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They say first impressions matter - and when it comes to your business, they start long before a customer walks through the door. Continuing the discussion around getting people in your shop, the way your exterior looks can influence whether someone decides to step inside or keep walking. A welcoming, well-maintained space signals professionalism and care, while a neglected one can turn potential customers away.
In my role as Lead for Customer Health, I speak to customers from many different industries all the time and I find it fascinating to learn about different types of business. I was recently speaking with a CEO who had just hit a major milestone - scaling from a small operation to a full-fledged company with multiple locations and growing demand. He told me it was super exciting but also quite overwhelming.
Everything is online now. My work, my shopping, my social life. Most of everything happens from a screen nowadays. I work remotely, buy what I need with a few clicks, and even the most in-person experiences (like trying on clothes) are now just virtual fitting rooms and same-day delivery. But heres the thing, theres still something irreplaceable about walking into a store, discovering something unexpected and leaving with a bag in hand.
Over the past few years, businesses have embraced digital transformation with the promise of exponential productivity, revolutionary customer experiences and unprecedented innovation. However, the reality has been far more complex. Instead of achieving seamless operations, many companies find themselves in a web of siloed applications and inefficient processes.
Starting out in business can be incredibly exciting. Youre full of ideas, youre hungry to get things going and its fun to do your own thing. Whether you first get started alongside your full-time job or you get funding and start off alone from the beginning, at some point youll be ready for more. Once things are underway and youre up and running, youll often want to focus on your next level of growth.
Business travel doesn't have to be a torment. Yes, you are there to get your work done, but who said you can't put in the slightest amount of comfort and pleasure as well?
As the year comes to end so does my maternity leave. With my first baby I only got 3 months and Im really grateful that with my second girl I got 2.5 months more thanks to ServiceNows global maternity leave policy and some accumulated PTO. Many people think that maternity leave is free time to chill and relax. This cant be further from the truth. Rather your time is spent feeding, getting to sleep, changing diapers, washing clothes and cooking, and at the end of the day you wonder where your day
People who know me also know that I've always had a thing for fashion. Over the years, my style has evolved to be a lot less eclectic than what it used to be. I used to love putting bright colours on. I still do but in my thirties, with two kids and an advanced tech career, I find myself choosing more neutral pieces and focusing on elegance and comfort.
The Software as a Service (SaaS) industry has been growing exponentially, driven by the increasing demand for cloud-based solutions and the shift towards digital transformation across industries. I've been working in SaaS for just about 10 years now and one of the critical strategies SaaS companies employ to scale their operations and expand their market reach is the development of partner reselling models.
In the world of leadership, where the ability to inspire, motivate, and guide others is paramount, the skill of leading with consciousness and intentionality becomes a defining attribute that distinguishes exceptional leaders from the rest. I face this every day with my own team and the challenges we face. As the demands on leaders grow increasingly complex due to the fast-paced business environment. we live in, the need for a deeper understanding of oneself becomes crucial, enabling leaders to
Is there anyone who doesn't want to be a millionaire? I doubt it. We all want financial security but achieving financial freedom is far more desired by many because it provides the ultimate flexibility and peace of mind, allowing individuals to live life on their own terms without being constrained by financial limitations. I stumbled across the book "Millionaire Success Habits" by Dean Graziosi and wanted to share today some of the key learnings and tips from it.
The marketing world has been significantly transformed by the advent of artificial intelligence (AI). With AI's ability to streamline processes, enhance personalisation, and boost content quality, savvy marketers are leveraging its power to stay ahead of the curve. I use AI every day for various content marketing activities and I save at least double the time if not more thanks to Gen AI these days and especially ChatGPT that I am a huge fan of not just for content creation but also for research
In today's fast-paced and interconnected business environment, technical skills alone are no longer sufficient for achieving success. The ability to navigate complex interpersonal dynamics and effectively manage emotions has become more crucial than ever and I feel it every day in my work. This is where emotional and social intelligence come into play.
In a world where brand loyalty is becoming increasingly elusive, organisations across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) are facing quite the challenges. The landscape is shaped by shifting consumer preferences, economic pressures, and the relentless march of technology. In 2023, at ServiceNow we highlighted the looming brand loyalty crisis, and now, in 2024, the situation remains dire.
In the realm of business literature, few books possess the power to inspire and impart invaluable wisdom quite like " Winners Dream " by Bill McDermott. I am not saying this because he is technically my boss given that I work at ServiceNow but because I read t he signed copy I got directly from Bill almost in one go. Not only was it very engaging, but it was full of interesting stories about Bill's humble beginnings all the way to the top of corporate success.
