1. Don’t start only with
customer-facing teams. Starting your service transformation with customer-facing team members
might seem like the obvious move. But if your objective is to build an uplifting
service culture, this approach can be very problematic. Because your people in
“customer-facing” roles interact with customers daily, they already understand
that service is important. They know that upset customers complain. They know
happy customers are easier to serve. What they don’t know is how to fix the
behind-the-scenes issues that often affect the customers’ perceptions.
When you provide new service
education, greater encouragement, and more recognition for customer-facing
teams like sales, installation, repair, or customer service, they will be
inspired to serve better, smile wider, and strive even harder to delight. But
at some point, they will start to wonder how they can give customers better
service if their colleagues do not give them better service.
When launching an uplifting
service program, it would be much better to include or begin with internal
service providers: production and design, hardware and software, warehousing
and logistics, facilities, finance, legal, IT, and HR. When these internal
service providers make things easier, faster, more responsive, or more flexible
for your customer-facing employees, they’ll be surprised, delighted, and better
able to serve your external customers. Let those on the inside inspire those who
are serving on the outside with better service first. It’s a proven win-win
situation.
2. Launch at all levels. Starting from the top with an
uplifting service initiative makes sense. When high-level leaders speak up and
role model with commitment, it’s easier for everyone else to follow—and take
the lead at their own levels. However, a top-down approach on its own can leave
your leaders in an uncomfortable position. When those at the top make the
earliest efforts, they must wait for the cascade to see practical results. But
a cascade does not happen overnight—and this lack of quick and observable
impact can cause some leaders to get impatient and question whether the
outcomes will happen at all.
At the same time, though, you
must beware of launching from the bottom up without support from the top—the
classic mistake of stand-alone “frontline service training programs.” It won’t
take long before a motivated frontline service provider bumps into a supervisor
or manager who does not share the understanding or the passion.
That’s what happened at a leading
tour operator when it brought its frontline employees a novel campaign called
“Be Service Entrepreneurs.” The objective was for staff members to make
decisions as if they were the owners. One enthusiastic frontline service
provider did just that. He chartered a plane to move customers along when the
company’s tour bus broke down. It was a gutsy move his customers loved, but
most of the company’s leaders had never heard of this frontline program and
were not pleased with this result. The program was quickly retired as word
spread throughout the company that “Be Service Entrepreneurs” was no longer
supported.
3. Don’t forget the middle. Companies often decide to launch
from the top down and from the bottom up at the same time. But doing so puts a
great deal of responsibility on the people in the middle. In the top-down
cascade, middle managers and supervisors must translate the messages in action,
connect company objectives to frontline concerns, and make uplifting language
appear practical and useful. In the bottom-up bubbling of new ideas and action
steps, the middle plays three culture-building roles: praising team members who
do a great job, raising good suggestions for higher-level review, and
spotlighting roadblocks that require leadership action for removal.
In both instances, you’re asking
a lot of your managers and supervisors.
But starting in the middle won’t
work either. When leaders are not prepared to lead, and frontline employees are
not prepared for action, then asking middle managers to start the journey alone
is a formula for pure frustration. A top-down cascade brings commitment,
alignment, and support. A bottom-up program stimulates new ideas and new
actions. An activated middle connects, enables, and empowers. It’s best to
prepare well and start with attention to all three.
4. Arm your leaders with helpful
service hints. Most
people who reach high leadership positions are experts in their industry. But
rarely are they experts in building or leading a service culture. That means if
you are one of the passionate and committed service heroes inside your
organization, you may need to help your leaders lead. That means creating
opportunities for them to walk the walk, talk the talk, and model uplifting service.
Invite your leaders to
participate with you in customer meetings and focus groups. Ask them to help
you recognize the company’s top-notch service providers with a visit, a
handshake, a photograph, and a short speech. Keep them informed about the uplifting
service transformation’s progress by providing short descriptions of service
problems that have been recently solved, noting who worked on the problem, what
they did to solve it, and how service was improved.
5. Go for easy wins first. The principles of uplifting
service are so empowering and the practices so effective that some leaders push
their teams to solve the most difficult and complex service problems right
away. That’s a mistake to avoid. Warming up a machine before you go full
throttle is good practice. Warming up your service team with a series of “early
wins” is good practice, too.
When planning a sequence of
service problems to tackle, take a gradual approach. Build momentum with early
wins on easy issues. Let your team taste the pleasure of uplifting service
success. Highlight achievements and celebrate the compliments you earn. Restrain
the urge to work on your toughest problems first—their day to be conquered will
come.
6. Stay vigilant. Keep your aim
on the right bull’s-eye. I write about a client who launched a vigorous service improvement
program to create greater value for external customers. Hundreds of classes
were conducted for thousands of service champions around the world. But
something unusual happened as the program rolled out. Rather than focus on
identified external business targets—reclaiming market share, rebuilding a
slipping reputation, bouncing back in recovery situations, etc.—earning high
internal course evaluations became the course leaders’ primary focus.
Scoring 9 out of 10 for leading a
wonderful class became a cause for celebration. That’s a great score, but a
very different bull’s-eye. Eventually this lack of alignment with the program’s
original goals became painfully apparent. The focus had drifted away from the
early goals, and the entire program needed to refocus. Don’t let this drifting
happen to you. A clear bull’s-eye that delivers value to others should always
be at the center of your efforts, well articulated and understood by everyone
involved.
7. Watch out for stuck-in-the-mud
team members. Some
hard-nosed managers will challenge a new program by sending their most cynical
and problematic employees. Their view is, “If a new program can work on these
tough nuts, then perhaps it has some merit.” But the opposite approach will
work much better. What you want in the early days of your journey is good feelings,
good results, and good gossip. That comes more easily from participants who want
to participate and are eager to succeed.
There is an old saying that “A
rising tide lifts all boats.” This is also true when building an uplifting
service culture—except for those who are stuck in the mud. Practicing generous
action raises everyone to a higher level—except those who will not budge. For
deeply cynical, resentful, or unwilling employees, there are two successful
options. First, they may come to see the light and climb on board for an
unfamiliar but uplifting ride. And second, they may feel so out of place as
everyone else moves ahead, they no longer feel welcome, and leave. For the
success of your organization, either outcome is welcome.
When transforming an existing
service culture, you have to get everyone involved in new, swift action
to make the change really happen. What you need is a service revolution, not
gradual evolution. A timid program with small starts and scattered efforts
won’t work. You need a bold and uplifting revolution that gives everyone a role
to play, and counts on everyone to make the future—a better future—into a
service reality today.
www.lesliechoudhury.com & www.l-c-international.com
