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☆ The scourge of customer satisfaction surveys
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-22 | by ( Adam Rogers | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

— is devoted to customer surveys. Other metrics followed: the Customer Satisfaction Score, the Customer Effort Score, measurements of the entire Customer Experience. At the peak of the so-called sharing economy, customer surveys were all-powerful. The glut of customer surveys has created an additional problem for marketers. "We ask for customer feedback on these things all the time, but it's hard for a customer to give you immediate feedback, because a customer doesn't know what quality is yet."

Persons: you've, I'm, They're, Brad Anderson, Fred Reichheld, Nick Lee, James Wagner, It's, Christine Moorman, Lee, That's, it's, hasn't, Anderson Organizations: NPS, Warwick Business School, University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research, Companies, Duke University, Institutional, Board, Health Service Locations: United States, Qualtrics, Bain, Warwick

☆ In a Global Cycling Capital, Riders Fear Becoming Crime Victims
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-13 | by ( James Wagner | Nathalia Angarita | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Bicycles are an essential part of the Colombian identity — ubiquitous, cheaper and, in some urban communities, often a faster way to get around. No Colombian city embodies riding on two wheels more than the capital, Bogotá, where the metropolitan area of nearly 11 million inhabitants has no subway system and some of the world’s worst traffic jams. The city has over 1.1 million bicycles, according to officials, and records nearly 900,000 bicycle trips per day. But a number of robberies and assaults of cyclists this year have left many riders in Bogotá on edge. A recent news report estimated that a bicycle was stolen in the capital every 42 minutes and small gangs of thieves have targeted cyclists.

Persons: “, ”, Carlos Fernando Galán Organizations: Bogotá’s Locations: Bogotá

☆ In Latin America, a New Frontier for Women: Professional Softball in Mexico
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-25 | by ( James Wagner | Marian Carrasquero | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In many parts of Latin America, baseball is a popular and well-established sport with men’s professional leagues in Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela, among others. But women wanting to play baseball’s cousin — softball — professionally had only one option: to leave. In what is believed to be a first in Latin America — a region where men often have more opportunities than women, particularly in sports — a professional women’s softball league has started in Mexico. On Jan. 25, when the inaugural season began, 120 women on six teams got to call themselves professional softball players, many for the first time. “Before, there wasn’t even a question of, ‘Should there be a professional sport for women?’ It was a given that it didn’t exist.

Persons: ”, Stefania Aradillas Organizations: Diablos Locations: America, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, United States, Japan, Mexico City

☆ Baseball Flourishes in Colombia’s Capital. But Not Because of Colombians.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( James Wagner | More About James Wagner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Baseball is not popular in Colombia. In Bogotá, the capital, many know very little about “béisbol.” And the city has only two public baseball fields. But swing by Hermes Barros Cabas baseball stadium on any weekend, and it doesn’t feel that way. On a recent Sunday, five groups of children dressed in their team uniforms filled every corner of the main field. The vast majority of the 500 players in the Bogotá baseball league are from neighboring Venezuela, where baseball is the most popular sport.

Persons: Hermes Barros Organizations: Coaches, Colombian Locations: Colombia, Venezuela

☆ Kidnapped Father of Colombian Soccer Star Is Freed
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( James Wagner | More About James Wagner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The father of Luis Díaz, a Colombian soccer star for the English club Liverpool, was freed on Thursday after he was kidnapped by a guerrilla group, Colombian officials said. “We report with joy the release of Don Luis Manuel Díaz,” the Colombian government’s commission for peace talks said in a statement on Thursday morning. “We hope that he will soon regain his tranquillity, disturbed by an act that should never have happened.”It was not immediately clear what was exchanged, if anything, for the elder Mr. Díaz’s freedom. “He was obviously emotional to be reunited with his family,” Carlos Ruiz Massieu, the special representative of the U.N. Secretary-General in Colombia, told The New York Times. “He needs more in-depth medical analysis after a situation like this, but he looked good in general.”

Persons: Luis Díaz, “, Don Luis Manuel Díaz, Díaz, ” Carlos Ruiz Massieu, ” Organizations: Liverpool, Colombian, United Nations, Colombia —, New York Times Locations: Colombian, Colombia, La Guajira, Valledupar

☆ Colombia Mobilizes Troops to Search for Kidnapped Father of Liverpool Player
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-29 | by ( James Wagner | More About James Wagner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The authorities in Colombia have mobilized the national police and the military to look for the father of the soccer star Luis Díaz, a Colombian standout for the English club Liverpool whose parents were kidnapped in his hometown on Saturday. Given soccer’s popularity here, the incident captured the South American country’s attention, but it also stoked fears of increasing insecurity in a nation where such kidnappings were becoming less common until a surge in recent years. Mr. Díaz’s mother, Cilenis Marulanda, was rescued hours after she was abducted, President Gustavo Petro of Colombia said on Saturday night. The Colombian national police, the military and a unit that specializes in kidnapping dispatched officers, soldiers, cars and aircraft to find his father, Luis Manuel Díaz. The Colombian authorities on Sunday morning announced a reward of 200 million pesos (roughly $48,000) for any information that would help locate the elder Mr. Díaz.

