I work with organizations and individuals who want to kick conflict and chaos to the curb - Queen of Conflict Resolution and Communication Coach
Does this sound familiar? 
You have a very successful training. The trainer leaves and your team is back to the status quo and nothing has changed. If so this article is perfect for you. If not I can’t wait to find out what you do to keep the momentum going.
This edition of Communicate with Impact Weekly contains an interview that I took with Beth Crawford, The Sales Director at Troy Auto Glass. I met Beth at a Birmingham Bloomfield Chamber of Commerce meeting. I was mesmerized when she described all the great things that her leadership does at Troy Auto Glass. Troy Auto Glass is a family owned and operated auto glass replacement service center. It has been in business since 1962. They are approved by all the insurance companies and can help facilitate insurance claims. Beth has been an employee at Troy Auto Glass for 32 years.
You will also find the text of the short interview below. Enjoy and let me know about your Super Hero Supervisors.
What keeps Beth there?
Every person in the company is responsible for growing the company from the top down. The owners of the company are here every day and work as hard as everyone else. The entire team gives great service to all of their customers. All of the employees have been there for a long time.
What do leaders do to make employees feel special?
The owners support each one of the employees in their own job function making sure that they are able to do their jobs well. It is an easy place to work. They always have a company luncheon and the owners attend the event. When someone is employed for a specific amount of time they are given a gift or something special that they would want themselves. They are always thinking about the best way to make people feel special. Everyone is treated with respect and all employees know that their job is important.
What happens when an employee or colleague makes a mistake?
Conflict does not happen often with the team. Everyone does a great job from the technicians to the office and the team knows their job well. If someone needs training it is given to them in a caring way. People know that everyone makes mistakes and they are treated with respect when mistakes happen. They are trained so that they don’t repeat the same mistake in the future. Everything is so positive at work.
What would Beth tell a new hire about the company culture?
“We would make sure that the new employee understood what their job entailed so they felt comfortable doing their job. We would concentrate on having the person’s personality fit with our office. We spend more time with people that we work with than with our families. I would tell them that if they had a problem speak to their manager right away. We never want to have a situation where either the manager or employee felt unhappy. Happy employees help a company grow.”
What else did Beth want to share with us about the company?
“I am really proud of our company. We work with customers who have been with us for a long time…even longer than I have been employed at Troy Auto Glass and I have been here for 32 years. We try really hard to give great service to our customers. Every customer has a different situation. Our customers feel the team spirit at our company. We have a lot of competition and customers return because we do more than our competition does with their customers.”
How do you serve the needs of your customers?
“I meet with our customers regularly and ask the following questions:
Car dealers may tell us that their customers need the vehicle faster or at different hours. We listen to this feedback.
When I get a new customer I sit down with them and find out what their requirements are and we meet these requirements such as having the job complete before lunchtime. We enter this information in the computer and we know exactly what we need to do. I find out what they need, how they need it, and what their expectations are to satisfy them. We tell them exactly what we can do for them so that they will not be disappointed or feel deprived in any way.”
How can my loyal readers find out more about Troy Auto Glass?
Click here for the website for Troy Auto Glass. The main phone number is 248.649.3109. Beth Crawford’s direct number is 248.220.1756.
Joyce’s Thoughts
Employee engagement is a topic is very important to me. Once communication barriers are removed, organizations can then concentrate on making employees HAPPY! This is not fluff. This is truly the new work reality. Please sent me what your leaders do to make your colleagues want to come to work. I will include a short survey for you to share with your team in upcoming article. It
will show leaders how people feel about the work place environment.
Want to Use this Article in Your Newsletter or on Your Website?
Of course! You are welcome to print this, and any other articles we send, if you use the following byline:
A recognized expert on Resolving Conflict in the Workplace, Joyce Weiss, M.A., CSP is an author, accountability coach, and a Certified Speaking Professional. To book Joyce to speak at your event or company call: 800.713.1926 or email: Joyce@JoyceWeiss.com. Visit her website at www.JoyceWeiss.com to sign up for your own FREE video series on Resolving Conflict in the Workplace.
Was this helpful?
Please send me any comments that you may have about this article. Hit the link at the end of this post to share your comments. Loyal readers like you help us find more people who could benefit from these posts to reduce conflict at the workplace and home. There may be someone in your life who is feeling stressed out…who could benefit from the inspiration and knowledge on improving their working condition or home life.
Until next time,
This is Joyce Weiss, Conflict Resolution Consultant
I help people become top level leaders who get GREAT results.
I teach them to tackle the tough conversations to build employee engagement, accountability, and rock star performance…The Result? My clients get a better night’s sleep!
Remember…You Get What YOU Tolerate!
Successful teams know that workplace irritations exist…no matter how perfect the team seems to be!
At times I hear leaders tell me that there is NO stress
at their workplace and everyone gets along just fine.
Even successful teams need to listen to all team members to insure that they are heard and understood. There are always issues to discuss since things change constantly. As long as trust is established, discussing workplace conflicts works like magic. They can be small such as having everyone come to meetings on time or cleaning up the kitchen.
