Links

Here at the Customer Care Coach we want to present you with what we think is the best information available in the areas of customer service, leadership, management and even marketing as they pertain to creating “Exquisite” experiences for your customers and co-workers. While we do have a lot of experience in many of these areas, we certainly don’t know it all. Fortunately we are connected to an exquisite group of mentors and colleagues who were happy to jump in and help us create this product for you. We want you to know who they are and how to find out more about their work. Some had published works which we referenced, and you’ll see them here. Some spent hours on the phone with us helping us compose the lessons you’ll read in the Coach.

We’ll do our best to keep this list updated, but things do change rapidly in today’s world. If you find a link or phone number that is not current please contact us so we might correct it. Thank you.

The Customer Care Coach is subdivided into ten topics. The following are the resources that we have used to create each lesson.

Topic 1

Frederich F. Reicheld
“The Loyalty Effect”
The “Loyalty” field was founded based on what Mr, Reicheld discovered. Fascinating stuff! This is the man that “did the math” and built the case for developing long lasting customer relationships. You can find Mr Reicheld at Bain & Co. consulting group.
www.bain.com

Jill Griffin
“Customer Loyalty: How to Earn it, How to Keep it”
A “classic” read in the area of loyalty. Ms. Griffin takes you through the whole process -of getting and keeping customers. She helps you look at a whole system and offers seven key stages of growing a customer.
www.loyaltysolutions.com

Scott Robinette, Claire Brand and Vicki Lenz
“Emotional Marketing: – The Hallmark Way of Winning Customers for Life”
The people that bring you the greeting cards that bring tears to your eyes now bring you some very logical, rational and sensible explanations for how a customer bonds themselves to your company.
www.Hallmarkloyalty.com

Topic 2

Dr. Leonard Berry
“Discovering the Soul of Service ? The Nine Drivers of Sustainable Business Success”
Dr. Berry is one of the leading service experts in the world and he is one of our very favorite people. For this book, Dr. Berry researched fourteen award winning companies and analyzed what made them great. He discovered that these companies were driven by their values and their humanity. He dedicates a chapter to each one of the nine drivers he has identified that are instrumental in their success.

Dr. Leonard Berry
“On Great Service, A Framework for Action”
We love it, we just love it! The single best step-by-step action plan for success we have ever seen. The serious questions you need to ask to uncover the truth about how Ôgreat’ your service is. We’ve used this Ôbible’ for over 8 years. Dr. Berry’s work and his philosophies have informed every part of our work here at JoAnna Brandi’s Customer Care Coach ™ for as long as we’ve been in business.
wehner.tamu.edu/mktg/faculty/berry

Valarie A. Zeithaml, A. Parasuraman and Leonard Berry
“Delivering Quality Service ? Balancing Customer Perceptions and Expectations”
Based on a model of the customer’s perception of quality service and seven years of research, this book is so dogged eared and sticky note tabbed in our library we can hardly find a page we don’t have marked. If you’ve ever wanted to know how to “see” where the gaps in your service could occur, this book has the model that makes it clear. And to make it even better it includes the SERVQUAL instrument which you can use to get answers to your most pressing questions about where your service is falling through the cracks.

The Marketing Science Institute
A learning organization that connects business people and academic researchers who are committed to advancing the theory and practice of marketing in order to achieve higher levels of business performance. As a nonprofit institution, MSI financially supports academic research for the development – and practical translation – of leading-edge marketing knowledge on topics of importance to business. MSI brings together executives with leading researchers from approximately 100 universities worldwide.
www.msi.org

Gary Heil, Rick Tate and Tom Parker
“Leadership and the Customer Revolution”
“CARING IS NOT OPTIONAL. In any human endeavor, there is no substitute for support and caring. When people genuinely care about each other, the synergy can be impressive. When people care, they support one another and everyone grows and profits in the process.”
Gary Heil – www.garyheil.com
Rick Tate – www.ricktate.com

Topic 3

Genie Z. Laborde, Ph.D.
“Influencing with Integrity”
If you are interested in understanding more about the high-level communication skills please read “Influencing with Integrity”.
www.influencingwithintegrity.com

Dawna Markova, Ph.D.
“The Art of the Possible: A compassionate approach to understanding the way people think, learn and communicate.”
A great book about building rapport and understanding different styles of communication.

