Wow, what a year!  2009 was Rambutan’s first full year in business and it has been fantastic.  We’ve tripled in size, started working with some great new clients including London Underground, Makro and Ned Rail, commissioned our web site and had loads of fun.

From an internal point of view we’ve also formulated our values and articulated why we are refreshingly different from the other consultancies and training providers in the marketplace; afterall, how many do you know who offer a risk free guarantee?!

We can’t wait to get underway with 2010 as we have some fantasitc clients to work with and some big and exciting plans for the future.  We’ll be back to work on 4th Jan ready to put all these ideas into action!

If you feel your business needs a little refreshing in 2010 why not give us a call; in the meantime all of us at Rambutan wish you a refreshing Christmas and a fruitful New Year.

Have you given someone feedback because they are refreshingly great!

Imagine Sarah’s horror when she had to call up a technical support helpline because there were problems with her mobile broadband dongle… The experience of previous occasions came flooding back to her almost instantaneously, to the extent that she almost decided that going without the dongle altogether was preferable to having to make the call!  The little voices in her head were working overtime…

Yet she made the call, was on the phone for an hour and 3 minutes, and at the end of it we heard her proclaim: “thank you Gareth – you’re an absolute superstar!”

What did Gareth do to get that type of reaction?  Here’s what she told us:

• he kept a calm tone, never once making me feel stupid
• he went at my pace, not once making me feel as though he wanted to get rid of me so he could take the next call
• as a bit of extra value, he advised me of ways I could improve the way I use the equipment in future
• he gave me the context of the changes he was making so I could understand them
• I learned a lot, including how much a request for a website bounces round the www!!
• offering to email a step-by-step process to solve the same problem for the rest of the team
• realising when things were getting a bit technical for me and thinking about how to explain them in a more meaningful way

Sarah then sent him some feedback so that he can hopefully feed it into his appraisal and get the recognition that he deserves.  The last line she wrote was: “You are an asset to your customers, an asset to your company and I hope that this feedback makes you feel as valued as I intend it to…”

Which begs the questions:  What great feedback have you had the opportunity to give somebody lately?  Who could feel more valued by hearing what you think about their customer service?

We recently had the pleasure of listening to a talk by Gary Heatherington, Chief Executive of Leeds Rhinos rugby league team.   He was talking about the success both of the team (who won the Superleague on 10th October for a record third time) and of the business around the team.  It was absolutely fascinating in many ways, but the one we wanted to share with you on the blog today was this…

The winger and prop in the rugby team both have to know:

• what each other does
• what to expect from the other
• what they’re collectively trying to do
• what information they need to give each other

Of course the same’s true for all the players, not just the prop and winger, but you get the drift.  Does every member of your team have these answers to these questions?  If not, perhaps it’s time to refresh the way you all think about what you do and how you talk about what you do…

On November 13th and 14th Craig completed a 155 mile charity cycle ride from the Palace theatre in Newark on Trent to the Palace theatre in central London – all done to raise money for Bowbridge Primary school in Newark so that each and every child can go to see the pantomime!

The cycle ride was completed on a weekend of gale force winds, driving rain and bitter cold – sounds great fun! It was really tough going and on occasions London seemed a very long way away (which come to think of it, it was!), yet by keeping total focus on the end goal and thinking the right positive stuff Craig was able to complete this gruelling ride.

At certain times during the ride – 6pm on the first day, in the dark, on the A45, in rush hour traffic, being blown around like a crisp bag, it was this absolute mind set of achievement and looking at the outcome that got Craig to London.

It’s easy in life to look at the challenges that face you and to let them overpower you but it’s amazing what a positive attitude can help you achieve.  When the going gets tough the tough start smiling!

Try it…who knows what can happen if you dare to smile at a challenge?

Well done for smiling our Craig – we’re really proud of you!

The man himself - ready for action

The media frenzy as he set off!

The end!