Last Friday night, the Snoqualmie Valley Chamber of Commerce hosted Mardi Gras in the Valley, a gala which brought the business community together for an evening of fun and celebration. As part of the festivities, Chamber Member of the Year awards were presented to Snoqualmie Casino in the Large Company category and JAKZ Group in the Small Company category.
What’s interesting is that these two companies embody similar characteristics; in other words, successful businesses have common attributes regardless of revenue earned or number of employees on the payroll. Below are three commonalities. How does your company score on each measure?
Embracing the “Team Sport” concept
Starting with Snoqualmie Casino’s President and CEO Brian Decorah and cascading down the entire company organization chart, what you’ll see and hear is that success comes only because of the team. My personal experience is that employees who directly take care of casino guests feel the appreciation. Leadership starts at the top and works its way throughout the company. How does leadership show up in your company and what can you do to honor, uplift and leverage the team? How effective are you at creating an environment where employees want to consistently perform at their highest possible level?
Providing value to customers and community
Value is both tangible and intangible. How does your company define, quantify and deliver value; to its customers or the broader community? JAKZ Group founders Jessica Self and Kendra Miller help businesses build awareness and community through social media. A recent business workshop they delivered for the Chamber of Commerce was packed to room capacity. It was by far the highest attended business workshop held since the monthly series began four years ago.
With respect to tangible value, so long as value delivered exceeds price paid, customers will come back for more. Repeat business is the lifeblood of any company.
Intangible value is in direct proportion to how it shows up. How does your company serve its local community? Does it support local businesses by buying local? Do your employees volunteer to serve on non-profit boards or give time for community projects?
Delivering an awesome experience
The Mardi Gras in the Valley gala was incredible. The chamber’s volunteer gala committee (all business owners) partnered with our Executive Director and team of casino employees to deliver an event experience that was out of this world!
As the current Chamber of Commerce Board President, I couldn’t have been more appreciative because every guest seemed to have a larger smile at the end of the evening than when they arrived. That is a true measure of awesome experience!
How do you KNOW that your company delivers a remarkable experience? How do you measure this either quantitatively or qualitatively? What is the process your company uses to innovate and improve at consistently delivering more smiles than frowns?