Saying One Thing, Doing Another...

This week I was asked to speak at an internal conference for a bank. The subject was how to build a great customer experience. However, the reality was somewhat different to the title. I sat listening to speaker after speaker - all coming along with the same message "how can we stuff more products into our clients and achieve our targets".

As I sat there I started to think, why do people say one thing and do another? Do they really think people are that stupid that they cannot see the conflict between the words and the actions? So, as the speakers droned on and on about product X and revenue Y, I thought "what are the tell tale signs that show if your company is really customer focussed?". I took the opportunity to make some notes??.

When I visit companies, they take great pains to tell me how customer focussed they are. They show me mission statements, pretty "charters" on their wall extolling the virtue of being customer focussed and explain how the company is organised around their products! Yet the reality is that their words and their actions are different. Customer focussed is the last thing they are. Let me be very clear right up front, our people are not stupid, and your customers are not stupid, they know you are not customer focussed! One thing I have learnt over the years is? "Customers will judge you on your actions not your intentions.

So what are some of the tell tale signs of people saying one thing and doing another?

What do you measure?

This is the easy one. I have met companies who tell me they are customer focussed and yet they have no form of Customer satisfaction measure at all! Do you measure Customer satisfaction? Ask yourself now if you know what last month's results were? Now ask yourself if you know the company's revenue performance last month? Normally people can tell me the latter but not the former. What does that tell me?

Half the Customer Experience is about emotions. So, do you measure the emotions you're evoking in your customers? When were your measures last reviewed to check they are still the right ones and changed if necessary?

What happens to the information?

Too many companies have a "tick the box" mentality. They measure Customer satisfaction as the management books say they should. But they never do anything with the results. So ask yourself, how often is your customer satisfaction measure actively used to drive improvements?

How important are Customer measures to your company?

Who gets paid on the results and how much? I remember when I was in corporate life; I had a stand up argument with one of my colleagues at a board meeting about this. I suggested that the bonus we paid account managers, which stood at 5% of their overall bonus, with the remaining 95% paid on revenue, should be increased to 50% of their bonus. I argued if we really believed that focussing on the customer was critical then we should "put our money where our mouth is". Sadly I lost the argument. Revenue was the key measure throughout the company and would remain so. Talking about being customer focussed just made everyone feel better. In fact with hindsight, in everything they did the customer came second or in some cases third!

Where is the customer on the agenda?

Just look at your next team meeting agenda. Where is the customer satisfaction review? Is there one? I know of monthly and quarterly meetings where the customer and the customer satisfaction measure are not even spoken about? How can management then say they are focussed on the customer?

You are your diary Look at your diary.

How much time do you spend with Customers or working on Customer issues? Look at your bosses and senior teams - this will tell you the difference between the actions and the intentions.

Customer complaints

Are they a good thing or a bad thing? Customer complaints should be encouraged - they are free consultancy and feedback from your customers. Too many companies treat them as something they shouldn't have?

"Inside out or Outside in"

A couple of weeks ago I was involved in a meeting where there was a heated debate about what the customer wanted. Retail put their view, Customer service put their view, sales put their view and it all got a bit strained. I sat there and, at an opportune moment, asked the simple question. "Can someone tell me what the customer thinks??.."Where is your customer data to back up what you are saying, because without that these are just opinions". The most important thing is what the customer thinks.

So in summary these are the main areas which show the difference between words and actions. Look at your colleagues and bosses and then ask yourself, are you truly customer focussed?

Finally, I would be fascinated to learn of any other "tell tale signs" you have observed; we are considering using them in our next book. Perhaps email them to me at colin.shaw@beyondphilosophy.com. If they are new and we use them in the book then we will acknowledge your contribution in print!

Colin Shaw Founding Partner, Beyond Philosophy. colin.shaw@beyondphilosophy.com

www.beyondphilosophy.com

Colin Shaw is the Founding Partner of Beyond Philosophy and guru of the Customer Experience Management. He has also produced two most successful books on customer experience which are now available in market. His first book, Building Great Customer Experiences sold out within just eight weeks, is on a third reprint and available in paperback.

