As Lab Manager’s 2022 Leadership Summit draws closer, we invite you to get to know the laboratory and management professionals who will be speaking at this exciting event.
Jeff Tobe, certified speaking professional, will give a presentation entitled “We Think You’re Great—Now Change!” As change is inevitable, Jeff will discuss the need to thrive from change, not just manage it. This presentation will offer the tools you need to discuss, work through, and succeed with changes in your teams. Learn about three questions you must ask your team when it comes to change, and how you can guide your staff to not only embrace change but also to navigate the opportunities it presents.
Watch Jeff give a preview of his Leadership Summit session and why it's beneficial for lab managers to attend this informative talk:
Read more about Jeff’s prior experience with Lab Manager, the best advice he received as a new parent, and how he randomly met the owner of his childhood home. Register today at https://summit.labmanager.com/leadership for your chance to hear Jeff speak at the 2022 Leadership Summit.
Q: How did you get started in your career?
A: I never grew up thinking I wanted to be a speaker or author. I kind of fell into it. I owned a promotional marketing agency and, one year, we won multiple awards for creativity in advertising. The international association who awarded them to us explained that no one had ever won that many awards and they asked if I would be interested in speaking to my colleagues at our international convention. I was hooked! Two years later, I sold my business and began speaking and training full time and for 25+ years, I have never looked back!
Q: What are you most excited about in regards to your Leadership Summit talk?
A: I am most excited about re-connecting with the Lab Manager world. For the veterans reading this, I used to partner with Lab Manager magazine, for almost five years, to bring you (host) the Lab Manager Webinar Academy through which we presented some of the world’s top thought leaders on various business topics. I have also spoken at this conference a few times in the past so, I am looking forward to seeing old friends and making new ones.
Q: Tell us about a great book, movie, song, or TV show you’ve enjoyed recently.
A: I have been reading the new book, A Jerk-Free Workplace, by Michael Kerr. Great book, great insights.
Q: What’s your best story to tell at a cocktail party?
A: Although I live in Pittsburgh, PA, I am originally from a small town outside of Toronto, Ontario. A few years ago, I was keynoting at a large convention and, afterwards, there was a long line as I signed my books in the association’s bookstore. As one woman approached the table, I noticed that she had tears in her eyes as folded her hands in front of her chest, and said, “I live in your house.” I thought that maybe this was some type of spiritual greeting like saying, “Namaste.” There was an awkward moment of silence because I didn’t know how to respond. She smiled knowingly and said, “No, I actually LIVE in your old house!” This woman lived in the house in which I had grown up. When marketing this 120-year-old farm house, the realtors had put together a slide show of its history and this woman remembered my last name and, when I mentioned where I grew up in my keynote, she had put the pieces together! What are the chances?
Q: What is one important skill you think that all leaders should have?
A: Of course, I wouldn’t hesitate to say “a more creative perspective.” Great leaders have the ability to look at any situation from multiple angles. I once heard a sales trainer say, “If you see the world through your customer’s eyes, you will see the way your customer buys!” I love this. If a leader can see the world through their internal customer’s eyes, they can always look at things from a different perspective.
Q: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?
A: Many years ago, when we were pregnant for the first time, my dad’s close friend took me aside and gave me some advice. He said, “Jeff, you will never know what/how your kids will say, do or act in any situation—BUT, they must always know what/how YOU will say, do, or act in any situation.” I took this to heart and, as a leader, I have always told my people to keep me in check and make sure I am consistent and transparent in my leadership style.
Q: What do you hope to accomplish in the next few years in your current position?
A: I have just launched a new enterprise called Customer Experience Systems (CES). After years of clients asking for long-term customer service experience training, I developed a proven system to help make a client the employer of choice in their region and the vendor of choice in their niche. We are taking organizations through a one-year customer experience initiative that changes employee morale, improves customer service and, probably most importantly, increases their profits. I am looking forward to growing that business and training organizations around the world because, let’s face it, customer service SUCKS, doesn’t it?!