Deborah Tannen
“You Just Don’t Understand”
A breakthrough work on the way men and women communicate. It is the classic primer on the way the genders communicate differently. A good read if you are either one of those genders and you think the other one doesn’t “get” what you mean.
www.georgetown.edu/faculty/tannend

Dianna Booher, CSE
“Communicate with Confidence”
Lots and lots of sound suggestions for interacting with anyone. Dianna is one of the best there is. We love her easy to comprehend work. www.booher.com

Marjorie Brody
“Creating First Impressions That Can Lead To Lasting Impressions”
This is one book in a series of four offered by this communication pro. Check out the others in the series and don’t miss her many books on Business Etiquette – a must for any office! You’ll find Marjorie’s insights in our lessons, we interviewed her for this topic.
www.brodycommunications.com

Dorothy Leeds
“Smart Questions: A New Strategy for Successful Managers”
The Smartest book on questions anywhere! It’s been in our library a long time and it’s still one of our all time favorites.
www.dorothyleeds.com

Ron Zemke and Kristin Anderson
“Coaching Knock Your Socks Off Service”
This book features hands-on, practical and easy to implement coaching ideas. It’s a wealth of customer knowledge and experience in a slim, easy-to-read volume. This book has been a staple in our library since it first came out, and it’s a must have for yours. For more books by these authors, visit
www.socksoff.com.

Topic 4

Steve Simpson
“Cracking the Corporate Culture Code: Unwritten Ground Rules”
He did it ? he cracked the code on how to easily view a culture: “UGR’s.” Steve says that “UGR’s” (Unwritten Ground Rules) exist in all workplaces, although people don’t usually talk about them, they create a culture that governs everything employees and managers do. Fascinating, fun and easy. Also view the Worldwide survey of UGR’s we did in partnership with Steve. It’s available in our store under “E-books.”
www.keystone-management.com
https://www.customercarecoach.com/store/default.htm

Kevin and Jackie Frieberg
“Nuts! Southwest Airlines’ Crazy Recipe for Business and Personal Success”
These authors have done an incredible job of “cracking the code” on the Southwest Airlines culture. The book is long – but what a story! Give it a try! Here’s a company that’s built on LOVE (their stock symbol is LUV) for its people and its customers. Southwest Airlines has become a loving place to work. And as the Frieberg’s put it “the kind of love we see at Southwest is action oriented and involved. It operates more than a verb than as a noun.” We LOVE this book!
www.freibergs.com

Dennis T. Jaffe, Cynthia D. Scott and Glenn R. Tobe
“Rekindling Commitment – How to Revitalize Yourself, Your Work and Your Organization”
An all time favorite of ours. Chapters on Values and Purpose and Change have helped us in our own business and with clients. It belongs on your bookshelf. Dennis T. Jaffe and Cynthia D. Scott
www.cworksinc.com

Topic 5

Michael Lowenstein
“Customer Retention: Keeping Your Best Customers “(1995)
This book explores issues including: the differences between customer satisfaction and customer retention; generating hidden customer complaints and knowing how to act on them; and creating proactive measurement systems that generate action-oriented models for keeping customers.

The Customer Loyalty Pyramid (1997)
Lowenstein offers a blueprint and methods for any individual, group, or company wanting to organize for greater commitment to customer loyalty. Tips for creating a customer-focused culture, using customer information to your advantage, and being proactive are discussed throughout.

Customer WinBack: How To Recapture Lost Customers – And Keep Them Loyal (2001)
Co-authored with Jill Griffin. The authors show you how to identify at-risk customers, win back those who have left, and change how business is done to prevent future customer loss. This pragmatic guide is brimming with savvy methods and detailed case studies that show you in real-world detail how to turn lost customers into gold.

