All across the country, the best and most competitive companies are creating great cultures in which employees consider it their pleasure to give the best possible service to customers.   Even in hard economic times, accomplishing that is not only possible but absolutely essential.  If customers don't have much money to spend, where are they going to spend it?  At a place where employees sullenly and begrudgingly take their money or one where they are happy to be of service? Based on a patent-pending Values Blueprint process, this book from culture change expert Ann Rhoades shows the exact steps for curing an ailing company culture or creating a new one from scratch. Developed from Rhoades' years of experience with Southwest, Jet Blue, Doubletree Hotels, P.F. Chang's and the many clients of People Ink, she has proven, over and over, that companies that create or improve values-based cultures become higher performers, both in customer satisfaction and in financial return. Rhoades helps companies get on the pathway to greatness by turning around their cultures. The key is to focus on both the big picture and the smallest detail at the same time.  This book is based on that very principle. Changing a culture starts with getting the basics right (values and behavior at the C-level). Then the big things (hiring the right people, keeping them and delighting customers) fall more easily into place.             This book provides a clear blueprint for how to accomplish culture change. It also offers inspiring examples and cases from a wide range of industries. Readers will learn:       Why 'living the values' is the first principle in leading people successfully       How to exceed the expectations of employees and customers by living the values       How to develop a Values Blueprint and put it into action       Why it's essential to hire, fire and reward people based on values alone and       How to establish a discipline for sustaining a values-centric culture