Tag: books

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Engagement Marketing

“Fun Works” (Really!)

If you’re interested in creating and maintaining a positive corporate culture, check out the 2nd edition (updated & expanded) of Fun Works: Creating Places Where People Love to Work by Leslie Yerkes.

Her book lays the foundation for the “fusion” of play and work. She showcases companies that consciously chose to integrate fun into their corporate culture, but it’s not an add-on or forced “let’s-take-a-break-and-play-a-game” type of fun ala The Office. According to Yerkes, “I don’t want to be put in charge of fun. That makes it a job and that would not be fun.”

Yerkes explores how different companies integrate fun into their normal course of business, creating positive experiences for employees and customers, to illustrate “there’s no right or wrong way to engage in serious fun.” She shares what she calls “Principles of Fun/Work Fusion” and the resulting benefits that include:

  • reduced employee absenteeism and better retention
  • a buffer for stress and potential burnout
  • enhanced employee commitment
  • stimulation of creativity & innovation
  • positive impact on productivity.

From my work in internal marketing, I’m familiar with the power of a corporate culture that encourages a sense of humor and appropriate play in the workplace. I found Fun Works a good reinforcement.

Trying to deal with my own workload pressures, I found this book a great reminder that I need to adjust my own Puritan Work Ethic (i.e., work first, play later) to achieve a better balance. (Maybe I need to take a break and catch up on my favorite cartoons … )

Categories
Marketing

Nonprofit Marketing Book Special Offer

I shared my post about Robin Hood Marketing with its author, Katya Andresen, and she graciously offered a free copy of the book to one of my blog readers.

I’m happy to give this book to the first person who requests it by writing a comment on this post. Just be sure to include your mailing address so I can forward it to Katya. Note: I’ll omit your address before I publish your comment.

Thanks, Katya!

Categories
Engagement

Workplace Jerks

My last post shared an e-mail from a friend about a bad boss. Another associate told me about her experience with a previous employer – one manager there was so bad the staff created its own nickname for this person: TW (short for “train wreck”).

Unfortunately, workplace jerks abound. And they can be found in management as well as in the rank-and-file. A recent article in the McKinsey Quarterly on “Building the Civilized Workplace” describes the fallout from these jerks:

“Companies that put up with the jerks not only can have more difficult recruiting and retaining the best and brightest talent but are also prone to higher client churn, damaged reputations, and diminished investor confidence.”

The author of this article, Robert Sutton, has a new book out on this subject, The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t.

Sounds like great reading for my friends.

Categories
Engagement Marketing

“The Power of Acknowledgment” – Myth-ing in Action

In my internal marketing workshops, I sometimes joke about positive reinforcement in the workplace being a lack of negative reinforcement. In other words, if you didn’t get your hand slapped at work today for doing something wrong, you might have done a good job. But how would you know when management holds back with its compliments and “atta boys?”

In her book, The Power of Acknowledgment, Judith Umlas explains why some managers are likely to withhold praise, and she effectively counters these ‘myths’ of acknowledgment.

Myth: If you praise people too often, it won’t mean as much

The law of diminishing returns does not apply to praise that is genuine and heartfelt. According to Umlas, “Imagine that your spouse or partner tells you every day with absolute sincerity how wonderful and incredible you are. Does that make you appreciate this deeply felt acknowledgment any less?”

Myth: If you tell people how good they are, they might not work as hard

Acknowledging people’s efforts will not take away their motivation to be better. “Acknowledgment and striving go together. When people feel validated through acknowledgment … they will go to great lengths … to get the job done the best they possibly can.”

Myth: A compliment given infrequently will be more valued

An acknowledgment means a great deal, especially when it comes from a manager who rarely gives praise. Umlas considers this from the employee’s perspective: “But what about all the time I spent worrying about … whether I’m doing a good enough job? … My concerns would be alleviated … and my performance might actually be improved if [managers] let me know on a more regular basis what they see as my worth and contribution to the organization.”

I’ve highlighted just the workplace-related excerpts from The Power of Acknowledgment. Umlas’ book provides a quick and easy read to help people harness this power in all their relationships.

