Stronger Through Adversity: World-Class Leaders Share Pandemic-Tested Lessons on Thriving During the Toughest Challenges


Book Description

From business guru Joseph Michelli―the leadership lessons needed to thrive beyond the greatest business crisis in modern history COVID-19 has disrupted business and life in ways we never imagined. Within days of the outbreak, Joseph Michelli—the world-renowned business expert who has cracked the leadership codes of Starbucks, Airbnb, Mercedes-Benz USA, and many other top companies—went to work. He contacted 140+ senior leaders at major companies about their specific challenges and how they were meeting them—getting raw yet thoughtful real-time insights into a crisis that will define an entire generation of leaders. The result is Stronger Through Adversity. In this business guide for our times, Michelli distills best leadership practices that can be used in any company, in any industry. Organized into four main themes—Set the Foundation, Build Connections, Move with Purpose, and Harness Change—Stronger Through Adversity provides a deep dive into the methods, tactics, and approaches leaders have used to keep their company afloat and to position it for success long after the pandemic. You’ll get invaluable insights into crisis management, keeping employees and customers safe, maintaining a culture of engagement, and rapidly innovating. Applying powerful leadership methods used by Microsoft, Starbucks, Google, DHL, Target, Verizon, Kohl’s, Marriott, and many others, you’ll seize and hold the competitive edge in your industry. Whether you run a Fortune 500 company, own a small business, or manage a department or team—this is your moment. Stronger Through Adversity delivers everything you need to prosper—to lead your people to an unprecedented recovery, to weather the toughest challenges your business faces from the pandemic and beyond, and to thrive in all storms, large and small.




Prescription for Excellence: Leadership Lessons for Creating a World Class Customer Experience from UCLA Health System


Book Description

THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES AND WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER! “Like any business, a hospital must be true to its core values in order to succeed. ‘Trickle-down values’ start at the top with the best leadership, so that all the stakeholders understand and carry out the institution’s mission. That is the gift that David F einberg has brought to U CLA. I am in awe of his management skills.” —Lynda Resnick, owner of Pom Wonderful, Fiji Water, Teleflora, and Wonderful Pistachios “With clear purpose, unwavering principles, and steadfast leadership, the people at UCLA have established a new bar, a compelling promise, for what healthcare can and should be.” —David M. Lawrence, M.D., former CEO, Kaiser Permanente “An absorbing and educational account of a large institution’s astonishing transformation. The strong, courageous, and focused leadership of David Feinberg and his outstanding team is evident on every page. A tremendous lesson for all large enterprises.” —William E. Simon, Jr., cochairman, William E. Simon & Sons “Most leadership authors describe how to apply common-sense principles. Michelli is a notable exception. He artfully describes the compelling, uncommon leadership practices that transformed UCLA Health System. The resulting lessons are plentiful and powerful for today’s business leader.” —Lee J. Colan, Ph.D., author of Sticking to It: The Art of Adherence About the Book: Joseph Michelli, author of The Starbucks Experience and The New Gold Standard, is among the world’s top authorities on the principles of creating an organizational culture dedicated to service excellence. In these bestselling books, he examines how leading service companies dominate their respective industries with innovative customerexperience strategies. Now, Michelli turns his attention to one of the most complex, controversial, and critical industries—healthcare. In Prescription for Excellence, Michelli provides an inside look at an organization that has become the envy of its industry—and explains how you can dominate your own industry by using the same approach. UCLA Health System is revered worldwide for its top-tier patient/customer care. Great physicians, nurses, researchers, and staff are only part of the equation; UCLA’s overall success is a result of organization-wide collaboration that is driven by leaders with a shared vision of unyielding excellence. Michelli breaks down UCLA’s approach into five simple principles: Commit to Care Leave No Room for Error Make the Best Better Create the Future Service Serves Us From administrative offices to operating rooms to research centers, continued adherence to these five principles has guided UCLA to financial strength, social significance, and sustainability. The best part is that these principles translate to any industry, so you, too, can achieve similar goals. Michelli gives you the tools to adapt UCLA’s ideas, systems, and leadership principles into your own best practices. Whether it is a healthcare organization, a financial institution, or a neighborhood hair salon, good business begins and ends with customer connection. When all workers in an organization focus on providing quality care for those they serve, success inevitably follows. Business is always personal; UCLA’s leadership ensures that this simple truth drives every UCLA employee, every day. Apply the lessons Michelli spells out in Prescription for Excellence to create a system that ensures that your people take business personally, day in and day out.




