During my business career, one of the best resources I have encountered is a PowerPoint presentation on leadership with quotes from General Colin Powell, retired Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Regardless of your political bent, the presentation covers 18 lessons anyone leading a team or organization of any size or scope can benefit from. While the quotes focus on leadership principles, I find that many of them also apply to those of us seeking to deliver customer satisfaction and exceptional customer experiences.
Following are a few examples along with a few images to help drive home the points.
Powell Quote: "The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them. They have either lost confidence that you can help them or concluded that you do not care. Either case is a failure of leadership."
Powell Quote: "The commander in the field is always right and the rear echelon is wrong, unless proved otherwise."
Team members facing the customer on a daily basis are best positioned to know what is required to ensure customer happiness. The most successful leaders are those who encourage and embrace customer feedback from the front-line troops. Leaders who continually refine processes that facilitate the timely flow of customer feedback from the team will receive information that can be used to help create competitive differentiation in the marketplace. Failure to listen to the team and critically assess the information provided is indeed failed leadership; resulting in a disservice to the organization and, most critically, a failure to address customer expectations.
Powell Quote: "Keep looking below surface appearances. Don't shrink from doing so (just) because you might not like what you find."
Powell Quote: "Never neglect details. When everyone's mind is dulled or distracted the leader must be doubly vigilant."
These quotes immediately bring to mind a key concept from Raving Fans, an excellent customer service book previously mentioned in my blog. Basically, it is important to listen to what your customers say as well as to what they don't say. Customers sometimes don't say directly what they want, may say one thing but mean another, or, in the worst case, may not say anything at all if they are not satisfied. Sometimes you have to look deeper. While you can be assured the complaining customer is sharing how they feel, customers who simply tell you things are "fine" without elaborating may not be sharing how they truly feel. The customer who is silent should also set off a customer service alarm. As stated in Raving Fans, "Learn that silence is a message and usually it's not a good one."
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| Photo Credit: http://www.callcentrehelper.com/ |
The spirit of service needed to deliver great customer experiences is contagious. However, it can only be spread and caught by others if those leading the customer service charge enthusiastically embrace their mission. I have always believed that at its essence, the secret to good customer service is quite simple. Simply ensure you treat those you serve in the manner you would like to be served if you were in their shoes; wrap this in a cheerful smile, while passionately communicating to everyone how happy you are to make a difference in the lives of those you serve. If leaders truly believe and display this, the impact upon all teams who play a role in supporting the customer can be monumental.
I have pasted a link to General Powell's "primer" below. If you have not seen it, I believe you will find it an interesting read; both from an overall leadership as well as customer care perspective.
http://www.marvinhightower.com/resources.html
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