Where could your business be going wrong? This is a question that most businesses ask themselves regularly, and yet coming up with the answer can be really difficult. It’s hard to know where things are not going so well, and how you can get your business back on track. Today, we will look at a list of things that could potentially be going wrong in your business and help you identify what positive changes you can start making going forward.
This is a guest post by Dina Mostovaya. The role of PR professionals has evolved significantly. Numerous global studies show that nowadays, a head of communications plays the part of a company’s business partner, becoming critical in the process of achieving the firm’s business goals. Gone are the days when PR solely provided support; now, it is recognized that communication must have a strategic focus.
I've been a Chief of Staff for close to two years but I've held similar positions in the past without the title. People often ask me "What is it that you actually do?" Chief of Staff roles have become popular over the last few years, especially in tech. Many of the big companies have a Chief of Staff for all of their SVPs and above, and some even for VP and above.
Many people ask me how I remain this productive in a job that's full of last-minute urgencies and constant changes? My answer is simple, I have three non-negotiables to keep a high performance at work and in my private life and they have nothing to do with work itself. All three are about something very foundational - my body and ensuring it functions at its peak.
In a world increasingly driven by connectivity and relationships, social intelligence has emerged as a crucial skill for personal and professional success. I first heard about social intelligence from Daniel Goleman's book " Social Intelligence: The New Science of Human Relationships" and wanted to write a piece that covers what social intelligence is, why it matters in both life and business and also share the key insights into developing and honing this invaluable skill, especially in the corp
What was the best thing about November? To me, it was the World Forum events we run across Europe at ServiceNow. We welcomed over 5,000 customers and partners in four locations: London, Frankfurt, Paris and Rotterdam. The exchange was incredible! There was so much learning on stage and off stage while networking. Reflecting on the discussions, the main conversations were around 5 key themes which we covered in the main keynotes of each event.
I've been fascinated by ChatGPT pretty much since the beginning and even more so now. It's amazing for content creation but also for idea generation. From time to time I ask ChatGPT various questions to gather new ideas and today I decided to ask ChatGPT to summarise Inbound PR. The answer was so good I decided to publish it here. Inbound PR: A Modern Approach to Public Relations (by ChatGPT) Inbound PR is a contemporary approach to public relations that has gained prominence in the digital age.
Setting goals is pivotal for success. This is true in your personal and professional life. If you want to go far in your career, you need to have goals. If you want to manage your finances well , you need to have money goals. The list goes on. Goals can be this fluffy thing people struggle with because they are not always easy to make them strong and sticky.
Last week, I attended the European Women in Tech conference in Amsterdam. It's been a while since I went to an event like this and it was great to be back learning and networking. I attended dozens of sessions and wanted to spend some time reflecting on them. The best way for me to reflect is by writing. Writing is my way of thinking and learning and I'm getting back to it more and more as well.
76% of customers say they are less loyal to a brand than two years ago. This finding comes from research about customer and employee experience in EMEA we recently released at ServiceNow. The challenging economic landscape and ever-high inflation are the primary reasons to drive brand loyalty down. To battle the current environment, customers are cutting costs, switching to cheaper alternatives and leaving brands for competitors that offer more or better value.
A few months back, my good friend Kareem Mostafa who I've featured in the blog introduced me to a friend of his - Leon Nussbaumer. Leon runs an excellent and top-rated podcast about professionals and careers called Leon & The Professionals. Leon and I got to talking and decided to record a session as well. Leon was great to work with and I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation which could have gone for much, much longer.
When you start a new job, join a new company or a new team, others need to understand how you work. The earlier you get to know the people you will be closely working with and the earlier they get to know you, the smoother your work collaboration will be. Transparency about what you like and don't like, how you work, how you communicate, and how you make decisions at the very beginning is key for your success in the new role, company or team as well.
Even though I didn't write much here last year (although I had great intentions but ended up writing a book ), the blog kept being popular with lots of views and readers so today I'm doing a review of what you liked the most in 2022 here. I will use this info to create new content that aligns with what you're reading the most. What I'm finding very interesting from this analysis is how just within a few years, the most popular posts are starting to move from those on the PR topic over to those o
This post might be controversial for many. Some might agree. I'm sure many others will not. This post is also very vulnerable and personal. It's my take on the much-debated question if women can have it all - career and kids - reflecting on how 2022 went for me. Two big things happened this year for me professionally: I joined a new company starting a new job and I published my second book (on a completely unexpected topic even for me).
