Linda Henman

the ceo magazine, customer relations,

Seven Secrets for Developing Evergreen Customers

In botany, we learned that an evergreen plant has leaves that stay green throughout the year. Unlike deciduous plants, which lose their foliage during the winter or dry season, the foliage of evergreen plants remains constant. Like their botanical counterparts, successful companies take an evergreen approach to their client relationships, too. Conventional wisdom, which is

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the ceo magazine, customer focus,

How to Give Your Customers What They Want

In September 2017, Ikea, the Swedish home goods retailer, gave their customers what they wanted when they acquired TaskRabbit, a company that sends tool-wielding workers to rescue customers from the frustration of build-it-yourself furniture kits. TaskRabbit continues to operate independently of the acquiring company, using online marketing to connect 60,000 freelance “taskers” with people who

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the ceo magazine, crisis management,

The Critical Nature of Funny

In 1974, Mel Brooks directed the blockbuster comedy, Young Frankenstein.  In the movie, Dr. Frederick Frankenstein learns he has inherited his infamous grandfather’s estate in Transylvania, along with his manuals and lab notes. After initially resisting any connection to his grandfather, Frederick becomes fascinated by the idea of creating his own monster after he discovers

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the ceo magazine, business growth,

Consistency: The Antithesis of the “One-Hit Wonder”

We most often use the term “one hit wonder” to describe music performers who have had a single success. Sometimes these one-hit wonders produced novelty songs such as Jeannie C. Riley’s 1968 number-one hit “Harper Valley PTA.” In spite of the song gracing the charts in the 60s, hardly anyone today would admit to thinking

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the ceo magazine, risk taking,

Faulty Risk-Taking: The Genesis of Unintended Consequences

In December of 2014, Discovery Channel aired a special called “Eaten Alive.” The program featured Paul Rosolie, a “naturalist” who planned to don a snake-proof suit and live through getting swallowed by a 20-foot-long anaconda. Apparently, the goal was to provide Rosolie the insider (pun intended) perspective of a snake’s digestive processes. Anacondas this size

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the ceo magazine, business growth,

Quit Erecting Barriers

As my clients began to emerge from the global economic turmoil that began in 2008, they indicated they had learned numerous lessons—the most important one: When leaders make good decisions, little else matters. When they refuse to make decisions, or show a pattern of making bad ones, nothing else matters. As I helped these leaders position themselves

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