Steve Curtin
Steve Curtin
Steve Curtin is the author of Delight Your Customers: 7 Simple Ways to Raise Your Customer Service from Ordinary to Extraordinary. He wrote the book to address the following observation: While employees consistently execute mandatory job functions for which they are paid, they inconsistently demonstrate voluntary customer service behaviors for which there is little or no additional cost to their employers. After a 20-year career with Marriott International, Steve now devotes his time to speaking, consulting, and writing on the topic of extraordinary customer service.
When values are clear, decisions are easy
Nearly every sophisticated organization has gone to great lengths to craft a mission, vision, or purpose statement together with a set of guiding principles or…
In times of crisis, let values be your guide
By now, most of us have been impacted in some way by Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). I worked in Boston last week where I met…
Three Truths of Exceptional Customer Service
Most people don’t choose to deliver poor customer service; they just don’t choose to deliver exceptional customer service. Most are content to simply occupy a…
Communicate On Purpose
Employees will only be aware of job purpose (as a relevant and credible dimension of their job role) if leadership and, in particular, their immediate…
If you can afford to dine out, then you can afford to be generous
Last week, a restaurant guest in Colts Neck, New Jersey left his waitress a 74-cent tip on a $119.26 check. Somehow, a New Jersey state…
Being Capable Is Not Enough
Last fall I traveled to Philadelphia to meet up with several colleagues at a downtown hotel. At check-in, I received a room key emblazoned with…
Inspiring initiative
Two weeks ago we received a late spring snowstorm that left several inches of snow on our back deck. Because my teenage son was hosting…
The unseating of Sears
After buying our first home in 2000, my wife and I spent many weekends shopping at The Great Indoors, a home décor chain founded by…
The true cost of outsourcing
Last week, in preparation for spring break in the mountains, I called my local Ford dealership to ask a couple of questions about my service…
You don’t have to be a B Corp to have a purpose
In recent years, I’ve read a number of articles that attribute the rise in B Corps to organizations’ desire to be seen as interested in…
The Commitment Quadrant
Over three decades of working in training and development has taught me, among other things, that many managers are skeptical about the return on investment…
Comcast is making customer experience its best product
While many organizations give their employees assignments to work on, Comcast has given its employees a purpose to work toward.
Why I Fired Allstate
On June 19th of this year there was a significant hailstorm in my neighborhood that damaged dozens of roofs and automobiles. My Allstate agent texted me on…
Volunteers at Work
For many years, I’ve gone on record saying that the reason you and I, as customers, consistently receive predictably poor customer service is because exceptional…
When Values Are Valuable
Earlier today I was the guest on a leadership podcast. Among other topics, we discussed organizational values. Too often the term “values” conjures up images…
If you ask a question, then listen to the answer
Back in the Dark Ages of gathering customer feedback, companies distributed hard copy customer satisfaction surveys with prepaid postage to increase response rates and then…
The Hospitality Sweet Spot
Ed and Gayle NovakLast week, our family dined for the last time at The Broker, a Denver restaurant founded 46 years ago by my father-in-law,…
Every week should be customer service week!
Customer Service Week (Oct. 3-7) is approaching and, since I work in the field, I suppose I should contribute to the conversation. Let me...
The Seacret to Sales Success
Earlier this month, I met Adele. Not the Adele you’re thinking of – I’m not sure how well she sings – but this Adele...
Stop Counting Paperclips!
Last month, I returned to one of my favorite hotels in New York City. It was my first stay since the hotel completed an...