Fantastic Customer Service & Leadership at Disney & Elsewhere: Conversations with Kim & Mac Cantrell
This week on Disney at Work we have the good pleasure of being joined by Kim and Mac Cantrell who works with companies and leaders in creating organizational excellence. At the heart of this has been some recent experiences of Kim and Mac at Walt Disney World. We look at the link between leadership and creating a strong customer service brand via a customer-focused culture. We discuss not only Disney, but other organizations like Chick fil-A, Ritz-Carlton, Publix and others. Join us for this insightful look at what makes organizations great!
You can find the podcast here on Podbean, iTunes, Spotify, and ListenNotes. Please subscribe! We outline our key takeaways below, but our insights are best found on the podcast.
Souvenirs for Your Organization
Between the ideas that Kim, Mac and I shared, consider the following ideas for your organization:
- Is the customer service offered between you and your operating partners seamless?
- What are the little things that make a big difference?
- What standards do you have in place that are stronger than management that passes through?
- Where do you create accountability by
- Setting Clear Expectations
- Providing Performance Feedback
- Making Performance Matter
- What is embedded physically in your work environment that speaks to your culture?
- What makes your brand approachable?
- How do you empower your employees to go above and beyond?
- How is customer service a two-way experience?
Kim & Mac Cantrell
Below is an introduction to Kim and Mac and the work they do:
Mac and Kim Cantrell have been married for 31 years, have two children, Alec (wife Madelyn) and Emily (husband Jack), and a new grandson, Leo. Together they enjoy traveling, being outdoors, and time spent with family and friends. They are also the proud owner and founders of 2Impact, a coaching and consulting firm dedicated to equipping individuals and businesses to reach their maximum growth potential. Through their many experiences in Senior Executive and Entrepreneurial roles, this team has a combined expertise that stretches beyond 3 decades of experience.
Before embarking on the journey of 2Impact, Kim acted as the CFO of Goodwill Industries of the Southern Rivers in 2000 and journeyed through the organization to later become the Senior Vice President of Mission Services during her 13 years there. Kim also holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Accounting and a Masters in Organization Leadership with a concentration in Servant Leadership from Columbus State University. In addition, she holds the designation of Associate Certified Coach (ACC) from the International Coach Federation, and is a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach, Certified RightPathFacilitator and an active adjunct faculty member at Columbus State University.
Mac’s experience derives from the 30 successful years as an entrepreneur in the construction and aftermarket automotive industries. During his time as an entrepreneur, he discovered his passion for understanding and perfecting the art of quality customer service. Mac holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Marketing and is currently pursuing a Masters in Organization Leadership with a concentration in Human Resources. He holds the designation of John Maxwell Certified Trainer, a DISC Certified Trainer, and is pursuing his designation of Associate Certified Coach (ACC) from the International Coach Federation. He is also a graduate of the Dale Carnegie Public Speaking course and a current member of Toastmasters Club #2037. Both Kim and Mac are very active within their community and act as boards members for a number of non-profits such as the North Columbus Rotary Club, House of Mercy, and Ronald McDonald House Charities. Their passion for helping people reach their ultimate potential is not only shown within their community outreach, but it is also shown within their care and passion for the clients of 2Impact.
More Disney Best in Business Practices
If you like the ideas I’ve shared today, you may want to consider the first Disney book I authored, The Wonderful World of Customer Service at Disney. It’s dedicated to those who would love to make their work environment as polished and customer friendly as a day at Disney. The Wonderful World of Customer Service at Disney is a celebration of great business practices that can be applied to any service organization. Whether you are in the public, private, or non-profit sector, you will find solutions that can help you take your organization to the next level.
The Wayfinder Society: A Patreon Site for Disney Fans
We are offering a new program where you have the opportunity to enjoy exclusive offerings from Disney at Play and Disney at Work. Join us as we introduce our new Patreon program, the Wayfinder Society, intended to give you new insights to all things Disney, whether its work or play. I am truly excited to share this new opportunity with you and look forward to creating new experiences that you will enjoy whether at home or at the Disney parks. There are a variety of options for joining, depending on your interests:
When you join, you will be given access to unique, interactive apps that explores the parks in new ways, offering stories, photos, videos and more.
Here are some of the interactive apps we share with members of our society:
- Pandora: World of Avatar: This is an expansive and detailed look at every aspect of this land. You can’t find any source that has covered this entire land with its attractions, retail and dining more in depth.
- Pirates of the Caribbean Across the Globe: We not only compare this attraction in parks world-wide, but we deep dive into what makes each unique. Currently we’ve covered Tokyo Disneyland and Magic Kingdom. More to come!
- Coming Soon! S.E.A. Assembled! The Society of Adventurers and Explorers are coming to the Wayfinder Society. We’ll document their whereabouts and showcase their imprint on Disney attractions world-wide.
- Disney at Work Interactive Tour: Disneyland. For our upper tiers, we have an interactive business tour of Disneyland to include more than fifty attractions spread throughout the park. These are best-in-business ideas you can apply to your own organization.
- Coming Soon! Disney at Work Interactive Tour: Walt Disney World 50th Anniversary. Looking at the heritage of Most Magical Place in the World, we draw best practices from over the years that you can again, apply to your organization.
As you see, we have so much to share. And when you donate, a portion of your contribution goes to Embrace Celebration, dedicated to helping Disney Cast Members and others in this area who are unemployed during this pandemic. To learn more, visit our site to discover our offerings and various tiers. Join us!
