Saying Thanks Isn't An Operational Overhead. It’s Critical For Business Success.

Good Morning Folks,

As the holiday season rolls into town, one word comes to mind: Gratitude.

ERIC HOFFER once said: "The hardest arithmetic to master is that which enables us to count our blessings."

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity.... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.

We are thankful for our families, friends, clients and associates. We value our relationships with each of you.

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!

FSO is only a successful company because of each and every one of you. When I wake up every single day I am so inspired and so excited about what we do for YOU and our clients. I also think each and every day how I can help YOU achieve all of your personal and professional goals. 

We all have the power to make a difference today. We all have the power to touch someone today and change someone’s life. I try to do this every day. Show some love, give some hugs and tell someone how much you care for them.

• Try today to be a mentor, a teacher or just a friend.
• Take an interest in someone’s life.
• Ask them how they are doing, how is the family, how are the kids. 

You may sometimes need to pry it out of them but do it! Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.

• FSO is the Fastest growing outsourcer in the Industry
• FSO is the displacing its competitors every day
• FSO is the best place to work in the industry
• FSO is providing thousands a chance to reach their goals
• FSO is the most sought out company in the industry to work

An employee recognition program is an important pillar that supports a motivated workforce; more importantly, the reward system and job design system must function together to ensure perceived equity. A simple "thank you" can serve as a catalyst and ripple to motivate productivity for a entire organization. 
  
Saying thank isn't an operational overhead. In an environment of increasing organizational change such as part time or remote workers, and teams working cross borders - organizational alignment is going to be even more critical for business success.

Thank you hope for taking the vision and mission and bringing it to life. Last night's holiday event was a wonderful experience and delivering what we can do as a family, team, and a common goal. Folks its our time. It’s our market to own. Its ours to MOVE FORWARD. POWER OF POSITIVE ENERGY and FOCUS.

Thank you for your continued confidence and support. We sincerely wish you and your families a festive and joyous Thanksgiving Holiday.

Here's to a wonderful and well-deserved break!

Love Life!

Mitchell D. Weiner

Chief Happiness Officer  

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
"Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others.”
~~ CICERO
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

On Thanksgiving, Roll Out The Red Carpet For Everyone.

Good Morning Folks,

As the holiday season rolls into town, one word comes to mind: Gratitude.

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity.... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.

We are thankful for our families, friends, clients and associates. We value our relationships with each of you.

Here are 7 ways that will can says thanks to your friends and customers every day of the year.

==>  It's Thanksgiving so Have You Thanked A Customer Today

1. Roll Out The Red Carpet For Everyone. 
If there's one thing people hate about poor service, it's getting treated differently from others. It makes them feel inferior and second-class. Gary Richter says you should roll out the red carpet for everyone, but particularly those who don't expect it. "I tell my employees, if we roll out the red carpet for a billionaire, they won't even notice. If we roll it out for millionaires, they expect it. If we roll it out for thousandaires, they appreciate it. And, if we roll out the red carpet for hundredaires, they'll tell everyone they know."

2. Take Time To Know Your Customers. 
The fast pace of modern living together with advances in technology have together put a non-human face on much of our customer service. If you can find a way to re-connect with your customers one-on-one, you'll strike a chord with your customers that will be like a streak of gold. Kathy Burns remembers a time when people took time to care and listen. "Some of you may remember, and others may have heard stories about, a time in life when the doctor would come to your home to check on you if you were ill. Or maybe you've heard about going down to your local pharmacy and having the owner greet you by name and ask how you're doing. Not only did they ask, but they really wanted to know the answer and they took the time to listen to what you had to say. That's customer service - taking the time to know your customers, really caring about how they feel, and wanting to go the extra mile to make sure they're happy."

3. Be Easy To Do Business With. 
One of the problems with modern businesses is that the systems we use to save time and money are often devised for the company's benefit and not the customers. As a result, the customer experience is frustrating and difficult. Tracey Lowrance says this needs to be reversed. "Customers expect single source service. Customers don't want to be transferred to every unit of your business to have their problems solved. They want to be able to do business with you with the slightest amount of discomfort. You must be easy to do business with."

4. Go Out Of Your Way To Make Sure They're Happy. 
One of the most important things your customers want from you is a guarantee that your product or service will work. So move heaven and earth to make sure it does. Bob Leduc suggests you shouldn't make people pay until they are fully happy. "Instead of offering a money back guarantee, a service business can provide a guarantee to solve the customer's problem. For example, a plumber can guarantee to come back without charge as often as necessary to stop the leak. A landscaper can replace without charge any plants that don't survive for at least 6 months. A sales consultant can continue working without charge until the promised sales results are achieved."

