The Operational Excellence Show – Details, episodes & analysis

In this special episode of The Leaders' Lounge, Marianne Rutz sits down with none other than Kevin Wilkinson - Founder of Ethical Maintenance and her husband! Together, they share an in-depth conversation about Kevin’s inspiring journey from a successful corporate career to building a Community Interest Company (CIC) that’s revolutionising property factoring in Scotland.

Kevin opens up about his decision to leave a well-established career and embrace entrepreneurship in a notoriously unloved industry. He shares insights into why property factoring in Scotland has been so problematic, and how Ethical Maintenance has risen to the challenge by putting homeowners first and creating a community-focused service model.

In this episode, Kevin and Marianne discuss:

• The history behind Ethical Maintenance and how it empowers homeowners to take control of their communal areas.
• Kevin’s role as an advisor to the Scottish Government during the creation of the Property Factors Act 2011 and his input in shaping the industry’s code of conduct.
• The challenges of serving an entire community versus individual homeowners, and how clear communication and transparency are key.
• The unique approach of Ethical Maintenance as a Community Interest Company and why that sets them apart from traditional property managers.

This episode offers a behind-the-scenes look at how Ethical Maintenance continues to disrupt the property factoring industry while staying true to its ethos of transparency, empowerment, and community engagement.

Resources Mentioned:

• Ethical Maintenance: ethicalmaintenance.org
• Connect with Kevin Wilkinson and Marianne Rutz on LinkedIn

Subscribe to The Leaders' Lounge for more insights on operational excellence, leadership, and creating lasting impact in your industry.

In this very special episode of the Leaders’ Lounge, I’m taking you on a personal journey—a story of resilience, transformation, and leadership. I often get asked, “How did you move from the corporate world to leading a property maintenance company?” Today, I’m opening up about that journey, reflecting on pivotal moments that shaped my path.

💡 Highlights from this episode:

• Cancerversary reflections: How a cancer diagnosis changed my life’s direction three days before my wedding.
• Phases of transformation: From “Who am I now?” to exceeding expectations and embracing new opportunities.
• Customer experience as my superpower: How my love for CX and leadership shaped my role at Ethical Maintenance.
• Empowering communities: How I’ve applied the lessons I’ve learned to elevate property maintenance and create better living environments for homeowners.

This episode is for anyone facing life’s curveballs while trying to lead with purpose. It’s about finding your path, empowering yourself, and empowering those around you.

Today it’s all about cash! Show me the money in your customer service delivery!

Resources:

We have created an amazing downloadable workbook for you - covering the content of this foundational series! Go and DOWNLOAD IT HERE…

Links:

Contact us at info@rutzconsulting.com or email me directly marianne@rutzconsulting.com

Website: https://rutzconsulting.com/

This Podcast is produced by: Andrew Madden Photography & Media Production

Amal Hassan, Founder and CEO of Outsource Global, Nigeria.



The very first guest in this exciting Leading Ladies Series is Amal Hassan. 
Amal Hassan is a leading Nigerian technopreneur with diverse interests across different technology verticals. In 2003, Amal set up the first organized ICT training institute in Kano that provides IT training to young Nigerians, especially women. Her passion to unlock Nigeria’s developmental potentials through technology-driven innovation and value-addition led her to build, capitalize and restructure a series of technology-related businesses that succeed in developing talent and creating employment for young Nigerians.

In 2013, she founded Outsource Global, a contact center business process outsourcing that now has offices in Abuja, Lagos, and Kaduna. Under her leadership, Outsource Global has emerged as the leading Nigerian contact center provider servicing the international market, turning the company into a truly global BPO giant, creating over 700 jobs and putting Nigeria on the global map for contact center business process outsourcing.

Amal’s entrepreneurial prowess and business acumen continue to set her apart as a highly regarded emerging business leader in Nigeria. Over the years, she has participated in local and international business missions and attended various professional and leadership courses, conferences and seminars both locally and abroad. Widely regarded as a role model for the girl-child and women especially in northern Nigeria, she has continued to mentor young leaders across her industry.

