Ever heard the story about the customer who brought four tires to a Nordstrom Customer Service counter to return them? As the legend goes, although Nordstrom doesn’t sell tires, the employee processed a refund anyway. Talk about a culture that 1) is highly customer focused, and also 2) completely trusts and empowers its people to [...]
Everywhere you look, standards are rising. In business, in sports, in education, in healthcare – really in all aspects of human and organizational achievement – what is considered "world class" continues to increase. For example… It used to take 72 hours by plane to cross the Atlantic (1913); it now takes just over six. The [...]
I had a conversation with a CEO of a PEN member organization recently, in which he lamented the fact that his messages were just not getting through to employees -- he was communicating, but the messages just weren’t sticking. So I asked him what channels he was using, to which he replied the normal ways: [...]
Indulge me for a second: after nearly 10 years with the “PENworks” label, our annual conference is now igniteEX. Why the change? “Ignite” captures the essence of the conference -- it’s about inspiring change; sparking ideas and innovation; improving processes, people, and outcomes! After hosting years of successful conferences, we've seen first-hand the energy and [...]
As we start a new year, many of us set personal, professional, and organizational goals. But research shows that up to 80% of New Year’s resolutions are broken, and that the average date of breaking resolutions is about January 20 (that’s why the gym is so crowded the first two or three weeks in January [...]
Performance Excellence Network & Iowa Quality Center Announce Partnership Collaboration Provides IQC Members Access to PEN Resources, Supports Performance Excellence throughout Iowa ST. PAUL, Minn., December 13, 2023 – The Performance Excellence Network (PEN) and the Iowa Quality Center (IQC) today announce a partnership that expands the mission of both organizations throughout the Upper [...]
I was having a conversation with a colleague recently about how the world has changed the last several years. Think about the fundamental shifts we have collectively experienced, many brought on by the pandemic but many because of other things. For example, how many of us knew what Artificial Intelligence was just a year ago? [...]
I get asked occasionally what is the single biggest reason organizations fail. Of course, there isn’t one right answer: organizations -- even from the same sector or industry -- have different cultures, different core competencies, different strategic challenges and advantages, different circumstances that contribute to success or failure. As a result, some organizations struggle with [...]
During the COVID years, we were all given the opportunity to reflect on our mortality and on what’s truly important in life: our fast-paced daily routines came to an abrupt halt, allowing us to recalibrate -- to refocus on the priorities in each of our lives. But, while COVID isn’t over, most of us have [...]
People are overworked. Maybe it’s because we reset after the last recession and are all asked to do more with less. Maybe it’s because 10,000 Baby Boomers are retiring EVERY Day, forcing all of us to do more with less. Maybe it’s because wages really haven’t kept up with inflation the last 30-40 years, forcing [...]
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