• "When you blame others, you give up your power to change." – Dr. Robert Anthony

• Maverick. Author: Ricardo Semler. Publisher: Warner Books. The success story behind one of the world’s most unusual workplaces where staff are empowered to set their own wages and relocate the CEO’s office if they so desire.

• www.urbanlegends.about.com & www.snopes.com A great place to check out the authenticity (or lack of) of all the stories you’ve ever heard and may have questioned whether they were true or not.

"Minus cheese, minus onions, minus pickles, add beetroot."

"That’s minus beef, minus onions, plus pickles and beetroot?" comes the reply.

"No! Minus cheese, minus onions, minus pickles, add beetroot."

"I’m sorry, but I can’t quite hear you. Can you repeat the order?"

I could bore you with the rest of the story but I’m sure you get the essence of this communication, or should I say lack of.

Being the proud father of three great kids, this scenario has been played out on many separate frustrating occasions at fast-food drive-thru’s over the years. In my experience, the only fast-food company that has got it right is McDonalds.

"What’s different about McDonalds?" I hear you asking. The difference is that at McDonalds there are no external microphones. Instead of having to shout into a two-way speakerphone, that is the case most other fast-food outlets, there is a real live human being to welcome you and take your order. It is interesting to observe that over recent months, McDonalds have redesigned and renovated their original Perth stores, which did have speakerphones, to include new booths for their staff to take orders from customers face-to-face. .

There are at least two major advantages in being able to deal with customers face to face. The first is that the majority of people, when given the choice between dealing with a living breathing human being or a piece of machinery, would prefer to deal with a person. The second is that as communication is a multi-sensory event, face to face orders can be taken more quickly with less chance of error. The result; happy customers and a measurable saving in time.

Other instances occur where businesses have become paranoid about security. Now I am not against taking precautions against the light-fingered members of our human race, but having to speak through security grills with the aid of external microphones can hardly be described as a warm and friendly experience. In fact one almost feels like the very criminals the bars have been erected for.

As with all business decisions, a line has to be drawn in the sand somewhere. My advice is to minimise the erection of barriers and grills wherever possible. And at the same time, brainstorm ways of eradicating all barriers, both tangible and intangible between your business and you customers. This includes the removal of all external microphones.

As I’ve stated on many previous occasions, people want to do business with people, not faceless corporations concealed in fortresses.

Until next week, many happy customer returns!

Graham Harvey APS

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