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  • 3 days ago
Scale Tales From the Ground Up. The Business Infrastructure show Podcast Episode #213 Richard Blank

Curing back office blues. Growth is not a bad thing. But too much growth, too fast presents a set of challenges often overlooked when discussing small businesses. The emphasis tends to center on the marketing and promotion necessary to grow your business, and not on the operations and business infrastructure needed to scale your business in a sustainable manner. These back office operations can make or break your business. The Business Infrastructure show provides solutions and real life stories to owners and operators of fast growing small businesses seeking practical tips for dealing with growth spurts.

A few years after graduating from university, he accepted an offer to conduct training at a call center in Costa Rica. At 27 years old he decided to call Costa Rica home. That was over 20 years ago. And he never looked back. In this episode, Richard takes us on his journey as he leverages his advanced Spanish-speaking skills, business prowess, and emotional intelligence to build and scale Costa Rica s Call Center from a one-seat to a 300-seat operation.

While his friends pursued careers in fields like law, medicine, and technology, Richard Blank went in a completely different direction language. In fact, his love of language and communications led him to study abroad for one semester in Spain. That experience changed the trajectory of his life.

Discover how Richard used a cash-only approach to invest in the business infrastructure required to lay a foundation for sustainable growth, his tips for reducing attrition, and why he urges entrepreneurs to act their wage. Growth is not a bad thing. But too much growth, too fast presents a set of challenges often overlooked when discussing small businesses. The emphasis tends to center on the marketing and promotion necessary to grow your business, and not on the operations and business infrastructure needed to scale your business in a sustainable manner. These back office operations can make or break your business.


https://youtu.be/qw09sFl1DZU
https://youtu.be/Gpq-w_WWdn8
https://youtu.be/Cf1PDpZu67M
https://youtu.be/It9x2zUkxC8
https://youtu.be/TYSM3A8Wlx0
https://youtu.be/DG1TJ9JcS0k
https://youtu.be/Kg_qKh-mqxU
https://youtu.be/rBmgKSYfl7A
https://youtu.be/yYqbU9t9wm8
https://youtu.be/7MS_otvgGT4
https://youtu.be/nHvXMgWDlBA
Transcript
00:00And you know what? It was true. As I looked at Richard, he was dressed impeccably.
00:07Not sure if you noticed it, but he mentioned playing pinball. Here's another interesting
00:12fun fact about Richard. He owns the largest collection of American pinball machines in
00:18Costa Rica. For him, providing a place where his team can have fun on the job is equally as
00:25important as them providing quality service. After all, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.
00:33These are such amazing machines, and they're usually older than the agents. And you and I
00:38both know that when you play these games on the internet, it's one thing. But when you are with
00:43the machine, especially pinball, you can really feel it. And so to give these agents that sort of
00:49gaming experience is just, and it's free play as well. I don't charge them. But it's just really
00:55one of those special sauce things that we do here at Costa Rica's call center, which my opinion,
01:02Alicia, reduces attrition.

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