(This article first appeared on Forbes.com here.) “Never heard back on that.” “They never took serious action on my recommendation.” “Sure would like to have a seat at the table when that discussion comes up next time!” All of these are common laments from those who’ve had their day in front of C-suite decision makers—and [...]
(This article originally appeared here on Forbes on May 19, 2018.) When it comes to commitments, there are two kinds of people in the marketplace: Those who keep commitments as if their life depended on it—and those who break them as easily as crystal. By definition, integrity means soundness, sincerity, truthfulness, coherence, honesty, of good [...]
Answering your phone can be a dicey experience these days. Having some off-beat, unhelpful caller waste your time—or worse, insult you—can spoil a good day. If you have a sinking feeling some of your salespeople may be making such critical mistakes (or heaven forbid, you yourself have tried these call openers), pass on this warning: [...]
These two recent customer service experiences are all too common: Scenario 1—Failure to Follow-Through: To ask a question about my life insurance policy, I called the two agents who sold it to me. (Their names are listed on the statement the company mails to me quarterly.) I discovered that Joe retired 8 years ago; Helen, [...]
Recently, I called a property-tax reduction firm about protesting my property taxes. The form downloaded from their website requires homeowners to list renovations done on their home, along with accompanying photos and receipts. I was puzzled. Didn’t renovations INCREASE rather than decrease the value of a home? How would knowing about renovations help the firm [...]
(My column first appeared on Forbes here.) Communicating technical concepts to another technical person requires focus and discipline. Add to this picture other complexities in cross-gender communication. Then scratch below the surface, and you’ll understand why you’re in a difficult situation: A technical communicator won’t let you off the hook with vague generalities. A technical [...]
