PERSONAL CHANGE MANAGEMENT

View from the Top

Goal To explore how change influences personal actions. 

Participants will print the word “change” while focusing on the reflected view in a mirror.

Time Required Approximately 15 minutes

Group Size Any number of individuals

Materials

• One pocket mirror, one index card, and a pencil for each participant

• A newsprint sheet and felt-tipped marker for facilitator

• Masking tape for posting newsprint sheet

PROCESS

1. Prior to the session, use a felt-tipped marker to print the word “change” on the newsprint sheet and post the sheet prominently on a wall using masking tape.

2. Distribute one mirror, one index card, and a pencil to each participant.

3. Explain that each person is to first place the index card on a flat surface and then position the mirror so that the card is reflected in the mirror. Referring to the posted newsprint sheet, tell the participants that they are to print the word “change” in small letters while keeping their eyes on the mirror only.

4. Allow several minutes for completion of the task, observing the progress made by the participants, and then call time.

5. Facilitate a large group discussion by asking the following questions:

• How did you feel while you were attempting to complete the task?

• Did you rely on others to help guide you in the process? Why or why not?

• Why do you think it was difficult for you to print a word that was familiar to you?

• How can you relate this activity to the concept of change?

• What role does perception play in managing change?

• Why is it so important for service providers to see issues from the customer’s point of view?

• What actions can you take to help the customer change his or her position on an issue?

• What actions can you take to help yourself manage change more effectively?

MEASURE RESULTS TO STAY ON TRACK - CUSTOMER DELIGHT

MEASURING RESULTS CAN BOOST CUSTOMER SERVICE
How Measuring Results Can Help Stay On Track Of Customer Service?


Now that you know your destination, figured out the best direction to take, and mapped out your path to success, you need to devise a way to measure your achievements. That is the only way you will know whether you are staying on track.

Why measure? Because it brings focus to achieving company goals, it shows how effective you are, it helps in setting new goals and monitoring trends, it identifies input for analyzing problem areas, it gives employees a sense of accomplishment, and it helps you monitor progress. Measurements can either be objective or subjective.

Performance Prompts
Examples of objective measurements (concrete results from actual figures):
• Customer service results
• Sales figures
• Revenue protection
• Accuracy
• Productivity
• Expenses
• Attendance

Examples of subjective measurements (derived from observation and opinion):
• Customer satisfaction results
• Setting a positive example for others
• Interpersonal relations—ability to work well with others
• Adherence to established policies and procedures
• Oral and written communication
• Career development


When This Happens . . .
You have a system in place to measure customer service based on the length of time it takes to complete a customer’s request. That should be good enough. After all, you do not get too many complaints from customers.

Try This
Do you measure your customer service based on what you think your customers want? Or do you measure your customer service based on what your customers really want? Measuring customer service based on internal measurements is a good idea, as long as you know it is in line with what your customers want.

The only way to know how well you are actually performing is to ask your customers what is important to them. When you measure customer service results, it is important to measure objective results based on customer responses.

It is equally important to measure subjective results from direct observations. Doing both ensures that your customers are happy and that you and your coworkers are held to high expectations.

Always make sure you do what is important to your customers.

WRITE A CUSTOMER FOCUSED PLAN – CUSTOMER SERVICE

WRITING A CUSTOMER FOCUSED PLAN FOR BETTER CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

How Writing A Customer Focused Plan Helps In Better Customer Service?

Why is having a plan important? Operating without a plan is the same as leaving for vacation without knowing where you are going. If you do not know your destination, you will never go in the right direction.

Your mission statement is your destination. Your plan is the direction that gets you to that destination. Every plan should be customer focused. Think about this.

Unless you are doing what is important to your customers, you may be headed in the wrong direction without even knowing it. A customer-focused plan keeps you headed in the right direction.

Performance Prompts

• When writing your plan, break down each component of your company or personal mission statement. What do you mean by to satisfy customers on the first try? In your plan, you may decide that it is unrealistic to say you will satisfy 100% of your customers, but you can work toward satisfying 98% of your customers. I will strive to satisfy 98% of my customers on the first try by . . .

• Include other specifics in your plan. How will you satisfy your customers? By finding the best solution, by offering them the products that are right for their needs, by making sure those products are delivered within two days, by learning all I can about my job and company, by observing coworkers and providing specific feedback for improvement, and by asking my customers how our company can improve.

• Include all items that are important to your mission in your plan.

• Detail all major work activities on which you want to concentrate.

• Establish time frames so you can monitor progress.

• If you are a leader writing a plan for your team, review the plan with everyone involved and make sure it is realistic.

• Make sure everything you include in your plan is important to your customers.

When This Happens . . .

You have a customer-focused plan in place for your team and decide to change the company that delivers your products. Contracting with a different carrier will be less expensive for your customers, but it will add two days to the delivery time.

You are getting ready to rewrite your plan to detail this change when your coworker, James, mentions that a couple of his customers told him how much they appreciate the fast delivery you offer.

Try This

Before implementing changes to your plan, make sure it is what your customers want. You never asked your customers if speedy delivery or low rates mattered more. You decide to develop a short talk piece for you and your coworkers to use at the end of every contact that explains you are considering

changing delivery carriers.

Which do customers prefer: lower shipping charges with a four- to five-day delivery or the service

you now provide? After doing this for one week you determine that your customers like things the way they are.

Because you first asked your customers what is important to them, you averted a customer service disaster.

If it ain’t broke, it might not need to be fixed.

CREATE A PERSONAL MISSION STATEMENT – CUSTOMER SERVICE

PERSONAL MISSION STATEMENT FOR BETTER CUSTOMER SERVICE

How Creating A Personal Mission Statement Help Serve The Customer Better

Without a written mission statement, it is easy to lose your way. Think about this. You and your family decide to take a vacation, so you pack your bags, load them into your car, and take off for your vacation.

Because you do not have a clear destination in mind, you drive down one road until someone in the

backseat tells you to turn down another. You turn on to that road, then someone else pipes in that it is a boring road.

Soon everyone is arguing about which road to take. You return home exhausted, having spent your entire vacation driving aimlessly because you did not have a destination.

A mission statement is your destination. It tells, in exact words, what your company stands for and what you wish to achieve. Having a mission statement provides everyone in your organization with a clear focus and, most importantly, the same focus.

Performance Prompts

• Begin by analyzing what you, your company, and your team stand for.

• What service or product do you provide? Why is it important to your customers, and what is your role in providing that service or selling that product?

• What level of performance do you expect from yourself?

• How do you expect your customers to be treated?

• Your mission statement should be very specific about what your company (or you) expects to achieve.

• Your mission statement should be brief.

• Post your company and personal mission statements for your team and coworkers to see. Make sure each statement is clear, so everyone understands it.

• Focus daily on your mission.

• Everything you do should in some way move you toward your destination.

When This Happens . . .

You do not see the need to write out a mission statement because you already have a clear vision of your company’s goals and the personal values by which you operate. After all, your company has a mission statement that is posted.

One day you overhear your coworkers talking about your company, and you realize that each of them has a different idea about what their role in the company is.

Try This

As your company’s emissary, you need to understand how your role relates to your company’s mission and vision. You decide to write a mission statement, but you do not know how to do it.

Begin by writing down how your work contributes to your company mission. Think about the values you wish to exemplify. Now put it into the context of a mission statement.

My mission is to do my best to be our customer’s provider of choice for ____; to demonstrate my care and concern for our customers by focusing on their needs; to satisfy my customers on the first try; to look for new and innovative ways to improve the products we offer; and to look for ways to grow personally.

Live up to your mission and values daily.