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 in...
Oct 11, 2024•37 min
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 tr...
Oct 04, 2024•20 min
In this episode, I’m joined by digital marketing guru and LinkedIn strategist Mike Roberts , the mastermind behind Making Digital Real . Mike’s also the talented producer and editor of OUR podcast! 🎙️ We dive deep into the evolving digital landscape, LinkedIn strategies, and the importance of staying human in an increasingly digital world. Mike shares how he’s turned LinkedIn into a powerful platform for meaningful connections and real business growth—no spammy bots or fake news here! 💡 Tune i...
Sep 27, 2024•37 min
In this final instalment of the CEO Playbook series, I explore the final set of powerful lessons that shaped my journey as CEO of Ethical Maintenance. In this episode, I discuss the importance of embracing unexpected changes, finding peace at your own pace, and understanding that professional growth often means leaving behind those who don't align with your vision. Learn how to handle project delays with grace, tackle customer service challenges, and stay true to your strengths, even when faced ...
Sep 20, 2024•21 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Perseverance, Pivots, and Personal Growth - The CEO Playbook (Part 2) In this second part of the CEO Playbook series, I dive deeper into the realities of leadership. From understanding that pivoting is perfectly okay, to managing self-doubt, and even resisting the temptation to quit, I share candid lessons from my first year as CEO of Ethical Maintenance. This episode covers key insights, such as embracing new skills, dealing with confusion, and the ultimate reward of perseverance. I also talk a...
Sep 13, 2024•15 min•Season 2Ep. 2
In this episode of the Leaders Lounge, I dive into the first part of my CEO playbook - a series of practical tips and insights that I’ve gathered from my first year leading Ethical Maintenance. As someone who’s passionate about customer experience, stepping into the property maintenance management world was a significant shift. I share my journey, the challenges I faced, and the strategies that helped me succeed, from fostering a fun and creative work environment to mastering the complexities of...
Sep 05, 2024•14 min•Season 2Ep. 1
As I record this episode on 22 May 2023 - Dave D’Arcy who is well known in the employee engagement & leadership world is launching his own business. We discuss the aspects of leadership beyond Net Promoter Scores, Trust Pilot or Google reviews! With his experience in the Corporate World, Dave is bringing Leadership Skills and Fun at work, putting your employees first, together! Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davemdarcy/ Web: https://www.davedarcy.co.uk/ Contact us at info@rutzc...
May 31, 2023•36 min•Season 1Ep. 141
Monday, 24th April marked the 5th anniversary of Rutz Consulting limited! Yeah - We made it to 5 years in business! We registered our limited company 5 years ago! In this episode we look at some of the reasons why 20% of businesses fail in their first year and 60% of businesses go bust in the first 3 years of trading! What are the pitfalls to avoid & how we managed to deal with some of the difficult scenarios of the past 5 years. Enjoy! Links: https://fundsquire.co.uk/startup-statistics/ htt...
Apr 26, 2023•25 min•Season 1Ep. 140
Today's podcast is of a rather personal nature! This is for two reasons: You might be a new listener to the operational excellence show and wondering who I am, where I came from and what we do at Rutz consulting Over the past 6/7 months I have been doing some deep work for myself and for the business - today I’m sharing this with you. Join me as I deep dive in to the difficulties many consultants face with their own identity, that of their business' & the importance of discovering your indiv...
Apr 20, 2023•24 min•Season 1Ep. 139
In today's bonus episode of the foundation series "Customer Service Delivery Made Easy" I’m talking you through how you can become a better leader in 9 simple steps! 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 &am...
Apr 12, 2023•24 min•Season 1Ep. 138
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...
Apr 05, 2023•33 min•Season 1Ep. 137
Today's teaching is well and truly focused around your customers! And remember - we are customers of each other! We are not designed to operate in silos! 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 Pro...
Mar 29, 2023•32 min•Season 1Ep. 136
Today we are discussing the importance of recording why you and your team are doing what your doing! Most of our clients struggle to produce an operational manual or ensure they have systems in place that allow the business to run, even if some key stakeholders are not available! 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...
