Blog
Training Alone Does Not Create Change
Most companies do not invest in training because they want more training. They invest in training because they want something in the business to change. They want revenue to increase. They want expenses to decrease. They want employees to perform better. They want...
Rework: A Critical measure of Service Quality
In every successful service organization, rework serves as an important indicator of operational effectiveness and customer satisfaction. While often viewed simply as a cost of doing business, rework is actually a valuable measurement of service quality that provides...
A Message for Canada Day
I received this from my Best Man Terry Pascale. "We are often called “the elderly,” but that quiet label hides a truth most people rarely pause to consider we are the last living witnesses of a world that no longer exists. If you look closely, you might notice gray...
Where’s “The Number?”
I once started at a large urban dealership. Within my first two weeks, I noticed a daily pattern. The general manager would walk into the service lane and ask the same question: “Where’s the number? Where are we at? Where’s the number?” Every day. Production. Gross....
Sales Performance is a Data Problem, not an Effort Problem
“In God we trust. All others bring data.” (W. Edwards Deming) Ask a veteran salesperson to see their black book. The worn pages. The names are called for fifteen years. The dozen accounts they trust. It is a remarkable thing, and it is also the whole problem. We send...
Lifelong Learning Is Here to Stay
As many of you know, Socrates has long served as our logo. Socrates is remembered for his devotion to ethics, human behavior, and the care of the soul. Rather than lecturing, he professed uncertainty and pursued wisdom by questioning the assumptions of others. He...
Market share is the most comforting number you can’t actually move
“In God we trust. All others bring data.” (W. Edwards Deming) Here’s how it works today. The share chart goes up at the quarterly review. If it ticked up, everyone relaxes. If it ticked down, someone gets a talking-to. Either way, the meeting ends without a single...
Your Best Rep is Knocking on the Wrong Doors
“In God we trust. All others bring data.” (W. Edwards Deming) Picture your best salesman. He works on a black book, the names he has called for years, the dozen accounts he trusts, and he fills the rest of the week with instinct. Nobody is loafing. The effort is...
Respect: The Practice Behind the Principle
A Paper by C. Lustgarten in the Shingo Institute It’s a well-known paradox that meaningful change requires confronting difficult truths. Josh McEwan, Director of Manufacturing Product Development at O.C. Tanner, meets this idea head-on. “There is a lack of good...