Reviews and Reflections

After a bit of a hiatus, I am back online. I wish I could say that I am refreshed, but I feel more run down than ever.

Let's think about our first jobs. I am not talking about working at a summer camp as a lifeguard or even Mickey D's - but your first real job where your input was required in order to make decisions. Do you remember if your first job was reactive or active? By that I mean: were you a decision-maker or did you wait until someone told you what to do?

In our environment, since there are so many balls in the air, we seek team members who do not need to be told what to do in detail. We seek people who have enthusiasm and the self-direction to convert that enthusiasm into results. Unfortunately, we don't have the money to further encourage this, but we have been lucky to find people who have seen the benefits of working with us to develop their problem solving and implementation skills.

Recently we received feedback that this total lack of hand-holding and "looking over the shoulder" was not appreciated, that we are boring. I couldn't help but chuckle because it is interesting how those who do not have the ability to take a project to the next level and look to others for "entertainment" would find anything that is not spoon-fed either "boring" or "too hard".

I struggle with this mentality with my 10-year old. We challenge our children to "think out of the box" and give the teachers more than the minimum requirements. THIS is how you excel - and this is how you grow. Waiting around for someone to tell you every "how" puts you in a position of subservience and dependence.

Regardless of the negativity, I am proud of our environment at Verify-ED. We let people make mistakes and we encourage everyone to go beyond the minimum. Unfortunately, most do not take the challenge. We are usually able to weed out the people who need lots of hand-holding during the interview process. It is amazing that just by asking an open-ended question that requires some research you can find out those who are seeking a position that requires and in and out box vs. those who want to show you that they have the ability to find solutions. We state a GOAL and then we basically leave it at that. We recognize that we are dependent upon the energies of others - and we have seen some great projects falter as a result. But, we have also seen great team members who have chosen to continue to contribute beyond their term of employment here - and THAT is all the reward for which any employer can hope!

To all our past and current team members - THANK YOU!!

A Prayer To The Sales Gods

Today I made the executive decision to hire a pre-sales person. This is a big deal because we are very conservative about spending the money that we don't have - but it has to be done. We have been building Verify-ED for almost 3 years and we have been growing organically. Unfortunately, organically is not going to get us to the goal of Val-ID-ate being a standard part of the hiring process. Organically makes me think of a plant that slowly emerges from the seed and eventually breaks through the soil. The plant may hibernate in the winter, to re-emerge in the spring - during which there is no growth (of course). Organically is NOT the growth cycle that we want - and investing our dollars in someone who can get us in front of prospective clients is a big deal.

I have come to appreciate and I am in awe of successful sales professionals. I am amazed at their ability to "get out there" and "get appointments". As I have mentioned before, Mark LaRosa continues to be my idol. I still take the safe routes by primarily reaching out to known contacts or colleagues of colleagues. How will we really grow that way?

So, Debbie, welcome aboard! I will let everyone know how we are looking in 3 months.

The Power of the Social Network

Today I attended the funeral for the mother of a friend I have known since high school. After high school we connected intermittently, and in recent years have become closer. So close that she is the godmother to my daughter.

My friend does not have a profile of Facebook , but I do and through this profile I have connected with quite a few classmates. Today, with her permission, I sent a message through Facebook to these classmates with the funeral information. Now, think about it, I sent the message the day of the event - kind of short notice. What I figured is that a few people may be interested in signing the online guestbook, so I provided the information.

One of our classmates saw the message and made the trip from Manhattan, circumventing all the crazy construction. How amazing! We all haven't seen each other in 20 years, and this woman made it a point to show our friend how much she cared - and she wouldn't have known about the funeral without the network.

Facebook also exemplifies the concept of 6 degrees of separation. I recently went through an old phonebook and searched on Facebook for some of these long-lost friends. I found an old boyfriend, someone who I hadn't seen in about 13 years and we "connected". After the connection, we find out that we have a mutual friend - and we didn't know this back when we were dating.

I have been using LinkedIn to connect with the connections of connections who work within the recruiting industry, and it has been an interesting process. Most people have been very kind and forthcoming and willing to help me reach a desired contact - and primarily because of my relationship with a mutual "connection" ("colleague" is sometimes still too strong a word).

Social networks are re-defining human interaction. It allows us to interface and hide as desired, which can be good and bad - almost like Caller ID. At Verify-ED, we are constantly looking at ways to utilize social networks to support our business strategy and we are amazed at our many options.

