One Shared Voice to the Customer
My
friend Nancy was learning about her international callback
service and exchanged e-mail with their office in Seattle.
She still had unanswered questions and e-mailed them
once again.
The same person responded, suggesting that Nancy read
the material they had sent. But Nancy had not received
any materials, so there was nothing to read or study.
Once again, Nancy e-mailed her questions to Seattle.
This time she got an abrupt reply: ‘If you would
read the material, you wouldn’t have to keep bothering
me.’
Nancy shot back, ‘I never received the material.
And whatever happened to customer service?’
The response from Seattle? ‘I’m not in Customer
Service. I’m in Sales.’
This episode illustrates one of the great challenges
in business: how to get everyone thinking, speaking
and acting as a coherent organization, presenting ‘one
shared voice’ to the customer.
The challenge is inherent in the nature of specialized
companies today. Precise engineers are hired for different
tasks and purposes than the extroverts whooping it up
in Sales. Detailed accountants are trained much differently
than the expansive minds in Marketing and Communications.
People in Production are measured differently from the
team in After-Sales Service.
So what can you do to build an organizational culture
where people understand one another and everyone works
together? How can you build your team so the folks in
Sales realize they are also in Customer Service?
Here’s one set of proven and effective ideas.
Try them!
• Use cross-functional
teams to tackle persistent issues and organizational
problems.
• Involve people
throughout the company in joint training programs.
• Schedule time
for frequent rotation and attachment of staff between
various departments.
• Send cross-functional
groups on ‘mystery shopping’ tours to competitive
organizations.
• Get every department
involved in focus group meetings to study customer compliments
and complaints.
• Create a recognition
program to praise cross-functional communication and
improvements.
• Implement a
reward scheme for everyone based upon overall company
performance.
• Communicate
customer issues to every person in every department
through meetings, newsletters, e-mail, intranet and
bulletin boards.
Key Learning Point
In the hustle of
day-to-day business, many people focus largely on the
job at hand. This narrow view may help them ‘get
their job done’, but may also blind them to shared
customer and company concerns.
Action Steps
Implement activities
that encourage cross-functional sharing, caring and interdependence.
Insist upon ‘one shared voice’ that understands
and serves your customers.
Next Article in Customer Service Toolset >>
Feedback is the Breakfast of Champions
First Article in Customer Service Value Dimensions >>
In Customers We Trust
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Ron Kaufman is an internationally acclaimed customer service training educator for quality service.
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