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References Should Come from a Candidate’s Coworkers, Not Just Their Boss

Harvard Business

But in today’s dynamic, knowledge-based workplace, where work is often accomplished by teams working closely together, is talking to a manager really the best way to assess a potential employee’s fit? One of the most common ways to reference check a job candidate is to talk with their former managers over the phone.

Retail 134
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Scaling Customer Service as Your Startup Grows

Harvard Business

Along the way, I’ve talked to hundreds of founders, sales and marketing leaders, customer success VPs, and front-line reps about how to build a customer-first SaaS organization. Start a knowledge base. It’s time to dedicate a full-time person to building your knowledge base and providing customer education support.

Metrics 131
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Deep Dive into Customer Segmentation (Part 1 of 2)

Tom Spencer

Attitudes toward the brand, the way they use it, and their knowledge base are all examples of behavioral segmentation. Another example could be where one segment may be very sensitive to price and always buy merchandise on sale, whereas the other may value time over savings and typically pay full price.

Apparel 103
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How Companies Are Benefiting from “Lite” Artificial Intelligence

Harvard Business

At the less-expensive end is a knowledge-based approach that organizes data and language into highly malleable and helpful blocks of information. But companies and government agencies are starting to find plenty of places where knowledge-based tools can make a huge difference. Insight Center. Sponsored by Accenture.

Company 70
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Simple Ways to Spot Unknown Unknowns

Harvard Business

Leaders face complex and uncertain situations every day: What will sales be like next year? Instead of making them guess about your knowledge base, ask them probing questions about their own experience — which they can answer far more easily — and then take the time to apply those lessons to your own situation.

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Consultant Marketing Listen or Lead?

Jerry Fletcher

They are expected to bring that proficiency to bear on client’s problems that fit nicely into their knowledge base. Can we layer other sales on top of it? To get speaking bookings they have to present on an area of expertise. Growing firms have established an expertise. Choose First you ask the right questions. Does it sell?

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When to Decentralize Decision Making, and When Not To

Harvard Business

sales, procurement, recruiting, regulatory affairs) and the accountability for proper execution at that level. Nicolai Foss and Peter Klein argue in the article “ Why Managers Still Matter ” that “In today’s knowledge-based economy, managerial authority is supposedly in decline.