We've hired Ross 17 years in a row because he gets us, engineers. He makes us laugh. He makes us think. His razor-sharp wit can overcome any last-minute quirk. Why would we hire anyone else?
Six-Time Emmy Award-Winning Comedian, Network TV Host and Best-Selling Business Author of 10 Books on Reinvention and Resilience.
With more than 35 years of experience in show business and media, the six-time Emmy Award-winning comedian, writer, and former network TV host, Ross Shafer is also a man who simultaneously began his business career at the age of 21. He subsequently rescued 23 different companies from bankruptcy and resold them.
Ross’s peculiar combination of experience led to his writing (10) popular business books: Nobody Moved Your Cheese, The Customer Shouts Back, Grab More Market Share, Customer Empathy, Are You Relevant? Absolutely Necessary, Behave Like a Startup, Success: It’s on You, No More Customer Friction, and his latest book on resilience, titled RATTLED.
Ross has spoken and consulted for 3,000+ clients including Apple, Microsoft, Chrysler, Adobe, MetLife, Hyundai, Hilton Worldwide, AT&T, Marriott, FedEx, and Toyota to name a few. His unique insights on raising customer scores became a game changer when he dismissed the notion of “WOW-ing the Customer.” Instead, he blamed low scores on the devastating impact of the POW moments (customer gut-punches by your failures). According to Ross’s research and client case studies, POWs can erase the WOW effect and cause customers to abandon a business forever. Ross Shafer offers entertaining and eye-opening perspectives for individuals and organizations by paying attention to the evolving influences around them.
In this wildly entertaining keynote, your attendees will benefit from these takeaways:
(1) RELEVANCE IS…THE MOVING TARGET
A culture must be constantly curated. Your team members want to be part of a dynamic organization that is nimble enough to adapt on demand. Ross will inspire your teams to replace complacency with out-of-silo thinking. Ross shares tactics for cultivating an endless supply of fresh ideas and solutions.
(2) CUSTOMER/CLIENT EXPECTATIONS HAVE EVOLVED
In his book, “No More Customer Friction” Ross shares case studies for how his WOW vs POW discipline caused satisfaction scores to skyrocket by preventing customer gut-punches, reckless customer disappointments, and inexcusable blunders that make customers choose your competition.
*A full breakout session on this topic is also available.
(3) THE RELATIONSHIP-BUILDING SECRET NOBODY TALKS ABOUT
Should we work overtime to create real relationships, or should we let A.I., and CRM’s do it for us? The answer is BOTH. Ross will teach you a little-known practice used by talk show hosts to generate trust and instant rapport.
(4) YOUR CULTURE IS DEFINED BY YOUR FINAL INTERACTIONS
Loyalty is tied to the emotional story you tell in the last few moments of every transaction. Beware of asking for customer evaluations. The wrong approach can destroy an otherwise perfect customer engagement. Ross will explain how this works.
Every organization needs bench strength in their leadership. Ross Shafer’s personal stories of leadership success weren’t on anybody’s radar.
He was a young boy who grew up on the Puyallup and Chemeketa Native American reservations. (Ross’s heritage is Blackfoot). He was a shy and insecure kid yet, after high school, he bought 23 companies without any money or experience managing people, inventories, or projects. In a very short time, Ross was tapped to lead TV production teams and hosting (5) Talk and Game Shows for FOX, NBC, ABC, MGM, and USA networks. He won six Emmy Awards. Ross’s tactics for going from nothing-to-everything has resulted in (10) popular business books and delivering keynote speeches to Fortune 500 companies all over the globe. Here’s what your audience will learn in this keynote.
(1) START WITH QUICK WINS. Being a great leader requires extreme confidence. Ross will describe how setting/achieving small goals will help you overcome your fears and build trust with your teams. A series of quick wins will equip you for limitless outcomes.
(2) IGNORE PEOPLE WHO DISCOURAGE YOU. Your friends, family, and coworkers may unwittingly set fire to your dreams.
“You haven’t paid enough dues to lead a team like ours” - “You’re not a natural leader.” - “What makes you think you have what it takes to manage projects?” Ross was rattled by all of the same roadblocks…until he figured out ways to stop listening to the naysayers and remain focused on successful outcomes.
(3) ANYBODY CAN BE A LEADER. SOME PEOPLE JUST QUIT TOO SOON. Extreme success requires an obsession with the goal. You simply must be willing to work harder and longer than your competition. You have to be balanced enough to champion the efforts of others so that nobody is hurt by your obsession.
(4) SUSTAINING LIFELONG CONFIDENCE. Regardless of your job or position, great leaders in any profession require constant study, empathy, and adaptation. Ross will talk about Bill Nye, The Science Guy (whom he created), Chuck Shafer (his father), and Dave Hopla – the World’s Greatest Basketball shooter. Funny and insightful, this discussion will convince everyone that leading well is indeed accessible.
OPTION “A” Ross works with you to customize a 30/40-minute keynote grounded in your key initiatives. He uses slides and videos to augment the entertainment value of the session.
OPTION “B” In advance, Ross studies your key meeting goals and supplies your in-house “host” with a list of questions for Ross. He then connects his funny stories and enlightening case studies related to achieving your teaching/coaching goals. Ross can also take random questions from your audience. Ross is very entertaining on the fly.
What’s funny these days? Ross Shafer’s material is non-political, non-controversial, and completely HR safe! If you want your attendees to leave your meeting in high spirits and energized, your attendees will experience Ross’s misadventures and his successes…all delivered in his friendly, quick-witted style.
RATTLED is comprised of Crazy A** Stories of Extreme Resilience to help You Go from Shook to...Solid. Authors, Ross Shafer and Allison Dalvit, boldly share their darkest times (and highest heights) in ways that are poignant, shocking, satisfying, cliff-hanging, and often funny. You will see yourself living through your own travails and be encouraged to use their tactics to raise your Titanic moments from its worst depth.
RATTLED is comprised of Crazy A** Stories of Extreme Resilience to help You Go from Shook to Solid. This book is for those of you who have been blindsided by losing your money or stability, crushed by people who betrayed you, confused by the unplanned trajectory of your career, or recovering from a sudden death and/or gut-wrenching health decision. And now, you find you are trying to adapt to a global pandemic that disrupted everything you ever knew about how to live, learn, and play. This book is about surviving under every imaginable pressure. RATTLED doesn't always paint pretty pictures but the authors, Ross Shafer and Allison Dalvit, share their darkest times (and highest heights) in ways that are poignant, shocking, satisfying, cliff-hanging, and often funny. Ross and Allison have weathered the scariest of personal, financial, and professional storms to finally claw their way back to their respectively successful paths. You will see yourself living through your own travails and be encouraged to use their tactics to raise your Titanic moments from its worst depth.