Worcester Business Journal

24 Worcester Business Journal • December 7, 2015 www.wbjournal.com I n 1975, a group of committed community leaders from Central Massachusetts concluded that a pooled endowment would provide a considerable, long-term resource for caring for the community's needs. For 40 years, the Greater Worcester Community Foundation has given local philanthropists the opportunity to do just that – give locally to organizations and causes that matter to them. That endowment would not only survive, but grow. Using the power of compounding interest where you not only receive earnings on your initial investment but also on the prior interest added to your investment, the total return grows exponentially over time. The longer the money is invested, the more compound interest works in the investor's favor, making long-term financial goals easier to attain. In our case, Greater Worcester Community Foundation has reached an asset level of $140 million while having also granted $100 million to the local community in the form of small grants to make an impact on thousands of lives. Having $140 million in the bank and giving $100 million to the community, that is the staying power of the community foundation and the result of local philanthropists choosing to give where they live. While there are endless international causes in need of our help, nothing compares to the satisfaction of improving our local community. Whether it be in the booming arts culture, robust educational opportunities, beautifully preserved green spaces, a caring system of health and social services, and residents and organizations committed to active betterment of the world we live in – the opportunities abound. A simple method of investing has made a huge impact on the local community and enabled the GWCF to grow and give at the same time. n Ann T. Lisi is president of the Greater Wocester Community Foundation. You can reach her at atlisi@greaterworcester.org. By Mary Eddy Stewart Mary Eddy Stewart is the vice president for customer experience at CLEAResult, which develops energy efficiency programs for utilities. You can reach her at info@clearesult.com. 10 Things I Know About... The power of compounding interest KNOW HOW 10) A strong foundation. Employee engagement is the foundation to the success of delivering great customer experience. 9) Multiple platforms. Multi-channel technology is needed to support a customer experience initiative. 8) Know your audience. Customer interactions need to be targeted, relevant and persuasive for the intended audience and provide actionable next steps making it easy for customers to participate. 7) Communicate benefits. Incorporate motivational messaging and communicate tangible benefits experienced by other customers like them in your interactions. 6) Make a good first impression. You have an average of 8 seconds to catch an average person's attention – you better make it good! 5) Make it a priority. Companies committed to creating and providing a great customer experience will have an executive in the company dedicated to this. 4) Measure success. Address (quantitatively not just qualitatively) within any return-on- investment calculations of the benefits of a great customer experience. 3) Get feedback. Elevate the voice of the customer by building customer surveys and feedback. 2) Make changes as needed. Evaluate all your touchpoints and service offerings and deliver channels to make sure you are providing an integrated view of your offerings and driving cross-promotion and participation. 1) Get employees ready. Train employees with soft selling skills to complement technical knowledge. W orkplace pressure is just part of the picture when it comes to meeting deadlines, managing people and reaching sales goals. The issue with stress is that it can fester, be contagious and infiltrate other parts of our lives — like in relationships or health, for instance. A big part of reducing stress is recognizing the signs of stress taking its toll on you and your co-workers. Here are three things to keep in mind about pressure and people. Stressed out? Look at the big picture. Putting things into perspective when you're in the midst of a storm isn't an easy task, but it is necessary. Stress can be so distracting that it knocks you off course and leaves you less focused, creating more of an opportunity for something to go wrong. Travis Bradberry, in an article at Forbes.com, advises getting down to a base level when considering stressors. "Ask yourself two simple questions: What's the worst thing that could happen as a result of this? Will this matter in five years?" Look for the signs of stress in your department. Symptoms of a stress overload can include sliding employee productivity — though everyone is working long hours — or a rise in absenteeism, Dr. Roberta Lee notes in an article at Hiring.Monster.com. "Tolerance for each others' shortcomings is thinner, and tempers are flaring more easily," she writes. "Humor is hard to muster in meetings." Realize that pressure is contagious. Annie McKee, in an article at Harvard Business Review, said stressed-out bosses equal stressed-out team members. "(Emotions) spread like wildfire among people," she writes, "and even faster if one of those people has some control over our fate, as bosses do." If stress has already been chipping away at someone, it doesn't take much to push it too far, jeopardizing the team, the work and that team member's health. n 101: WORKPLACE STRESS >> BY SUSAN SHALHOUB Special to the Worcester Business Journal BY ANN T. LISI Special to the Worcester Business Journal Customer experience

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