Michael was generous with him time and valuable to us as we taught about value, Thanks Michael! Find him at: Customer Retention Associates
www.customerloyalty.org

Brian D. Biro
“Beyond Success: The 15 Secrets of a Winning Life”
This was the first book of Brian’s we read after attending two of his workshops. Brian takes you far beyond conventional definitions of success. He opens up new possibilities in thinking, His storytelling draws you in and you can feel the triumph of the everyday heroes he talks about. Brian captures legendary Coach John Wooden’s wisdom in this uplifting book.

You can find his other books, including Joyful Spirit (which also graces our library) along with his success system “Unstoppable Spirit” at his website. Brian’s energy is contagious you can experience his joyful spirit in the Customer Care Coach.
www.brianbiro.com

James L. Heskett, W. Earl Sasser, Leonard A. Schlesinger, James L. Herskett, Earl W. Sasser.
“The Service Profit Chain: How Leading Companies Link Profit and Growth to Loyalty, Satisfaction, and Value ”
In this groundbreaking book, world-renowned Harvard Business School service firm experts reveal that leading companies stay on top by managing the service profit chain. Based on five years of research, the authors show how managers at some of the best run companies employ a quantifiable set of relationships that directly links profit and growth to not only customer loyalty and satisfaction, but to employee loyalty, satisfaction, and productivity. They discovered strong relationships between profit and customer loyalty, as well as between employee loyalty and customer loyalty.

Roger E. Herman
“Keeping Good People: Strategies for Solving the #1 Problem Facing Business Today”
No lofty management theory here. Herman comes close to our hearts as he talks about caring for people, setting good examples, keeping promises, having fun, reducing stress -it’s the same straight-from-the-heart advice we give you here at The Coach. This book is meaty but don’t let that keep you from buying it – it’s a worthwhile addition to your bookshelf. www.hermangroup.com

Roger E. Herman and Joyce L. Gioia
“Lean & Meaningful: A New Culture for Corporate America”
They describe the book as “a blueprint to help you attract, optimize and retain top talent…” Learn why and how employers must shift to a more lean operation with a culture that’s filled with meaning for everyone.

Mel Kleiman and Eric Harvey
“180 Ways to Build a Magnetic Culture”
“To be the best you’ve got to HIRE the best. To hire the best, you’ve got to ATTRACT the best. To attract the best, you’ve got to BE the best,” so says Kleiman in this quick-reference handbook packed with ideas, techniques and strategies for retaining, attracting and hiring the best, brightest and most productive people.
www.melkleiman.com

Topic 6

Jan Carlzon
“Moments of Truth”
Jan Carlzon’s simply written and easy to understand book MOT, does a fine job in telling the SAS story. While he doesn’t provide us with a step-by-step program, he gives us enough insight to determine what we’d have to do to apply the same wisdom in our unique situation. The key to his success was that he was able to convince employees of the value of their common vision. With that vision in place everyone aligned and began moving enthusiastically in the same direction. Carlzon notes that if even one intention is going in the wrong direction it slows the whole moment down.

Tom Peters
“The Brand You: Fifty Ways to Transform Yourself from an “Employee” Into a Brand That Shouts Distinction, Commitment and Passion!”
Not necessarily a book on stress per se, but we find that if you follow his no nonsense advice you automatically start to transform distress into eustress. Why? At the heart of it all he advises readers to know and live their values, period and enough said.
www.tompeters.com

Doc Lew Childre and Howard Martin
“The Heartmath Solution”
This website is full of interesting facts on stress and the intelligence of the heart. JoAnna studies with these folks for many years and still refers to their work often. Their research backed worked makes a strong case for living a life that is rich in appreciation, caring and gratitude – just from a health perspective.
www.heartmath.com

Gael Chiarella
Yokibics® Mindbody Fitness Workbook,
Gael Chiarella is the executive director of The Yokibics® Institute for Personal Development which is dedicated to the principles of body centered spirituality. Originator of Yokibics® Mindbody Fitness and a Professor at Hofstra University, Gael has received numerous awards for her work. She has developed numerous (wonderful!) books, audio and video products including the best selling “AM and PM Meditations.”
www.yokibics.com
You can reach her at gael@yokibics.com

