In a world where customers regard flawless products as a given, service is the key
differentiator between competitors in any field. This wise and inspiring book by Leonard
Berry, our leading service expert, moves far beyond his pioneering work in services
marketing and service quality to explain how great service companies meet their toughest
challenge: sustaining long-term success.
From Berry's exacting study of fourteen mature, highly successful, labor-intensive
companies comes an astonishing revelation: the single most important factor in building a
lasting service business is not a matter of savvy business practice, but of humane values.
In all fourteen award-winning companies Bergstrom Hotels, The Charles Schwab
Corporation, Chick-fil-A, The Container Store, Custom Research Inc., Dana Commercial
Credit, Dial-A-Mattress, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Midwest Express Airlines, Miller SQA,
Special Expeditions, St. Paul Saints, USAA, and Ukrop's Super Markets -- values-driven
leadership connects with strategic focus, executional excellence, control of destiny,
trust-based relationships, generosity, investment in employee success, acting small, and
brand cultivation to drive customer satisfaction, innovation, and growth. Dedicating a
chapter to each of these nine drivers, this book is the most far-reaching and insightful
vision ever presented of the principles and step-by-step actions that continuously bring
success to life in a company.
Berry's comprehensive model reveals the soul that underlies the strategies and
day-to-day operations of great service companies, guiding the thousands of daily decisions
of individual employees. Clear, compelling, pathbreaking, Discovering the Soul of Service
is essential reading for managers everywhere.
268 pages