The Loyalty Leader - LRA Worldwide eNewsletter Q1 2008

Feature Article
Culture – It’s Not Just for Anthropologists Anymore
By Rob Rush, President and CEO, LRA Worldwide, Inc.

Rob Rush - President & CEO, LRA Worldwide, Inc.

The list of trendy business buzzwords that enter the national consciousness and swiftly become hackneyed, empty shells of their previously profound selves is long and distinguished.

To understand this phenomenon, one needn’t think outside the box to identify the low-hanging fruit that will allow us to innovate, simplify and effect the paradigm shift that will be a win-win (with ROI!) for all the key stakeholders.

See what I mean. What at one time may have been evocative and meaningful becomes, at best, white noise. At worst - trite and laughable.

I bring this up because a concept that is near and dear to my heart – and, at least in my opinion, still very powerful and meaningful – may be meandering down the path to overuse and emptiness. Culture. Not the kind of culture associated with La Bohème or strep throat, but the type that dictates who we are, what we do, how we do it and how we pass it along.

Full Article

Consultant's Corner
The Importance of "Customer Experience" in a Downturn
By Jeff Gurtman, Account Director, LRA Worldwide, Inc.

As talk of a recession permeates the evening news, at LRA we have naturally begun thinking about how it might affect our clients and the industries we serve, primarily the hospitality industry. When economic troubles loom, we’ve found the usual knee-jerk reaction is to sacrifice programs associated with quality and the customer experience – training, quality assurance and mystery shopping programs, guest research, etc. The benefits of a quality assurance program are compelling and easily communicated when businesses are flush with cash. But what happens when storm clouds are on the horizon? How does one compel businesses to invest in initiatives that are often thought of as a “nice to have?” What we’ve found is that during an economic downturn, maintaining a quality assurance program and the differentiated customer experience that it helps provide is the most important insurance to have. Full Article

LRA on the Conference Circuit

ITB Berlin 2008
March 5-9, 2008
Messe-Berlin
Berlin, Germany

LRA Worldwide CEO Rob Rush and Vice President of Business Development Ted Fisch will be in attendance at the ITB Berlin 2008 conference from March 5th - 8th. If you or a colleague will be in attendance and would like to learn more about LRA's Customer Experience Management offerings for the hospitality and travel industries (or would like Rob or Ted to buy you a cup of coffee) contact Randi Allen to set up an appointment today!

LRA Worldwide CEO Rob Rush Invited to Serve as Keynote at Troon Golf’s Annual Management Conference

HORSHAM, Pennsylvania/SCOTTSDALE, Arizona
Rob Rush, a leader in the rapidly-growing consulting discipline of Customer Experience Management (CEM), spoke to the leadership of Troon Golf on how best to “Take Great Customer Experiences to the Bank” at the 10th Troon Golf Annual Management Conference in Scottsdale, Arizona. The conference was held January 15-18 at the Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa; Rush, the CEO of LRA Worldwide, Inc., delivered his keynote address on Wednesday, January 16 at 4:00 PM.

Full Article

New Clients

We welcome these new clients to the LRA family:

LRA in the News

The Rise of Retail's Experience Economy
Consulting Magazine:
Nov/Dec 2007

Tourism: There are two new (human) faces at the Philadelphia Zoo - By Peter Van Allen
Philadelphia Business Journal:
January 25-31, 2008
(Acrobat .PDF Format)

Personnel News

LRA Worldwide Adds Rick Reilly to its Account Team

HORSHAM, Pennsylvania; January 17, 2008 – LRA Worldwide, Inc., a leader in the consulting discipline of Customer Experience Management (CEM), announced Rick Reilly has joined the firm as an Account Director. Reilly brings a unique combination of skills in customer experience management, luxury hospitality operations, strategic planning and performance analysis to the firm; he will work with several of LRA’s highest profile accounts immediately. Full Release

Jeff Ganis Joins LRA Worldwide as a Senior Research Consultant

HORSHAM, Pennsylvania; February 12, 2008 – LRA Worldwide, Inc., a leader in the consulting discipline of Customer Experience Management (CEM), added Jeff Ganis to its research practice as a Senior Research Consultant. Ganis brings more than 15 years of experience in market research and consulting to LRA; his immediate responsibilities are in business development and client management, where he has started working on projects in the sports and entertainment industry. Full Release

Here's a nice idea to recognize the everyday customer champions in your life - 1 to 1 Media has created a website where you can wax poetic on the attributes of your favorite barista, dog walker or insurance agent. In short, anyone who inspires you to keep coming back for more! .

About LRA Worldwide, Inc.

LRA Worldwide, Inc., is a leading consulting, organizational development and research company that specializes in Customer Experience Management (CEM). LRA helps companies and brands design and deliver the optimal customer experience across all key touch points using an integrated suite of services that measure and improve service quality, customer satisfaction, employee performance, loyalty, customer advocacy and profitability. LRA specializes in “operationalizing the brand” – turning brand promise and customer strategy into operational reality. LRA’s tactical CEM practice areas include Customer Experience Strategy Design, Standards Development & Content Management, Organizational Development & Training, Research and Quality Assurance & Mystery Shopping; these are either deployed together in a strategic manner to continually monitor and improve the customer experience or deployed individually to address a specific client tactical need.

LRA's clients include some of the world’s leading companies and brands, including Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Hard Rock Hotels & Casinos, the PGA TOUR, Albertsons Supermarkets, the NBA and First Niagara Financial Group. For more information, visit the company’s Web site at www.LRAworldwide.com.

LRA Worldwide, Inc.
300 Welsh Road
Building 1, Suite 200
Horsham, Pennsylvania 19044.2263, USA
Tel: +1.215.957.1999
Fax: +1.215.957.6570
e-Mail: info@lraworldwide.com
www.LRAWorldwide.com

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