Mar 22, 2023•29 min•Season 1Ep. 135
Today is the first instalment of our foundational series "Customer Service Delivery Made Easy" Over the next four episodes I will be looking at some of the basics & will be sharing insights, tips & tricks to help set up your Customer Service Delivery for success. In this episode I’m going to lay out a powerful 3 step approach to ensure your People aspect is covered from day 1! Resources: We have created an amazing downloadable workbook for you - covering the content of this foundational ...
Mar 15, 2023•29 min•Season 1Ep. 134
Becoming and remaining an Employer of choice - that’s a tough order nowadays! I’m discussing this topic with Wendy Sellers, the HR Lady, who boldly claims… Your People are My Business! Topics such as Retention, the importance or nuisance of employee surveys, the silent resignation and so many more hot potatoes in the HR world are discussed and assessed! People leave bad Managers - that’s a daunting truth! So - what do you have to do to save your manager? And how do you deal with layoff’s? Links:...
Feb 08, 2023•39 min•Season 1Ep. 133
My Guest today is Marybeth Gregg, the Founder and President of The International Centre for Women’s Leadership and Author of Bestseller “How to soar with a broken Wing”. International consultant, coach, author, entrepreneur, mother, great friend, fun seeker, and adventurer. Marybeth Gregg is the President and Founder of The International Center for Women's Leadership. Throughout her 30+year career, she has worked in human development for several global corporations, providing coaching and transf...
Feb 01, 2023•37 min•Season 1Ep. 132
When was the last time you experienced excellent customer service? In this episode I discuss how customer experience is evolving, changing, the possible reasons behind this & whether or not it is for the better of the customer. In my research, I stumbled upon a Forbes article that was released in December 2022, discussing 10 Customer Service Predictions for 2023 Join me as I delve in to the changes many industries are discovering for their customer experience & how to ensure your busines...
Jan 26, 2023•16 min•Season 1Ep. 131
We all have difficult times in service delivery! And guess what, delivering a service is inconvenient! But what when your vision is clouded, when you feel lost, a fraud, hurt, joyless or simply just had enough? In this episode we talk about perspective gained from looking back with a grateful heart. I share with you why applying the listening ear is so important for us entrepreneurs! I will explain how to follow your roadmap (the current one) - until you get your vision back! We discuss why you ...
Jan 19, 2023•14 min•Season 1Ep. 130
My guest today is the co-founder of Tango! Not the Dance! Or a Dance Studio…. But an amazing tool to map out & write out processes in your organisation! In our Contact Centre Industry we live and breath processes and process improvements! We love it, I love it! Yet when it comes to documentation of said processes; the “How to” - then I often times find that these so important documents a) don’t exist b) are not complete c) are outdated! Tango will allow you to get on top of your process mapp...
Jan 11, 2023•35 min•Season 1Ep. 129
Happy 2023 listeners! After the festive holidays & as everyone around the world starts to think of their new years resolutions it got me thinking about & the daily 15 minute fix to success. Today I revisit & recap on an earlier episode where I discussed how there should be ONE hack we must all do every single day! If there is one hack for success then this is the one. You will also learn... How knowing your leadership Style and your Kolbe support your teams performance How you can ha...
Jan 04, 2023•23 min•Season 1Ep. 128
In early December I held our very first boutique planning workshop - “Fix your Crown”! A completely different approach to Planning for Success in 2023! We looked at Our Financial Performance of 2021 and 2022 Deeply rooted, honest truth bombs about what we love and hate in our businesses What really matters to us - and it’s not the One Million Dollar Revenue! Now from a position of knowing - we created the goals for 2023! This episode is packed with tipps and real life experiences! Let me know by...
Dec 21, 2022•23 min•Season 1Ep. 127
There is a lot of noise around Diversity, Inclusion, Equality and Belonging out there! And rightly so! Yet - very often women are invited to change! To look at themselves and “fix themselves” - where in fact Harriet talks to us about the root cause of systemic bullying, abuse, career suppression etc. - She demonstrates how some of the issues are deeply rooted in our male dominated leaderboards across all industries. Now - we love men what we don’t love is the acceptance of some of the behaviours...
