July 21, 2024

Living the dream with author, speaker, consultant, and founder and CEO of Parone Group Irma Parone.

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In this episode of Living the Dream with Curveball, host Curveball delves into the world of organizational development with author, speaker, and consultant Irma Parone. As the founder and CEO of Parone Group, Irma shares her expertise on improving customer relationships, employee engagement, and boosting the bottom line. Discover the proven strategies from her award-winning book, Winx, and learn how to craft effective problem statements, determine root causes, and evaluate the impact of business decisions. Irma also discusses her second book aimed at employees and her dream of fostering better collaboration between employers and employees. Tune in for invaluable insights on problem-solving and achieving workplace success.
www.paronegroup.com
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> Curtis Jackson>Welcome to the living the dream with Curveball podcast, a show where I and a few guests that teach, motivate, and inspire. Today we're going to be talking about organizational development as it goes to business, as I am joined by author, speaker and consultant Irma Perone. She is the founder and CEO of Perrone Group, and she has just written a book, and we're going to be talking to her about her writings and how she can help businesses improve with their customers, employees, and their bottom line. And her methods are definitely proven. So, Irma, thank you so much for joining me today.

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> Irma Perone>Thank you. I am honored to be on your podcast.

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> Curtis Jackson>Why don't you start off by telling everybody a little bit about yourself?

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> Irma Perone>Well, I live in South Florida. I, As you mentioned in a speaker, author, consultant, I work with organizations on their strategies to help with their customer relationships, customer retention, employee high value service, and just identify strategies to boost that customer experience. So helping customer retention and then ongoing referrals. A lot of people, you know, a lot of people hire or get excited. They work so hard on sales, and then they forget about their customer. So, in my books, I have two. I just released a second one. The first one is for business owners and leaders, and the second one is for employees, and it's for them all to win big in the workplace.

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> Curtis Jackson>Okay, well, let the listeners know why you decide to get into the field of customer retention and employees winning and customer engagement.

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> Irma Perone>Well, I was, a leader in a leadership role all of my life before I firm formed my own group. And what I loved best was watching how people can really get so much better with a little bit of organization and attention.

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> Irma Perone>A lot of people fail because nobody's helping them succeed, right?

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> Irma Perone>So, I was very successful in my career. I was a vice president before I started my group for 15 years. And I just. When I left, I left because my mother was sick and I had to help her. And then I just started my own group. But, you know, the problem solving piece of it.

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> Irma Perone>When I was writing my book, I couldn't figure out how to write a leadership book that was all inclusive. And it kept getting bigger, and experts kept saying, narrow it down, narrow it down.

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> Irma Perone>And it's like, I just didn't know how to do that. And someone finally said, well, what do people call you for? And what they call me for is problem solving. I'm, having a difficult time with my customer. I'm having difficult time with my employees. If I do this, I can't afford it. How do I go from here to there, make a living, be able to pay and give the customers what they want and what they need, and I'll make it work. So that's why I went into a problem solving model.

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> Irma Perone>And since my field was working in, I'm sorry, industry, right? For people, the people side of the business. So organizations, employers, people that work with employees and customers, I thought, well, let me just help them with what they need. And that's how I got into it.

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> Curtis Jackson>So if I came to the wrong group and said, hey, Irma, I need some help here, what could I expect when dealing with your company?

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> Irma Perone>Well, the first thing we would do is have a conversation.

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> Irma Perone>So what do you need help with? Like, let me give you an example. Some people will call me and say, you know, I keep hiring the wrong people.

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> Irma Perone>How do I hire better people? And then when I dig into the data and talk to the people, I find out that they're hiring pretty good people. I mean, some of them are bad hires, but in many parts, it's not what they thought the problem was.

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> Irma Perone>So it's what they did with these people once they got them. Providing the expectations, looking at the bigger picture.

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> Irma Perone>And that goes all the way back to, what do your customers want? What do they expect? And then how can you boost your relationship?

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> Irma Perone>We all have so many competitors, right? How do we stand out? So we would look at where you are, what you think the problem is, dive into that, and then see if I'm a good fit for your company.

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> Curtis Jackson>Okay, so you talked about your books.

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> Curtis Jackson>So tell the listeners about your books and where we can get them and what we can expect when we read them.

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> Curtis Jackson>I know one's for employees and one's for the leadership, right?

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> Irma Perone>So the first one that I wrote, it's two years old as of this week. It's called Winx, the problem solving model, to win exponentially with customers, employees, and your bottom line.

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> Irma Perone>That one is for leadership teams and business owners. And it's really. It's an eight step problem solving model, so that they could win in a bigger way. Looking at their problems entirely different than most people look at problems. And there are forms and things you could use to fill out if you go through the book. And I don't know if you want me to go through the steps or not. The second book is, yeah, go ahead.

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> Curtis Jackson>And go through the strategies. Cause that was one of the question I was gonna ask.

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> Irma Perone>Okay, so, for example, step one is craft your problem statement. Most people are working. I shouldn't say most people. Many people are working on the wrong thing. Just for example, what I just talked about, they think they're hiring the wrong people, so they're spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on bigger ads, paying more money. And that wasn't the issue at all. Right?

