By Debra Solomon Baker
It is important, of course, to recognize if customers are dissatisfied or if employees are frustrated about issues such as poor communication.
Mike Losse
president,
Opinions Incorporated
But what good is shelling out money to measure employee or customer opinion if the results are just going to gather dust on a shelf somewhere?
The answer, of course, is “not good at all,” but that exact scenario occurs all too frequently, according to Mike Losse, president of the opinion research organization, Opinions Incorporated.
Therefore, Losse devised a plan. He invited the leaders of three consultant firms, Richard Nemanick of The Leadership Effect, Les Landes of Landes and Associates, and Steve Lawler of The Lawler Organization, to join his team. They moved in with him into the Soulard office space (a former convent) and, ever since, have been enjoying each other’s company while, at the same time, building a strong union.
And now, this innovative “dust-free” approach allows Losse’s clients to not only gain valuable information from their customized surveys, but then to follow through with important decision making processes.
“We work really hard to make sure that we give our clients something that they really use, and this is so gratifying,” says Lawler.
Together, from strategy to execution, the Opinions Incorporated consortium helps organizations grow through employee and leadership development, improved communication, and effective marketing and public relations strategies.
“The capability we have is unique,” says Landes. “Our role is to maximize the effectiveness of human capital, and, in doing that, we offer a seamless, integrated set of services.”
All but Losse live within a few miles of the Soulard workplace, and all are deeply proud of and dedicated to the city.
Losse actually grew up with Opinions, which his father started in 1989. When his father passed away in 2000, Losse took the reins, certain that, well, his own pipe dream of heading out on the professional golf circuit was not going to be realized.
Now, Losse, is interested in adding even more consulting capabilities, expanding his presence here in St. Louis, and doubling the firm’s revenue.
“We would like to become a lot stronger right here in our own backyard,” he says.
LEADERSHIP CIRCLE INSIGHTS
Who was your most memorable professor
in either college or graduate school? Why?
“Dr. John Tropman, professor at the School of Social Work at the University of Michigan, along with several of his colleagues in the late 1970s, inspired me to appreciate the importance of management and leadership to maximizing the impact of social services in our communities.”
Kathleen E. Buescher
president & CEO,
Provident Inc.
“My most memorable professor in college was Dr. Paul Brandes, who taught Speech-61, a class on legal ethics. It was such a good class that I came back the next semester as a teacher’s assistant. The class agenda was years ahead of its time and provided great insight to the real world.”
Jim Koman
president,
Koman Properties
“The most memorable professor I had in law school was Chancellor Elliott at Washington University. He was teaching constitutional law prior to becoming Chancellor of the University, and he was a wonderful teacher. Constitutional law lends itself to being of great interest to everyone. The same issues that have existed since the creation of the Supreme Court are in many cases still being dealt with today, and he had a superb grasp of all those issues and the history behind them. He was an inspiration to all of us taking his class and, of course, constitutional law is the ultimate law that a lawyer can aspire to be involved with.”
Ken Teasdale
chairman of the Firm,
Armstrong Teasdale LLP
For more information on the Leadership Circle, please contact John Diefenbach, vice president-membership, (314) 444-1184 or jdief@stlrcga.org.
|