Dec 14, 2022•37 min•Season 1Ep. 126
Cesar Hassemann started his first business when he was just thirteen years old! - He built the small DJ Business up until at the age of 16 his friend and business partner got very ill - and died at the age of 18! Cesar made a lot of money in his home country Brasil. He arrived in Australia - wondering how on earth could be be successful over there! He went into Real Estate! It’s fascinating to hear how Cesar approaches the business - simple and really very clear cut! But not only that - he talks...
Dec 07, 2022•41 min•Season 1Ep. 125
The connection between contact centre operations and a family-run Scottish Whisky Business is certainly not that obvious. However - My guest Karen Somerville shares how she had to change and pivot in her business pretty fast, as the world market place changed with Covid-19. She explains candidly how difficult it was at times, but she also shares her 3 key points in crisis management she would always, always ensured are followed through: Listen to your staff Do your research Don’t get disheartene...
Nov 30, 2022•38 min•Season 1Ep. 124
Nikki is a brand strategist and authentic messaging experts who work with brilliant leaders of leaders…. So people like me coaches, consultants, experts, service based business owners… who are hiding - sometimes in plain sight! Nikki had a high-flying career…. Until THAT very scary moment happened in her life at the age of 34! Countless 18 hours days created havoc to her health; she had lost sight of what really mattered. So she made a conscious decision to start living in her purpose and comple...
Nov 23, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 123
Today I'm welcoming Paul McCarthy, CEO of Snapfix and yes, it's Snapfix not SnapChat, as you will hear me calling it! There is a story to this - which Paul will tell himself! Snapfix is one of the most amazing innovations I have recently seen in technology! There are industries notoriously failing from a maintenance perspective. I give you an example: I was overnighting in a hotel and the tap in the bathroom was dripping constantly. It kept me awake all night. I probably should have phoned maint...
Nov 16, 2022•31 min•Season 1Ep. 122
Peak Season is approaching and with that can come stress, anticipation but also success. This year perhaps brings an extra and great pressure, as the world is dealing with high inflation costs, a war with no end in sight, staff shortages and increasing disruption of services. So how do we prepare? In this episode we delve in to what you can do to be ready for the challenges of the peak season. Links: Episode 28 OPEX - listen to Episode 28 Course Waitlist: https://rutzconsulting.com/customer-serv...
Nov 09, 2022•15 min•Season 1Ep. 121
Sales…. Arghh - for so many heart centred service providers, Sales is a hot potato topic! We - I include myself - don’t want to sell! We want to serve! Yet how can you truly serve if you don’t sell? My guest today is Kristin Zhivago, President of Zhivago Partners, a digital marketing agency. Krisitn knows her stuff, having spent decades as a revenue coach - helping entrepreneurs to generate revenue, knowing and owning their figures and selling! Kirstin speaks about Mindset Driven Marketing. You ...
Nov 02, 2022•39 min•Season 1Ep. 120
We all know somebody, that knows somebody who suffered from burnout in our very busy and pressurised industry! The 10th October is World Mental Health Day so in homage we decided to re-visit a popular interview that had a big impact upon our listeners. B J Kennedy - spoke with us, so very candidly, about his mental exhaustion in 2010. He was working 84hrs per week in an extremely busy environment - but had his wife buying a new home - one he never even saw before they moved in. Something had to ...
Oct 27, 2022•44 min•Season 1Ep. 119
I love a good conversation! And talking to a fellow podcaster who made celebrating good conversations his bread and butter by creating a podcast agency was no different! Ryan and I share a passion - talking with people and keep them entertained, offer learnings and very practical engagement! In today’s episode we discuss the importance of truly listening to your guests, but also the importance of professionalism without sounding cold or calculated! People crave engagement, love, hand holding! Th...
Oct 12, 2022•38 min•Season 1Ep. 118
