Transforming Business without Sacrificing Employee Satisfaction: Interview with Service Physics Co-Founders, Brian Reece and Steve Crowley

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Episode 137: What if the key to transforming your business lies not in adding more resources, but in simply understanding how your employees move through their workspace? In this eye-opening conversation with Service Physics co-founders Brian Reece and Steve Crowley, we uncover the hidden costs of inefficient processes that might be quietly draining your profits and customer satisfaction.

Website: www.servicephysics.com

Service Physics app download: Apple Store

Service Physics app download: Android

Brian Reece: LinkedIn

Steve Crowley: LinkedIn
Brian and Steve's journey began at Starbucks during the financial crisis, where they witnessed firsthand how applying lean principles transformed a struggling company into a global powerhouse. After further refining their approach at Anheuser-Busch, they founded Service Physics with a mission to make these powerful techniques accessible to businesses of all sizes. Their unique consulting approach—which they playfully describe as "doing consulting wrong"—focuses on being physically present in the workspace, collecting real data, and experimenting with improvements rather than simply delivering recommendations.
One of their most powerful revelations? The true cost of motion. Through simple techniques like "spaghetti diagrams" that track worker movements, they demonstrate how activities that look like work but add no value (like walking) can represent 10% of labor costs—translating to millions in opportunity costs for mid-sized companies. Even more striking is their finding that most service businesses already have sufficient equipment capacity; they're simply not using it efficiently.
What sets Service Physics apart is their focus on driving top-line growth rather than merely cutting costs. By helping businesses understand leading indicators (like customer queue length or transaction time) rather than just lagging metrics (like sales), they enable proactive improvements that capture previously unmet customer demand. Their entrepreneurial journey offers valuable lessons in bootstrapping a business, building systems that don't rely solely on founders, and creating clarity through effective communication—including innovative approaches like using AI to transform quarterly updates into podcasts.
Ready to discover how much hidden capacity your business already has? Download the Service Physics app, visit servicephysics.com, or catch them at upcoming industry events to learn how making work more joyful for employees creates better customer experiences and stronger financial results.

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Chapters

1. Introduction to Service Physics (00:00:00)

2. Origins at Starbucks and Anheuser-Busch (00:11:40)

3. Consulting Done Differently (00:15:35)

4. Applying Lean Principles in Service (00:23:30)

5. Startup Journey and Leadership Focus (00:29:50)

6. Working with Finance Teams (00:37:10)

7. Key Takeaways and Future Plans (00:43:00)

247 episodes

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