Throughout my career, I've worked in three big tech companies and consulted hundreds of SMBs. No matter the size, most organisations tend to fail in two areas which undermine or slow their performance and growth. The first one is what we'll talk about today and that is execution. Making things happen efficiently and effectively is the number one challenge for the majority of companies but unfortunately, most of them don't even admit they have an execution problem or don't place particular import
I have a confession to make. For the last few years, I've been very interested in the topic of personal finances. My husband and I have dug so deep into it - reading books and blogs, listening to podcasts, webinars and YouTube videos, and speaking to friends and family. We've done this because we wanted to get better at managing our money and making sound financial decisions for the future to be able to enjoy life even more.
In my previous job at Cisco, I was put in charge of creating and running a PMO (Project Management Office) for the execution of the departmental strategy. I had never done this before but I took the challenge. It was incredibly interesting and rewarding to have to figure out something from scratch. It was also a big responsibility but this is what made it so exciting to work on.
I was recently made aware of a book called "Zone to Win" and having just watched a video summarising the key points, I found it fascinating. It's not just about why established companies struggle to embrace disruptive innovation but about how they can do it. Even though I have not yet read the book, I thought it would be helpful to share some of the key points with you as they can be an eye-opener.
At the beginning of the year, I promised myself to go slower. That promise relates to clothes, shoes and accessories as well - either through 'slow fashion' or simply making a lot more conscious decisions about the things that I buy to wear for myself or my family (if at all). Why am I making this decision? Because 'make, waste, dispose' is the premise of fast fashion and it doesn't fit with my sustainability beliefs and zero-waste efforts.
70% of all projects in organisations fail. Shocking isn't it? But it's the reality. And most often than not, projects fail because of competing priorities. We move too fast and work on too many things at the same time. Many leaders want everything done now. Program and project get assigned to multiple projects at the same time alongside other stakeholders from the companies.
With the New Year having just arrived, I have a confession to make. I'm a total speedoholic and a rushaholic. And I've become an even bigger speedoholic and rushaholic since having a baby and returning to full-time work. Reflecting on 2021, I realise that I have managed to achieve a lot - got back to work from maternity, managed to juggle having my daughter at home until she was 11 months before she started daycare, made new friends in the Netherlands, travelled 3 times during these COVID days (
Last week, I had the pleasure of presenting at the Digital Marketing Transformation e-Conference on the topic of Disrupt or Be Disrupted. It's been a while since I've done some public speaking and even though it was all online due to COVID-19, I loved it. I realised how much I miss it and how energised I feel by the audience and by the opportunity to share what I know.
It's been busy the last few months. I've been quiet on this blog and I'm not going to lie, finding time to write between an expanded job role and a now 10-month old still at home has been tough. Juggling is challenging, as I'm sure you'll agree. In fact, the whole world would agree that what makes life today truly unprecedented is the pace of change.
Lately, quite a few people from my network reached out to seek my advice on getting a job in tech, given my close to 5 years at HubSpot and now almost 2 at Cisco and the fact that I started my career in a very different area - PR. Tech and IT are hot industries right now especially with the whole Coronavirus situation that's pushing us to 100% work remotely.
Two big concepts in project management are waterfall and agile. Both are methodologies for executing projects with waterfall being the traditional one and agile the newer, more modern one. This is another post in my project management fundamental series and we'll look at the two approaches, their differences, advantages and disadvantages. Let's describe briefly the two concepts first.
I returned from maternity leave about two weeks ago and stepped into a new role as a Program Manager in the Chief of Staff office for CX EMEAR at Cisco. It's an exciting move for me and so far it's been super interesting. Lots to do, lots of new people to work with, lots of opportunities to make an impact. Since I started my career, I've held about 10 different positions and switched four industries - I began in PR, moved into Marketing, then Customer Success, then Project and Program Management
Consider it a buzzword or not, ROI is still important. Executives care about it. They want to know that company investments are worth it. When it comes to building or growing a new department such as Customer Success, especially if you don't have experience in it, ROI is equally important. It's normal to ask if it's worth it and to wonder how to measure the success of the investment.
As the new year begins, not only do I reflect on what's happened for me personally and professionally, but also on how this blog has been performing. I'll have to be honest, 2020 was rather busy for me with a still relatively new job at a new company in a new country, getting pregnant and giving birth, moving to a new city, buying a house and furnishing it.
One more year has flown by. And what a year it has been for all of us with COVID-19 completely changing our personal and professional lives. To me, the crisis has had both positive and negative implications. I've been able to spend so much time with my now husband but we were restricted and couldn't travel and be with family and friends as much as we would normally do.
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