“What can you do,” I was asked by a senior manager at a large financial institution, “to improve the collection performance at our bank. We have a very seasoned team as well as dedicated trainers?”
“I can tell you in two words,” I said, “Not much.”
It was not an answer she was expecting, and the resulting pause gave me a chance to tell her about a client of mine in the sporting goods business. They developed a new blade for hockey skates and their research department determined a player could reach the opposite end of the rink, two seconds faster with their new product compared to the best skate the competition could offer.
“Two seconds,” I told the senior manager. “Not much, but in the world of professional sports, getting to where you need and want to be, two seconds faster than your competition, is HUGE.”
Good organizations recognize when they have a problem and need to improve training. Great organizations already have great training programs but recognize they not only had to ‘get good’ they have to stay that way and that means there is always room for improvement.
Still not convinced?
Okay, let’s ignore the limitations of COVID-19 for the present and think of how you feel about the following two scenarios.
- You visit your doctor for a routine check-up and during the visit you find out that he or she makes a habit of attending a minimum of two training/development programs every year.
- During a similar visit to a medical professional, he casually mentions that he hasn’t attending a training or development program in the last 17 years since completing medical school. “After all,” he says, waving in the general direction of his medical degree up on the wall, “I don’t think the human body has changed all that much in the last few years.” He laughs, but you don’t join in and I don’t blame you.[1]
If you are of a mind to raise the level of your collection team – collect more, faster and still keep your customers – with an innovative (and surprisingly fun) program – you are my kind of people.
Let’s talk about taking it to the next level.
[1] What do you call the person who graduates last in their class as medical school? Doctor.
