Lessons from The Brant Cave (Preview Edition)

Lessons from
The Brant Cave
Preview Edition

by
Robert Lavigne,
Your Social Business Mentor

Volume Two
in The Brant Cave Series

Dedicated to Karen,
Julie and Ron

Table of Contents

Introduction Chapter Two
Robert Lavigne, Your Social Are You a Social Hypocrite? Are
Business Mentor Your Back Ofﬁce Behaviours in line
with Your Front Ofﬁce
Expectations?
Chapter One
"Your request is denied" ~ the
Kitchen Staff. How to shift to a Chapter Three
"Cafe and Culture" Innovation and What is a Pain Point? What is a
Collaboration Hub. Pivot Point?

#StayTuned

Are you struggling to
formulate your Social
Media Strategy?

Do you wish to
understand how to
become a Social Business?

Would a personal one-on-
one mentoring session
Help You Succeed?

Contact @RLavigne42.com

Robert Lavigne, Your Social
Business Mentor, is available
for online mentoring sessions
using Skype, Google
Hangout, and even your
Phone.

In person, Life@42
Workshops featuring Robert
Lavigne, can also be
scheduled for any group size
and topics.

Chapter
One
"Your request is denied"
~ the Kitchen Staff.

How to shift to a "Cafe and
Culture" Innovation and
Collaboration Hub.

Chapter One

We have an order for 10 Marketing Plans, 15 IT
Projects, 5 Video Productions, 20 HR and Policy
Changes. Here is Five Million Dollars. Go!

Robert Lavigne (@RLavigne42.com), Your SocialBusinessMentor.com

Chapter One

Now, for some this may look like a great
opportunity. For the kitchen staff, who are not
aware of what is being ordered tonight, they are
now in a state of chaos.


Chapter One

Most "Mission, Values and Goals" statements turn
into just that. A long list of un-ﬁltered, un-vetted,
and un-planned request for services. Some money
is there and they want to be fed their un-budgeted
wish list.


Chapter One

Do you promise them everything on the list for the
unjustiﬁed and unsolicited allocation of funds?


Chapter One

Or do you start a community dialogue around a
campﬁre, where everyone partakes in a bountiful
harvest, shared stories, and a view of the future,
the present, and the past.


Chapter One

Only a "Cafe and Culture" Innovation and
Collaboration Hub is capable of ﬁltering, vetting,
planning and budgeting those Mission, Values and
Goals for success.


Chapter
Two
Are You a Social Hypocrite?

Are Your Back Ofﬁce Behaviours
in line with Your Front Ofﬁce
Expectations?

Chapter Two

I woke up this morning with a headache. Now in
all likelihood that headache is the direct result of
the 2007 Côtes du Rhône I drank last night. The
fact that this particular mix of Grenache, Syrah
and Mourvèdre was called Domaine De
Dieumercy could be a tell tale sign. However, it is
more likely that this migraine is related to the
conversation that led me to open the bottle in the
ﬁrst place.

Chapter Two

I was having a conversation with a friend of mine
last night about what it means to be a Social
Business. He had been applying for numerous
positions with companies that claimed to be Social
Businesses, or had strong Social Media Strategies
deﬁning their brand.


Chapter Two

In all cases, the Human Resources department
failed to acknowledge his application, let alone
schedule an appointment to discuss the
opportunities presented to them. You read that
right, this was an opportunity presented to them,
not some traditional pray and spray approach to
the hiring process.


Chapter Two

You are probably reading this and saying "it is
standard policy and procedure that only those
candidates selected for interviews will be
contacted." While this legal and time saving
verbiage is standard fair in traditional recruitment
process, it falls short of the very fundamentals of
what it means to be a Social Business.


Chapter Two

If your back ofﬁce is unable or incapable of
providing the basic courtesy of a thank you and
acknowledgment of intent, the odds are that your
front ofﬁce is suffering the same poor customer
service.


Chapter Two

In the Social Era, where many of us have become
Prosumers (Producers and Consumers), a simple
job application has become a conversation starter
with either an existing customer or a potential
customer. The very fact that someone is applying
to your organization, is an indication that they
highly value your organization to start with.


Chapter Two

If they already value your organization, there is a
strong chance that they are an existing customer.
This is especially true if your business is of a retail
nature, and in this day and age, we have all
become retail businesses.


Chapter Two

Our success as a business is entirely based on
people buying our services or products through
positive word of mouth. This Farmer's Market
model has been true for as long as the concept of
commerce has existed. Whether this commerce is
run in the front ofﬁce or in the back ofﬁce is where
the power of Social Business come into play.


Chapter Two

How a potential customer views their relationship
with your business is now a mix of all elements of
your business. Your back ofﬁce is no longer
sheltered by walls and policies, your front ofﬁce
even less so.


Chapter Two

The names of the businesses in question are not
important. What is important is that each and
everyone of them failed to be a Social Business
when this opportunity was presented to them.


Chapter Two

Each and everyone of them failed to engage with
an existing or potential customer to convert them
into a Brand Advocate. Each and everyone of
them failed to understand that in the Social Era,
this experience is now ampliﬁed and my view of
those organizations is now as tarnished as the one
who experienced it ﬁrst hand.


Chapter Two

The red wine I enjoyed last night easily ranked as
a four out of five. It had been aged for over five
years and resulted in a smooth finish that left a
positive impression on my palette. The businesses
I am referring to easily ranked as a one out of five.
They had been aged for over fifty years and
resulted in a harsh experience that left a negative
impression on my palette.


Chapter Two

How your business is reviewed is a mix of
numerous elements that if poorly tended to will
convert your wine into vinegar.


Chapter
Three
What is a Pain Point?

What is a Pivot Point?

Chapter Three

Life is interesting. It provides for ample life lessons.
They present themselves as opportunities,
challenges, road blocks, and failures. These
moments of temporal chaos are either Pain Points
or Pivot Points.


Chapter Three

Providing solutions to Pain Points, and mentoring
towards Pivot Points, is the foundation of a Social
Business Model. The valuation of the end results,
and the eng agement it invokes, is the
commercialization of a Social Business Economy.


Chapter Three

A Paint Point requires a collaborative solution.
Pain Points are characterized as short term. Pain
Points tend to be localized. Pain Points are
destructive by nature. Consulting sessions are best
suited to deﬁne and resolve Pain Points.


Chapter Three

For every Pain Point you encounter, you will
encounter the occasional Pivot Point. Your ability
to recognize one from the other is your
competitive advantage. A Pivot Point requires a
decisive decision to alter your current trajectory.


Chapter Three

A Pivot Point requires an innovative solution.
Pivot Points are characterized as long term. Pivot
Points tend to be generalized. Pivot Points are
disruptive by nature. Mentoring sessions are best
suited to conceptualize and iterate Pivot Point.


Chapter Three

Your commitment will dictate the decisions you
must make. Your alignment will guide the actions
you will take. The fundamental difference,
between a Pain Point and a Pivot Point, is how
they relate.


Chapter Three

The next time life provides you with a interesting
lesson, ask yourself,
"Is this a Pain Point or a Pivot Point?"


Social Business Mentor
SocialBusinessMentor.com
facebook.com/SocialBusinessMentor

Lessons from The Brant Cave (Preview Edition)

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