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> Irma Perone>So if you're working on the wrong problem. So I walk you through how to identify the problem. The second step is determine the root cause of the problem. So, and this strategy works both for business and for personal life. So let me give you a personal example of determining the root cause. I was engaged to somebody who drove me crazy because he was kind of controlling. He wanted to be, you know, he just.

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> Irma Perone>He didn't want me to work so much and things like that. And I thought he was nuts. I mean, I was. I had to get out of that relationship. I thought, this is terrible.

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> Irma Perone>The root cause wasn't him. That's what he wanted, and he should have what he wanted. The root cause was I was with the wrong type of personality for me, so I could have blamed him for being over controlling and all this stuff. But then I may have gotten back into the same type of relationship. So the problem was I was unhappy with the relationship. The root cause was I was with the wrong type of personality. So you want to know, what's the problem and then what's the root cause? The third step is evaluating the impact of the current problem.

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> Irma Perone>So you're probably, as bad as the rest of us are, and looking at a problem and saying, oh, my gosh, this is too big. I don't even want to try to attempt to fix it. Maybe we'll make the wrong decision. So, looking at the impact of the current problem helps us to make a decision intentionally. And, no decision is really a decision. That decision is to keep things the way they are.

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> Irma Perone>So if I look at a problem and say, if I try this, I'm afraid it'll make things worse. So I just kind of put the problem on the floor and let it continue.

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> Irma Perone>That's not what you want to do. So this step helps you go through the current problem and look at it and say, how does it impact the customers?

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> Irma Perone>How does this problem impact the employees, and how does it impact the bottom line? So that you could really see how big of a problem it is and understand that a no decision is a decision. So that's step three. Step four is just full of problem solving stories and ideas, from brainstorming to, not listening to the single story. A lot of people will hear one side of an issue and just believe what they hear, or the first thing they hear, they think they're telling the truth. There's a lot of different stepping outside your comfort zone, stepping outside your industry. So that's just full of problem solving ideas and methods. Step five is evaluate alternatives. So when you go through step four, what I tell people to do is write down a few ideas that they got from going through those problem solving strategies. So now you're looking at, if I leave it the same, how does it affect the customer, employee, and bottom line?

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> Irma Perone>If I change it to, option a, b or c, how do those each impact the customers, the employees in the bottom line? And it helps you really, it kind of pops out of what's the best decision for the overall picture. Because if you think of it, if any one of those three is hurt badly, what happens? We all fell, right?

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> Irma Perone>And then it gets into evaluate. I'm sorry, the decision step. The decision steps broken down into two pieces.

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> Irma Perone>One is for the decision maker how to go through the process to make sure that, you know, they're pretty sure they're responsible for the bottom line, for the outcome of that decision.

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> Irma Perone>So how to make better decisions, looking at all the information. And then the other part of it is for people who are recommending a decision, how to lay that out, how to make sure that you're giving your boss clear, good information, the, pros and the cons, so that when they make a decision, they know that you've done your homework.

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> Irma Perone>Then prepare for impact is step seven.

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> Irma Perone>So preparing for impact means just that. No matter what decision you make, even if it's not a decision. Right. There are pros and cons to every decision you make. So it helps you. I even tell people, shake it out in a few months. So in other words, go back and look at it and say, how did I do? Is everything going well? But before you even put the decision out there, before you implement, be prepared for, you know, some customers might not like this or some employees might not like it, or it might be a little more expensive than you thought.

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> Irma Perone>So it's preparing for all that and then implement the decision.

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> Irma Perone>It's. Did you check all the boxes?

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> Irma Perone>It's not a matter of just saying, I'm going to implement it.

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> Irma Perone>Who's going to implement it? How are you going to follow up?

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> Irma Perone>What steps will you take to make sure that people are doing their jobs? Or what steps do you have to take to make sure that you implement it properly? So those are the eight steps. And there's a lot of stories. there's downloadable forms that are free that people can get. And, it's been, you know, I've been very fortunate. It's four time award winning book and any business has problems.

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> Irma Perone>So, that's why I went with a problem solving model and I'm very proud of the results that this book has had.

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> Irma Perone>And then I wrote the second one, my true dream. My goal is to have employers and employees all working off the same sheet of music. so I wrote a book for employees that has the basic, same basic criteria.

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> Irma Perone>You know, how is your. Because our employees make decisions every day and we want them to be successful. So this book is winx for employees. The problem solving model to unlock workplace success.

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> Irma Perone>So how can you be successful in your journey? When you run into a problem, what are some problem solving strategies?

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> Irma Perone>What if, worst case scenario, you hate your job and you have to leave, you know, making sure that you're looking at the real problem. Maybe you're the problem, maybe not. But looking at all the data and, if worst case scenario, you do have to leave, leave on good terms, give a good notice, leave on the top of your field, because that could impact you later too.

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> Irma Perone>It could end up with a bad reference.