Persons: Luis Díaz, Díaz’s, Cilenis Marulanda, Gustavo Petro, Luis Manuel Díaz, Díaz Organizations: police, Liverpool, Colombian, Sunday Locations: Colombia, Colombian, Barrancas —, La Guajira, Venezuela

“It was lovely and I’ve always had the idea of returning.”Nuñez, 20, a pitcher from Yucatán, in southeastern Mexico, first visited the Guadalupe grounds with his mother when he was 12 while he was part of a national team training in Mexico City, but he never went inside the main church. After the three players admired the original image of the Lady of Guadalupe hanging high above the altar and snapped photos on their cellphones, Nuñez noted the significance to him. “I want to bring my family next year.”Religion plays a large role in the sports culture throughout Latin America. Players occasionally bring flowers and some said they kneel there to pray before games. Even at Estadio Azteca, the Mexico City soccer stadium that is among the most iconic in the world, there is a Guadalupe altar in the tunnel leading to the field.

Persons: “, ”, Morales, Mary, I’ve, ” Nuñez, Nuñez, Lady, Guadalupe, Virgin Organizations: ”, Mexican League, Diablos, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City soccer Locations: California, Guadalajara, “, Yucatán, Mexico, Guadalupe, Mexico City, America

☆ Messi Shines a Spotlight on Miami, and on Soccer in the U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( James Wagner | More About James Wagner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On the morning of Lionel Messi’s first official practice with his new Inter Miami teammates, Freddy Eraza Jr. and his father woke up before the sun rose. But Messi, 36, was already arriving when the Erazas got there, and they missed their opportunity for a keepsake. Four hours later, they still stood in the parking lot of the practice facility and stadium, sweating alongside dozens of fans in the sticky, 96-degree South Florida heat. It made sense to see many Argentina fans, jerseys and flags here because Messi led the country’s national team to World Cup glory in December, and because Florida has the largest Argentine community in the United States. But Messi disciples come from all over.

Persons: Lionel Messi’s, Freddy Eraza Jr, Messi Organizations: Inter Miami, Major League Soccer, Barcelona, country’s, Argentine Locations: Fort Lauderdale, Fla, Florida, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, United States

☆ Lionel Messi Gives M.L.S. First Taste of the Weight of His Star
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( James Wagner | More About James Wagner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

He hugged the owners of his new team, including the former star David Beckham. 10 — Lionel Messi grinned and looked up at the crowd and the fireworks. If it has felt like a dream that Messi, who won the World Cup in December as Argentina’s captain and who has claimed seven Ballons d’Or as the world’s best player, chose Inter Miami of M.L.S. as his team for the twilight of his career, his unveiling event was proof that, yes, this has actually happened. Messi’s introduction was called La PresentaSíon, the presentation in Spanish, but with “Sí” (“Yes”) emphasized.

Persons: David Beckham, Lionel Messi grinned, Messi, d’Or, ” Messi, “ Sí Organizations: Inter Miami Locations: M.L.S, Miami, South Florida

☆ Far From the Tour de France, Colombia Falls Hard for Cycling
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( James Wagner | More About James Wagner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The route up Las Palmas starts near the valley floor, but it doesn’t stay there for long. Some riders stop at the lookout point halfway up for the views of the city and don’t continue. “Not everyone dares come up here,” Anderson Murcia, 37, said in Spanish as he stopped briefly to drink water and snap photographs on a recent morning. The top of Las Palmas, though, is more than a vantage point, a rest stop high above Medellín and its 2.5 million residents. In some ways, the popular route is also a perfect place to take the measure of a sport that has made Colombia the cycling epicenter of Latin America.

Persons: ” Anderson Organizations: Las Locations: Las Palmas, don’t, cycling’s, ” Anderson Murcia, Colombia, America

☆ The Most Expensive Team in Baseball Is Not Getting Any Better
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( James Wagner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Nearly halfway through the 2023 season, the most expensive team in Major League Baseball history is closer to last place than first. The Mets have won only five more games than the Washington Nationals, a franchise mired in a rebuild and, for the moment, the only team keeping them off the bottom of the National League East. Even Manager Buck Showalter seemed to acknowledge on Sunday that his team has limited options to turn things around. Leading the Phillies by 6-3 entering the eighth inning, the Mets endured a disastrous four-run meltdown in which they surrendered only one hit. Instead of using some of his better relievers to close out the game, Showalter, saying they had been overworked recently, turned to less-established bullpen options.

Persons: Buck Showalter, Showalter Organizations: Major League Baseball, Philadelphia Phillies, Mets, Washington Nationals, National League East, The Atlanta Braves, Phillies

☆ Passionate Baseball Fans and (Very) Thin Air Let Mexico City Shine
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( James Wagner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

MEXICO CITY — A day before Major League Baseball played regular-season games here for the first time, Nick Martinez, a pitcher for the San Diego Padres, had an idea. On the way to the church, Martinez noticed several shops selling piñatas. He bought a few, hoping they could be smashed by the player of the game after each of the contests. “Being in San Diego, Mexican culture is very much a part of our culture,” Martinez said. His teammates cheered him on while wearing Mexican lucha libre wrestling masks.

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