Interview with Bernice Samuals
The Halo effect …
Bernice Samuels talks to us about
Building Cathedrals, putting men on the moon
and buying wheel chairs ...
by
Paul S Rowlston
Bernice Samuels is the Chief Marketing
Of?cer for FNB, she loves her job and the
people she does that job with. But she
doesn't think she's selling a service … She
says she's selling values and a value
system … And, she says, that's a much
more exciting and interesting proposition
for everyone involved … including her
customers.
At the start of our conversation with Bernice we swopped
two stories. Neither one of them may be true, or they may
both be true. It's impossible to be sure. But, if we had our
druthers here at CSR we'd like to think that BOTH stories
are true and are only two stories on continuum of similarly
inspiring tales of 'engagement'.
The ?rst (for the record, our preferred supplier) deals with
Sir Christopher Wren and the building of Saint Paul's
Cathedral in London after the great ?re of 1666. As the
story has it, Wren was touring the site of his most
spectacular achievement as it swarmed with workers of
every description doing jobs of great complexity and skill
with little more than muscle power and simple tools.
During his tour Sir Christopher met workers of every
description. Carpenters and Stone Masons and all the
other artisans of the day. As he paused and spoke to them
each would explain what he job was and what role he was
playing, each focused on the skills and crafts they
employed in service of the great man and his greatest
construction.
Photo: Pieter de Ras
CORPORATE SOCIAL REVIEW
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