Young Attitude Can Take You Far

At Nordic Business Forum 2014, Soulaima Gourani talked about the hunger in people and that we need to create that hunger. Well, here is an exceptionally hungry group of young people. They are the customer service team managers of Nordic Business Forum 2015. We sat down with them to chat about customer service and leadership. They gave us not only good insights on the topics discussed, but also a priceless reminder of the power of young attitude.

Within the first five minutes of meeting the young aspiring team managers, it becomes clear that this is not an ordinary group. Their enthusiasm and energy shine through from the way they greet me with sparkling eyes and bright smiles. Their dedication and thrive are baffling. These are traits we all should try to incorporate into our everyday work.

But it seems there’s more to it than energy. Throughout the discussion, the group proves me how wholeheartedly they are ready to learn and to rise up to their full potential. Perhaps this is the hunger Soulaima was talking about.

For most of them, this is their first management experience. We are grateful that we can provide these aspiring managers with this opportunity. They are very eager to take on this responsibility and to show us what they’ve got.

When considering about where this attitude comes from, I cannot help but think it’s their age. Most of them are in their early twenties. But it’s not just that they are young, it’s their young attitude. That is the attitude of a person, who wants to show the world they can and who is willing to put themselves out there. It’s also about the eagerness and willingness to learn and not be afraid to fail, but to learn from the mistakes. I feel there are some future leaders in the making here.

We gathered a bunch of takeaways from their discussion. We can definitely learn a lot from the young, not only from their attitude but also from their views and visions.

Leadership

• Leadership is about a genuine will to help your team to success.
• It requires a humane and personal interaction, trust and delegation.
• A great leader is humble and emphatic and leads by example.
• Leader’s job is to help the team to shine and give their best.
• A leader should create an atmosphere where people are motivated and where they can learn and develop themselves.

Customer service

• The keys of customer service are listening and asking questions.
• Good customer servant is genuine and easy to approach.
• Customer service is about delivering value and keeping promises.
• Exceeding customer expectations is great customer service.
• Focusing on the customer and keeping it real and personal are important in good customer service.

It has been a great journey both for the team managers and us. The spirit of Nordic Business Forum is created by not only the brilliant speakers and our hardworking NBForum team, but especially by the amazing young people who come to build the event with us. This year there are over 200 students mostly from Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences working in different customer service positions at the forum.