Essentially it's a three-phase process: Assessment. Planning. Implementation. Some clients need assistance with one or two phases, although many clients require assistance with all three. To illustrate how the process works, we offer the following actual client cases:

		Qualitative research captures the data that surveys can't reach. Customer focus groups point the way to service excellence. A multi-location regional retailer wanted to take its customer service from good, to great. As part of a strategy formulation and planning retreat, we incorporated a morning session featuring live feedback from customers of each location. Facilitation of large group and small group discussion yielded no-holds barred observations and suggestions for the whole organization and for specific stores. Meanwhile, the mix of question-and-answer and dialogue formats created a positive learning opportunity for customers as well. Bottom line: Properly conducted, facilitated interviews and focus groups can generate new insights that can lead to enhanced products, service--and relationships.
		Leadership development. Recruiting and retaining the right senior executive. A healthcare services firm needed to recruit a credentialed senior executive. Knowing from previous experience that the pool of qualified candidates was small and in high demand and the recruiting and hiring cycle would be long and costly, the firm sought our assistance in identifying and hiring the right candidate. We developed an integrated, targeted marketing approach (research, direct mail, advertising, and telephone contact work) to generate enhanced word-of-mouth referrals and a group of qualified candidates. Next we developed an easy-to-use matrix tool, tailored to the organization's objectives, to help objectively evaluate and compare interviewees. We also participated as part of the interview team. Bottom line: An integrated, targeted marketing approach to recruitment coupled with an effective interview strategy led to the hire of the right candidate, and saved client resources by significantly shortening the traditional recruit/hire cycle.
		Are We a Community? Community "framework" can be a powerful strategic asset. For those organizations who have strong community connections and/or think of themselves as an organization that is also a kind of community, we have developed a unique set of researched-based strategic tools. In our workshop titled, Are We a Community? participants learn how organizational community is formed, the high correlation between "great companies" and "strong community." The workshop generates a clear yet detailed visual and verbal description of where your organizational community is--and where it needs to be, in order to achieve its strategic goals. Bottom line: CultureConnects' workshop and set of community framework tools can enhance an organization's culture and relationships, resulting in more effective recruitment and retention of employees, customers, and other constituents. What do you want to achieve? Value to you: Our service commitment. Our relationship begins with a free initial assessment you conduct and submit on this web site. A member of our consulting services staff works with you to identify the scope of the project and how success will be defined. We strive to consistently exceed client expectations. Free Evaluation
		Client: The Salvation Army (Research, strategy & planning retreat, communications support) Building Community with Integrity Survey of Constituent Needs formed a baseline for future community needs assessment. Given the transience and diversity of constituencies, research design used a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods. Survey findings included current and needs/anticipated future use, by demographic segments and service categories; as well as partnering opportunities; and constituents’ perceptions about their service experience. Strategy and planning retreat. Working with the leadership team, our facilitation of the retreat design and implementation lead to new ways of clearly conceptualizing and articulating its mission, vision and values, and its broad, holistic community services. Communications support, including a new brochure, “Bridging the Gaps,” highlighting the agency’s intergenerational and intercultural service across the city and county, to help constituents achieve independence and wholeness. The Salvation Army of York has been transforming lives over the past 116 years by reaching out to those most in need with basic services of food, clothing and shelter. Youth and self-development programs have also helped prevent and minimize risk to youth and been key to the Army’s goal of positively changing lives for the long term.
		Client: Responsible Ovarian Awareness Required (R.O.A.R!) (outdoor consumer health education campaign) Taking a Life-Saving Message to the Streets R.O.A.R! took its street-savvy “Get the Facts” outdoor advertising campaign county-wide. Bilingual (English & Spanish) billboards and bus shelter posters delivered five key facts about Ovarian cancer--“the deadliest of all gynecological cancers”--with tie-in to its website, www.ovarianhope.org
		Client: Spring Grove Area Community Center (marketing, public relations, print literature, campaign coordination) Rebirth of a Community Center Just a few ago, the distinctive, rambling edifice of the former Spring Grove Intermediate School stood vacant. Local folks who knew how much the area needed a community center walked through the vacant school and started imagining the possibilities. What happened next is an inspiring story of cooperation among tireless volunteers, the school district, area municipalities, social service agencies with vital programs, and government “seed money” grants that enabled the Center to open its doors to the community. “Success is earned a day at a time” observes Board chair John Dickert, “It is gratifying to see a vision begin to take shape. The community can see and experience the possibilities. But we still have a lot of renovation work to do, and operating costs to support.” As Dickert, a retired teacher, escorts visitors through the Spring Grove Area Community Center, every room triggers a memory for him: Teaching 4th grade, coaching boys’ basketball, meeting and marrying his high school sweetheart, and walking the halls as a schoolboy himself. Now the Center bustles with intergenerational activity. From Windy Hill Senior Center to the Youth Center that offers after-school fun; a gym that hosts basketball, indoor soccer, field hockey, and adult volleyball; and social services the community might not otherwise have, such as the Mother’s Center, Neighborhood Blockwatch, programs to assist victims of domestic violence, and the Spring Grove Area’s Historical Society and Youth Athletic Association. The Center has won numerous grants and awards, including two state awards for its involvement in Communities that Care, and a National Night Out award. It also represents successful collaborative partnerships among the area’s municipalities, other government agencies, businesses, social service agencies, and the school district. We are pleased to support the Center’s continuing success with marketing and communications services.