Amal earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administrations from Bayero University Kano, Nigeria and a Master degree in Business Administration from the same university. Amal is a partner in Bluetag Group the holding company for Parkway Projects, HealthStation, Bluetag Technologies, Bluetag Synergy and Outsource Global. Amal is also an Alumna of Fortune-US Department of State Global Women’s Mentoring Programme- which links young female leaders to Fortune‘s most powerful women.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amal-hassan-5992a346/

Outsource Global: https://outsourceglobal.com/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPanMBDvAYQ

Marianne on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marianne-rutz-351b0a5/



My Podcast is produced by: https://www.unavoided.com

On 01 January 2021 the UK leaves the EU and we are facing new ways of doing business in our contact centres. We have had 4.5 years to prepare for this moment!

In this episode I’m looking at what you need to do for your people, your processes and how to safeguard your profit in the post EU world! Although, at the time of recording there wasn’t a final decision on whether we leave with or without a deal - but things change regardless.

Marianne on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marianne-rutz-351b0a5/


My Podcast is produced by: https://www.unavoided.com

Gratitude is the key to happiness!

Even in difficult times like 2020 - where so many people have suffered the loss of a loved one, lost their job maybe, struggled with loneliness or depression - Practising gratitude can change your day! 


Step 1: Thank


Step 2: You


Then Thank you, Thank you, Thank you for each step…


Marianne on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marianne-rutz-351b0a5/


My Podcast is produced by: https://www.unavoided.com

There is ONE hack I want you to do every single day! In this episode I tell you why it’s important to stick with this one hack!

You will also learn...

• How knowing your leadership Style and your Kolbe support your teams performance

• How you can have ONE hack conversations with all your team members

• How to address the strengths or the lack of performance with your team members in 15min every day

• How to schedule a Power Hour



  
  
LeapAcademyInternational: https://leapacademyinternational.com/product/team-turn-around-bootcamp/
  Eisenhower Matrix: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1nG8kDyVULfbsEDBib_qxECJrkBP-Ikmo
  Marianne on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marianne-rutz-351b0a5/


  My Podcast is produced by: https://www.unavoided.com

In today’s episode I’m taking you behind the scenes of Rutz Consulting - and in fact of any operation that I have led in the past! You all know by now, that my contact centre career has taken me to BIG names such as Hertz, PayPal, Sitel, Ralph Lauren, Santander… the list goes on.

I hear very often - there is no entrepreneurial spirit in the corporate world. And this might be true for a lot of firms. But not for all of them! It’s down to you as the boss of your contact centre unit to create the business you want it to be. Plus…. Any manager I know, who treats their unit as their own business enjoys so much more fun, sees productivity soar and subsequently their career moving forward… pretty fast. 



Today I’m taking you through 7 reasons / 7 areas of focus that you want to consider when running your unit: 



1. Know your Finances and Growth


It is absolutely paramount that you keep the financials for your area in your peripheral vision at all times. You might say - well that’s not for me, I’ve got a Finance Department for this. Far from the truth! 
You are creating costs! You are “spending” money, you can make a profit.


Cost Factors are: Attrition, Absence, poor learning journey, poor product knowledge resulting in poor NPS scoring.
Profit Factors are: Exceeding contractual Service Levels, High NPS score, high quality scores. 
Some firms calculate the cost per contact. If you don’t know what this is - go and find out! 
If you don’t know how much attrition costs - go and find out what your recruitment department spends on advertising, pre-screening applicants, potentially personality testing, Find out how much overtime hours cost! And try to evaluate what the loss of knowledge is costing your operation! And you will very quickly notice - Financials are important. 


Another question you want to ask, especially in outsourced contact centres - what is the forecasted Gross Margin! From there you want to know the Net Margin (after cost) and subsequently the EBITA contribution  (Earnings before Interest, Taxes and Amortisation). 
Now this figure may vary by industry! But do go and ask your Finance Director what this number would be! 


2. Marketing & Visibility are everything - but...

I hear you! You are probably saying “I have nothing to do with Marketing”


Think again. Anything you produce for a business review meeting, maybe for a breakfast meeting or for a client quarterly review meeting creates visibility of you, your firm and your team! So be clear on your powerpoint presentations! No typo’s, no silly jokes that might upset others. Always ask yourself - who could see this piece of work! Think the boss of your boss! That’s two tiers above you! 



Also - if you have an online profile on Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn - you want to be mindful that this is a public platform potentially referencing to your employer. 
Yes - you can get fired for posting on Social Media. 
You can get fired for


> leaking companies news

> Pretending to be in a deadly terrorist group (yes - it happened)

> Tweeting about lifestyle and drug possession - especially if you are a teacher

> Racist tweets (happened to British politicians)

> Posts about how much you hate your role or / and your employer

> Posts that insult your companies customers


And the list goes on.


