In the course of my daily reading, I ran across this article. In it the author advises us to point our fingers squarely at management when an organization fails to deliver decent customer service. And I agree, to a point.
But the job of delivering great customer service does not rest on management’s shoulder’s alone.
Certainly management plays a big role. They set the tone and culture of the organization and the culture will drive the service. Employees learn quickly what management values and that will determine (for the most part) how they do their work. And, management controls the resources. They make the decisions that determine whether employees have the time and tools to deliver great customer service.
So it makes sense to hand much of the responsibility for customer service to the people who make the decisions. If an organization fails at customer service it means their management has failed (or they don’t value good customer service).
But they are not alone.
The people who deal directly with customers play a role here too. And it’s a big role. To customers, they ARE the company. Their actions can make or break the company because they will either drive customers away or keep them coming back. For any organization to perform well consistently employees and management need to work together. Everyone has a responsibility in the outcome. Everyone has a stake.
The bottom line is this:
No matter what your role in your company is and no matter what resources you have at your disposal, you always have a choice in how you treat people. You can always choose to deliver Amazing Customer Service.
Everyone has a choice every time. There are no exceptions to this.
There are (of course) consequences. If management makes good service a low priority, you might get in trouble if you take the time to deliver a higher level of service. But it’s still your choice. You ALWAYS have a choice. Nobody can take that away from you.
What choices do you make when you serve your customers? Can you choose to do better? If so, how would you start?
Other articles you might like:
- Choosing service means choosing responsibility
- For Better Customer Service, Affirm Your Company Values
- Some people just know how to serve
- Customer service training coming for New Jersey toll collectors
- Why Slogans are Worthless (and What You Should Use Instead)
