The greatest conference I’ve ever attended

This week on CBS Radio I spoke about the best conference I have ever attended. Lots of great ideas. Please listen below.

Creative ways to increase customer loyalty

One UK retailer I visited has a great way to build loyalty–and help homeless pets at the same time. This week’s segment on CBS Radio. Please listen below.

The Best Solution to Employee Theft

This week I spoke with CBS Radio about stemming employee theft. The answer: Ensuring the right people are in the right jobs. And that starts with asking the right questions. Please listen below.

When tragedies bring out the best in business and people

A segment wherein we discuss how companies have stepped up to help the those affected by the Boston Marathon bombing by donating millions to The One Fund. Listen after the jump.

Chester on Studio 4

I appeared this week on Shaw TV in Canada speaking about employee engagement and culture. Please watch below.

Hiring People Who are Better than You

This week on CBS Radio, I highlight Grain Audio and the ingenious way their senior leader highlights his craftsmen. Visit Grain Audio for more details. And please listen below to the interview.

Does Your Manager Suck? It Might Not be a Bad Thing

Two managers I’ve been working with lately were described to me as “sucking,” and the meaning was very different. Of the first leader, a team member described him in glowing terms, “He literally sucks the creativity out of you. He demands you give him your best ideas, absolutely demands it, and he’s willing to try [...]

Taking Care of the Little Things

This week’s segment on CBS Radio, about how some organizations differentiate themselves with a focus on the little things. Please listen below.

Customer Service Wows

This week I spoke with KNX Radio in Los Angeles about how some companies are wowing through customer service. Please listen below.

Empower your employees to make decisions

Yesterday I sat down with Jim Blasingame to talk about how the little things make a big difference. These days customers are looking for differentiation and that the “small things” are what make your business relevant, not just competitive, to customers. Listen below.

Getting your sales team ‘All In’

This week on CBS Radio I share a great idea from the sales team at Sun Life Financial. Please listen below.

CPK is All In

I saw a great idea at the HQ of California Pizza Kitchen. Employees sign the wall saying they are “all in” with the company’s new Purpose, Brand and Guest Experience. Standing next to the wall is Jim Rich, vice president of operations services, who believes one of his managers most important roles is to “give [...]

Get ideas out of their pockets

In our travels we find very few innovative companies. It is rare indeed to come upon an entire organization brimming with the determination and courage to break new ground. No, what we do find—every where we go— are pockets of innovation. Every company we come upon has those departments, branches, or teams that have found [...]

Post-Election Blues? How to Deal with Frustration

Here in America it’s the day after a presidential election. And that means almost 50 percent of voters woke up frustrated and worried about the future. People tend to forget that this happens to half the country every four years. If our candidate doesn’t win we grumble, panic, and threaten to move to Canada. Remember, [...]

Playing 9 to 5

I was on Huffington Post Live today talking about having more fun at work. It’s worth a watch.

With Comedy There’s Creativity

Trying to develop a new product or process? Are you looking for a solution to a particularly vexing problem? Is your company working on a new marketing or communication campaign? The work world isn’t suffering from a dearth of boring brainstorming sessions, especially when just a spoonful of fun can spur the kind of breakout [...]

Are you sharing your best ideas? Why not?

Why does it seem that we are asking leaders to pull out their own teeth when we encourage sharing of ideas between different branches, locations, or departments of the same company? We often visit a retail chain, for instance, where store managers in Seattle do not communicate what’s working because they feel as if they [...]

Great Moments in Sportsmanship from the Olympics

I don’t get misty eyed during the Olympic medal ceremonies. And while it’s fun to watch great athletic performances, I won’t remember all the winners. What will I remember from the London 2012 Games? The moments of sportsmanship. Here are a few moments that stood out to me: Kirani James of Grenada winning his semi-final [...]

Fish Head Soup

A few years ago I had a speaking engagement in Singapore so I took my family. As we walked through a small market we came to a vendor selling something that to the locals must have seemed as common as a bowl of Ramen Noodles. Black uppercase letters proclaimed: “Fish Head Soup: 5 USD.” My [...]

It Was a Win-Win Knowing Him

We lost a management icon yesterday when Stephen R. Covey, author of “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” passed away. He was a hero of ours. I saw Stephen R. present for the first time when I was in my early twenties. He had been asked to give a presentation to a magazine I [...]