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> Irma Perone>People in industries know people in the same industry. So it's really a book to help employees be successful, be highly valued by their employer and by their peers.

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> Curtis Jackson>Okay. Well, to let the customers know that you have high credibility in your field and all that you're doing.

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> Curtis Jackson>Talk about, you know, being recognized by managehr.

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> Irma Perone>Yeah. So I was, quite honored. That was in, what was it? 2022. I was 2022. 2022. I was listed in the top ten, companies, in organizational development. So that was fun. That was an honor.

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> Irma Perone>And, you know, I don't really think about those things. I just, we have certain criteria and certain standards, and throughout my whole career, all I wanted to do was help people be great, be really, really great at what they are. And that has helped me rise to the top. So I had very good data, very good background. I had, some mentors that were really helpful for me. And so I want to give back and I want people to learn what I learned.

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> Curtis Jackson>What, tell us about any upcoming projects that you and your company are working on that people need to be aware of.

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> Irma Perone>Well, my big dream again is to get employers and employees to work together. So what I'm really trying to focus on is how to get in front of stages, in front of employers, corporations, and talk to their teams and do some problem solving work and just get them in the habit of looking big picture. So that's my big goal. I would love to get on a TED talk or a TEDx to help share this message, and that's, I might write one more book, but I don't want to commit to that.

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> Irma Perone>You know, one is for the company and one is for the employees. I'd love to write one if I can get up the energy to do another book for customers. How to get the best service out of your vendors.

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> Irma Perone>So, I don't know, that might come up. We'll see.

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> Curtis Jackson>Well, since we don't know if you're going to write a book, kind, of tell us how customers can get the best service out of their vendors.

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> Irma Perone>Oh, that's a long, that's a longer story.

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> Irma Perone>So the first thing you want to do is make sure you understand what the vendors want or what the vendor. I'm sorry, you're talking about how cust.

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> Irma Perone>How companies can get the best out of their vendors?

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> Curtis Jackson>No, how customers. I guess I rephrased it wrong, how customers can get the best service.

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> Irma Perone>Okay, so the first thing is to know exactly what you want. Again, a lot of times when I look at organizations that the customer was very unclear about their expectations. So make sure that you're very clear that you have a long dialogue with your vendors, that you have some proof sources, and then take good care. When you find a good vendor, take good care of them. Be the customer of choice for that vendor. Be the one that they want to work so hard for, so hard. They want to take care of you the most.

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> Irma Perone>So really, really understand what you want them to do and then support them. I mean, that's just the easiest way to explain it. Support them, thank them, take care of them.

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> Irma Perone>It's not just about your vendors taking care of you. It's about you taking care of your vendors to help them be the best success they can be.

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> Curtis Jackson>Okay, well, so everybody can keep up with everything you're up to.

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> Curtis Jackson>Throw out your contact information.

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> Irma Perone>So my, website is www.peronegroup.com.

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> Irma Perone>that's parone group.com. you can find me on LinkedIn. Those are the two best ways to find me. You can also email me, but if you do, please put a note in the sidebar that, you know, you heard, I get a lot of junk. I get a lot of people trying to solicit. So put something in the, subject line that says, you know, met on podcast or something.

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> Irma Perone>And my email is irmaaronegroup.

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> Irma Perone>Ah.com. as for my books, can I give you a link that they can link to?

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> Curtis Jackson>Yep, you sure can.

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> Irma Perone>Okay. And that, you can also get them on my, on my website.

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> Curtis Jackson>All right. We'll close us out with some final thoughts. Maybe if that was something I forgot to talk about that you would like to touch on, or just any final thoughts you have for the listeners.

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> Irma Perone>Well, I, you know, a lot of the work I do is also connecting people on a special, special way. A lot of people just don't say thank you anymore.

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> Irma Perone>They work so hard at selling their business, and then they forget about their customers. And their customers will be their best referral sources if they do the little things. And there are a lot of little ways. And anybody that wants to get on the phone with me, I can give them some ideas.

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> Irma Perone>But, like, for example, I use a card and gift service. As soon as I get a customer, I send a thank you card. I touch base with them. I find out when their birthday is. I reach out, every couple months and send a card and say, how are things going? Just don't forget about your customers. Never forget. However you do it, whether it's a phone call, a card, your employees reaching out to them, be that person that they say, man, I love Curtis. He's the best. He's wonderful. Because it's emotions. Yes, we have to provide exceptional service, but people will stick with us and refer us because they love us. So that would be my closing statement.

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> Curtis Jackson>All right, ladies and gentlemen, perronegroup.com. check out Irma and everything that she's up to, especially if you're an employer, employee, or business leader. And she just, she just put the link in the chat. I'll get her to send it to me and I'll put it in the show notes. Jump on your favorite podcast platform and give us a review and a follow.

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> Curtis Jackson>Check us out if you have any guests or suggestion topics. Curtis Jackson, 1978 is the best place to send them.

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> Curtis Jackson>Thank you for listening and supporting the show. And, Irma, thank you so much for joining me.

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> Irma Perone>Thank you, Curtis. You're the best.