Rhonda Britten
“Fearless Living: Live Without Excuses and Love Without Regrets”
A Coach favorite! Rhonda leads readers through the ‘Wheel of Fear’ and into the ‘Wheel of Freedom,’ making it easier to “take risks, seize opportunities and nurture self confidence.” This is a treasure trove of practical, doable, life-transforming advice. If you read it with a pen or pencil in hand, it’s like taking a workshop in a book!
www.fearlessliving.org

Mira Kirshenbaum
“Emotional Energy Factor: The Secrets High-Energy People Use to Beat Emotional Fatigue”
We loved this book! It was a great help in understanding how to manage our own energy and will point out places you never thought you were leaking it! Easy to read, each chapter stands alone. We go back to it frequently when we fell our energy levels drop.

Lois Greenberg
Lois is one of our closest friends and strategic partners. We’ve worked together to change the culture at a number of companies. Lois is an independent Change Management consultant who has worked with companies like Digital Equipment Corp, Microsoft, Citibank and Starbucks. Lois can be reached at:
206-236-7325 or LoGreen@aol.com

John P. Kotter
“Leading Change”
Mr. Kotter is one of the world’s foremost experts on business leadership and change. And if you are looking at large scale change in your organization, this is a well structured and comprehensive guide.
www.johnkotter.com

Robert Kriegel and David Brandt
“Sacred Cows Make the Best Burgers ”
One our very favorites, this book is dog-eared and marked up to the max. If you really want to understand how the “change ready” cultures do it, this is a must read. Fun and filled with illustrations it will send you off on “sacred cow hunts” and “No-Bull campaigns” Gotta love it!
http://www.kriegel.com

Topic 7

David Desautels
David is the former President of the Vermont Center for Conflict Resolution. An accomplished mediator, David has been our advisor for years on matter of conflict, he is now a financial advisor with Linsco Private Ledger.
david.desautels@verizon.net
or (802)864-0902

Thomas Crum
“The Magic of Conflict – Turning a Life of Work into a Work of Art”
One of our all time favorite books. This Aikido Master shows takes us through the continuum of conflict, showing us how to move from lose/lose all the way to win/win. He explains the dynamics of change and gives us a positive model for dealing with conflict.
http://www.aikiworks.com

Ann Rousseau
Ann Rousseau is a writer, speaker, workshop leader, author of the life management program for children and for ‘those adults who care about them, “I Am…All About Me!”, creator of the children’s clothing line, R.A.S.C.A.L.Wear ™ and president of Involve Me, I Will Learn, Inc. Working with FuturePoint, Inc. Ann coaches high school mentors as they teach the character building lessons of “I Am…!” to second grade students. The focus of Ann’s passion is to provide both children and adults with effective tools for enhancing communication and to empower them to realize their full potentials. Ann’s has taught us simple ways to communicate complex concepts.
www.futurepoint.org/kidsinvolved
or (954) 563-0089

Tony Buzan
“The Mind Map Book ”
A beautiful four-color book with mind maps of all shapes and sizes as well as some stunning photographs of brain cells, flowers and other forms of natural architecture. An amazing book for anyone’s library. It’s one you’ll refer to time and time again!
www.iMindMap.com

Michael Gelb
“How to Think like Leonardo Da Vinci”
Fascinated by what makes a genius a genius, Gelb identifies seven elements of genius that anyone can develop to be more like Leonardo. A great book to have around when raising kids!
www.michaelgelb.com

John Chafee
“The Thinkers Way”
This book teaches 8 Steps to a richer life. John teaches us to ask new questions and improve our thinking processes to enrich our lives. He provides great “Thinking Activities.” This one will keep your brain sharp!
www.thinkingworld.com