Categories
Engagement Marketing

“Firms of Endearment” Already a Best-Seller

As I predicted, the new book Firms of Endearment is becoming a best-seller. [2014 Note: This book is in its second edition.]

I heard recently from one of its authors, David Wolfe, that the book is entering its second printing – just a few months after its initial release.

I cite some of the book’s findings in my forthcoming book on internal marketing, Taking Care of the People Who Matter Most: A Guide to Employee-Customer Care. But don’t wait for my book to read about the power of “Firms of Endearment.” Get it while it’s hot … it’s a great book to read and will be a great addition to your business library.

Categories
Engagement Marketing

My Publisher Won’t Let Me Get a Lobotomy & Other Lessons in Finishing a Book When Life Gets in the Way

Knowing I was under a great deal of stress, Yvonne DiVita, my publisher at WME Books, asked me if I needed anything. I jokingly responded: “How about a lobotomy?” (She said no way.)

We’ve been working closely together these past few months getting ready to release my book on internal marketing, Taking Care of the People Who Matter Most: A Guide to Employee-Customer Care. We’re in the editing phase, and it’s taken a bit longer than anticipated due to some scheduling conflicts. More recently, however, my availability has been limited due to serious family health concerns.

“It’s a hard knock life”

I’ve needed time in the past few months to be with my 82 year-old mother who was diagnosed with cancer. There have been various doctor appointments, major surgery, and soon she’ll start radiation treatments. My mother lives out-of-town (fortunately, I’m less than 90 minutes away) and when I can’t be with her, we rely on the support of “extended family” (i.e., wonderful friends and neighbors) in addition to our devoted relatives.

It’s been quite a juggling act, especially since I also want to spend as much time as possible with my brother, who is also battling cancer.

“Lean on me”

Throughout this ordeal, I’ve come to appreciate the tremendous support & encouragement offered by my friends, colleagues and clients. Since this is my first time working with a publisher, I’ve also learned that my publisher’s role goes beyond book development, production and promotion to include being coach, cheerleader and surrogate counselor. I don’t know if this holds true for all publishers; I feel extremely fortunate that empathy and extra hand-holding are part of Yvonne’s job description.

I’ve also learned to not worry about the “right” time for my book to be released – I was concerned that if the book wasn’t ready by early spring, we should avoid summer (peak season for more beach-reading than business-reading) and wait until fall to get it out. But being reminded how precious and short life is, it doesn’t make sense to hold it up. So I’m moving ahead with my book – allowing for family time as needed – and it will be released as soon as it’s ready.

Watch for the announcement of my book here. Your patience is appreciated.

Categories
Engagement Marketing

My Book & the Perfect Title

Finally! I found a title for my internal marketing book as it nears publication.

Why the excitement? Because I’ve been wrestling with the title for quite a while. (I had the book’s concept in place long before the title.)

Any business professional who’s written a book about her/his life’s work knows the mixed blessing involved in such an endeavor. If business is good, you don’t have time to write. It’s much easier to focus on the book when business is slow, which is also when you need to spend time filling the project pipeline.

Truth is I’ve been able to balance my time between serving clients and writing the book. Much of my procrastination is due to my search for the “perfect title.” I struggled with it while minding the sage advice of several mentors:

  • don’t use “internal marketing” in the title since it’s not a universally recognized concept
  • find a clever, sexy title that will help sell the book
  • forget clever … just keep it simple so people know what the book is about.

In the meantime, I worked on developing and expanding meaningful content while trying out various “working” titles on my clients, colleagues, mentors, friends and family (with my husband’s “Just finish the damn book already!” echoing in my ear).

Here it is (drum roll) … my book on internal marketing & communications, to be released this year by WME Books is: Taking Care of the People Who Matter Most: A Guide to Employee-Customer Care.

It captures the essence of internal marketing: taking care of employees so they can take care of customers. Both employees and customers matter to organizations, and both need attention. Employees are people, too; yet they’re sometimes treated poorly in the workplace. Ditto for consumers in the marketplace.

So I finally have a working title that I love (thanks to all who’ve put up with me as I cleared that hurdle), and my manuscript is being edited. Now what?