		Client: AHEDD (marketing, planning, public relations, web site, ad literature) "What Do You Want to Accomplish?" AHEDD Launches Web site, Ad, "Family" of Literature AHEDD, a pace-setting not-for-profit employment services provider for persons with disabilities, has introduced a redesigned web site, ad, and "family" of brochures and information. Serving Pennsylvania and Delaware, AHEDD's mission is to serve the community as a catalyst in the employment and development of persons with a disability. The agency was founded in 1977. It is known as an outcome-focused agency which has pioneered performance based contracting to increase industry wide accountability. It serves as an influential advocate on key state and local task forces, promoting the culture of employment for its clients. AHEDD was chosen to coordinate the Pennsylvania Business Leadership Network; and as a private partner with the Social Security Administration, in helping beneficiaries understand the links between work and benefits. AHEDD also partners with schools in assisting youth as they transition to employment. According to the agency's president, Rocco Cambria, AHEDD's team of professionals "share a vision to be the premier agency in its field with a single purpose and focus of improving employment outcomes through exceptional customer service." In addition to these redesign services, CultureConnects worked with AHEDD to provide marketing planning and public relations consulting services. To view the redesigned web site, click on the following link: http://www.ahedd.org/
		Client:Lutheran Social Services of South Central Pennsylvania (video) 30 second ad: "Called to Serve, Called to Care" Click here for-AVI File (recommended for PCs) Click here for-MOV File (for MACs) Lutheran Social Services Ad Wins National 2001 Telly Award Cincinnatti, OH/--A 30-second spot produced for Lutheran Social Services of South Central PA (LSS) has won a 2001 Silver Telly Award, the highest award for cable and other non-network television production. The spot was produced by LSS, Baker Marketing Communications/CultureConnects.com and Prime Image Communications. Titled “Called to Serve, Called to Care,” the 30-second spot won the top national award in the category of “religion or fundraising expertise.” The spot will air locally on cable networks from April to October as part of the social service agency’s celebration of its fiftieth year of ministry. In addition, the spot is featured at the conclusion of a 12-minute video for Lutheran Social Services, also produced by LSS, Baker Marketing Communications, Spring Grove, PA and Prime Image, Harrisburg, PA. According to the film’s director, Kevin Bashore, the award represents affirmation and recognition of quality film and video work produced for the cable and non-network television production world. Receiving a Telly Award affords a production company the opportunity to show that their work has been given a “stamp of excellence” award from a national organization. It may also potentially opens the door for more work in the advertising industry. Other recent Telly Award winners include national brands such as 7 UP, Adidas, American Heart Association and Chevrolet.
		Client: Rotary in partnership with America's Promise (pro-bono) (piloting team development and projects) Team building based on clear and compelling vision, objectives In just two years, a trial collaboration between a local Rotary club and America's Promise that started with a volunteer committee of one, grew to an active team of 25 volunteers committed to making a positive impact on the lives of children and youth in their community. During that time, the volunteers provided career education for an entire grade level in their school district as well as for a group of at-risk youth in institutional care; created a grants and training opportunities listserv for social services serving area youth; and developed a motivational PowerPoint and promotional video for use by other Rotary clubs in the district and throughout the U.S. We provided early leadership and a needs assessment. The needs assessment also made clear how new initiatives complemented or built upon existing programs, without duplication. Before long, a self-managing team formed and remained energized by the Five Promises of America's Promise, as well as the observation by the local school district's superintendent, that without the "hope" engendered by early elementary career education, children would literally or figuratively drop out by the fourth grade. Through its various programs, this local Rotary club now touches students' lives from first grade through college, and continues to discover ways to strengthen individual programs and their synergies.
	Client satisfaction is our chief reward and the best measure of success. Here are a few commendations from letters on file. "Very well spoken…[your seminar] was a much needed subject for accountants." --National Association of Accountants—MAC "Thanks—your work is most impressive. We look forward to working with you again." --SusCom (formerly Cable TV of York) "Success! Presentation went very well. On to…focus groups." --Dentsply "You bring a wealth of experience and effectively apply it to [our portfolio of services]." --Lutheran Social Services [The CultureConnects consultant] has a rare blend of insight and skill-building that is so empowering. As a result of her coaching, my stress level is way down, and my productivity is way up! --CEO, PPSV