Topic 8

Thomas Petzinger, Jr.
“The New Pioneers”
Tom is one of the America’s best-read business columnists. In this book he reveals how a dynamic generation of innovators and entrepreneurs are creating new collaborative workplaces, a value added marketplace and an economy full of opportunity. It’s a very thorough work. About 250 pages and full of great stories of companies that are breaking the mold like you.
www.petzinger.com

Charlotte Shelton
“Quantum Leaps: 7 Skills for Workplace Re-Creation”
If you want a more in-depth glimpse of the difference of the two worldviews we talk about in this issue, Newtonian and Quantum views, Charlotte does a great job of comparing the two and much more. She maps for us seven Quantum skills – seeing, thinking, feeling, knowing, acting, trusting, being – to navigate with in the future. The book is very personal. She uses many examples from her own life to illustrate the points. At the end of each chapter she offers skill integration exercises.
www.wisework.com

Peter Senge
“Fifth Discipline”
This was one of the first books we read on “systems theory.” Peter makes it a joy to read, using easy to use examples and lots of hand drawn pictures – usually of circles and cycles. He says, “Systems thinking is a discipline for seeing wholes. It is a framework for seeing interrelationships rather than things and for seeing patterns of change rather than ‘snapshots.'” Here’s one you might want to own since he devotes a good portion of the book to discussing personal mastery, as well as mental and team learning models.
www.fieldbook.com

Kurt Hanks
“Motivating People”
This is a fun one! Lots of great short chapters and fun illustrations. It’s subtitled “How to motivate others to do what you want and thank you for the opportunity.” Doesn’t get any better than that!

Eric Harvey – The Walk the Talk Company
“180 to Walk the Motivation Talk ”
180 Ways to Walk the Recognition Talk – The “How To” Handbook for EVERYONE Our publisher and strategic partner the Walk the Talk company has another really great one -. A 50-page handbook, a quick read, chock full of lots of ideas on easy, quick and inexpensive ways you can motivate your team.
www.walkthetalk.com

James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner
“Encouraging the Heart”
We love these guys! First The Leadership Challenge and now this. It’s a whole book on recognizing and rewarding others and it will enhance any relationship in your life.
www.kouzesposner.com

Topic 9

Greg Cortopassi
Internationally renowned Peak Performance speaker/trainer/coach, Greg has been an advisor for years. Former head of TeamWorks, Greg’s latest adventure is called Launch Your Dreams
Launchyourdreams@msn.com
or (303)449-5784

Robert Hargrove
“Masterful Coaching: Extraordinary Results By Impacting People And The Way They Think And Work Together. ”
Masterful Coaching is about discovering your own ability to enable people in groups to realize their vision and values through personal transformation, team learning and breakthrough projects.” This is one of our favorite books on coaching – it’s conscious, it’s thorough and it’s full of common sense. It approaches coaching as a transformational activity, one that is beneficial both for the coach and the one being coached.
www.masterfulcoaching.com

Jon R. Katzenbach and Douglas K. Smith
“The Wisdom of Teams: Creating the High-Performance Organization”
Before we wrote our first workshop on teamwork we studied much of the available work in the field. This book turned out to be one of our favorites. It explains what a team is and very importantly, what a team isn’t. If you have time to read only one book on teamwork, we vote for this one. It’s comprehensive and real.
www.katzenbach.com

Mel Kleiman
“HireTough, Manage Easy and 267 Hire Tough Interview Questions”
Mel has been a mentor and friend for many years. We’ve learned more about hiring from him than any other one person, and for that we are very grateful. We use his methods here at the Coach and have taught them to our clients. You’ll love his books. You can also find out more about Mel at his other website www.humetrics.com. You can sign up for his newsletter at either one. www.hiretough.com

MBTI®
To discover your “personality” type using one of the most popular instruments, visit www.personalitytype.com/quiz.asp.

