen to give its workforce an impressive number of healthy perks and benefits. “Creating benefits that support the well being of our employees is as important as other more traditional business goals,” says Jennifer Freitas, Clif Bar’s human resources manager. “Our goal is to foster a work environment that supports a healthful work-life balance where employees feel supported in all aspects of their lives.” She goes on to say that not only do these benefits create a better work environment, but also add to the company’s overall success. Good benefits attract well-qualified employees and this positively affects the bottom line.
Even if you’re not able to offer premium health care packages, child care, and yoga classes, you can still provide other types of benefits to your employees. Encourage employees to exercise during their lunch hour by giving them a little extra time to take a walk or head over to the gym. If you have space, set up a small kitchen area with a microwave and refrigerator and so that employees can bring in “healthy meals” from home instead of eating fast foods on the run. A few comfortable chairs might also encourage employees to take a 15 minute power nap during their break or you can provide some reading materials that emphasize personal health and fitness. And if space is available, you might even set up an area where employees can do some light exercises or mediation.
Read the full article for more ideas about how you can provide benefits to employees with minimal costs and and maximum gains.
November 28th, 2010
Read “Winning On The Web” for a plethora of exceptional suggestions for revving up holiday sales. Author Marshal Marcovitz includes recommendations for planning your promotions, analyzing your promotional mix, marketing on a shoestring and managing your customers.
He also points out it that “costs seven times more to acquire a new customer than to retain a current customer”. Keeping that in mind, he proposes that we consider a customer “life cycle” in which there are different tactics for securing new customers, growing their business, and retaining their loyalty.
Read the full article article for some of the best marketing ideas I’ve seen!
November 7th, 2010
Mark your calendars: August 4 – 6, 2011. The National Gift Basket Professional Convention will be held in Columbus, Ohio. Convention hosts Pam & Tom Newell have put together 3 days of education, networking, seminars, workshops, discussion groups and a trade show including a splendid collection of gourmet and gift vendors who will display the newest products and trends.
For more information about this “must – do” convention for gift basket professionals, go to the 2011 National Gift Basket Professional Convention web site. Read testimonials from attendees from prior years. Also, be sure to get out details about early bird registration: just $99 if you register before Dec. 31st.
October 31st, 2010
Have you ever walked into a store and had to look for a sales person who could wait on you? What kind of mood were you in when you finally found someone who could help you? This has happened to me on numerous occasions and all I want to do is finish my transaction and get out of that store as quickly as possible!
During these times when customers are even more discerning about where they shop and what they buy, many business owners and managers recognize that good customer service can really make a difference and that good service begins the moment a customer walks in the store or as soon as a phone call is answered. As we move into the busy holiday selling season, it’s a good time to take another look at the service you provide and make sure that all employees are doing their best to satisfy customers.
Read the article “Are you Being Served?” in the August, 2010 issue of the The Gourmet Retailer. Author James Mellgren discusses the importance of first impressions and reviews techniques that your employees can use to deal with customer complaints. He also recommends a book called “Zingerman’s Guide to Giving Great Service”. I highly recommend it if you’re looking for ways to education your staff in the fine art of customer service!
September 28th, 2010
Many gift basket businesses hire additional workers for the November-December holiday season. Well, now is the time to hire…and train those employees. Read Maggie Bayless’ series on staff training in Gourmet Retailer Magazine. The first installment appears in the August issue.
Bayless suggests that this the time to put together a training plan for seasonal employees. To begin, you can answer these questions:
“What is expected of the trainees…and by when?”
“How will that information be made available?”
“How will we know the expectations are met/not met?”
“What are the rewards/consequences?
Read the full article to get the answer to the first question. Start thinking about what skills/tasks the employees will be required to complete. As you make that list, consider what type of skills are represented on your list: for example customer service skills or operational skills. How much product knowledge is needed? It’s probably true that designers need different information than delivery people, but both types of employees might need the same general information about your business.
You can prepare your seasonal employees to be efficient and effective. Start thinking about that now. Watch for future posts describing the full series of Maggie Bayless’ articles.
September 10th, 2010
If you listen to the news or read the newspaper on a regular basis, you are bombarded by problems and crisis: oil spills and accompanying safety issues, displaced workers striking out against former employers and co-workers, nations at war, economic problems, political dissent and more, more, more. As business owners, we need to recognize that these critical situations can affect our workers too and create new challenges the in workplace. As our employees are faced with stressful situations outside of the work situation, they often bring their worries into the workplace and negatively affect the work environment.
As business owners, we can’t solve the world’s problems, or even our employees’ problems, but we can still help our employees and ourselves during these uncertain times. An article that I read in Incentive Magazine describes 10 ways that we can keep our staff motivated and energized while at work.
I especially like the two following suggestions but read the full article for a new look at things you can do to alleviate stress in your organization.
“Hold regular team or staff meetings. Consistent communication and awareness-building are essential. Keep everyone posted on the latest developments and be upfront about the unknowns. ”
“Emphasize the importance of looking after oneself. Provide internal and external resources for health and wellness improvement, with tips for getting proper rest, healthy nutrition, and keeping physically fit.
August 5th, 2010
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