Thriving in High-Pressure Environments


Book Description

Forged by fire In April 2020, our family moved to Bozeman, MT, where I took on a new role as Managing Director Strategic IT at Montana State University. From my first day on the job, the outbreak of the global COVID-19 pandemic forced us to think on our toes, constantly change our strategies and tactics, and always be ready for surprises. Applying my learnings from high-stake, high-pressure roles in Amazon allowed me to help transform the organization and culture while rebuilding team morale and keeping motivation high. During the pandemic, my team delivered high-impact outcomes at an unprecedented velocity and volume. We were rewriting every process in the book while running at top speed, keeping up with ever-changing demands and constraints to serve our customers during those challenging times. The world population lived through challenging, demanding, and emotionally taxing times in the year 2020. Times like that make you break or come out stronger on the other side. I tried to help my team come out stronger by sharing my learnings from the decades with Microsoft and Amazon in what I called 'weekly reflections'. Most often, those reflections discussed approaches and thought models to deal with specific issues that I observed during that week. A different set of challenges presented themselves when Uli took over a role as Site Manager for the Montana State University COVID Testing Center and later their COVID vaccination program. Some of my thoughts and lessons were inspired by those challenges. This book summarizes the lessons, approaches, and principles that I shared with my team as we all did our best to deliver exceptional service to our customers in circumstances that no one was prepared for. I hope that some of the strategies and principles will work for you as beautifully as they did for me. I hope they will help you thrive in challenging situations and help you get one step closer to your dreams. Alfons Bozeman, MT March 2021 Reviews This common-sense approach to discussing what has been learned is easily understandable and was readily adapted to a variety of challenging situations that we as business people experienced in the recent past. It also provides a structured guide to apply those same "learnings" as we move through future weeks, months, and years. If you seek theory, you will be disappointed. If you pursue reality and the associated efforts of discovering new and creative ways to resolve issues, you will be very satisfied. A concept that I encourage and attempt to adhere to myself is "change, assess, and then change again". This book will provide the foundation for taking action, assessing, learning, and taking action again. Michael Trotter Vice President and CIO, Montana State University About the authors Alfons worked at Hewlett Packard, Microsoft, and Amazon in Executive and Senior leadership roles for the last 25+ years. He currently serves as Managing Director Strategic IT at Montana State University. Uli practiced as an MD in Germany. When she moved to the US, Uli became a Tai Chi, mindfulness, and art teacher. To help through the pandemic, Uli stepped up to lead the Montana State University COVID Testing Center as well as their vaccination program.




The Airbnb Way: 5 Leadership Lessons for Igniting Growth through Loyalty, Community, and Belonging


Book Description

An unprecedented inside look at how Airbnb and its host community create dynamic customer experiences and build brand loyalty in the sharing economy Airbnb best embody the entrepreneurial and disruptive spirit of today’s sharing economy. Since its early days as a humble start-up, Airbnb has evolved into a revolutionary force in the short-term housing market as a platform where hosts provide listings spread across more than 81,000 cities and 191 countries. Airbnb’s leadership strives to support the host community to ensure a consistent, on-brand experience for every guest, every time. The Airbnb Way delivers proven methods for increasing customer engagement, loyalty, and referrals that can be utilized in every service setting and in any industry. Exclusive interviews with Airbnb leaders and rich stories from hosts and guests provide an inside look into the wildly popular online rental platform. The book features: •Airbnb strategies and practices that will drive customer engagement and loyalty •Expert advice on how to provide phenomenal customer service •Illuminating stories about Airbnb guest and host experiences•Unique leadership principles for activating all stakeholders--including those who share resources and services and more




