When was the last time you received outstanding customer service?  On reflection, have you ever received outstanding customer service?

All too often these days we are subjected to inferior customer service.  What do you do?  Put up with it!  Vow never to go there again?  If you have time, you complain – much to the embarrassment of those around you.  Would it make a difference?  Would they listen to you?  You get the feeling that they wouldn’t.

Unfortunately, service organisations too often do not set high enough standards for the recruitment of frontline staff in the belief that the lower level jobs do not justify a rigorous and aggressive recruitment process.  The consequence is high employee turnover, service failures and related costs that often go undetected by the organisation, such as recruitment costs, wasted management time and discontentment amongst other employees.

Think back to how you run your organisations.  How often do you look at it from the customer’s perspective?  By creating lasting value for your customers, you will create high value for yourselves.  Therefore, it is the responsibility of business leaders to remove any barriers that will prevent the achievement of service excellence and the creation of high value; they must aim for employee satisfaction, loyalty and productivity, which in turn will lead to customer satisfaction, loyalty and repeat business.

To realise this ‘competitive advantage’ we believe that a committed, motivated and high performance organisation will have:

• a clear vision, values, strategy and goals in which every colleague believes
• co-operation and knowledge sharing through key stakeholder management
• an understanding and insight into future customer needs
• excellence in hiring
• accuracy of placing people into jobs that match their interests, intellect and characteristics – simply put, ‘job match’
• a strong commitment to focused training and continual self-development
• enthusiastic engagement
• quality succession planning
• high levels of staff retention
• excellence in leadership and management – exemplary actions, trust and open two-way
• communication
• a environment where risk taking and initiative are supported
• complete customer focus and an ‘ownership’ mindset as well as a continuous improvement mindset
• a strong emphasis on colleague and associate satisfaction - as strong as its customers
• a culture based on recognition and/or reward for exemplary performance
• teams must reflect the communities they service
• a generous, but affordable salary system.

An Impressive Business Model!

An organisation that embodies these values is ASDA – a company with 400 stores throughout the UK and employing over 165,000 people.  They can demonstrate some powerful statistics:

• they value their colleagues as much, if not more than their customers
• they have the lowest turnover rate for their industry in the UK – 24% compared to the 50% industry average
• more than 5,000 workers have been recognised for 25 years service or more
• on average, every one of its 165,000 colleagues has at least 4 years’ experience serving customers – proof that its stores, depots and offices are some of the best places to work in the UK.

David Smith, ASDA’s People Director, said, “Our track record of retaining colleagues is second to none.  Their hard work and commitment over the years is what makes our business so successful.”

ASDA has clearly accepted the challenge of creating an environment that will attract, retain and motivate those who join the organisation.

If organisations want to succeed they must recruit, train and retain the best people.  They must do all they can to:

• get employees off to a strong start (recruitment, selection and induction)
• foster continuous learning through training and coaching
• create conditions that cultivate ownership attitudes through rewards, performance feedback and result-oriented cultures
• enable each person to contribute their ideas, knowledge, experience and skills
• create a ‘great place to work’.

There is a proven, positive link between high employee satisfaction; advanced customer satisfaction and loyalty; competitive advantage and achieving high profitability.  The law of ‘cause and effect’ is reinforced through employees being contented and fulfilled both within their jobs and working environment and consequently providing superior service to customers; who in turn are delighted with the outstanding service they experience!

Increased Profitability

ASDA’s parent company, Wal-Mart Stores, has again posted record sales and earnings for the fiscal year 2008.  Total net sales for the company were $374.5 billion; an 8.6 per cent increase over the previous fiscal year and a record for any retailer. Wal-Mart lives the mission of saving people money so they can live better. They positioned themselves as the unbeatable price leader. Their customers appreciated it and their shareholders understood it.

The hard work and exceptional efforts of Wal-Mart’s two million associates, managers and leaders around the world is the reason for its success.  Improving the end-to-end user experience is inextricably linked to bottom-line results.

Lee Scott, President and Chief Executive Officer reported that they had driven the right strategy for their customers and for their business in the challenging economic and competitive environment and with the economic environment unlikely to change for the foreseeable future, the same opportunity will continue to present itself.

They had added about $30 billion in sales, which is equal to adding the annual sales of a Fortune 75 business. Even more impressive, Wal-Mart exceeded $100 billion in sales during the fourth quarter - a first for any global retailer. And, notably they accomplished this during a quarter when most of retail was going in the other direction.

Making a Difference

While achieving their business goals, Wal-Mart also made a difference to their communities through commitments made for energy efficiency and sourcing, diversity and healthcare. As the world’s largest private employer, Wal-Mart has the responsibility to lead in important areas such as diversity. Their teams reflect the communities they serve. Their associates have the opportunity to grow and succeed as far as their hard work and skills can take them regardless of qualifications, race, gender or age.

Through their “Sustainability 360″ approach, they sold 145 million energy-efficient bulbs within 15 months - enough to eliminate the need for nearly three new coal-fired power plants in the United States. Only Wal-Mart can have this kind of an impact.

In healthcare, they increased significantly the number of associates with some form of health insurance, from 90.4 percent last year to 92.7 percent this year. They also offer more efficient services to employers, helping customers save money through their $4 prescription program, opening health clinics in stores and engaging in the broader public policy debate.

What makes successful performers?

The Starting Point - is to conduct an analysis of values, tasks, attitudes and characteristics critical for successful performance in the role and within the organisation.  Clear criteria for colleague selection is essential; the focus must be on the mixture of attributes, interests, thinking ability and skills to match each job role.  This is achieved utilising various tools including formal assessments, role play and bespoke computer simulations.

Induction – recruits need to be properly integrated into the organisation in the first few days or weeks of employment and be guided through critical and valuable information on the company’s values, traditions, history, strategy, customers, competitors, policies and procedures.

Continuous Learning – organisations should understand that learning is an “alternative to staleness, boredom, burnout and ineffectiveness.”  The value of continuous learning:

• reinforces the organisation’s core values
• motivates colleagues by building their self-confidence and know-how
• professionalises the service delivery role.

It is the case that no-one is ever fully trained or fully knowledgeable.

The Right People - First Time

Profiles International, the world leader in psychometric assessments, have created three on-line assessments tools that are now available in the UK and Europe through TLSA; these assessments have a significant impact on new business development, customer service and all other roles within a business.

These tools are the ‘Sales Indicator’, ‘Customer Service Perspective’ and the ‘Profile XT’.  Real data from your outstanding people are combined with the specific needs of each job to create a profile against which all new candidates are matched.  Only those who are the best fit for each role are taken on. Used at the beginning of the recruitment process to identify those who will prove the best return on your investment will save you considerable time and money.

TLSA can assist any organisation in establishing a process for recruiting and retaining the best possible people.  It is those people you can then develop into being your stars of the future!  Call 0845 600 1556 or email The Leadership and Sales Academy at sales@tlsa.co.uk for further information.