My neighbor recently retired from his administrative leadership role at the local, yet nationally-owned, hospital. He served the hospital for over thirty years, even taking on the position of interim president on two occasions.
The retirement celebration was pretty incredible—local and state politicians came—but it was the typical everyday workers who showed up in large numbers to thank him for his kindness and compassion, something you don’t see every day in the corporate jungle.
Every morning before getting started at his desk, this administrator scanned the list of patients in the hospital. If he knew anybody, he made morning rounds to visit them. My mother was on the list once, and he visited her before I ever made it to the hospital. All employees were treated with respect; he knew their names and he talked with them. He was beloved by the hospital board and by doctors and nurses. We have talked on several occasions about the most important part of his job, the customer. If the customer is treated well, the hospital is not as scary a place. Effective leadership is more than just doing your job; it is treating customer and employee alike with respect.
Another place where you see great customer service is on a cruise. I’ve been on several cruises (my favorite is the Alaskan cruise—amazing scenery!). With my first cruise, I noticed the attention that all ship employees place on making you feel like this is the best vacation of your life. Every employee speaks to you as if they know you; they smile at you and ask if they can serve you in any way. The room steward learns your name and does special things to the room to let you know you are important. The dinner stewards seem to remember, from the first day on, what you prefer to drink, and before you arrive for your next meal, the drink is already waiting at the table. It’s the little things that help make the cruise so enjoyable. Effective customer service is more than just doing your job; it is about treating you, the customer, as if you are the only person on the cruise.
When you have interactions with Handbell Musicians of America, I hope that you feel like you are more than a customer; I hope you are treated with compassion and kindness, like you are the most important person of the day. The employees of our national office, including Vickie Iverson, Shelly Horn, Mary Willadsen, and Carol Twiggs, are terrific at serving you and helping you find what you are looking for. Anytime you call the office, you are the most important customer, and if you have questions that need answers, they will find a way to help discover what you need.
Our regional membership coordinators, Jon Snyder, Mary Willadsen, and Ellie Hodder, are invaluable members of our staff. They have a direct pipeline to the membership needs of our organization and work closely with the leadership of our Areas to provide you, the customer, with any assistance needed for membership questions and renewals, and to continue to meet the needs of our membership.
John Behnke, our music editor, has had one of the more challenging jobs in our organization in the last ten years. Our whole concept of publication and publishing has seen such a dramatic shift, so it’s almost a full time job just to keep up with the changes. John has worked closely with our publishers at the Lorenz Corporation to ensure that the Guild moves forward in the rapidly changing market of music publication. John, too, is working for you, to ensure that the music published by the Guild will find use in your church, school, or community ensemble.
Perhaps more than any other person in the Guild, you see the work of J.R. Smith, although you may not even know it. J.R. is our publications director, and each Overtones issue, every newsletter, all online content, and even our logo reflect his design stamp. As an organization, J.R.’s work reminds us who the Guild is and what we represent. I personally think his work represents some of the finest publication material available. We are blessed that he takes this organization to new levels in an ever-changing and creative manner.
2016 marks an important milestone for our organization. In October, Jennifer Cauhorn will celebrate her 10th anniversary as the executive director of Handbell Musicians of America. She has said that this has always been her dream job, and it shows; she’s an effective leader who loves handbells, having actively played and directed handbells for most of her life. Any time you need assistance, Jenny is capable and driven to make you feel as if you are the only member of our organization. She endures the joys and the challenges of her work, and we are grateful.
Last March, during a meeting of the national board and area leadership, Jenny was asked to meet with the hotel management to discuss the upcoming National Seminar. I sat in with her when the hotel essentially said, “Sorry, but we have a better offer. We’ll do whatever we can to help you find a new location for your event.” In less than three months, Jenny and her planning team worked to find a new location for National Seminar and publicize all of the changes, while making the event feel like it was planned for the new location all along. Her thought throughout was for you, the customer, to have the opportunity to grow as a handbell musician without even knowing about the chaos that can happen in planning these events. Thanks to Jenny and her staff for helping all handbell musicians. We, the customers, are grateful.
As always, I’d love to hear your stories about our terrific staff—contact me at [email protected]. And don’t forget to contact our staff and say “Thanks.”
Ed Rollins [email protected]
Ed Rollins President |
