Customer Service Champs

Last month, BusinessWeek announced its annual list of customer service champs. Jena McGregor looked behind the results and wrote: "When it comes to customer service, one might have assumed 2009 would have dealt a massive blow. Amid a brutal recession, companies slashed inventories to the bone. They cut back sharply on employee hours, benefits, and pay. Many stopped new investments in technology and store upgrades. But a funny thing happened on the way to the recovery: Customer satisfaction didn't sink like a 100-pound stone. The average score for the 25 brands that received our fourth annual Customer Service Champs award, which rates what customers think about the quality of a company's staff and the efficiency of its service, rose slightly in 2009."

I find the assumption about customer service quality suffering a "massive blow" interesting and not at all surprised it was wrong. For enterprises with a time-honored commitment to customer service, they don't typically abandon their efforts during difficult economic times. It's not only an integral part of their DNA, but they understand how it sets them apart, especially during lean periods. When customers need care the most, they can depend on these organizations to provide it. Other companies tend to step up their service initiatives in an effort to keep the customers they have. 2009's solid customer service performance makes perfect sense.

Congratulations to the top 25: Ace Hardware, Amazon.com, American Express, Amica Mutual Insurance, Apple, Barnes & Noble, Branch Banking & Trust, Charles Schwab, Dell, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Jaguar, L.L. Bean, Lexus, Nordstrom, Panera Bread, Publix Super Markets, Southwest Airlines, Starbucks, The Ritz-Carlton, True Value, USAA, Wegmans Food Markets, and WestJet.

Pivot Point Solutions offered a terrific post that highlights which companies invested in their employees, their customers, and in technology in 2009. The writer also reminds us that regardless of our business, we can learn a great deal from the best practices of these organizations. I encourage you to take a closer look and share your thoughts!

Modeling The Way For Client Service

Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner identify five principles of leadership in their book, The Leadership Challenge. The first is to "model the way" or as we also say "lead by example."

In a recent BusinessWeek piece titled: CEOs Who Use Twitter, the writers note that in August of 2008 they reported 18 CEOs using Twitter. Less than a year later, they're featuring 50 CEOs who are tweeting to their personal and professional delight. The trend is worthy of discussion for a number of reasons.

First, it speaks to a CEO willing to explore new ways to communicate with stakeholders. You set an example by showing your people that you're a curious person rather than a fundamentalist as defined by Seth Godin. To paraphrase, a fundamentalist considers whether a fact is acceptable to their faith before they explore it. A curious person explores first and then considers whether or not they want to accept the ramifications. Great CEOs challenge their people to be curious.

Second, CEOs who are exploring Twitter's possibilities send a powerful message to customers and other stakeholders alike that they want to engage directly with their audiences. In today's world there are two kinds of companies - the ones that want to promote a dialogue with their clients/customers in an effort to build true relationships, and the ones simply trying to drive transactions. I choose to do business with companies who exemplify the former.

Finally, in the communication business, clients want to believe you understand all the communication tools available to them. For my money, social media can't be taught, it has to be learned. Agency CEOs who aren't participating and leading their own people in this arena will never be able to provide competent counsel to yours.

Achieving an all new level of client service excellence will mean the difference between thriving and surviving in the coming months and years. We'd be wise to pay attention to these CEOs as they model the way.