Customer Service Leaders Must Master Speed
In today's competitive world, if you snooze, you lose. Consumers want everything faster. Employees must understand that competition demands that they work quickly. Every extra minute they can save will translate to the bottom line.
Look at your company's policies. When an online order comes in, do you ship the same day? You better believe there's another company out there that is. And it will get the business you're losing.
Every employee needs to figure out where they can improve speed without foregoing quality. You can never compromise quality. Management also must be open to employees’ suggestions. After all, they do the work every day. They know what actions can be taken to make any process faster and more efficient. Listen to them. If you do, they'll feel appreciated and be motivated to do a better job. Individuals who master speed have the ability to move up in the organization. Be on the lookout for employees who master speed. CEOs, for the most part, are driven by speed.
If you want to differentiate your company in the marketplace, you need to show how you can dramatically deliver service and products faster than your competitors. Fortunately, companies can create a new mind-set that helps win the war on speed:
- Create a culture for the need for speed. If employees realize the importance for speed, they'll get the job done faster.
- Customer service is a skill; it can be taught. And it should be taught every four months with new and interesting materials to keep employees fresh and engaged.
- Modify policies that are speed traps. The lack of speed can cost a company a lot of money.
- Speed is customer service at its best — a powerful competitive advantage.
John Tschohl is the president of the Service Quality Institute, and he presents strategic keynote speeches to companies worldwide. John can be reached at John@servicequality.com.