Do employers do social media background testing? I can tell you - yes they absolutely do! 


3. Scaling - adding human capital to your Unit - do it with purpose and know your WHY! 


Very often a department starts small. It’s not uncommon that an outsourcing contract for a language account starts off with 10 agents and 1 Team Manager! However - you need to think about where this department is going! In other words - it is not very effective nor efficient to employ one Operations Manager for 10 Agents and 1 Team Manager!

Your offering needs to grow, add additional human capital under this ONE Ops Manager! 

Scaling is growing!


Growing is knowing where to let go of things.You see - not everything you do is adding value to your operation, your business! So think! Trim the fat! Implement changes in processes, Skill set requirements etc.

This leads nicely to point number 4. 


4. Operational Efficiencies make you profitable! 


Only your ops manual will show where you can gain operational efficiencies! 
We have an entire Podcast dedicated to your Ops Manual - have a listen to episode number 28! Please do download our very simple workbook. It cuts the elephant in pieces. And we - at rutz consulting - are here to help you make it happen. Get in touch via the contact form on our website. 




5. Innovation is king! 


In many firms - innovation and automation are value add’s and do sit outside the operational day to day delivery of your service. However…. The best ideas come from your frontline team members! They identify very quickly what could be done better.


Albert Einstein said: You can’t solve a problem on the same level it was created. You have to raise above it - to the next level!


May I make a suggestion? The best way to do this in your own teams is taking a group of agents off the phone and inviting them to  brainstorm the problem! You will not only get various angles of the one problem but you will get ideas how to solve the problem. Or at least where to start looking for solutions! This doesn’t cost a lot of money - and it goes a long way in employee engagement. 





6. Customer Experience makes or breaks your business!


We all know - CX is the buzzword in our industry. Everybody talks about it - nobody does anything for it! 
What would happen if you started to care about your internal customers? 
For example: What if recruitment really cared about operations? And treated Operations as their customer? You got it…. The recruitment department would be consistently feeding your pipeline, so that you always had a bank of potential new colleagues to fall back on to.

What if Operations really cared about Learning and Development? Your knowledge base would be up to date, because you would feedback to your L&D what is changing.

We do have an amazing episode with Daniel Ord in our podcasting series! Episode 19. Dan is also a guest expert in our LEAP Academy - the Academy for contact centre professionals. If you want to learn more about LEAP - check out the website LEAP Academy International.
7.

7. Invest in personal growth - and believe it happens for you and for you only! 


In my entire career I took care of my own personal growth. By that I mean - I kept learning, and I am still learning! 
Not necessarily technical, job related skills - but gaining knowledge in areas of interest to me. For example I started to study applied occupational psychology a few years ago. Simply because I was always interested in “what makes somebody tick to come to work”.


I’m a big fan of personality testing. Whether this is a Disc Assessment, Strengths-finder, Thomson International or my absolute favourite the Kolbe A Index - I sit down and study the result, in an effort to understand myself better and help others to work / live with me.


I am part of an amazing mastermind group and more recently I lead a Think Tank - the PeerCircle - where we discuss contact centre and personal issues in a Chatham House like environment. The group is by invitation only - but in 2021 I will open a handful of spaces. Please get in touch if you would like to be considered!


Last - but not least - I enrolled a coach / mentor. My very first mentor was Gregor Finlay. He was my guest in Episode 11! You can listen to how he helped me through a steep career path in my beloved contact centre career.

I would love to hear what resonated with you from today. Let me know where we can help you and your contact centre to strive in 2021! 


Yes - you can get fired for Social Media posts! 
https://www.themuse.com/advice/yes-you-can-get-fired-for-your-social-media-posts-9-times-people-learned-this-lesson-the-hard-way


Ops Manual: Episode 28 https://rutzconsulting.com/podcasts/episode-28-opex-with-marianne-rutz-how-to-design-and-produce-an-operational-manual-fit-for-purpose/


Clash of the Forces - Episode 19 https://rutzconsulting.com/podcasts/episode-19-the-clash-of-the-forces-operations-manager-vs-customer-experience-manager/



www.leapacademyinternational.com



How Executive Coaching helped me to drive and grow in my contact centre roles
https://rutzconsulting.com/podcasts/episode-11-how-executive-coaching-helped-me-to-drive-and-grow-in-my-contact-center-roles/

My Podcast is produced by: https://www.unavoided.com

My Guest today is Louise Brogan - the founder and owner of Social Bee Northern Ireland (NI). 

