The challenges facing companies in a global economy will demand more than conventional thinking and business as usual. The world is not changed by those who are unwilling to take risks. No Wimps! It takes GUTS to move an organization in bold new directions. It takes GUTS to get out on the lunatic fringe where new breakthroughs are found. It takes GUTS to come down from the Ivory Tower and talk to people in a human voice that’s intimate, inviting and authentic. It takes GUTS to blow up the old rules and free smart people from dumb processes that limit their potential. It takes GUTS to lead with love and trust rather than manage by abstract authority and fear. It takes GUTS to make work fun and not take yourself too seriously. It takes GUTS to be accountable.

Blow the Doors Off Service-As-Usual
Are you worthy of employee & customer loyalty? Discover the GUTSY strategies that create it and sustain it.

Great companies have a “people first” philosophy. They know that when employees feel honored and served there is a reciprocal effect that causes them to provide extraordinary service to their customers. The message is that you can’t do service well externally unless you first do service well internally. Gusty leaders breed a spirit of service within their cultures because they see themselves as servants of the people they lead. Jackie points out that many of us have a tendency to oversimplify the work of our colleagues. Consequently, she advocates the kind of walk-a-mile activities where people in one functional area develop the empathy to better understand the pressures and complexities of their co-workers in other functional areas. Jettison the kind of silo-building, turf protection, and tribalism that renders an organization sluggish and unresponsive. Trade it in for a spirit of collaboration, teamwork and unity. The result will be a seamless approach to serving your customers.

Re-Recruit Great Talent
Be an employer of choice by building a culture that attracts, recruits and retains loyal, engaged and passionate employees.

Gutsy leaders surround themselves with extremely bright people. The people you hire today will determine the culture of your organization tomorrow. Will it be a culture where action-oriented people do whatever it takes to provide world-class service? Will it be a culture where people are committed to serving each other and building team unity across functions? Will it be a culture where people make work fun? Culture is one of biggest levers you have in building an organization where talented people want to work and choose to stay. This part of the presentation emphasizes the importance of attitude (yours and theirs) in the recruiting and hiring process. Jackie builds a compelling business case for being absolutely rigorous about attracting and hiring people who are already predisposed to protecting and promoting the values driving your organization. Then she shows you how to re-recruit and retain your star talent!

Building Your Brand from the Inside-Out
Learn how to create a purposeful culture to increase passion, productivity and profits.

Today, more and more organizations consider culture a bottom line issue. After all, whether it is positive or negative, purposeful or accidental, culture impacts bottom line measures ~ recruiting and retaining talented people, service, productivity, efficiency, and safety.

In this theme Jackie shows you how some of the most admired corporate cultures in America, such as Southwest Airlines, SAS Institute, USS Benfold, Synovus Financial, and Ernst & Young, have purposefully created legendary cultures ~ places where passion and productivity create long-term profitability.

"Differentiate" Leverage Your Brand
Discover how to use service, culture, story telling and fun to blow the doors off the competition.

Is your business viewed as a commodity? If the answer is “yes” and you are solely competing on volume and price, you may be cutting your own throat. Gusty leaders transcend commodity status by finding unique ways to differentiate themselves based on service and value. Learn how some incredibly successful firms blow the doors off business as usual and set themselves a part by creating a unique and memorable customer experience.

Define your Business as a HEROIC Cause
It’s amazing what people will do when work is defined as something heroic. Make it purposeful and then get out of their way!

What motivates people to do their best? What causes them to dedicate the totality of who they are—heart, mind, and soul—to the success of the business? This point goes beyond the extrinsic motivators (salary, benefits, bonuses, perks) to the things that move people internally. It shows the power of what can happen when people find the passion and heroism in their work.

Equip People to Think and Act like Owners
Discover how gutsy leaders are creating a sense of business literacy and getting people at all levels to think and act like owners.

The great writer Robert Frost once said, “Isn’t it a shame that when we get up in the morning our minds work furiously—until we come to work.” In the new economy this can’t be true. Everyone must come to work fully engaged and ready to make a difference. Ownership is a state of mind. It’s a fundamental way of looking at the world and approaching the work we do. Ownership is about giving ourselves and others the freedom to act. It’s about removing the fears that cause lack of initiative. This segment focuses on inspiring people to assume ownership for serving the customer and managing costs out of the business.

Fun Pays
It pays to lighten up, loosen up and make work more fun.

Jackie makes a compelling argument for escaping the tyranny of the “OR”— that place where people say, “If you’re having too much fun you must not be productive.” Unfounded! Flawed thinking! The evidence suggests otherwise! People are in fact more energetic and more productive when they’re having fun at work. With some hilarious video vignettes and extremely funny stories, Jackie will make your audience belly-laugh as they discover and experience how other companies lighten up. She will outline the huge payoffs for making work fun and give your audience members permission to laugh at the off-the-wall things they do! The result? Better communication and teamwork, more creativity, higher levels of retention, and lower levels of stress and burnout.

Articles by Jackie Freiberg:

• Passion Finding it in Your Life, Building it in Your Business