Harms software users get business advice

More than 400 salon owners and managers gather for Millennium’s User Group Conference 2010.

THE EVENT: Harms Millennium User Group Conference at Doral Golf Resort and Spa in Miami, Florida.

Senior Editor Alison Shipley with JPMS Global Artistic Director Robert Cromeans and John Harms president and CEO of Harms Software.

THE DETAILS: More than 400 Millennium users gathered for three days of intense networking, benchmarking and sharing of best management practices, sparked by headline speakers John Harms, president and CEO of Harms Software; Neil Ducoff, founder and CEO of Strategies business training and coaching; and Robert Cromeans, Global Artistic Director for John Paul Mitchell Systems. The theme for the three-day event was trust, based on the book The Speed of Trust by Stephen M. R. Covey. Attendees gathered in different breakout sessions to discuss how building trust within an organization is the foundation of change, utilizing front-desk profit strategies, setting goals and motivating staff, using Millennium to its fullest potential, creating client loyalty systems, thinking differently and taking action.

THE STATS: Forty-three percent of employees believe management lies to them; 63 percent of employees don’t trust their managers; 76 percent of employees have observed managers participating in illegal or unethical conduct on the job. “Every owner or manager judges him or herself on intent,” said Harms. “But all others judge you on your behavior, your actions. The number-one reason employees leave a company is because of their direct supervisor. We need to change this. And it begins with trust.”

HIGHLIGHTS: Cromeans wrapped his open-book policy and message of artistic innovation and entrepreneurship in a package of encouragement for owners. Breakout sessions included: “10 Ways to Drive Service and Retail Sales,” “E-mail Marketing and How it Can Boost Revenue,” “Employee Compensation Strategies,” “Marketing and Advertising,” “Social Media 101 in the Trust Economy,” among others.

THE LAST WORD: “What if, in the world, we all kept score the same way?” Cromeans asked the crowd. “Then, we’d really be powerful. Then, we’re comparing apples to apples. I congratulate you for taking time out of your business to be at the User Group Conference. I promise to make it worth your while.”