Louise started off as a Social Media expert, providing training on Facebook set up, usage, LinkedIn and other Social sites. Over the last year however she very much niched down into LinkedIn and has become one of THE most recognised experts for LI in the UK.



She has written articles for the Social Media Examiner - an esteemed and well thought of online magazine, she has been published in the Huffington Post and the Guardian. Louise hosts regular free LI training modules on LinkedIn - you should check it out!



Did you know:
 90% of people using LinkedIn are lurking. They are scrolling through posts and profiles.
9% of people will comment or interact with posts and only 1% are sharing content.

When someone clicks on your profile, is it showcasing what you do and who you work with? Are you losing business because your LinkedIn is looking a little sparse?

SocialBeeNI: https://socialbeeni.com/


Louise on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louisebrogan/

Rutz Consulting: https://rutzconsulting.com/


Marianne Rutz on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marianne-rutz-351b0a5/

My Podcast is produced by: https://www.unavoided.com

For so many of us 2020 will be the most remarkable and memorable year in business - yet maybe for all the wrong reasons….

• Less customer contacts leading to loss of revenue
• Overwhelmed contact centres with too many employees falling ill with stress
• Huge efforts made to enable the workforce to work from home - yet the inital enthusiasm has worn off - so what now? 
• Furloughed employees as long as possible - but then having to make them redundant, as funds are running out
• Quality of work deteriorating
• Impatient customers
  
  

You name it - and it’s quite easy to just hope that 2021 will be different. 

There are still two months left - so in today’s episode I’m sharing how you can make a difference in your customer service centre - and how you can set yourself up for success in 2021!

1. Leading People

One of the simplest ways of engaging with your now remote teams is to invite them to virtual “brown bag lunches”! Remember, when you were in the office, you took the time to walk the call floor regularly, you sat with your advisors, you could hear what was going on first hand. Now this has all changed.

And whilst a majority of Working From Home Advisors state that they loved to see their leaders in a jumper instead of a suit, loved to hear their dog barking or a child dashing in and out of the office, they miss the leadership of their line manager - and more importantly of their executive team!

Play a game when you are with them! Just to break the ice! I recently attended a virtual conference and we played a wikipedia game! Given a starting point - who ever arrived at the final destination without leaving Wikipedia had won!

Here is how it works:

Open the Wikipedia homepage:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page (remember to stipulate the language you wish to use)
Start with a key word such as: Black Raven
Key this initial word or word combination into the search bar on the top right hand corner.
Now - as everyone is on the start page for the game give them the end work - for example Elizabeth The Second.
The aim is to get to “Elizabeth The Second” only using links within the articles you are looking at!
To prove that the winner didn’t cheat you will have to ask the candiate to back space from Elizabeth 2nd to Black Raven and verify that only Wikipedia pages have been used.
It’s fun and lightens the mood!

If you are hiring for peak or because you realise your team needs more people to cope with the workload - there is so much talent in the market place just now - you can choose. That’s a great place to be in, but also for all the job-seekers a very stressful place!

Please be considerate. Communication is key! It breaks my heart to hear and read stories where people have applied for jobs, and not even got an acknowledgement that their application had been received. Or they went for a screening interview (not uncommon, in fact quite best practice, I don’t want to waste your time, nor do I want to waste my time) - but never got any feedback!

It is reasonable and best practice to be in touch with your candidates within 24 to 48 hours. Also - if you do hire - be clear on the budget. In essence, if you have a salary budget in mind - advertise this clearly, don’t make false promises! Right now you, the recruiting manager, holds all the power. Integrity is the word. Download our free Recruitment and Onboarding Checklist. The link is below.

2. Improve Process

In a recent conversation with my hairdresser, we discussed the New Normal. Besides the fact that the current working circumstances are here to stay for the foreseeable future, Gary made a very interesting point. He said:
“I don’t understand what the fuss is, about the New Normal. We have always focused on excellent customer service and high employee engagement. So for me it’s just MORE of normal than normal.” We offer more training, we offer more service, we just offer more of everything than we did before. This allows us to claim excellence. And it pays off. Frances Hunter Hairdressing is a Finalist in the British Hairdressing Awards 2020! 

