Organisations like to talk of how they provide excellent customer service. But how much of that is real – and how much simply window-dressing? When Customer Service Excellence (CSE) was launched 5 years ago, it focused mainly on public sector organisations. However, it’s now taking this experience and expertise and applying it to the private sector, to help improve customer service within the UK business scene. Businesses can put themselves forward for accreditation if they meet key criteria.
Chris Tyrrell
CSE Assessor
(Pic: Emily Hughes)
Over the next five days, we’ll be publishing CSE’s top 50 tips for improving customer service, with the help of CSE’s assessor, Chris Tyrrell. He points out that “the CSE standard tests areas of importance as outlined by customers themselves, such as delivery, timeliness, information, professionalism and staff attitude.”
The standard operates on three distinct levels; by allowing businesses to assess themselves, by allowing individuals and teams within the business to explore and acquire new customer service skills, and finally by allowing businesses to seek formal accreditation. “The final element is key as this is what makes the standard really stand out,” says Chris.
CSE have a very strict criteria when assessing businesses. The 5 criteria of the standard are:
1. Customer Insight – Focusing on the importance of developing an in-depth understanding of customers
2. The Culture of the Organisation – Concerned with the support for customer focused approaches throughout the organisation so that excellent service is delivered to all customers
3. Information and Access – Aimed at making sure companies are putting customers first, providing them with accurate and detailed information at all times
4. Delivery – Related to how companies carry out their main business, the outcomes for the customer, and how they manage any problems that arise
5. Timeliness and Quality of Service – Looking in more detail at the standards organisations have in place relating to how they carry out their main business
“Companies have to work really hard,” he adds, “and prove that they are at the top of their game when it comes to customer service, in order to be accredited. We’re keen for CSE to grow as a recognised symbol of excellence, both by businesses themselves and more importantly by the customer. By doing this, our aim is to put the UK business community back on the map, and get this economy growing again. With this in mind, and with the business scene as competitive as ever, we’ve gone out and asked a number of our leading assessors for some top tips to help businesses achieve Customer Service Excellence. Here are the top ten.”
1 – When companies identify, agree, and embed clear core values, staff start pulling together to achieve better delivery of all aspects of the business, including customer service. Staff and where possible, customers should be involved in agreeing the values
2 – Once in place appraisal and supervision processes structured around the core values help to further embed them. This should happen regularly
3 – Every customer would like a personalised, customised service, whereas the most cost-effective service delivery is ‘one size fits all’. Excellent customer satisfaction should be achieved when the provider strikes the right balance between the two
4 – Excellent customer service may mean a premium can be charged for that service – but only up to a limit. The skill is knowing what that limit is
5 – No organisation can provide excellent customer service unless everybody, whatever their function and whatever their place in the hierarchy, recognises they have customers, be they external – or internal
6 – No organisation can count on excellent service delivery unless frontline services get excellent service delivery from internal/corporate/support services for whom they are an internal customer. Staff job satisfaction supports customer service satisfaction. The same applies to any organisations you work in partnership with to deliver your services
7 – No organisation can survive by treating its customers as an homogenous mass – you need to segment your customers in ways that make sense to you as the service provider – and to them as the customer. And give your customer segments catchy titles such as ‘Income rich – Time poor’ or ‘Asset rich – Income poor’
but they provide unsolicited customer feedback
8 – The organisation can learn from such feedback and improve its service delivery. By publishing the actions and service improvements it has taken as a result of complaints and comments, it can demonstrate it is a ‘listening and learning’ organisation, and welcomes customer feedback
9 – The received wisdom that ‘customers will pass good customer service onto half-a-dozen people, while bad customer service gets spread much more widely, can be turned on its head. A swift, effective, resolution of a complaint can transform the customer’s perception
10 – It’s good practice to ask a complainant what outcome they would like – and then check whether they’re satisfied with the outcome achieved
Customer Service Excellence is a quality standard set up and trade marked by the Cabinet Office and is now operated under license by G4S Assessment Services, Centre for Assessment, emqc, and SGS UK. In order for your business to be recognised as achieving Customer Service Excellence, you must be successfully assessed against the Five Criteria of the Standard by one of the licensed certification bodies. For more information please visit http://www.customerserviceexcellence.uk.com