Executive InterviewsLatest
Meet Steve Bederman – Constantly Look at HOW You Meet Your Promises
Today we have selected Steve Bederman to take his interview. He is the President of NobelBiz.
First of all, how are you and your team doing in these COVID-19 times?
[Steve Bederman] I’d like to think that we are improved. Initially, the pandemic had us make hard business decisions that certainly had an impact on the staff. We inevitably gathered our resources, created efficiencies, and are an inspired and successful group.
Tell us about you, your career, how you founded or joined this company?
[Steve Bederman] In the 1990s, I founded a tiny company that developed call center dialers. Over a 10 year period, we grew from 2 people to have 6 global offices, over 5000 contact center customers and became a world leader in that field.[Steve Bederman] After selling that company, I continued in C-level leadership positions with various similar companies. I became known for turning around stale organizations.
One of the companies, over many years, that I competed with at the highest levels was NobelBiz. It was known as the centric player in communication for contact centers, being a carrier and a manufacturer of CTI, today represented by our Omni+ product line. When Thomas Knobel asked me to lead NobelBiz towards a new generation of business, I readily agreed. In the 3 plus years here, we have revolutionized our model and gained increasing and strong footholds in our market. Today, I’d like to think that we are a leading market voice.
How does your company innovate?
Anyone, at any time, can contribute ideas. Most of our most unique innovation comes from organizational planning, process approach, and awareness/transparency. So, from a product view, we are consistent as a carrier and contact center communications company. The key is really how you do it. Accomplishing is always the rub. In our case, we believe in keeping promises to customers. I know that sounds like a normal approach for most companies. Truly, it isn’t. Most companies invest in sales, not in client outcomes. It’s a point at NobelBiz to look at HOW we meet promises constantly. We examine, constantly, if we are 100% a promise keeper. Often, we dig deep into our processes and streamline them to offer better and more elegant client outcomes. An example is that we have Client Advocates. They act as if they ARE the customer sitting in our business. Their job becomes the voice of the customer. When action is needed, when we fall on the job, they speak for the client, and everyone internally stops to listen and react. It is our investment towards listening to the client’s voice. Of course, we have many more innovations, this being just one!
How the Coronavirus pandemic affects your business, and how are you coping?
We are aware that companies purchasing our products can often search for a cost-saving(s). So, we have increased our messaging and footprint to our audience to have them consider those benefits. They can be huge and will reduce the cost per agent seat significantly for a contact center. As well, increasing their own communication techniques to their audience. In other words, we recognize what our market has been facing during these trying times, and we address those areas responsibly. Internally, we have constant dialogue with customers as to their how and why.
Did you have to make difficult choices, and what are the lessons learned?
Difficult choices are a matter of daily practice in any business. Managers are paid to make decisions. So, as they face those moments requiring this, they make them without a lot of dramatics. If a decision didn’t help, we make a different one tomorrow and stay fluid. No one at NobelBiz is negatively impacted by making a decision that turned out badly. Rather, we live and learn and go to the next day. Companies exist because of hard decisions, and all staff must have the tools for decision-making. I believe that the worst thing a business can do is to put unreasonable restrictions around decision-making; in other words, not making decisions will damage everyone; making a decision allows you to take steps forward, both for us and the customer.
What specific tools, software, and management skills are you using to navigate this crisis?
We use the tools that are common in businesses today. We use Zoom while managing remote staff. Each workgroup keeps an open Team Zoom Room that allows everyone to have spontaneous access to each other. This allows for collaboration. All meetings are video required, both internally and externally. Face to face wins the race! Otherwise, we use CRM, ticket management, and solid reporting. Of course, though it probably doesn’t need to be said, we use our own product Omni + in our support groups and our own customer service centers.
Who are your competitors? And how do you plan to stay in the game?
We will stay in the game because we care about our client’s experiences. No one can compete with us when we are focused on our customers.
Your Final Thoughts
Have an easy-to-understand core value and build your business around that singular mantra. Success is inevitable if you can get the entire organization to align on why we do what we do. Everything should revolve around that single point of reference. At NobelBiz, our core value is easy to understand but hard to implement successfully: Make a Promise, Keep a promise!
- Spokesperson: Steve Bederman
- Company: NobelBiz
- Website link: https://nobelbiz.com/
