On a recent business trip to Florida, I had an experience that will never be forgotten. My colleague and I had finished a week of intense training for one of our clients, and on the drive back to the hotel we decided it was time for a quick bite to eat.
Upon arriving at the restaurant establishment, we found that the front doors were locked. The sign indicated that they were open for another 30 minutes. I was in the car and ready to move on, but my colleague stood at the door with a confused look on his face, and made a gesture through the glass door to an unseen employee. The gesture was that he was pointing at his watch and shaking his head as if to ask the question “you should be open, why are the doors locked?”
The doors were soon opened, and the door opening employee scolded another for locking the door 30 minutes early. We stood in front of the counter and waited a lengthy time before a sloppily dressed individual with a disturbed look on his face approached. Having just completed customer service training, I realized that he was frustrated that we were there, and I asked a question like: “is it ok if we are here? You don’t look like you are enjoying this situation very much.” He said “I don’t care…”
We obviously felt that, and walked out of the building. The question is this: Do your employees care? What are you doing to ensure that each customer has a world-class experience with your company? Establish a training program, either internally or externally to teach them correct principles. As a part of the training, establish a way to hold each employee accountable for skills learned and taught in training. The final piece involves management as coaches to ensure the use of skills. In our situation, if this business would have done these simple steps, they would have had our business!
Upon arriving at the restaurant establishment, we found that the front doors were locked. The sign indicated that they were open for another 30 minutes. I was in the car and ready to move on, but my colleague stood at the door with a confused look on his face, and made a gesture through the glass door to an unseen employee. The gesture was that he was pointing at his watch and shaking his head as if to ask the question “you should be open, why are the doors locked?”
The doors were soon opened, and the door opening employee scolded another for locking the door 30 minutes early. We stood in front of the counter and waited a lengthy time before a sloppily dressed individual with a disturbed look on his face approached. Having just completed customer service training, I realized that he was frustrated that we were there, and I asked a question like: “is it ok if we are here? You don’t look like you are enjoying this situation very much.” He said “I don’t care…”
We obviously felt that, and walked out of the building. The question is this: Do your employees care? What are you doing to ensure that each customer has a world-class experience with your company? Establish a training program, either internally or externally to teach them correct principles. As a part of the training, establish a way to hold each employee accountable for skills learned and taught in training. The final piece involves management as coaches to ensure the use of skills. In our situation, if this business would have done these simple steps, they would have had our business!
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