A Video Message from the CEO

Please click here to watch a Video Message from the CEO.

Thank you,

A Message from the CEO - Script

Fellow employees,

I want to take a moment to congratulate you all on a record breaking performance during the second quarter of 2011.  With over $37 million in sales, we were able to surpass our second quarter record of $32 million, set in 2008.  What is more impressive is that the $37 million in sales surpassed our projections for the quarter by over $6 million. 

This quarter also marked our third full quarter of tracking customer satisfaction using Net Promoter Score.  Our overall NPS score for the three month period from April through June 2011 was 70.2, a continued improvement from when we first implemented the metric in October 2010.

One area of concern has been our manufacturing throughput.  Over the course of the quarter, our backlog increased to over $25 million, a number that we must improve on.  The implementation of the M.O.R.E. initiative for manufacturing efficiency will assist us in decreasing the backlog, inventory dollar days, and throughput dollar days.

With your continued efforts, I believe that not only will we be able to continue increasing sales and customer satisfaction through year end, but we will also be able to significantly improve our manufacturing and inventory control efficiencies.   

The Proposal

He planned a romantic New Year’s Eve; candles, champagne, roses, and an engagement ring.  It would be perfect.  After an elegant dinner, they went to the suite.  He entered first to make sure everything was set.  Suddenly, he realized he lost the key to the safe, the ring was inside.  

How to get your NRCS order released NOW

Remember that time your NRCS order sat on credit hold for an entire month and credit made you call the customer over and over again?  There was so much additional follow up that it did not seem to be worth the small commission you made off of it.  Well, worry no more, because credit is ready to help make life much easier for you. 

There are three simple documents you need to obtain to allow your order to rapidly flow through the credit department and into manufacturing.

1.      Conservation Program Contract (CPA-1202)

2.      Schedule of Operations (CPA-1155)

3.      A signed credit application

Not familiar with these forms?  You are but your customer is not?  Credit has created a document to help.  Located in the Quick Reference folder of the shared drive, the file “NRCS Guide” offers example forms and explanations of why they are required.  Rather than spending valuable time on the phone explaining the forms to the customer, you can simply forward them a copy of this file.

Currently, over 75% of new orders are on credit hold for 48 hours or less.  With your help on NRCS orders, we believe we can get that number up to 90%.  The faster your order goes through credit, the faster it ships, and the faster you make your commission.  It all starts with obtaining the right documentation.  Help credit help you!

And don’t forget, any time you have questions or need help, David and Debbi are ready to assist you.

Social Media White Paper - XYZ Company

The company I work for is very active in social media.  We utilize Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Flickr.  Our company believes that social media will provide us with a distinct advantage in the marketplace and will allow us to communicate with customers more effectively than was previously possible.  Right now, the driving force behind our company's success is our truss arch building sales.  These fabric tension buildings can range from $25,000 to several million dollars.  Our strongest social media effort is via YouTube and Twitter.  On YouTube, customers can watch videos of our buildings being constructed, being used in various applications, and can hear real customer testimonials.  These videos will go a long way for us compared to the days when we could only send the customer a couple standard photos and a blueprint.  On Twitter, customers can read daily updates about the construction of some of our larger products and can click on links to see photos and videos of the projects on Flickr and YouTube.

Please CLICK HERE to read XYZ Company's White Paper on Social Media.

Effective Email Communication

If it was not evident in my Week 1 blog on examples of bad communication, poor email communication is a huge pet peeve of mine. 

The attached article provides 7 useful tips on proper email etiquette in a business environment.   Email Etiquette: Tips for Professional Email

In my role as a credit analyst, I often see emails from our sales representatives that come across as confrontational, argumentative, and sometimes condescending.  I love how this article points out that it is very important to “Watch Your Tone.” When an email comes across in a hostile or condescending manner, effective communication begins to break down, and the chances of a similarly toned reply will increase, which will just further damage the working relationship.

I tend to think of the points “Be Professional” and “Use Correct Spelling and Proper Grammar” in the same light.  When unprofessional language is used, or when there are excessive spelling and grammatical errors, the impact of the communication can be greatly diminished.

The one point that I recognize I need to improve on is: “Be Concise.”  I often send emails to our entire sales floor explaining changes in credit policies and procedures or alerting them of potential fraudulent customers.  Our sales personnel are very busy with incoming customer calls and emails, and, as a result, do not have the time sit and read a long drawn out email.  Even if they do have the time to read the whole message, it can be difficult to keep their attention throughout the message.  For those reasons, the quality of my communication with the sales floor will benefit significantly by keeping my emails as short and to the point as possible.  

My fellow employees

My fellow employees,

     As you know, the slow days of summer are upon us.  As our agricultural customers prepare their fields for harvest, we too must take time to prepare for the fall busy season.  Before long, the phones will once again be ringing off the hook with sales and customer service calls, the warehouse will be flooded with new orders to manufacture, and the credit department will be working to get every last order approved for financing.

     With the ongoing implementation of the Net Promoter Score customer satisfaction initiative and the M.O.R.E. manufacturing efficiency program, it is time we all step back and collectively focus on getting these programs running at full speed before the busy season arrives.  Sales and customer service, now is the time to start building customer relationships that will thrive come harvest time.  Manufacturing and shipping, now is the time to perfect our efficiency program and catch up on the backlog so that new orders will flow smoothly through the system.  Our goal is to fulfill the agricultural, horticultural, equine, and building needs of our customer base; and, with a renewed customer focus and streamlined manufacturing we can achieve unparalleled success over the coming months.