Leading at the Edge


Book Description

Drawing on the amazing story of Shackleton and his polar exploration team’s survival against all odds, author Dennis N. T. Perkins demonstrates the importance of a strong leader in times of adversity, uncertainty, and change. Part adventure tale and part leadership guide, Leading at the Edge uncovers what the legendary Antarctic adventure of Sir Ernest Shackleton, his ship Endurance, and his team of twenty-seven polar explorers can teach us about bringing order to chaos through true leadership. Among other skills, you’ll learn how to: instill optimism while staying grounded in reality, step up to risks worth taking, consistently reinforce your team message, set a personal example, find things to celebrate, laugh small things off, and--even in the face of extreme temperatures, hazardous ice, scarce food, and complete isolation--never give up. This second edition of Leading at the Edge features additional lessons, new case studies of the strategies in action, tools to uncover and resolve conflicts, and expanded resources. An updated epilogue compares the leadership styles of the famous polar explorers Shackleton, Amundsen, and Scott, which transcend the one-hundred-plus years since their historic race to the South Pole to help today’s leaders learn valuable lessons about the meaning of true success.




Leading Through the Pandemic


Book Description

For many of us, we greeted 2020 with a sense of hope, optimism, and promise. Even the number to the year had a nice symmetry to it and suggested perfect vision and clarity. It was going to be our best year yet. Instead, we came face-to-face with the massive paradigm shift of living in a world shrouded by the pandemic.Through the lockdowns, toilet paper chaos, and remote office shuffles, people in leadership positions throughout the world had to adapt. When faced with a dizzying array of new challenges, some of these leaders learned to thrive.Imagine the resiliency of leading a 400-person manufacturing plant and devising new strategies to ramp up production while keeping employees safe. Imagine the creativity of launching new online platforms to address what society needed most - connection, healing, creativity, and wellness. Imagine the pain of falling into a deep depression and then using it as an opportunity to reevaluate one's leadership style.In this book you'll receive the leadership lessons they don't teach you in business school. With these conscious leaders showing the way, you'll receive a new blueprint for 21st-century leadership.




When Fish Fly


Book Description

"You can energize your people and delight your customers by modeling the fabulous ideas that come from the World Famous Pike Place Fish Market." -- Ken Blanchard, co-author of The One Minute Manager In this revealing business advice book, the magic of the World Famous Pike Place Fish Market proves a dynamic example of what a group of people can create when they are aligned and living a powerful vision. Here for the first time, owner John Yokoyama explains in his own words just how he transformed his business into a workplace that is renowned worldwide. When Fish Fly offers Yokoyama's cohesive strategy for achieving world famous results for owners, managers, and front-line workers alike. Once you understand the generative principles behind the World Famous Pike Place Fish Market you, too, can develop a culture that leads to excellent employee morale and legendary customer service.




The Great Lockdown


Book Description

A collection of insider accounts describing the organizational impact of COVID-19 In The Great Lockdown: Lessons Learned During the Pandemic from Organizations Around the Globe, expert strategists Shivaji Das, Aroop Zutshi , and Janesh Janardhanan deliver an insightful exploration of this once-in-a-lifetime event to unearth invaluable learnings for the future. Told through the experiences of CXOs at billion-dollar companies, star start-ups, and non-profits from around the world, the book chronicles the ups and downs of sophisticated organizations as they navigated the COVID-19 crisis through initiatives impacting people, processes, and technology. Revealing case studies contributed by the CXOs of companies spanning multiple geographies - from the USA to Iran, Uganda to Hong Kong, and multiple sectors – social media, technology, aviation, luxury retail, healthcare, etc. Incisive analyses of the techniques and strategies that worked—or didn’t—for organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic, covering the role and evolution of leadership, organizational culture, innovation and digitization Practical guidance for business leaders to apply to their own firms in times of great economic upheaval: the next pandemic, climate disasters, cyber-attacks The leaders contributing their organization's survival and revival stories include those from Julius Baer, SAP, Terumo, IndiGrid, Tapsi, Fonterra, Hornet Networks, Globalization Partners, beCuriou, GoGoX, Abacus Pharma, Real Wear Inc, SOS Children's Villages, Bangalore International Airport, and A Lange & Sohne. Perfect for executives, managers, and other business leaders, The Great Lockdown is an invaluable addition to the libraries of anyone interested in case studies of corporate resilience and endurance in the face of unprecedented economic challenges.