5. Notice What Customers See. 
A big part of what customers think about you comes from what they see and believe. Personal Selling Power noticed the following difference in two candy stores. "Although two competing candy stores had the same prices, neighborhood kids preferred one store to the other. When asked why, they said, "Because the person in the good store always gives us more candy. The girl in the other store takes candy away." True? Not really. In the good store the owner would always make sure to put a small amount of candy on the scale and then keep adding to it. In the bad store, the owner would pile a heaping amount of candy on the scale, and then take it off until it hit the right weight. The same amount of candy was sold, but perception is everything."

6. Work On Everything The Customer Experiences. 
The customer experience isn't just receiving the service or buying the goods. It's about all the other little bits and pieces in-between. Such as the manner of the receptionist, the state of the floors and tables, the attitude of other staff, the ease of parking, the tone of the notices, the smile or lack of it on the face of the checkout team. Be like the Mirage hotel in Las Vegas who have a slogan that says: "We spend 600 hours a week pampering the plants. Imagine what we'll do for our guests."

7. Believe In Customer Service From The Bottom Of Your Soul. 
To become a great service organization, you have to believe in customer service from the bottom of your soul. It has to be part of the way you work. Anita Roddick, founder of retail cosmetic franchise group Body Shop puts it like this: "I am still looking for the modern equivalent of those Quakers who ran successful businesses, made money because they offered honest products and treated people decently, worked hard, spent honestly, saved honestly, gave honest value for money, put back more than they took out and told no lies. This business creed, sadly, seems long forgotten."

You can find 465 more ways to express your gratitude here: 

And if you want to thank our troops, do so HERE.

Saying thanks isn't an operational overhead. It’s critical for business success.

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!”

Thank you for your continued confidence and support. 

We sincerely wish you and your families a festive and joyous Thanksgiving Holiday.

Have a GREAT WEEKEND! We'll be back blogging on Monday!

Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer

.................................................................

"Kindness it is that brings forth kindness always."

-- Sophocles (447 BC)

................................................................

A Big Thank You To These Notable Readers of MitchWeiner.com:

