Not Your Father's Company Picnic

"I would like to thank you for showing us that management indeed cares about all the employees and how hard work and dedication is truly the key to a successful organization. It was a wonderful opportunity for FSO employees in the same region to get to know each other and recognize the diversity."

Good Morning Folks,

While most companies in this economy are cutting out or cutting back and having pot luck summer supper get togethers in their parking lots, while only top executives and sales stars jet off to golf outings in fancy resorts, FSO (where business never is conducted as usual) believes that our people make the difference. Therefore there is nothing more important than recognizing their achievements and celebrating our success as a family.

So for our second half kick-off and (re)IMAGINATION of the summer picnic as usual, we took to sea, chartering a cruise for a sunset toast around the isle of Manhattan. And we took the whole gang aboard. This was a great expression of gratitute for our site leaders! :) We rocked the boat which is a great metaphor for what we do every day in the field. When was the last time you treated your employees like this?

Wrote one of many employees to me in a post-event thank you, "I would like to thank you for hosting such a wonderful event. It was a wonderful opportunity for FSO employees in the same region to get to know each other and recognize the diversity that the company offers. I would especially like to thank Christine for showing us that management indeed cares about all the employees how hard work and dedication is truly the key to a successful organization."

Said another, "First I would like to thank you for the wonderful boat cruise and I had a great time. I also want to say thank you for allowing me to represent FSO under your leadership. I'm amazed watching the growth of this company and the environment that's created for us makes me feel blessed. It's been a little over a year since joining FSO and I was with Deloitte at the time. Deloitte is a great company and people had asked me why would you leave a company like Deloitte and my response was I missed the passion and energy working with the both of you prior with the other company. I just want to say I'm proud to work for FSO and happy with the training and leadership from Don Adams & Neal Michael. Thanks for everything and I will continue to inspire my team and develop."

So people also ask me what ever in the world brought you out of retirement to deal with the stress of building a business especially in these times? And the answer is that I live in service to others. My approach to employee care and inclusion will be my leadership legacy.

I'm just a kid from Queens, New York – the product of a broken family and the school of hard knocks. I had no expectations of anything being handed to me; I stood to inherit nothing from my parents. Everything I earned came from working “100 jobs at once” – parking cars, serving Baskin Robbins, and pursuing my own future with a relentless passion that drives me today. I’ve built it all from scratch, passion, belief and drive with people who share those traits and want to bring success to life.

My legacy is to pay it forward so people who show up with FIRE>>SKIP>> and TWINKLE... can have the same opportunities I had against all odds, coming from challenging circumstances. It's nights like these, emails like those above, that provide a greater sense of purpose and fulfillment that no amount of money can buy. To see others grow and prosper is the greatest of gifts I can give myself.

I tell my managers: "Leadership is teaching. Leadership is caring. Leadership is giving. Your employees are great. Use them. Teach them. Lead them. Love them. We don't have to do it alone. Show them the love all day every day. They want us to lead them to greatness. Never can be too busy too not have time to think about them and find new talent. Think of all the great people we or I have found this year and beyond. Where would we be without them.Maybe they have friends we can hire hire. Make your leadership skills come alive."

I could go on and on, but the pictures of our event that follow tell a story more powerful than even ten thousand words could. The sky's not the limit because the universe is infinite… but because YOU keep raising the bar!!! (As the saying goes "don't tell me the sky's the limits when there are already footsteps on the moon!" That's the FSO way of thinking. lol)

FSO USA!

Welcome to the FSO Summer Launch

Celebrating as we pass Statue of Liberty

Strike  pose!

Time to enjoy each other's company

Everyone traveled from afar to join the party

Mitch & his ladies (Crystal, Mitch, Denise and Hope)

Smile and laughter all around

See even more photographs on our Facebook page.

I've seen other workers out there – overlooked, ignored, forgotten in the decades-long transformation of Corporate American. They’re the hourly workers who work in traditional, corporate-run catacomb-like mailrooms of the workplace. Their tasks are vital to business, yet their faces are a blur to patrons and higher-ups.

Once upon a time, any job could be the launch pad for a savvy, bright worker’s rise through the ranks. No longer. Today, these workers are anonymous to many, and often fated to stay that way. 

I will always be that guy in the space who cares enough to take care of the hourly employee from the middle manager down. And that's why our company meeting will never be your father's tired old company picnic.

It was great seeing everyone in NYC! What an incredible and memorable sail! FSO rocked the boat and now we head into the field to rock the competition. 

Thanks to our employees for all you do for us, and to our clients for all you award us the privilege of doing for you.

Have a GREAT day as I look forward to seeing all of you soon.

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

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"It is never too late to be what you might have been." –George Eliot
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Our People Are The Sizzle, Outsourcing is the Steak

"Each site employee, YOU, are the FSO difference! Your commitment to service, to exceed the client’s expectations, to notice that detail, to have that SKIP, FIRE, TWINKLE are the reason we have experienced Galactic Growth."