The Resilient Leader


Book Description

A simple guide to surviving and thriving in difficult situations, The Resilient Leader is the perfect tool to empower yourself and successfully lead through challenges. Everyone has encountered their own version of a Category 5 storm—whether it's the coronavirus pandemic, launching a new business, drowning in debt, enduring an emotional crisis, or actual flooding in the streets. But events that would normally incapacitate don't need to hold us back.. Christine Perakis has created seven resilience strategies that you can use to get through whatever your disruptive environment throws at you to create life and career invincibility and come through any challenge thriving. You are not meant to live at the whims of others or a negative market. It's time to take control. In the book she discusses: The 6 Barometers of Pandemic Preparedness for Small Businesses The 3 Things Senior Leaders Must Do During a Crisis Creating a "Float Plan" For Dealing with Business Disruption Evaluating and Motivating Your Team During (and After) a Disaster How to Make Crucial Decisions Before It's Too Late Creating a Communication Plan (both corporate and individual) Life may not be smooth sailing, but with strategies to build strength and personal success strategies, you can weather any storm.




Driven to Delight: Delivering World-Class Customer Experience the Mercedes-Benz Way


Book Description

A Wall Street Journal bestseller Why are Mercedes-Benz customers so loyal and passionate? Because the people at Mercedes-Benz are Driven to Delight In his previous bestsellers--The Starbucks Experience, The New Gold Standard, and Prescription for Excellence--Joseph Michelli revealed customer experience practices and strategies of beloved businesses. Now, in this timely new book, he shares the greatest customer-driven insights behind one of the most iconic brand names in the world: Mercedes-Benz USA. DRIVEN TO DELIGHT reveals: How Mercedes-Benz USA launched a multi-year program to elevate their customer experience--even though their product was already “best in class.” How they activated people, improved processes, and deployed technology to emotionally engage customers. How the Mercedes-Benz approach can jump-start any customer-driven business—by accelerating your commitment to the customer experience. Filled with exclusive front-seat insights from Mercedes-Benz employees, eye-opening testimonials from passionate Mercedes-Benz fans, and solid nuts-and-bolts advice for creating your own consumer-aligned road map, Driven to Delight will help you retool your strategies, reignite your customers, and refuel your team for the long haul. Mercedes-Benz. The name alone conjures images of luxury, innovation, quality, and performance. But in today’s market, you need more than a world-class product to outpace the competition--which is why the executives at Mercedes-Benz USA set a course to create a customer experience in keeping with their legendary cars. This is the story of how an organization became Driven to Delight. It reveals the action plan Mercedes-Benz USA used to catapult the company to first place rankings in national customer satisfaction studies while at the same time growing sales and profits. With unprecedented access to company personnel, customer experience expert Joseph Michelli charts the journey the company took and identifies the all-important keys to driving delight in any customer-based organization. You’ll learn how to: Create a compelling vision for exceptional customer experiences Identify the ever changing wants, needs, and desires of your customer segments Map out your key customer journeys and high value contact points Effectively evaluate customer perceptions throughout their journey with you Resolve customer needs swiftly and constantly improve your delivery processes Link rewards and recognition to customer experience excellence throughout your organization These proven techniques are part of the Mercedes-Benz USA “Driven to Delight” culture which sets a new gold standard in customer service, employee engagement, and peak performance. You’ll find step-by-step strategies that can be customized to fit your business model and customer needs. You’ll discover invaluable tools like Vision Mapping, Customer Journey Wheels, Customer-Centric Strategy and Resource Planning Processes --plus 20 Key Questions you can use to diagnose your progress and steer your company in the right direction. Along the way, you’ll get a rare first-hand comprehensive view of a world-class company in action. You’ll see how a “best or nothing” organization became customer obsessed, mile after mile, year after year. Most importantly, you’ll learn how to ramp up your own customer experience, rev up your customer commitment, and take your customers on a journey that’s bound to delight--the Mercedes-Benz way. Joseph A. Michelli is an internationally sought-after speaker, author, and organizational consultant. His books include The Starbucks Experience, The New Gold Standard, The Zappos Experience, Leading the Starbucks Way, and Prescription for Excellence, which hit #1 on The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestseller lists.