Access Staffing, Adecco Usa, ADP, Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer, & Feld, Albert Einstein, College Of Medicine, Amazon Corporate, American Express Company, American Honda Motor Company, American University, Amgen, Amster Rothstein & Ebanstein, Anchor Associates Group Inc, Angelo, Gordon & Co., Anne Arundel County Govt, Aquantive, Arent Fox Llp, Arhus, Kobmandsskole, Arrowhead Aea, Ascena, Asrc Federal Holding Company, Atkina, Llc, Aurelius Capital Management, Automatic Data Processing, Automattic, Ball State University, Baltimore Technology Park, Bank Of America, Barclays Financial Corp., BDBO New York, Bechtel Corp, Bell Canada, Best Buy, Black Oak Computers Inc, Blackrock Financial Management, Bloomberg Bloomberg, Brandprotect, Brookfield Asset Management,Brown Advisory, Bsnl, BT (UK searching for Denise), Cahill Gordon & Reindel, California Department Of Justice, California Education And Research Federation Network, California State University, Long Beach, Canon Usa, Carolinas, Healthcare System, Cassidy Turley Commercial Real Estate Services, Cb Richard Ellis, Cbi Connect, Cdw - Cdw Llc, Ceasars Entertainment Group, Central Methodist University, Charles Schwab & Co., Choopa, Llc, City Of Los Angeles,  Citigroup, City Of Houston, Clyde & Co Llp, Colgate-palmolive Co., Colliers Abr, Inc - Cassidy Turley, Chubb, Colt Technology Services Group Limited, Cooley Llp, Columbia University, Completel, Comporium Communications, Commercial Bank Of Africa, Comstock Park Public Schools, Conagra Foods, Concordia College, Condenast Publications, Control Risks Group Llc, Coral Graphics, Cottage Hospital, County Of Marin, County Of Suffolk, New York, Credit Suisse Group, Credit Suisse Group / Canada, Cuddy & Feder Llp, Cwie, Llc, Dale Carnegie & Associates, Inc., Data Control And Systems, Datagram, Dell, Deloitte & Touche, Delta Dental Of California, Delta Dental Plan Of Michigan, Department Of Administrative Services (Ohio), Department Of The Interior, Office Of The Secretary, Department Of Veterans Affairs, Detroit Public Schools, Dewitt Stern Group, Inc., Dod Network Information Center, Dow Jones & Company, Devry, Depaul University, Dga Security Systems, Dickstein Shapiro Llp, Discover, Financial Services, Distributed Systems Services, Do It Best Corp, Duane Morris, Dumfries, Dumfries and Galloway, United Kingdom,Edelman Pr, Emerge212, Equity Residential, Ernst & Young Llp, Esi International, Espn, Estee Lauder, European Police Office (europol), Evercore Partners Services East, Llc, Experian Revenue Assurance Test, Facebook Corporate, Factory Mutual Insurance Company, Family Dollar, Federal Aviation Administration, Federated Systems Group, Fedex Office & Print Services, Fenwick & West, Fidelity National Financial, Fifth & Pacific Cos, First American Equipment Financial, Fisher Scientific, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Llp, Fujitsu Limited, Florida Department Of Management Services, Florida International University, Ford Motor Company, Fort Hays State University, Fortressitx, Free Sas, Fross Zelnick Lehrman & Zissu, P.c., GE, Genentech, Georgetown University, Gerson Lehrman Group, Godaddy.com, Llc, Gilead Sciences, Google Corporate, Goose Creek Consolidated Isd, Government Of Saskatchewan,Government Of Singapore, Graphnet Inc., Gravitas Technology, Greenberg Traurig P.a, Griffin Information Systems Limited, Group M Worldwide, Hachette Book Group, Hamilton-clermont Cooperative Assn., Harris Government Sector, Havas Worldwide Llc, Hccs - Houston Community College System, Hearst Corporation, Hewlett-packard Company, Higher Colleges Of Technology, Hill & Knowlton, Inc, Hillsborough County Aviation Authority, Hilton Hotels Corporation, Hma, Hotwire Communications, Hudson County Community College,  Hughes Hubbard & Reed Llp, Humber College, IBM Corporation, Ikon Office Solutions, Illinois Wesleyan University, Illinois Wesleyan University, Immedion, Llc, Ing Investment Management,, Intergrated Office, Internal Revenue Service, International Business Times, International Monetary Fund, Io Capital Princess, Llc, Jefferies International Limited, Jewish Board Of Family & Children 's Services, John Hancock Life Insurance Company, Johnson & Johnson, Jones Apparel Group, Jones, Day, jp Morgan Chase, Jw Michaels Co., J. Walter Thompson, Reavis & Pogue, Kabel Bw, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Kaye, Scholer, Fierman, Hayes, And Hudler, Hudson County Community College, Kddi Corporation, Kelley Drye & Warren Llp, King & Spalding Llp, Kirby Mcinerney Llp, Kirkland & Ellis Llp, Leaseweb Usa, Laughlin/constable, Inc, Latham Watkins, Legal Source Ls Llc, Leslie Digital Imaging Llc, Lexis-nexis, Linode Resources, Liquidnet Holdings, Lion Resources, Loeb & Troper, Cpa, Lombard Odier Asset Management, Los Angeles County Office Of Education, Loyola Marymount University, Macquarie Bank, Macquarie Holdings, Manufacturers And Traders Trust Company, Marriott International, Marsh, MasterCard, Mayer, Brown & Platt, Mcnc, Mckesson Technologies, Mdmb Law, Medex Pharmacy, Mediadata, Medimmune, Llc, Mellon