Complaining about the lack of resources is utterly useless and here’s why. I am yet to meet an organization that has too many amazing people, too much money or too many great ideas, knowledge, technology…and so on. That doesn’t exist, accept it, internalize it and move forward. Instead of complaining, act on delivering value to the entire organization and making …
A taste of your own medicine
A taste of your own medicine is just what one may need at times. I say this with respect to the experience your clients go through with your services or products. Use your services, call your IT Service Desk (aka. Help Desk) and use your products in your daily life as that will clearly show you what your customers are …
Overwhelmed? Breathe and move one step at a time
24 hours in a day don’t seem like enough for most folks nowadays. We have families, friends, businesses, schools, hobbies, sports…to attend to and they are all competing for our time and attention. At times, this can be stress inducing and result in feeling overwhelmed, feeling like you can’t get anything done. Well, when you feel this way (ideally BEFORE …
Customer service: How to answer a phone
How should one answer the phone? Besides saying “hello” and being polite, it is essential to embody to quality you want your customers to experience in everything you do, even when answering calls. Once you have answered the phone, focus all of your attention on that client, don’t do other things and don’t put them on hold (unless you really …
Leaders protect people and make them feel safe
One of many responsibilities of leaders is to protect their staff and make them feel safe, comfortable and welcome at work. Besides being the right thing to do, you want your employees to be productive and to come back tomorrow and as such it is on you to provide a welcoming and supportive environment.
Build a great team, they are your reflection
The quality of your team, their performance and contributions are directly related to you as a leader. In a sense, they are a reflection of you. You set standards, expectations and instill values across your team and as such you need to use caution in the initial selection process. Furthermore, you need to provide them resources they need to be …
Push your employees over the edge then be there to catch them
Push your employees “off the edge” and be there to help them land safely. Get them out of their comfort zone and enable their growth, advancement and provide them with opportunities. At times, you will come across folks who lack confidence and belief in their abilities and it is on you as a leader to find a way to reinvigorate …
Why you should market IT services
Marketing your services and products is essential in order to make sales, increase revenue, make your payroll and ultimately survive. Having that in mind, why is it that IT leadership frequently believes (or certainly acts that way) that their services shouldn’t be marketed across their organizations and beyond? Why do they believe that others will just magically become aware of …
Job interviews 101: Be honest and tell the truth
Job interviews pro tip: always tell the truth! It’s that simple. When you are telling the truth you don’t have to make anything up or recollect what you said during your phone interview or wrote on your application. The truth is always the same and it doesn’t change. Honesty would provide for an open communication and will facilitate finding the …
Share the spotlight
Share opportunities with your team and empower your staff to get actively involved at the highest strategic levels. This exposure and recognition at the executive level will enable people to have a better understanding of the strategic priorities and realign themselves with that in mind. Furthermore, don’t keep all strategic, leadership projects and responsibilities for yourself, but rather share them …