A colleague of mine, Marilyn Suttle wrote a wonderful book – Who’s Your Gladys? How to Turn Even the Most Difficult Customer into Your Biggest Fan.
You are in for a GREAT read after you experience Marilyn’s interesting article directly below on Do You Know What’s at the Top of Your Customers’ Irritation Lists?
Enjoy and make sure and check out her website which is at the end of her article.
As part of an experiment, I got out a pad of paper and pen, and walked through each room of my house finding things to add to my irritation list. Anything that bugged me got put on the list. The chipped paint in my dining room, the small rip in the lining of my lamp shade, the disorganized storage area in the basement – no matter how big or small, I wrote it down.
At first, my irritation list was long, and … irritating. Prioritizing and delegation changed all that. After a family meeting, the who, what, and by-when’s were added to the list. (I admit this idea got a cold reception at first, but my husband and son got on board, adding some of their own irritations to the list and negotiating responsibilities.)
One by one, over the next six months, the house shaped up. As the list grew smaller, my energy and enthusiasm skyrocketed.
Consider what might happen if you were to create a customer irritation list at your place of business. It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day running of your business and lose sight of the irritations that ultimately undermine your success.
It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day running of your business and lose sight of the small things that ultimately undermine your success.
Do you know what’s at the top of your customers irritation lists? Over time, those irritations may be the deciding factor that pushes customers toward your competitor.
Points to help you break through irritations:
Enjoy the results!
What do you think? What workplace irritations are you committed to eliminating?
2012 Copyright Marilyn Suttle
Marilyn Suttle is the coauthor of Who’s Your Gladys? How to Turn Even the Most Difficult Customer into Your Biggest Fan. Marilyn travels internationally to deliver service excellence keynotes and workshops. Marilyn inspires her clients to excel by creating strong, productive relationships in every area of life. She specializes in creating “Suttle Shifts” in the way people think and act to produce massive results. When you need a keynote speaker or success coach, Marilyn can be reached at (248) 348-1023, marilyn@marilynsuttle.com or visit www.whosyourgladys.com
To access additional free customer service resources – including blog articles and video tips – visit www.whosyourgladys.com
I will be including several guest authors to contribute their articles on my Bold Solutions Blog.
Let me know how you enjoy their words of wisdom.
If you want more information on this subject make sure and check out my post on How to Create Strong Teams.
Let us hear what workshop issues drive you crazy.
Share your thoughts in the comment section below.Until Next Time
This is Joyce Weiss, Conflict Resolution Consultant
and Remember…YOU GET WHAT YOU TOLERATE!
Check out Someecard.com for creative cards.
Many of my clients belong to professional associations, chambers of commerce and convention and visitor’s bureaus (CVB). They constantly tell me how valuable these relationships have become for their own professional development. They have acquired business as a result of their membership.
My question to you is…Are you going to your own networking events?
I realize that we receive more invitations to these functions than we realistically have time to attend. Yet…are you accepting at least some of the invitations?
We all hear about doom and gloom concerning the economy, business, etc. It seems like the doom and gloom magically disappears when I attend functions that attract people who know how to network and look for opportunities.
I accepted an invitation from the Greater Lansing Convention and Visitors Bureau’s (GLCVB) Member Holiday Event. They invited their members to host a FREE booth for the event. They also invited members who could possibly do business with the members hosting their booths. The GLCVB always holds these events in classy venues and supply all of us with gourmet food and wonderful music. The events are always First Class.
The most important thing about these Holiday Events is that the entire staff of the Greater Lansing Convention & Visitor’s Bureau is warm, thrilled that we are there, and do what they can to introduce us to other members! Take a look at your own organization and decide how you can invite your members or clients to a joint meeting. Your members/clients will sing your praises when they feel appreciated. Thanks to all the FINE people at the GLCVB for an incredible day. I saw former clients, met prospects that can use my training services and most important…networked with people who are positive and want to help each other grow their business. Was this helpful? Let us hear your thoughts in the comments below. Feel free to share this post with your team – just be sure to give Joyce credit when you share or publish. Sign up at the RSS feed on the blog site to be included in future blog posts from Joyce Weiss on this subject. Until Next Time! 🙂
Thanks to Tom Borg for his great ideas. You can reach Tom at www.TomBorgConsulting.com
Next time you find yourself listening to a complaint, remember these 4 R’s:
Respect, Rapport, Relate, Resolve
These tips will help you with stress reduction during those tough times with customers. It will also resolve conflict and interpersonal issues.
You can use this tip during your training on assertive communication as a listening skills exercise.
Was this helpful? Let us hear from you – share your thoughts in the comment section below.
Feel free to share these tips with your team – Just be sure to give Tom Borg credit when you share or publish.
Sign up at the RSS feed to be included in future blog posts from Joyce on this subject.
For more info, articles and, pod casts visit: https://www.joyceweiss.com
