Posted on Wed, Aug 11, 2010 @ 12:18 PM
In today’s day in age, everyone is always so busy. Whether we are too busy to organize our kitchen cupboards, too busy to take that additional educational course, or too busy to learn something new... No matter what the reason may be, we all feel we are just too busy to consider adding anything new onto our plates.
I know myself, I have come across many of these “I’m too busy” reasons in my own life and it really makes you think, why are we always too busy to spend time on something that will help us in the future? For example, it’s hard to register for that online course to help you further your education and gain experience which could help you further your career. I know I always hear this same reason when working with customers as well, we’re too busy to learn about a new tool which could ultimately help save us time and money in the long run.
So what do we do to address this? One of the things we have been working through in our office is the implementation of time management best practices, and did you know they actually work!?! The trick is repetition, repetition, REPETITION!
A few of the best practices that have worked for me:
Plan your day – I actually have blocked out in my calendar specific segments of time for each task, and if you get off track, you know at least what you missed and it is very easy to reschedule.
Touch it Once – If you’re like most people today, you normally receive hundreds of emails a week and sometimes that can take you and entire day to get through your email. The ‘Touch it Once’ rule implies that you only read an email when you are ready to deal with it. I even go one step further and file or delete the email once I have dealt with it.
Top 6 Priorities – at the end of each day, plan the top 6 deliverables which you are going to accomplish for the next day and actually write them down. It also helps if you include devoted space in your calendar to accomplish these top 6 priorities.
These are just some of the best practices that work for me, give them a try for yourself but as I said, the trick is repetition.
Tara Holdbrook, Sales Consultant
Posted on Tue, Jun 22, 2010 @ 12:25 PM
I recently had the privilege of attending the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators annual conference held in beautiful Toronto, Ontario. This three day action packed conference was built around their theme "Seizing Opportunities - Action through Leadership" it featured over 300 delegates, 14 sponsors, and 35 exhibitors (including us of course). It was a wonderful opportunity for us to network with all the delegates and to sit in on some of their stimulating sessions.
Throughout the conference there were inspirational keynote speakers, however one got our attention as soon as we read the session title "Woman Are Always Right! Men Are Never Wrong - Gender Differences in the Workplace" presented by James and Kelly Robbins. This husband and wife speaking duo were incredible, their session covered everything from helping organizations increase workplace productivity, building stronger relationships between co-workers, and creating a better workplace environment. We also had the opportunity to attend the Hockey Hall of Fame in downtown Toronto. It is a fabulous venue and is home to the legendary Stanley Cup. While we browsed hockey history we got to practice our hockey shots and goalie techniques.
Overall the conference was delightful and very well organized and we look forward to seeing all the CAMA members in Halifax NS next year!
Nicky Plato, Marketing Coordinator
Posted on Wed, May 05, 2010 @ 11:06 AM
April 14, 2010
Today, iCompass officially launched the details of a bold and company-wide 2010 customer commitment, called Grand Slam Service.
"Our number one priority in 2010 is to take our customer service to a whole new level, and in doing so, WOW our customers in every way possible," said Todd Stone, iCompass President & CEO. "This delivery of unequalled customer service means first class acknowledgement and responsiveness. It means consistency of performance and meeting deadlines/expectations. It means constant communication and products tailored to your needs. It means being as easy to do business with as possible," added Stone.
Two important ingredients in delivering success on all of the above are clarity and being specific. Therefore, iCompass has delivered to each of its customers a document called "Grand Slam Service" which details 20 specific commitments that the company is making to all of its customers through 2010.
"Many of these specific commitments require significant investments, new behaviours, and new business best practices," said Stone. "I am pleased to report that through the first 90 days of 2010, we have delivered on 80% of these commitments. For example, we have increased our customer service staffing levels by over 40%; we are responding to incoming requests/inquiries within 10 minutes of our Customer Advocacy Team receiving them; customer calls are now answered by a person 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; we have extended our Customer Advocacy office hours to 5 AM to 6 PM (Pacific); and we have taken great strides at improving our implementation procedures, documentation and self-help tools," added Stone.
"While it has been a busy first quarter, we have many more exciting initiatives to come through 2010 so stay tuned for a continual stream of innovations and improvements in service," said Stone. "On behalf of the entire iCompass team, we thank our customers for all of their loyalty and support over the years," added Stone.
Todd Stone
President & CEO
Posted on Fri, Sep 04, 2009 @ 12:47 PM
Too much change can throw anyone for a loop. It can also impact performance in a positive manner or a negative manner. Sometimes change is necessary for businesses to achieve the level of success they have always dreamed of. There are some simple steps you can follow to help manage change in your organization.
- Ensure your work environment fosters trust. Be open about the changes that are taken place and the consequences both positive and negative that will take place. Open lines of communication are a must in order for everyone to have a stake in the change.
- Link the change to your corporate culture and ensure that it is in line with your values and strategic direction. This will ensure buy-in from your employees as they will see the benefit to the company.
- Explain to your workforce why this change is necessary and why you must go ahead with the planned change. Ensure you have facts and reasoning behind your reasons and that they are clearly pointed out for your staff.
Encourage employees to give feedback and suggestions regarding the change and how you could make the change more effective.
- The leader for the change must ensure that all employees receive the support they need. Some may require additional training, while you may want to reward other positive behavior. You also may be required to remove those who are a negative influence in your change efforts.
- Be consistent with your change and continually monitor the
change efforts and process to ensure you are on track.
Photos:
powerbooktrance
Mykl Roventine
terren in Virginia's
