The Lakeview Blog

Many employers believe that delivering a paycheque is all they have to do to ensure that their employees are doing all the things the employer has hired them to do. But is it? There's a big difference between those employees who show up to work, sleepwalk through their shifts and leave the second the clock tells them it's time to go home, and those who are enthusiastic about their work, deliver great customer service and think about improvements or innovations to your business. Studies over decades have shown that engaged employees -- those who give the extra 10 per cent, who are committed to their workplace -- deliver better results, take fewer sick days and stay with companies longer. Don't believe me? Here are 32 studies that show just that. Communication is an important piece of employee engagement. HR Review cites it as being a top-five contributor to employee engagement. Great communication reduces the need for the rumour mill and the negative envi

As the new year gets underway, it's an opportunity to have a look at how your brand is showing itself to the world and whether you may have let things slide just a little. 1. Social media: Are your accounts active? If not, should you scale back, perhaps cutting a platform or two, or should you be planning and scheduling your content? Are you following good social media practices such as sharing and commenting on others' posts? 2. Blog: If you have a blog, when was the last time you posted new content? Sharing your knowledge can be valuable to your clients as well as provide you with original content for your other platforms. Focus information on what you offer and create a publication schedule for the first quarter. Block off  time to in your calendar. 3. Customer service: Are your employees trained in great customer service? Are they engaged with company goals? Both of these things need attention if you've hired new staff, heard complaints or seen interactions t

Watching a presentation the other day (and hoping my loss of consciousness didn't show on my face) I was reminded of the need for people to know what makes a great presentation. It all starts with a great slide. Why do we use slides? Basically, because we humans have poor memories and even worse concentration. Slides are to used to engage another sense (vision) in addition to hearing to increase the audience's attention and retention. Although there are a lot of different numbers out there, experts seem to agree that you will remember a very small percentage of what you hear (about 10 per cent), about 20 per cent of what you read and about 80 per cent of what you see. That's why a visually arresting slide makes you and your presentation much more effective. How to create a great slide Unless someone gives you a set amount of slides (a completely inane practice), don't worry about the number of slides in your deck. The number of slides has absolutely