Good Morning Folks,

What a fabulous Monday morning here in Long Island as I head into the great city of Manhattan. I hope you all had a glorious Father's Day and enjoyed the time with your families. And now, it's MONDAY. 

As we head into this week we have a different Monday. We have our regional teams and our front end machine led by pat, our nation sales team in NYC.  Training. Planning. Strategy. Inspiration and more. I am looking forward to get face time with all of you.

I was thinking about FSO's place in the outsourcing space while reading Seth Godin's blog over the weekend and he makes a great point:

"Without a doubt, your hard work in test prep led to better SAT scores, which got you into college. It's not clear, though, that SAT prep skills are going to help you ever again.I

I know that all those years of practicing (8 hours a day!) got you plenty of praise and allowed you to reach a high level on the bassoon. It's not clear, though, that practicing even more is going to be the thing that takes your career where you want it to go. 

Those same skills aren't what you need to actually build your company into something that matters, though. 

Successful people develop a winning strategy. It's the work and focus and tactics that they get rewarded for, the stuff they do that others often don't, and it works. Until it doesn't. 

Brands work not because they have clever logos or taglines, not because they run a lot of ads, but because something about their story and their promise resonates with deeply held cultural beliefs. "People like us do things like this/buy things like this/like things like this," is the mark of a brand (a comedian, a clothing line, a store) that has become part of the zeitgeist, at least for a portion of the population. Most of all, it's, "people like us treat others like this."

Sell the sizzle ... not the steak.

A steak has always had a sizzle, but today we know much more about what makes a person buy a steak. We have the creative and technological tools to sell the steak in such a way, that it transcends being just a piece of meat. As long as purchase decisions are made by humans and not robots, the sizzle - the emotional impact on buying choices - will continue to be more and more important.

• If you sell fridge freezers, talk about the amazing things you can grow, cook then store in them
• If you sell car insurance talk about the amazing journeys you can go on with those vehicles
• If you sell hotel rooms, talk about the incredible experiences and activities you can enjoy whilst staying at your hotel
• If you sell tents, talk about the life-changing adventures you can go on in them

The value a product delivers is way above then the product itself. Think of the great work that Apple has done a decade back with its design innovation and the value that it brought for the customers worldwide. 

So if outsourcing is steak, and all vendors sell steak, our sizzle is people. People who are passionate and care as much about our clients success as their own. Because you can't have one without the other.

Each site employee, YOU, are the FSO difference! Your commitment to service, to exceed the client’s expectations, to notice that detail, to have that SKIP, FIRE, TWINKLE are the reason we have experienced Galactic Growth.

To be part of a company where the employees LOVE what they do and the leaders CARE as much as they do, is such a blessing…we are VERY LUCKY to be a part of the FSO Family!

I ask our employees to look around you. You work for a HAPPY company, with a Chief HAPPINESS Officer at the helm - who truly wants you to be happy, who gives you all the tools, opportunities and support to grow and be happy at what you do. 

Folks on our team: I cannot say enough how great it is to have such a motivated and pumped up team of professionals. Spotting talent and mentoring is what I love love to do and I hope I full fill all your dreams and your expectations every day. 

No matter how big we get I will always be here to hug, kiss, cry, celebrate and whatever you need and right be by your side. I know you are for me. 

So make a conscious choice to let happy and have a positive attitude continue to be the sizzle on our steak, and I promise you – we will accomplish great things together. No further SATs or testing required.

Don't let anything or anyone stop us. Believe and inspire. And SPREAD THE WORD. 

Have a fabulous, sunny, productive day filled with love and inspiration.  

Hugs all around.

Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

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"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."

~Helen Keller
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InspireME Friday: Shawn Curwen on TEAMwork!

"Nothing happens without the syncopated movement of our FSO TEAM. We are all here to win "championships" but it cannot be done without our team. I am quick to correct someone when they give kudos to one person when it was a T.E.A.M. effort."

Good Morning Folks,

As you know I task different folks from all walks of the company to send daily motivational messages to everyone.  Experience Director Shawn Curwen sent a great one last week on Teamwork. I want to share it with you because it embodies our whole philosophy of going to market and striving for excellence in our pursuit of the fulfillment of BOTH customer and employee dreams.

There is nothing more exciting or inspiring than TEAMWORK! We are surrounded and consumed by it everyday in sports, at work and even at home when parents are working together to raise a child to be successful or more important independent of them....WOW.   

Todays message is my Ode to a T.E.A.M. A team is constructed in such a way where you have a leader, a few "go to" people and supporting cast or "role players". I am reminded of the Chicago Bulls winning championship after championship with Phil Jackson as the leader...the coach, the guy who tells everyone where to go and how they will be better for it. Who does that remind you of (cue the Jeopardy music) MITCH!   

Where would we be without our G.O.A.T (Greatest of All Time) leader in this industry of on-site outsourcing.

Then we have the "go to" players like Michael Jordan.  eed I same more? This is our leadership, our ELT, RDs,  EDs, EMs, Leads and more. They are "scoring" and staying on top of the overall goal to win over our clients and get new clients for more opportunity. Then their our our role players...the folks that know what they have to do every day but when called upon can and will do more. I see this everyday at the "Mothership" and in field with my peers.   