Jack Stack
“Great Game of Business”
Jack Stack discovered that when you teach people how to make money, where profit comes from and what happens to the profit they earn they became more interested in it. Jack took a ‘losing’ company and turned it around to a world class ‘winning’ company. Jack appealed to the highest level of the people he dealt with believing that he would get the highest level of performance – His intention showed up – that’s what he got. Practical, simple and radical – just the kind of book we love. The idea was to get people to see how their own work affected the bottom line. And it worked.
www.greatgame.com/

James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner
“Encouraging the Heart” We love these guys! First The Leadership Challenge and now this. It’s a whole book on recognizing and rewarding others and it will enhance any relationship in your life.
www.kouzesposner.com

Tim Sanders
“Love is the Killer App: How to Win Business and Influence Friends”
This self styled “Lovecat” is a refreshing change on the business scene. And he’s not just all warm and fuzzy – he’s diligent and deliberate with his message. He’s got proof that love works and he’s out to spread the word, his message is strong and powerful and clear.
www.timsanders.com.

Bob Nelson, Ph. D
“1001 Ways to Reward Employees”
“The Guru of Thank You!” Of course, no list of resources for a lesson on employee R&R would be complete without this book.
www.nelson-motivation.com

Topic 10

Carolyn Watt
The Customer Experience Company
We love to partner with this Canadian company because they’re thoroughly passionate about customer experience. They assist companies “making it insanely easy” for their customers to do business with them. Be sure to tell ’em the Coach sent you! They have a great free ezine.
www.itsaboutretention.com

Steve Yanofsky – The Sterling Park Group
The Sterling Park Group provides Customer Information Based Marketing Solutions. They help you find the numbers we recommend you track. They are one of our strategic partners.
www.sterlingparkgroup.com
or (914) 273 5550

Jeanne Bliss Customer Crusaders, Inc.
Jeanne Bliss spent 22 years as the “Chief Customer Zealot” inside 5 major US corporations. She was Microsoft’s General Manager of Worldwide Customer & Partner Loyalty, the VP of Customer Satisfaction & Retention at Allstate Corporation. She was also in charge of the Customer Experience at Coldwell Banker, Mazda and Lands’ End, Inc. She currently heads her own firm, Customer Crusaders, Inc.
CustomerCrusader@comcast.net
or (425) 558-9225

Scott M. Broetzman Customer Care Measurement & Consulting
The founders of Customer Care Measurement and Consulting (CCMC) were responsible for much of the original research that led to such widespread acceptance of customer care as a marketing strategy. Scott has been so helpful to us in our measurement issues.
www.customercaremc.com
or (703) 519-6984

Marlene Yanovsky – Customer Focused Solutions
Customer Focused Solutions is a consulting firm that specializes in service transformation. The firm works with all levels of the organization from senior management to front line employees to build a service culture that delivers on the brand promise. Marlene has been very helpful to us in designing our issues on measurement.
marlene@customerfocusedsolutions.biz
or (914) 273-6854
or (914) 736-5553

Colin Shaw and John Ivens
“Building Great Customer Experiences”
Colin Shaw’s work is clear, easy to follow and is based on solid, original research. We took a wonderful class with him last year and were amazed at how aligned our thinking was with his. The good news is more and more people are getting the message ? values must shine through in all you do. We had a great customer experience.
www.beyondphilosophy.com

Gary Zukav
” Seat of the Soul”
An old favorite here, we must say we did discover Gary before Oprah did. Gary is frequently seen speaking on Oprah’s show and now has several books published. We discovered Gary’s work while studying empowerment. His discussion of power and his definition of “authentic power” rang true and have been very helpful in our work. The book is deep. We love it!
www.zukav.com

George Leonard and Michael Murphy
“The Life We Are Given – A Long Term Program for Realizing the Potential of Body, Mind, Heart and Soul”
A prolific author, George Leonard also wrote the book Mastery. A pioneer in the human potential movement, George teaches ordinary people what he calls ITP Integral Transformative Practice. This book, a collaboration, is a step by step guide to transforming the quality of your life through practice. He draws from the martial arts, Buddhist traditions and a variety of other body-mind disciplines.
www.itp-life.com/main.asp

Employee Engagement

Customer Loyalty

Leadership Skills

Working Relationships

Company Culture