Colin's second book, Revolutionize Your Customer Experience released in September 2004 and considered as Bible in Customer management business world.

Colin has enjoyed over 20 years of experience working in blue chip companies, including Mars Ltd., Rank Xerox and BT. Colin's final position was Director of Customer Experience for one of the world's largest global companies. In his career, he has held senior positions in a number of different functional areas including Sales, Marketing, Customer Service and Training.

Ask Colin A Question ...........................................................................

---

The Seven Essentials of Business Communication

There are seven essential elements to successful business communication:StructureClarityConsistencyMediumRelevancyPrimacy/RecencyPsychological Rule... Read More

The Communications Myth

Living in the 21st Century is truly marvelous, isn't it?... Read More

Managing People - Why Is It So Difficult?

Managing, supervising, being a team leader is the hardest job... Read More

Innovation Management: The Power of Emotional Attachment

Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More

The High Cost of Employee Turnover Among Project Managers

Imagine for a moment this scenario from a frustrated Senior... Read More

Using Outlook to Count Responses

Here's a productivity tip that will save you a lot... Read More

Communication: Managements Responsibility

I've just watched, again, an episode in the Back to... Read More

Creating A Vision ? Bringing Your Dreams Into Reality

Do you have some goals you want to achieve or... Read More

Get It Done! Soft Skills not Hard Tools are Required

If your organization has people, then interpersonal skills are needed.I... Read More

Never Wrestle with a PIG

The business books at the library and book stores fill... Read More

Behavioral Extensions and Its Implications at Workplaces

The study of Behavioral extension involves investigating the source of... Read More

Top 5 Services Your Company?s Accounting Department Should Outsource

Accounting is one area which every company has to maintain... Read More

Executives and Emotional Self Awareness

A major problem impairing an executive's performance is his Emotional... Read More

Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Training is in the Eye of the Beholder

This article relates to the Training competency, commonly evaluated in... Read More

Are You Cascading Your Strategy, or Fragmenting It?

INTRODUCTIONThe typical approach executive teams use to cascade, or roll... Read More

Why I always Keep my Promises

Integrity is very important to me, and I try hard... Read More

Your Company Without Training - Any Questions?

Okay, be honest!Are you guilty of sticking in a few... Read More

Innovation Management and Brainstorming Management ? why people hate to brainstorm!

Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More

10 Fundamentals for Effective Meeting

Here are ten fundamental concepts that characterize an effective meeting.Definition:... Read More

Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Senior Management and Directional Change

This article relates to the Senior/Top Level management of an... Read More

5 Questions Great Managers Ask (and they arent hard!)

However hard we try, we seem to make life more... Read More

Learn About Commercial Collections Agencies Fees

As with any other service, there are good and bad... Read More

6 Ways to Keep Things Simple

Six Ways to Keep Things Simple We can have greater... Read More

The Best Way to Keep Track of Meetings

How should you keep track of meetings?Have you ever wanted... Read More

Future Business Success - What Does Good Look Like?

When you know you need to shift up a gear,... Read More

6 Steps to Effective Communication

Effective leaders are known for being excellent communicators. Here's what... Read More

Todays Employees and Their New Needs: What You Need to Know

Today's employees are not only interested in security or in... Read More

Print Buying Consultant

Ten Money Saving Tips for Print ManagersDespite their stated desire... Read More

Take The Guesswork Out Of Problem Solving

In today's chaotic world and uncertain economic times too many... Read More

Are You At The Mercy Of Computer Geeks?

Many business owners are sabotaging their business without even realizing... Read More

Four Steps to Better Performance Reviews

Direct reports-people who need direction and leadership-rely on their leaders... Read More

Directed Introspection

One of the greatest obstacles to progress can often be... Read More

The Top Three Problems IT Managers Face and How to Overcome Them

Todays business environment has changed drastically from just a few... Read More