Month: September 2017

It is one thing to empower your staff to provide great customer service, and another to provide them with the tools to do it.

On a recent trip to Disney World, my friend’s son had a meltdown at the end of the day – a full out, kicking and screaming I-am-exhausted tantrum. Most businesses would cringe at the scene this child was causing, but a Disney a cast member calmly approached and provided a $25 gift card to the nearby arcade. This de-escalated the tantrum — to the great relief of the parents as well as any guests in the vicinity. You can’t have a screaming child in the Happiest Place on Earth, so Disney provided the tools to allow its employees to rectify a situation that is probably very common after a long day at the park.

Select Disney employees also are equipped with a Magic Pouch that equips them with the tools they need to solve common guest problems: a sewing kit, oil for squeaky wheels on a stroller, screws for eyeglasses repair, etc. The magic pouch has nothing large or lofty, but for those in need of its contents, it would feel like magic that someone is able to provide relief on the spot. Staff members were the ones who came up with the idea and implemented it – they wanted to be able to help guests solve their problems.

What does the Magic Pouch look like in your organization? Do you need to equip your employees with gift cards to distract exhausted children or safety pins to resolve wardrobe malfunctions? Maybe your Magic Pouch contains paper clips and staplers to service a meeting or sunscreen and aloe to address needs at a ball game. I am sure those on the front line in your organization would know what is requested.

The magic of Disney isn’t in the grandiose; it is in the minutiae. As they say: “There’s no magic in magic. It’s all in the details.” The attention to details is possible in your organization, too. Continue to empower in small increments and delight in small ways and the magic will come.

Thanks Mike!

How does this dot connect with you? Leave a comment and share your observations with others.

If I asked you to picture a construction zone, you likely would conjure up an image of dust and dirt with materials and machines strewn about. That may be the case for most projects, but not at Disney World. Such reminders of reality would burst the bubble of the fantasyland experience they are trying to create, so when renovations happen in the Magic Kingdom, they do so behind a façade.

The building in this picture is under construction, but the view in photographs is not marred by scaffolding or workers – instead, the camera’s eye only sees the image on a giant tarp that shows what the building will look like when the work behind it is finished. (If you look closely, you can see the folds above the doorway.) I am sure it cost a fortune to do, but if you are Disney, it is just part of the construction cost and what has to be done.

How can you align your expenses so clearly with your values? Think of the experience or service you are offering and what should be provided to align your work with that – -have you allocated the budget to make it a reality? For a hospital, it might be sparing no expense for patient safety. A school might stretch expenses to the limit to improve student learning. A designer may invest in a high-grade paper for their promotional materials. A photographer may require the top-of-the-line camera that strains the budget. And Disney might invest in a building-sized tarp to preserve the fantasy.

We all have things that are core values. The question becomes whether we make the sacrifices to truly live them.

Thanks Mike!

How does this dot connect with you? Leave a comment and share your observations with others.