As I’m learning from my publisher, Yvonne DiVita, my book journey is only beginning. Stay tuned …

Categories
Engagement Marketing

A Must Read: “Firms of Endearment”

I predict a business best seller for a book that’s being released this month: Firms of Endearment: How World-Class Companies Profit from Passion and Purpose. It’s about how successful companies focus on ALL their stakeholders, not just shareholders. [2014 Update: This book is now in its second edition.]

Given my internal marketing bias, I’m thrilled with any book that encourages companies to pay more attention to their employees. But Firms of Endearment goes even further as it advocates appropriate attention to all of a firm’s stakeholders: its customers, employees, partners/suppliers, investors, and the community-at-large/society. I also love the examples of how these companies do this profitably in spite of Wall Street’s short-term focus.

The research process used to identify “Firms of Endearment” (FoE) was opposite of the Good to Great approach. Instead of starting with financial performance and working backwards to find common corporate practices as with “Good to Great” companies, FoE authors began by identifying companies that people love. These companies were then screened for their performance in serving each stakeholder constituency, followed by an investor analysis on the publicly-traded companies.

The book explores the answer to the question:

“How is it that these companies can be so generous to everyone who costs them money (customers, employees, suppliers, communities) and still deliver superior (some would say spectacular) returns to investors?”

I’m adding the book to my “recommended reading” list that I handout in my training workshops and, of course, my “Good Reads” blog roll.

Happy reading!

Categories
Musings

Holiday Stuffing

I just finished reading Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think by marketing professor Brian Wansink. The book is timely because during the extended holiday season of Thanksgiving, Christmas & New Year’s I find it difficult to manage my food impulses – especially when there are so many wonderful treats available. (Ditto for the time between New Year’s, the Super Bowl game & Valentine’s Day … as well as any time throughout the calendar year. And so I joke about being “upscale” instead of overweight.)

Besides being a great book – it’s thought-provoking and a fun read – Mindless Eating contains interesting insight on food marketing: like how our dining experience is influenced by our emotional expectations beyond the sensory ones of sight, smell, taste, and touch.

Wine from where?

My favorite example involves the presentation of the same wine, but with different labels (one from California and one from North Dakota) to two groups of consumers in a fine dining situation. The diners’ evaluation of their meals (both groups were given the same food) was predictable. What was surprising, however, was the difference in the amount of food consumed by each group.

The best diet isn’t one

Wansink advocates “the best diet is the one you don’t know you’re on.” So my challenge is to be more aware of my mindless consumption and actually do something about it; i.e., take steps to minimize my tendency to consume more food than is needed or wanted regardless of whether I’m hungry.

Mindless Eating, with its companion website is a good start. And it may just kick-start that number one New Year’s resolution that most of us make each year.

Categories
Marketing

“The Golden Thread” & Storytelling Magic

Lots of nonprofit and for-profit marketers are extolling the virtues of storytelling.

 

As Trish Lambert writes in her blog:

 

“Stories work.  They always have and they always will.  Whether you are trying to teach someone something better or sell someone something, stories will get the point made better than any other form of communication at your disposal.”

I’m privileged to know a professional storyteller, Susan Danoff, founder & Executive Director of Storytelling Arts, Inc.  And with all the interest in storytelling these days, I wanted to tell you about her latest book, The Golden Thread: Storytelling in Teaching and Learning.

In full disclosure, Susan and I are childhood friends who’ve stayed in touch.  I became familiar with her work with Storytelling Arts about a year ago when I wrote a nonprofit marketing case study on her organization.

Not for teachers only

While the book is targeted to traditional educators, it’s also a great resource for business professionals.  I don’t work in a K-12 classroom; my “teaching” occurs in professional development workshops & seminars for corporate and nonprofit managers.  Yet I found Susan’s book engaging and relevant, particularly the section “On Becoming a Storyteller” and the sources cited.

The Golden Thread explores the experience and profound impact that storytellers have on children, including those with special needs – strengthening their literacy skills and increasing their motivation for learning.  The magic and power of storytelling is enhanced with traditional and original folktales woven throughout the book.  And I highly recommend it for both educational and business professionals.