Hi Ilja,

Thanks for commenting! I think the CEO is crucial to deposit/withdrawals — not only for his or her own actions, which might be communicated through media, etc. — but for the culture and core values that you mention that inevitably impact how many frontline employees interact with customers.

I’d like to argue, though, that that the attitude of a CEO – who ought to represent the core values of the company – is a damn sight more relevant than that of any entry-level employee – who might have arrived today and gone tomorrow. Or to put it in other words: the impact of the first on potential withdrawals or deposits is (and should be!) much larger than that of the second.

Your story just shows why those deposits are so important! The thing companies, and particularly small businesses have to be careful of, is that could have been our first experience with their brand.

And ps, we do the blonde roast for our Keurig. 🙂

Nor did your experience. I overlooked the short sightedness of the company ceo, and you looked beyond the obnoxiously adolescent employee.

BTW, Starbucks makes a good K-cup, you know!

Hi Holly, thanks for stopping by and for the Covey link. I’m a fan, and you’re right the concept is just as applicable to personal dealings. In case you’re interested, I wrote about Stephen Covey shortly after he passed away: http://customersthatstick.com/blog/uncategorized/the-5th-habit-of-customer-service-a-shout-out-to-stephen-covey/

I tweet every time a business even mildly inconveniences me — don’t you know? Of course, as you know, that’s just not my style. I always believe in giving a business the opportunity to address issues privately. It’s the same courtesy I, as a business owner, appreciate from my customers.

And no doubt about the music thing…. I felt very old writing this post!