One of the main complaints I get when speaking to  frontline managers is that they do not have the tools or knowledge to perform their roles effectively and efficiently! That’s an interesting thought, considering that globally in 2020 there was a budget for Learning & Development of 370 Billion Dollars. A massive amount!

The average spend per employee for learning and development this year is $1299 in the US but only in the UK 30% of all firms only spend an average of  £400 per employee on L&D. Given that that the current situation is new to everyone, this is a concerningly low number! Even more concerning given the fact that 43% of the firms surveyed said their L&D budget is not to be increased in the next 12 months, 19% even say - it will decrease.
So - how does this sit with the work your team is asked to perform? And how does this sit with the customer experience your firm is asked to provide?

In order to finish the year strong - give your management team (especially team managers and operations managers) the tools to effectively work with their workforce. And help them to be leaders and managers (which is not the same!)

Another process you definitely want to improve is your operational handbook - the manual your team should have had at the start of the pandemic. There is an entire episode dedicated to this topic on our website, rutzconsulting.com. Just search for;

Episode 28 - How to design and produce an Operational Manual.

You can download a Blueprint I am using in my own business and have used as a framework in so many contact centres! Now is the time to document your workflows, your processes, your contacts. You will find the link in the show notes.

3. Amplify Profit

You are most likely in the process to finalise your budget for 2021 and get it signed off. This can be so stressful, I know! Depending on the business model you are running, you have so many moving parts. The more complex your contact centre set up is, the more complex most likely your budget is too.

You probably often wish - you, as the finance director - had more direct input from your operational team. And you ops team probably wishes they were consulted when a budget is created! In episode 31 “Finances made Human” - Andi Lonen explains in layman's terms how you can ensure that your budgeting process becomes easier, more realistic and subsequently much closer to reality, hence easier to manage.

The link to this episode is below.

Financial Performance is not just about the money coming in though! It is equally about the money going out! In our industry, the evolving door is one of the biggest costs. Yet one that is totally in your control! Absence and attrition can kill an operation! Just imagine - the cost to recruit, the cost to train, the cost of overtime to meet your service levels, the cost of absence due to stress, etc. etc. When I work with frontline operational managers I often notice that they have no idea what this figure actually looks like.

If your team leader doesn’t know the absence percentage or the attrition percentage of his team and how this translates into actual cost in pounds or dollars, then you must correct this. In the LEAP Academy we dedicate a full module to this topic!

Actions you can take today:

1. Schedule a Brown Bag Lunch for 45 minutes with up to 10 members of your frontline teams!
2. Enroll your Operational Leaders in a skills development course. Of course we would love to give you a capability briefing of the LEAP academy. There are so many other courses out there. Just do it! 
3. Revisit your hiring process. Ensure you provide feedback
4. Write this OPS Manual! You know it’s well overdue! 

If any of the topics resonate with you and you might find yourself in a position where in the next 3 to 6 months one of them might cause you a challenge, please do reach out to me and my team. We would love to talk to you in the next 30 days and evaluate how we are able to help! You can find us on rutz consulting.com or talk to me directly via linkedIn messenger.

As I am recording this, I want to share with you that rutz consulting has been accepted in the Programme for Growth with Business Women Scotland! I’m delighted to be spending a couple of days in the company of other, women lead, Scottish businesses. Learning together, sharing experiences and expertise. Of course my experience will turn into a podcast towards the end of this year.

https://rutzconsulting.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/LEAP-Recruitment-and-OnboardingCheckListV1.pdfLEAP Academy: https://leapacademyinternational.com/
Podcast Episode 28 - How to design an Operational Manual https://rutzconsulting.com/podcasts/episode-28-opex-with-marianne-rutz-how-to-design-and-produce-an-operational-manual-fit-for-purpose/

Podcast Episode 31- Finances Made Human https://rutzconsulting.com/podcasts/episode-31-opex-with-marianne-rutz-finances-made-human-with-andi-lonnen/

Rutz Consulting: https://rutzconsulting.com/
Marianne Rutz on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marianne-rutz-351b0a5/

My Podcast is produced by: https://www.unavoided.com