A piece of advice many business leaders often share is to be mindful of your roots, and regardless of how much you grow, never to forget where you came from.
Young entrepreneur and Chief Executive Officer at Ozo Group Fabio Muscat is a firm believer in this principle.
Sharing a sweet story linked to one of the company’s loyal customers, the CEO, who is currently at the helm of his family business – leading it towards continued success in the services industry and employing over 3,000 people – imparts a valuable lesson in humility that is too often lacking among business leaders.
“Every year, for the past 15 years, Margaret has been calling OZO Malta to have her carpets cleaned. What our loyal customer didn’t know is that she has always been calling me and not the service line,” he reveals, adding, “never disclosing my identity, I always took care of scheduling all the services.”
This year, the CEO decided to let Margaret know that it was him on the other end of the line, taking some time to visit her at home.
Unsurprisingly, she gives a glowing testimonial for OZO, and is left surprised that she’d been speaking directly to Mr Muscat. “At the time, I had no idea that I was talking to the director of the company,” she exclaims, admitting that, “I never had any reason, after using you the first time, not to call you again…”
Explaining his stance, the CEO tells her that “from day one, it was a priority for us that our staff are trained well, because at the end of the day, they are our brand ambassadors.”
And certainly, this starts at the very top echelons of the company.
“Clients like you give us the motivation to keep growing. If it wasn’t for clients like you, calling us year after year, we would have perhaps not arrived where we have arrived today. You cannot forget from where you started. And you shouldn’t feel embarrassed – I would feel embarrassed if you don’t call me next year, to clean your carpet,” Mr Muscat says humbly.
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