What business does for its customers
Friday, December 26th, 2008What has made Apple a company with practical pop-cultural relevance? They have created a following of loyal customers and have grown that group. They keep enhancing what they do with what customers want. Other companies who have done this well include Volvo, USAA Insurance, Brooks Brothers, Starbucks, and Hertz. Each of these have done what Seth Godin calls create a tribe of people who are yours . . . you might want to look at Seth’s latest book called Tribes.
At Randall House we have a tribe and we care deeply about serving all of them. Within every tribe there are various distinctions of people, which form that tribe. They have a lot in common but cannot be exactly alike. Each of the companies listed above realized they could not produce one product or one line of services. Volvo offers base and luxury models, USAA has life insurances and investment services, Brooks Brothers’ caters to business travelers and casual business dress who value high quality long-lasting clothing, Starbucks offers new drinks hot and cold seasonally, and Hertz makes travel smoother from checking in to the driving experience.
If Randall House is to meet all of our tribe’s desires then each person in the tribe will have to acknowledge that not all the products are designed for everyone. Just as I would never drink Starbucks coffee but I love their fraps and hot cider, Randall House will produce a product here and there that some in the tribe may not like.
Thoughtful Gift
Tuesday, December 23rd, 2008We began a new family tradition in our home this year that involves $10 gifts as well. It is the opposite of Dirty Santa. Here’s how it goes. Each person in our family buys the rest of the family a ten-dollar gift each. The trick is to put some sincere thought into this gift giving it real value to for the recipient. The value of the gift is measured not in cost but in the connection of the giver to the recipient.
Randall House “new releases”
Wednesday, December 17th, 2008My teammate Eric Puschmann has written a blog post that pulls back the curtains to reveal a small portion of the creativity that thrives inside Randall House. At our end of the year Christmas luncheon, we find out about the “next year’s” book releases and all of them are spoofs of something we published this [...]
Board Meeting Dec 2008
Friday, December 12th, 2008Some of the items that were discussed by the board included The D6 Conference, speakers for the conference, new programming for our National Youth Conference, financial report, software for our digital curriculum, 2009 curriculum enhancements, policy on employees/board members publishing, and dress attire for the workplace. Our board worked through each of these topics with diligence and interaction with various leaders within the organization. They are most impressed with what our team accomplishes, the consistent leadership development of our directors and managers, and the stability that we have experienced so far through these unusual economic times.
Finished!
Sunday, December 7th, 2008This has been a marathon of a race but the scenery has been great. I have battled up hills and cruised at times on fairly level ground – I do not, however, remember any downhill parts of this coursework. I feel this further prepares me to lead Randall House, a non profit organization, to better serve its mission and purpose.
What is my degree? MPA (Master’s in Public Administration – with my core in non-profit leadership). The MPA is similar to an MBA but where the MBA is 75% accounting the MPA is 75% leadership with emphasis on people and policy. Here is what the University of Colorado (ranked 32nd in the country for this program in US News and World Report) describes in the catalogue:
MPA Degree
“Public administration encompasses administration, policy and management in the public and nonprofit spheres, allowing students with diverse career objectives the opportunity to customize their program of courses to meet their professional needs.
