Marilyn Manning, Ph.D., Speaker

“Always do right. This will surprise some and astonish rest”, Mark Twain

“Thousands of businesses will be shaken and even shattered by their inability to render effective customer service,” say Davidow and Uttal, authors of Total Customer Service, The Ultimate Weapon. Quality service is defined as, “building customer loyalty and goodwill by exceeding expectations and needs”.

From my observation, organizations that consistently deliver outstanding service practice same level of service with employees. Inside customer service is a critical foundation often neglected. And, building employee loyalty can pay big dividends. A recent MCI-Gallup poll of CEO’s said they named most important sources for a competitive advantage is quality, service and responsiveness. Why not begin on inside to insure employee and customer loyalty?

It is surprising how easy it is to take other employees for granted. Do you and your staff always apply common courtesies to each other? Does your team or organization have clear behavioral expectations or an effective “code of conduct”?

At Brook Furniture Rental’s annual leadership conference, we set team code of conduct based on our core values: Service, Value, Speed, and Integrity. Our team ground rules include: Always give feedback directly to person; never speak negatively about another team member behind his or her back.

When employees treat each other with respect, courtesy and goodwill, studies show that productivity and positive morale increase. An organization working together more effectively internally, is more skilled and consistent in external service.

When I design customer service programs for my clients, I recommend certain steps. First identify your core values like leadership of Brook did. Next, have employees define customer-centered behaviors. What behaviors do they associate with exceptional service? For example: “listening without interrupting,” “offering to help,” “asking enough questions to identify real needs and concerns.” These should be same behaviors we expect co-workers to use with each other.

Bob Crawford, CEO of Brook, models and coaches core values. One value is “integrity.“ Managers and employees avoid negativity, fix problems immediately, deliver what they promise, and follow through. All staff spend time discussing values and expected behaviors.

Building employee loyalty can be challenging when we have a “difficult” person on board, someone who seems cold and uncaring. The tendency is to treat him in an impersonal way since he seldom responds. What if we could adjust our thinking and see him as a customer? We’d likely be more patient and accepting. We might see him as shy and insecure rather than aloof. With this new frame of reference, we would probably have more compassion.

Changing our attitude changes our response. In turn, this could change “difficult” person’s responses toward us. Why not give co-workers same consideration we give an external customer, thus building loyalty both inside and out.

Brit ? of Arden Realty, Los Angeles, says to capture customer’s interest at right time. Anticipate what they need before they do. How powerful this would be if we also applied this to our employees. Meet their needs and build loyalty.

Change can be viewed as either an opportunity or a threat. Unfortunately, most organizations undergo significant change when faced with a crisis, rather than using change as a vehicle for continuous improvement and innovation. Leaders often ignore problems until some of talented people are leaving, or when absenteeism or complaints and grievances increase.

When an organization doesn’t recognize some of crisis mode behaviors, there are usually obvious indicators of increased stress and a decline in morale, trust, enthusiasm, and participation. Initial attempts to correct situation may be a proliferation of task forces and committees, but these generally mask more serious problems. The organization probably needs an in depth assessment and a sound plan for implementing positive change.

When change is not well planned, an organization can end up in a maintenance or defensive cycle. Most employees view change as a threat and become defensive, reacting with a range of behaviors from yelling and blaming to avoidance and justification.

On other hand, when change is well planned and implemented, organization can function in a growth cycle. Individuals shift their attitude to embrace change as an opportunity for innovation and problem-solving. Their behaviors become constructive and productive when leaders articulate a clear and beneficial vision for change. It is important to acknowledge and process any resistance. Communicate benefits quickly. And, provide adequate resources to make change successful.

Leaders need to help employees overcome fears. The most common fears are fear of loss of identity, loss of control, loss of meaning, loss of belonging and loss of a future. These are pretty basic human needs and when any of these are threatened, people will resist and lapse into defensive behavioral patterns.

In Deming’s Fourteen Points for Quality, number eight says: “Drive out fear, so that everyone may work effectively for company.” Don’t give it lip service, but acknowledge importance of facing and discussing fears. When management can accept that fear and change usually go hand in hand, undiscussables can be discussed. Consider using outside facilitators who are very experienced in change management and team building to facilitate this part of process. Allowing staff to freely express their fears and anxieties in a safe environment is an important step.

After facilitating organizational change for city, state and federal government agencies as well as profit companies, our clients report that following blueprint for Change is essential in early stages of undergoing major change.

STEP ONE: ESTABLISHING THE NEED AND THE BENEFITS

Most organizations report that they undergo a thorough organizational assessment to determine what changes are potentially most beneficial. They assess customer satisfaction, internal morale and structure, productivity and efficiency levels. They carefully weigh their options, assessing advantages and downside. They look to other successful organizations for bench marking. Once they identify major changes, they carefully assess resources. Who will be various internal champions for various stages of change? What money is designated for needed training and implementation? What type of outside experts will be needed to guide process, train and guide implementation and evaluation stages? Is there adequate budget?