By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD A few days ago, I casually entered the conversation with some friends; they were talking about chess. One gave me a sideways glance, “You play?” It was stated as a question, but an underlying astonishment was imbedded. I nodded affirmatively. “Any good?” came the follow-up query. Good is a relative […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD In my office is an evocative black and white aerial photo of my grandfather’s chicken farm, circa 1960. Grandpa and Dad ran the farm, along with a revolving assortment of hired help. The farm consisted of five barns, in two interconnected groups. Together they accommodated 15,000 hens. Four buildings housed […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Does your organization make customer service a priority? I expect that it does. In fact, I suspect that the phrase “customer service” is found somewhere in your mission or vision statement, etched on a wall plaque, proclaimed in your marketing material, and oft orated by upper management. However, as is […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD I’ve come to the realization that I tend to put off buying things. It’s not because I procrastinate (at least not too much), or because I am adverse to making decisions, or even because it is a money issue. Sadly, the reason that I often avoid purchasing things I want […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD What is your self-service strategy? Is it in-place and fully functional? Perhaps it’s moving forward, slowly but surely. Conversely, you may still be contemplating what your self-service offerings should be – if any at all. If you do make available self-service to your clients or their customers, is it used […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD A reader complained about our content in the May issue. In fact, he was downright mad over our coverage promoting outsourcing call centers. The ironic thing is that this reader actually works for an outsourcing call center! Yes, they go by a different label, but they are, by definition, an […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Two decades ago, as a first-time manager, I was green and had much to learn. Management had looked easy when viewed from the outside. Many times had I assured myself that, given the opportunity to lead, I would never make the same seemingly dim-witted, hasty, or unwise blunders that I […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD Hello, my name is Peter and I’m…a perfectionist. Yes, I can now openly admit it, I am a perfectionist. I have amassed decades of experience fine-tuning my craft and learning more about it. Perfection, has many advantages but it has a dark side, too. Over the years, I have learned […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD One of the assignments I enjoyed most in college was analyzing case studies. I was, and continue to be, fascinated with learning what founders and their companies have done – both right and wrong. While the success stories are the more exciting and inspirational, it is the failures and missteps […]
By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD It seems that seldom a week goes by when I don’t receive a call from someone wanting to interview me. Sometimes it is a local newspaper, other times a specialty magazine. I was quite unnerved at my first interview request. I envisioned it being a hard-hitting, muckraking interrogation, intent on […]