Bank, Memorial Sloan-kettering Cancer Center, Mercury Radio Arts, Merck And Co, Methodist Hospital Of Memphis,Miami University, Michaels Stores, Michigan State University Federal Credit Union, Micro Graphic Info Svcs, Microsoft Corp, Middle Country Public Library, Milbank - Milbank Tweed Hadley Mccloy, Ministry Of Education Computer Center, Miox Corporation, Montclair State University, Moody's Investors Service, Morgan Stanley Group, Moses & Singer Llp, Motorola, Mount Sinai School Of Medicine, Multiverse, Munsch Hardt Kopf Harr, Museum of the City of New York, Namesco Limited, Museum Of The City Of New York, Nassau County Board Of Cooperative Education Services, Nassau County Boces, National Board Of Medical Examiners, National Chiao Tung University, Navy Network Information Center, NBC Universal, Nbs, Nbty, Nco Group, Ncs Pearson, Neuberger Berman, New Jersey Institute Of Technology, New Mexico State University, New York City Public Schools, New York Power Authority, New York Public Library, New York University, Next Jump, Nomura International Plc, Northern Michigan University, Northern Ohio Educational Computer Association, Northwood University, Nyedc, Off Campus Telecommunications, Old Republic, Onewest Bank Fsb, Openband Multimedia, Llc, Ohiohealth Corporation, Orange, Orange County - Telecommunications Department, Orange Israel, Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe, Oshean, Oxford Networks, Paramount Pictures, Partners Healthcare System, Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker Llp, Pavlov Njencom Colo, Perfect Building Maintenance, Peter-paul_verduin Pfizer, Phonoscope, Pillsbury Madison & Sutro, Pitney Bowes Plc, Plum Creek Marketing, Pluk Pluk,  Plus One Health Management, Polaris Project, Polytechnic University, Powerspace & Services, Preferred Office Products, Privax Limited, Procter & Gamble, PwC (50 locations!); Queens Public Library, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges Llp, Qitx; R.r. Donnelley & Sons Company; r.sea; Readers Digest; Reed Smith Llp (PA); Regus Business Centers, Research In Motion; Revenue Assurance Test; Richards Kibbe & Orbe Llp; Robins, Kaplan, Miller, & Cire; Robert Bosch Gmbh, Robins, Kaplan, Miller, & Cire, Rockefeller Group Technology Solutions; Rothschild, Row 44; Royal Bank Of Canada; Rutgers University; Safra National Bank Of New York; Salesforce.com; San Diego City Schools; San Francisco Marriott Marquis; Santa Clara County Office Of Education; Sarah Lawrence College; Scholastic; Sfr; Sedwick Llp, Sharp Electronics Corporation; Shearman & Sterling; Sidley Austin Brown & Wood; Simpson Thacher & Bartlett Llp; Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom Llp; Social Law Library; Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis, Sify Limited, Smoothstone, Societe Generale; Socorro Independent School District; Softbank Bb Corp; Social Security Administration, Sony Pictures Entertainment; Soros Fund Management Llc, Spherion Corporation; src Federal Holding Company, Llc; Standard Motor Products; Starwood Hotels; State Of Minnesota , State Of Montana; Stinson Morrison Hecker Llp; Straub Clinic & Hospital; Sungard Availability Services Usa; Syracuse University; Systems Research And Applications Corp; Talktalk; Tadlock Law Firm Pllc, Target Corporation , Teco Energy; Tesoro; Companies; Texas Blending & Warehousing Corp; Texas Instruments; Texas Medical Center; The Chubb Corporation; The City Of New York; The Coca-cola Company; The Heritage Foundation; The Interpublic Group Of Companies; The Jnt Association; The Limited, The Metrohealth System; The Municipal Communications Utility Of The City O (Iowa); The New York Times Company; The Richard Stockton College Of New Jersey, Tiaa-cref , Time; Toronto District School Board; Tower Group Companies; Trlg – Hq, Ttx Company; Turner Broadcasting System,  U.s. Bancorp; U.s. Bancorp, U.s. Center For Disease Control And Prevention; U.s. Environmental Protection Agency, Ungaretti & Harris, United Business Technologies, United Stationers Supply Co., University Of Arkansas, University Of Connecticut, University Of Dayton, University Of Florida, University Of Maryland, University Of New Mexico, University Of Notre Dame, University Of Texas At San Antonio, University Of Virginia, Urs Corporation, Us Department Of Defense Net, U.s. Environmental Protection Agency, United Nations, Varian Medical Systems, Viacom, Virgin, Virgin Media, Virginia Polytechnic Institute And State Univ, Virgo Penn Business Centers L, Viacom, Vivo, Virgin Media, Virginia Community College System, Volumedrive, W.w.grainger, Warrenville, Illinois, United States, Weill Cornell Medical College, Weitz & Luxenberg, Wellington Management Company, Llp, Wells Fargo & Company, West Corporation, West Publishing Corporation, White & Case Llp, Willkie, Farr & Gallagher, Widnes, Halton,, Wisdom Tree Investments, Inc., Workforce Software, Wyndham Worldwide Corporation, X--ray Optical Systems, Inc., Xerox Corporation, Xerox Corporation, Xilinx Incorporated, Yamaguchi Cable Vision Co.,ltd, Yaquinto Printing, Yon Lew, Zuckerman Spaede