Make Your Brand Legendary with Swoz Consulting

In this Swoz monthly webinar excerpt, you’ll learn the difference between an engaged employee and a true ambassador. Most companies have good people who show up and do great work. Ambassadors go a step further by telling your company’s story even when you’re not in the room -- and they bring other great people in with them. That makes them some of your best recruiters, and it beats sorting through...

In this Swoz monthly webinar excerpt, you'll learn why having standout performer and having a standout standard are two very different things. Every company has a "Hannah" -- the person customers keep requesting who shows up in every positive review. Most leaders notice her and privately wish, "If only we had more Hannahs!" But instead of simply wishing for more Hannahs, what if you studied what s...

In this Swoz monthly webinar excerpt, Matt covers one of the most neglected processes when it comes to making a legendary brand: Onboarding. We pour enormous energy into recruiting and retention, but the middle part (everything between "yes" and day one) is often an afterthought. A clunky onboarding process confirms the new hire's worst fear: that what they were sold and what they're walking into...

In this excerpt from a Swoz monthly webinar, we tackle something every leader has, but few actively look for: blind spots. The problems that seem to appear overnight were usually brewing for months. And even though the front line knew, the information just never made it to the top. Leaders are almost always the last ones to feel the pain. Scott and Matt walk through why blind spots exist -- from f...

Another excerpt from one of Swoz's monthly webinars -- this time tackling one of those ideas everyone agrees with but few actually implement: continuous improvement. Kodak invented the world's first digital camera in their own skunkworks lab. Then went bankrupt to digital camera companies. Xerox PARC invented the mouse, the GUI, and Ethernet - none of which Xerox ever used. The ideas weren't the p...

This episode is another excerpt from one of Swoz's monthly webinars - this time diving into the side of the business that drives profit and productivity: your people. Customer experience drives revenue. Employee experience drives profit. Most leaders know this, but few have a systematic engine for actually building it. Scott and Matt walk through the three gears that separate companies with genuin...

This episode is an excerpt from one of Swoz's monthly webinars - a format we're bringing to the podcast to share more of what we're teaching live. "More businesses die of indigestion than starvation." That's Jim Collins' way of saying what many businesses learn the hard way: doing more doesn't get you more. It gets you inconsistency. Operational Excellence doesn't come from motivational speeches o...

If you want people to put in effort to win, show them the score. But the opposite is also true - don't give people a score to look at, and watch their performance drop. Scott in particular shares many personal and historical examples, from a Chick-Fil-A bowling experiment that had people leaving the bowling lanes early, to Andrew Carnegie's famous way of increasing team performance. Also, it's not...

Scott and Matt discuss relaunching their online program - and the important lessons about Customer Insight and Personalized Service they learned and applied through this process. High-end consulting serves one type of client, but the online program had to be tailored to people in different situations. Same core concepts, but everything from communication style to how they celebrate wins had to cha...

You mapped out your customer journey. But now what? Scott and Matt pick up where they left off, digging into what you actually do with all those post-it notes stuck to the wall. The goal is finding the friction points, gaps, and missed opportunities quietly killing your customer experience. Real examples: A luxury installer who disappeared for 8 weeks between order and delivery (customers kept cal...

Season 2 kicks off with a new co-host! Scott welcomes Matt Sprague (Swoz Consulting's COO) as Caitlin pursues an exciting international opportunity. In this episode, we're jumping straight into Customer Journey Mapping: what it actually is, why it matters -- and how to do it without making your team want to kill each other! Key Topics: Why Customer Journey Mapping matters for every department, not...

What if your greatest opportunities are hiding in plain sight? In this episode, Scott and Caitlin wrap up their mini-series on assessments by unpacking the power of benchmarking - not just as a way to compare, but as a tool to unlock potential. They explore how legendary brands don’t just ask, “how are we doing?” They ask, “What’s possible?” From Chick-fil-A borrowing Ritz-Carlton’s service langua...