Visiting with the Miami TEAM

Nothing happens without the syncopated movement of our FSO TEAM. We are all here to win "championships" but it cannot be done without our team. I am quick to correct someone when they give kudos to one person when it was a T.E.A.M. effort. 

TEAM Means TOGETHER EVERYONE ACHIEVES MORE..more cross training... more support...more succession for your growth...more love for the client! I could not do it everyday without my Mothership TEAM.They had never really worked with one another as closely as they are now. After we meet I watch them go and it's a symphony of tactical movement that curls either end of my mouth.    

Pride follows. Of course I want to do more. Spend some time watching football and you will witness on every play one man working as hard to get to score a touchdown as the next. Every yard..every inch they scratch and claw for to reach that goal line.  This same determination happens at HQ and our sites everyday. The goal is that we all see 2020 clearly.  Use this as your team concept and we will all achieve this and many other goals.  

I follow an African saying symbolized by the word  "Umbuntu" which means I am because you are. Let's get to work TEAM and get excited! Love them up...they deserve it, trust me. I came all the way to Miami to love up Lissette's team in the PwC office in Miami.  Beautiful office...beautiful team. Let the TEAM lovefest be the catalyst to how great we make our client experience.  

Shawn thanks for the wonderful message this morning and super glad you are with the fso family.. love having you and your smile. Happy Friday to all of you.. and YES, it is a beautiful weekend forecast ahead in New York.

Have a Happy, Healthy, Safe and Refreshing Weekend,

Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

Inspire ME Friday: The Best Make Everyone Around Them Better

"But only the best of the best are willing to do what it takes to be great. The best don't just think about their desire for greatness; they act on it. When everyone else is sleeping, the best are practicing and thinking and improving."

Good Morning Folks,

To inspire you this "Friday the 13th" weekend, Excerpted from “Training Camp: What the Best Do Better Than Everyone Else”, by Jon Gordon, these eleven traits of the Best of the Best that apply to every one reading this right now:

==>The Best know what they truly want. 

At some point in their lives, the best have a "Eureka!" moment when their vision becomes clear. Suddenly they realize what they really, truly want to achieve. They find their passion. When that happens they are ready to strive for greatness. They are ready to pay the price.

==>The Best want it more. We all want to be great. 

But only the best of the best are willing to do what it takes to be great. The best don't just think about their desire for greatness; they act on it. They have a high capacity for work. They do the things that others won't do, and they spend more time doing it. When everyone else is sleeping, the best are practicing and thinking and improving.

==>The Best are always striving to get better. 

They are always looking for ways to learn, apply, improve, and grow. They stay humble and hungry. They are lifelong learners. They never think they have "arrived"—because they know that once they think that, they'll start sliding back to the place from which they came.

==>The Best do ordinary things better than everyone else. 

For all their greatness, the best aren't that much better than the others. They are simply a little better at a lot of things. Everyone thinks that success is complicated, but it's really simple. In fact, the best don't do anything different. They just do the ordinary things better.

==>The Best zoom focus. 

Success is all about the fundamentals, and the fundamentals are little and ordinary and often boring. It's not just about practice, but focused practice. It's not just about taking action, but taking zoom-focused action. It's about practicing and perfecting the fundamentals.

==>The Best are mentally stronger. 

Today's world is no longer a sprint or a marathon. It's a series of sprints combined with a boxing match. You're not just running; you are getting hit along the way. The best are able to respond to and overcome all of this with mental and emotional toughness. They are able to tune out the distractions and stay calm, focused, and energized when it counts.

==>The Best overcome their fear. 

Everyone has fears. The best of the best all have fear, but they overcome it. To beat your enemy, you must know your enemy. Average people shy away from their fears. They either ignore them or hide from them. However, the best seek them out and face them with the intent of conquering them.

==>The Best seize the moment. 

When the best are in the middle of their performance, they are not thinking "What if I win?" or "What if I lose?" They are not thinking "What if I make a mistake or miss the shot?" They are not interested in what the moment produces but are concerned only with what they produce in the moment. When all eyes are watching, they rise to the occasion. As a result, the best define the moment rather than letting the moment define them.

==>The Best tap into a power greater than themselves. 

The best are conductors, not resistors. They don't generate their own power, but act as conduits for the greatest power source in the world. It's not always politically correct, but you can't talk about greatness without talking about God. It would be like talking about breathing without mentioning the importance of air.

==>The Best leave a legacy. 

The best live and work with a bigger purpose. They leave a legacy by making their lives about more than them. This larger purpose is what inspires them to be the best and strive for greatness over the long term. It helps them move from success to significance.

==>The Best make everyone around them better. 

They do this through their own pursuit of excellence and in the excellence they inspire in others. One person in pursuit of excellence raises the standards of everyone around them. And they do this in both their work and life. ...The point is to strive to be your best and inspire others to be their best, because it's in the striving where you find greatness, not in the outcome.

Have a Happy, Healthy, Safe and Refreshing Weekend,

Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer