Every Company Needs a Director of First Impressions
June 5, 2008 at 11:19 am | In Misc, Personal Branding, Success Strategies | 8 Comments
Since people are the face of the company, there must be an emphasis on each person who represents the corporate brand. Sure everyone needs to understand the corporate message and culture in order to be successful at their job, but what about the receptionist? When a customer, potential customer, partner or stockholder ventures to the corporate offices, the first person they meet is, yes you guessed it, the receptionist.
The receptionists’ job is not just to connect the visitor with the person they are their to meet. It’s not just to book appointments on calendars or transfer calls. They are also a resource that directs visitors or employees to specific parts of the building or may even just give advice on where to get lunch. They record the availability of staff members, conduct tours of the offices and they file and maintain records. There are various duties and titles associated with this type of administrative position, which you can view here.
In the above example (Note: I recreated the business card I had because I don’t have a scanner), you can see that Monster.com understands the importance of a first impression. Receptionists need to be some of the top marketers in the company, which means they should be invited to marketing meetings or at least be granted access to corporate messaging programs (high level training). If a partner, customer or any other visitor comes in and has a bad experience with the receptionist, they punish or blame the company.
The attitude, tone, facial expression and personality of the receptionist is key to starting the experience the visitor has with the company, even before they interact with a hiring manager, friend or colleague. I’m not sure if a receptionist enjoys her/his title, but this new title surely makes them feel much better. People in lower level jobs wants to feel like they are apart of the company and not just some admin that adds no value to the bottom line. Using this title, they feel more empowered and controlling of the day-to-day outcome.
Today is the day where you change your receptionists title and business card.
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great insight Dan! I can’t tell you how often I preah this same message to Loan Officers and Real Estate Agents who are self-employed and on their own. They are the Director of First Impressions for the themselves but, too often they are the Wrecker of First Impressions.
Comment by daniel martin — June 5, 2008 #
I am happy to see the recent posts re: receptionist. Smart companies empower reception and assistants with knowledge and ability to act. Hire talent and this person can save your professional life.
One of my best hires was our office manager in Orange County, CA. She sat in our executive search update meetings, grabbed specs and would support incoming calls very well. I got compliments from clients and candidates often — she was our MVP!
Comment by David Sandusky — June 5, 2008 #
@ Daniel – thanks and nice name
@ David – seems like a great corporate decision
Comment by Dan Schawbel — June 5, 2008 #
Small story for you: I once walked into the offices of a large law firm a few minutes early for a business meeting. The receptionist greeted me by name (she keeps photos of the people that come in for meetings so she can remember them all), alerted me about the change of room for the meeting, printed out the new handouts for me, and was sure to answer any questions about the meeting I had.
The people in the firm kept her informed of all these things because they knew that her job was to create these first impressions, and she definitely left a lasting mark for me.
Comment by Sameer Vasta — June 5, 2008 #
[...] Every Company Needs a Director of First Impressions Liz Bailey at Monster has a great business card. [...]
Pingback by 080605 Daily Links (June 5, 2008) | johnsumser.com: Recruiting News and Views — June 5, 2008 #
The content in your post is great, Dan, but your title should be fixed.
Companies of all sizes and shapes already possess directors of first impressions. Some call these defenders of personal space a receptionist, others a clerk, and occasionally the vice president of x, y, or z rotates with other staffers as the welcoming wagon.
Thus, your argument should not be companies NEED directors of first impressions but one should evaluate and/or incorporate the content of your post to determine not if a person can be hired or appointed as such but how the existing role can be enhanced.
Comment by Ari Herzog — June 6, 2008 #
What a cool post, Dan! Where were you four years ago when I was a receptionist?! I honestly think that this is a valid point, though, and that receptionists are hugely responsible for creating a good impression for the company. Especially for a company that requires managers to take a lot of meetings in the office. A good receptionist can make or break an important meeting.
Comment by Erika — June 6, 2008 #
Great post, Dan. However, I’d go a step further and say that it’s not only receptionists, but any staff who might have customer contact – particularly the ones who you are likely to encounter first. This could be check-in staff for airlines or at hotels; doormen; train conductors; bus drivers; car valets, maitre d’s etc.
It just goes to show the importance of ensuring that ALL customer facing staff are singing off the same hymn sheet, have been empowered to deal with situations and now what your company’s overall vision and strategies are so they will be able to make the right decisions for both the customers and your company.
Comment by Casper Moller — June 9, 2008 #