How leaders foster an open workplace

Workplace engagement prospers when open communication and relationships are strong. Forrest Bell, an outsourced sales and marketing firm based in the UK, highlights that being open in the workplace means having the capacity to talk freely, (yet respectfully and constructively) about needs, opinions and concerns as well as being able to listen receptively to (rather than just hear) new ideas, questions and feedback.

The firm believes that having a culture of openness is hugely beneficial in the workplace because it helps to build trust and advance initiatives, activity and projects that involve more than just one person. It also ensures transparency and simplifies how things are done in an ever-changing business environment.

Forrest Bell has listed key techniques that a good leader can use to encourage openness within their team:

Don't assume people hear what you say
Forrest Bell believe that it's totally acceptable to ensure the other person got your message clearly by asking something like "So what do you think of that idea…" or "Any initial thoughts on how we proceed with this…"

In return, don't assume you hear what the other person said. Forrest Bell recommends checking with the other person to validate what you think you have heard using phrases like "Let me make sure I've got this right…" or "So what I'm hearing you say is…"

Be honest, but do it skillfully and tactfully
Blunt, straight-talking managers frequently close down relationships leading to loss of productivity and motivation. Instead, Forrest Bell recommends that the leader ensures they express their message in a manner that people will be receptive to by using techniques such as making the audience the starting point of conversation, asking for feedback on an idea and if there are any issues to address. Never blame or accuse but instead encourage a problem-solving exercise.

Encourage employees to express their needs
It's better for employees to open up and articulate their needs as opposed to keeping them under wraps and trying to meet them at the expense of others. This can be done via proactive feedback in 1 on 1 sessions or in a group setting such as monthly meetings. Forrest Bell believes it's important to give thanks and recognition every time. Forrest Bell's Managing Director Rebecca Bell strongly believes in this exercise and often runs 1 on 1 meetings, breakfasts or dinners with the team to make it possible for them to express their needs.

Remove judgment
Forrest Bell believes that in most cases what the other person is saying is true for them. The firm suggests not judging prematurely or saying something without thinking, even if you disagree or know what they are saying is inaccurate. Let them finish and then talk it through. This will maintain trust and ensure they come back to you next time rather than going to someone else.

'Walk the job' on a regular basis, but don't encroach on people
Forrest Bell advises leaders to stop by and ask their team how they are or if there is anything they can do because this shows them that they genuinely care. One of the mottos of the company that is regularly used in passing is that, 'People don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care.' If something is on their mind they will be more than likely to bring it up and then you can schedule a time to talk it through. However, invading their workspace and talking specifics will appear blunt and micromanaging – even if you have good intentions.

posted from Bloggeroid

StarHub launches SmartUC service for Singapore businesses, powered by Avaya

Avaya, a customer and team engagement solutions provider, and StarHub, an integrated infocommunications company in Singapore, have launched a business communications service, SmartUC, for businesses in Singapore. 

The benefits are fourfold: SmartUC can help businesses become more productive, deliver a first class experience for their customers, differentiate their products and services, and expand.

“The expectations of business users and customers have rapidly evolved in recent years, and that change will only accelerate. We now expect mobility and apps and social and cloud. We expect video and chat and flexibility and ease of use. We expect the world at our click,” observed Pamela Tham, Singapore Country Leader, Avaya.

Providing a suite of unified communications capabilities, SmartUC will be delivered in two different offerings – a Standard option for small businesses with fewer than 50 users, and a Premium option for companies with over 50 users, allowing for seamless business growth and flexibility. The SmartUC Premium option includes all the capabilities of the Standard version, plus support for Android, IOS, Windows and Mac devices, contact centre self-service and multimedia capabilities.

"With SmartUC, we bring about a cost-effective value proposition to help Singapore companies to operate more efficiently, while maintaining the fine balance to scale and grow more competitively. Through this innovative approach, we aim to partner our enterprise customers to deliver outstanding service to their businesses,” said Sebastian Tan, Vice President, Enterprise Solutions, Services and Delivery, StarHub.

For small and midsize businesses (SMBs) in particular, a cost effective and high-performance technology solution can help to deliver quicker decision making and better business results. The SmartUC solution ticks all the boxes to help Singapore businesses grow and deliver exceptional service:

· Simple to use and easy to tailor; can be deploy with managed service support

· Monthly subscription offering without the hefty upfront IT expenses or costly feature upgrades associated with traditional corporate phone systems

· Supports a handful of users all the way to 2,500 users

· Integrates easily with existing solutions

· Can work at the workplace, or in the cloud 

SmartUC is based on the Avaya IP Office platform, a solution for SMBs with over 480,000 midmarket systems installed around the world. IP Office helps connect businesses with their customers using the methods those customers prefer - including voice, SMS, web chat, video, email, or fax. IP Office also helps people work from anywhere.

Mango Routes uses Ameyo to manage customer campaigns

Source: Mango Routes website.

Mango Routes, a Gurgaon-based travel service company, has implemented technology from Ameyo for customer engagement.

As a startup, Mango Routes needed call technology that provided a better customer experience. The solution had to integrate seamlessly with its customer relationship management system while ensuring best-in-class customer support, first call resolution* (FCR) and streamlined communication processes. 

"As a complete travel services company that offers its services to businesses and retail customers alike, taking care of their end-to-end travel requirements, we needed a communication platform that could enable us to provide hassle free services. We chose Ameyo over other vendors because of its one stop solution, technological advancement and its solution oriented approach. 

"Our entire calling setup is built on (Ameyo) and it works as a heart for our system. Within months of deployment, we were able to see better management in our outbound campaigns. We believe that Ameyo will help us in understanding our customers well in the long run," said Amit Nautiyal, Travel Expert and Contracting Head, Mango Routes India.

*FCR refers to resolving the customer's request without requiring further calls.