1 year from now, if I ever review this post, I am curious as to the effect of social networks. Hmmm, sounds like I need to put a task in MS Outlook to check next year.

It's V-Day!

Tonight was the second time I performed in the Vagina Monologues at my alma mater, Stevens Institute of Technology. As always, the monologues were impactful and I feel great that I get an opportunity to contribute.

The subject matter can make you feel uncomfortable. There is such frank talk about the good, the bad and the ugly and you find yourself holding your breath sometimes - but I am know that it is important to put yourself in uncomfortable positions to gain awareness and knowledge.

I find that I am challenging myself more and more these days to be in "uncomfortable" positions. With the guidance of a master sales professional (Hi Mark!!), I am making better efforts at getting in front of clients. I was relying heavily on email and (rarely) telephone to reach prospective clients because, frankly, I am afraid. I am afraid of rejection. I am afraid to ask for money for our services. I am afraid of "looking stupid".

When I recently told someone about this fear, they asked, "Why are you afraid? You are HELPING companies. You have got to change your mindset" - so that is what I am doing. I have to remind myself that, HEY, we provide an invaluable service. What we do protects many companies from liability and embarrassment. People pay their insurance without hesitation, and that is how I need them to think of us: like insurance. Joelle, the insurance saleswoman :-)

Go GoDaddy Go!

It looks like I am not the only one who runs daily queries to see if my name or Verify-ED has been posted the web. So does GoDaddy! I got a call today around 7:45 pm from Alon, who is apparently the GoDaddyGuy. His job is to find postings like mine and help resolve issues. Now THAT is the approach to customer service that I like! He was totally understanding that I had to use an alternative product but wanted to know if I was willing to help them resolve my still outstanding issue. You know that I don't know how to say "no" ;-) Of course I will help!

These events are so timely since I just read an article in the December issue of Entrepreneur (I know, I am so behind with my reading) that talks about managing your online reputation. In the article they talk about quickly addressing detractors and bad press - and this is what GoDaddy has done.

I am just happy to see that GoDaddy felt my complaint was worth addressing - it so raises my sense of self worth. Hmmm... maybe I should blog about my sister's issue with DirectTV and its crazy 4-hour service window....

GoDaddy vs. Google: Hearing Impaired Customer Service

Here is a classic example of poor customer service.

I recently tried to utilize the GoDaddy Online Group Calendar so that our team could see and edit my schedule. I followed the directions and downloaded the executable that would synchronize my MS Outlook Calendar with the GoDaddy calendar. It literally worked once...and never again. On 2/20/09 I submitted an online help request to GoDaddy. They responded quickly by requesting screen shots and files, which I sent quickly. Time was of essence. Apparently, my problem was much more severe so the issue needed to be escalated. The last time I heard from them was 2/25/09. I finally made the decision to ditch GoDaddy and use Google Calendar - and it works like a champ! There are a few things that I would like to see changed, but ultimately Google achieves the purpose of sharing my calendar and syncing with MS Outlook.

I decided to let GoDaddy know that I was no longer pining by the "phone" waiting for their help. So I sent the following message (I was quite annoyed, but I feel that feedback is important for growth) :

The resolution to this issue has taken too long. I have decided to use Google Calendar.

They responded in a timely fashion with this:

Dear Joelle Hinds-Ware,
Thank you for contacting Online Support. I apologize for the delay. I have looked into the escalation and they are still investigating this matter. We will contact you once the issue has been resolved. We appreciate your patience while we look further into this matter for you.Please let us know if you have any further questions, comments, or concerns. Our service departments and telephone lines are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to accommodate your needs anytime.Or, you can send an email for speedy electronic service.We look forward to serving you in the future!

Sincerely,
Amber P.
Online Support Representative

What does this tell you? She didn't read my message and just sent some generic response. How insulting! I don't think that they were even trying to resolve my issue. This response erased any apologetic feelings I had about deserting GoDaddy.

This situation emphasizes how important it is that you give your client WHAT THEY ASK FOR. And if you err: fess up, acknowledge and apologize. GoDaddy should continue to spend the energy to solve my issue because if it happened to me it may happen to someone else - and who's to say that it hasn't?

I wish them luck. GoDaddy has great services, but what good are they if no one can fix them when they are broken?