CRM - October 2008 - (Page 19)

Insight A Week of Strong Customer Service An annual tradition provides hope for reps facing ever-increasing burdens C ustomer care representatives have it tough—so it’s no surprise to discover that companies are having a harder time holding onto them. In 2007, the attrition rate for contact center agents was 27 percent, a 93 percent increase from the rate in 1997, according to Dimension Data. With this in mind, Margaret DeWitt, program coordinator at the Customer Service Group (CSG), a Boonton, N.J.–based organization serving contact centers, believes it’s critical to devote time to appreciate those on the front lines. “[Firms are now] realizing the importance of rewarding their people,” she declares. “And what better way [is there] than with a weeklong celebration?” That celebration—the first full week of October—has a name: Customer Service Week, sponsored by the CSG, and federally recognized since 1992. And DeWitt says an increase in buy-in from upperlevel management has led to vastly larger budgets for CS Week–related events. “We still have [some] people doing very simple things, but we also hear from customers celebrating every day of the week with fun and exciting events,” DeWitt says. “Representatives are going to remember [these] all year long during the stressful times.” Another benefit is empowerment. The Alpharetta, Ga., division of LeasePlan USA, a provider of vehicle leasing and fleet management services, doesn’t offer a product, says Ann Jordan, the company’s director of learning and development. “The only thing we produce is customer service,” she says, adding that when she arrived three years ago, she saw a realworld demonstration of CS Week being completely misapplied: Thank-you notes were being written to LeasePlan’s end customers. “We were celebrating the wrong thing: our clients instead of people who provide the service,” she recalls. Confusion was high and morale was low. Employees didn’t even want to serve on the Customer Service Action Team, created to coordinate CS Week events. “When I first inherited the committee, there were 18 people on it,” Jordan recalls. “I called the first meeting and only one person showed up.” Drawing on her experience coordinating CS Week at her previous employer, she established a central theme and set up role reversals like “Walk a Mile”—the chief executive officer delivers mail for the entire week— and other activities to rally the troops. Since refocusing on the actual employees, Jordan says she has seen a new culture emerge. Staffers now look forward to the event and are clamoring to be on her committee. “I have a waiting list for those wanting to get onto the board,” she says, adding that being a part of this committee is now a form of empowerment for employees with no regular leadership opportunities. “This helps those who want to make careers of LeasePlan but don’t know how to get their name out there,” she says. “One way is involvement in an action team like mine. The company sees them in avery different light.” This empowerment has led to a jump in the employee-satisfaction rate from 64 percent in 2005 to 72 percent by 2007. The improvement, Jordan insists, “is pretty remarkable for a customer service organization.” And what the American arm of the company has done is making an impact with LeasePlan offices worldwide. The real reward, Jordan says, is watching her fellow employees work as a team. “It’s neat to see them come together.” —Christopher Musico CRM on In honor of Customer Service Week (see above), we decided to cast a quick look at some of the recent customer experience tales making the rounds in the Twitterverse. Want to follow CRM magazine on Twitter? You can find us at www.twitter.com/destinationCRM. You can tweet us directly by using @destinationCRM at the start of your message. joelwrose: @GeoHueb I’ve been told that live chat with Comcast is the best way to get customer service from them. From my experience, it’s true. jenniferfugel: Time Warner customer service (lack of) is really ticking me off. pletch: Good customer service Southwest Airlines. I booked the wrong flight, called them and in minutes they had it fixed. Nice and easy. class. photoeye75: wow XM Radio hung up on me again. 3rd time in 2 hours. Awesome customer service. entspeak: had one of the best experiences with Apple’s customer service ever--”My iPod Touch has a dead pixel.” “We're sorry, here’s a new one.” samasalways: oh sprint customer service I talk to you more than I talk to most of my friends ColoradoKila: Hotel Monaco called back within hours, apologizing profusely. They made it better & then some. Now my fave hotel ever!! Customer service!!! www.destinationCRM.com CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT | OCTOBER 2008 19 http://www.twitter.com/destinationCRM http://www.twitter.com/destinationCRM http://www.destinationCRM.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of CRM - October 2008

CRM - October 2008 Contents Front Office Feedback Reality�Check Customer Centricity The Tipping Point Sprinting Toward Disaster? SAP�Retains Market-Share Lead in�CRM A�Week of Strong Customer�Service CRM�on Twitter Build a Good Event and They Will Come Required Reading There's No Place Like Home The New Breed of CRM�Consultant The Price is Right...You Hope How Much Marketing is Too�Much? The�Sweet Smell of High-Quality�Service The Next Act! For An Acquisition Some Stories Never Get Old CRM�Eases the Pressure For WIKA�Instruments Secret of My Success Re:Tooling Scouting Report Pint of View

CRM - October 2008

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