When a third party shows up, everyone sits up straighter. In today's episode, Scott and Caitlin dive into the psychology behind why outside perspective is so powerful in assessments. And there's a surprising part to all of this -- while teams easily spot their weaknesses , they're often blind to their biggest strengths . Scott shares how one assessment led to 500% growth when they helped a client...

Get ready for this new 3-part Mini Series on what is often a crucial missing step during the consulting process: Assessments. Ever wonder why leadership teams can devolve into brutal fights over strategy? It's usually not because they disagree on solutions - it's because they're all seeing different parts of the business. Like blind men around an elephant, one person knows about the margin buffer...

Some conversations just stick with you. A couple weeks after the interview with Howard Behar (Episode 39), Scott and Caitlin are still talking about his insights. In today's episode, they discuss more about how Howard's insights can revolutionize the way you think about building relationships and driving results. Howard's approach to generosity works like venture capital. Invest in ten people know...

Sure, you can make an action figure of yourself with AI. But while everyone's playing with chat prompts and generating funny images, some companies are using AI to free up millions of dollars sitting in warehouses. The future is already here - it's just not evenly distributed. At this point, AI has stopped being "optional" for customer experience. Scott breaks down five operational areas where AI...

Ever have a conversation that keeps replaying in your mind weeks after it happened? That's how it felt after talking with Jim Huling in Episode 37. In this episode, Scott and Caitlin dig deeper into the "fiery nuggets" Jim dropped during their discussion. They challenge the false dichotomy between profit and purpose, unpacking why leaders who start with purpose ultimately achieve greater sustainab...

What separates exceptional organizations from the rest? In this conversation with Jonathan Reynolds, founder of Titus Talent, Scott and Caitlin explore why finding the right people is the foundation of every legendary brand. Jonathan reveals why traditional recruiting methods often fail and shares his counterintuitive approach to attracting A-players. Through engaging stories and tactical insights...

What if treating your people well wasn't at odds with driving high performance? In this powerful conversation with Howard Behar, former President of Starbucks International, Scott and Caitlin explore why servant leadership is fundamentally about performance, not just being nice. Howard reveals the three primary responsibilities of servant leaders, and why the first focus should always be on helpin...

What can we learn from someone who's generated over $21 billion in enterprise value through digital transformation? In this conversation with Ben Elmore, Scott and Caitlin explore the often-misunderstood world of bringing technology and people together. Ben shares why 70% of digital transformation efforts fail, and how his team achieves an 85% success rate instead. Through stories from his work wi...

After decades coaching thousands of executives across 21 countries, Jim Huling has experienced first-hand what separates thriving teams from those that merely survive. What if the most crucial element of team success -- in the real world -- isn't always what we expect it to be on paper? In this eye-opening conversation, Jim reveals to Scott and Caitlin the missing component he's consistently found...

What happens when you combine lightning-fast growth with unwavering quality standards? In this conversation with Grace Chadwick, COO of Crumbl Cookies, Scott and Caitlin explore how one of the fastest-growing food brands manages to maintain excellence while changing their entire menu weekly. Grace reveals the unexpected foundation of Crumbl's success: a tech-first approach that enables real-time c...

What happens when you get direct advice from an industry pioneer? In this episode, Scott and Caitlin explore how valuable conversations with industry pioneers can transform your business approach. Caitlin shares insights from her recent meeting with Chuck Coonradt, the original "Godfather of Gamification," revealing his counterintuitive advice about explaining what you do to potential clients. Rat...

We've spent the past few weeks getting specific about The Three C's of Hiring -- and now it's time to put it all together. It's one thing to have all the knowledge and strategies, but what do you do when you encounter questions along the way? Scott and Caitlin wrap up this Mini-Series by detailing specific guardrails, pitfalls, and common questions you might encounter as you apply the Three C's to...

Last episode, Scott and Caitlin addressed the fundamentals of hiring for Competence. Now, it's time to enter troubleshooting mode. You might know the secrets of how to assess for Competence, but what do you do when real-world complications blur the lines? Through candid conversations and surprising revelations, they address critical questions like: Is it possible for someone to be too competent fo...