Service Culture Workshops
2 hr Workshops - Also available as Lunch and Learn Series
2008
Each session might be scheduled two or three times on the selected date, offering employees, managers and non-managers an opportunity to learn in a comfortable environment, fun and motivational, and offer lunch for attendees. You might notice that the sessions usually open with the participants defining key issues or differences, or sharing examples. This is a critical element by design to give the participant’s true “Equity” or ownership and to get them engaged in the balance of the short sessions.
1. Customer Service Champions
- Sharing a personal customer service experience
i. Poor
ii. Great, (Why is great harder to find?)
iii. When someone ‘fixed’ the problem
- Key Elements of the experiences, & others?
- Prioritizing key elements for my position
- Defining Great service, “ex: Always more than we expect”
- Areas for my personal action…
This workshop begins with participants sharing (individually or in small groups depending on class size) examples of recent excellent service experiences, as well as those that were disappointing to them. It is interesting that positive experiences are fewer and more difficult to describe. The group will then identify a list of key elements of the ‘WOW! Experience’ and prioritize the key elements as they apply to the participant’s individual role regardless of title. The goal is for the group to reach the conclusion that there cannot be just one or even three, but a number of elements to insure great service, both internally as well as externally.
We will then ask the group(s) to come up with a brief service definition, for example, “exceeds expectations” understanding it is a difficult challenge due to the recipient’s expectations that are often different depending on the recipient. Finally, each participant will identify three areas that they might individually target for thought and/or improvement. Then 30-60 days after the workshop they will receive a friendly reminder email just asking about their progress…
2. What did you say?
- Perceptions versus Reality in daily communication
- Non-Verbal barriers to effective service communication
- How to be fluent in Body Language, even on the telephone
i. What do they Need to hear?
- Are you really listening?
- Emails, for communication, a King or a Curse
- Areas for my personal action…
This session is design to introduce participants to the many issues with communication in a fast hour filled with group exercises. Once the participants recognize that the words delivered in their communication really only accounts for 7% of how the message is sent we can have fun practicing techniques to improve service through more effective communication. Participants will learn first hand with using only tone of voice and body language to communicate, and listening skills evaluations with a three-person story telling exercise.
The workshop closes with participants identifying the ever-increasing issues with emails. When to read and when to write can be taken for granted daily, but will change following the dialog. And finally, each participant will identify three areas that they might individually target for thought and/or improvement, including personal goals for listening versus talking percentages on a weekly basis. Then 30-60 days after the workshop they will receive a friendly reminder email just asking about their progress…
3. Customer Service … Program or Culture?
- What is the difference between a service program and a service culture?
- And how can all of us set the expectations here?
- Identify three short-term service victories…
i. The magic is in the smallest moments.
ii. Defusing small issues before they grow…
- Techniques we all can use to keep the culture alive…
This workshop opens with the group(s) defining the key elements differentiating a service program and a service culture. This is a tough question but sets the tone for short-term versus long-term expectations and success. In many cases, people have a tendency to perceive culture as strategic type of leadership activity but the great service organizations recognize that the non-managers are the true catalyst for success. The goal of the workshop is for the participants to reach this conclusion on their own, and have fun in the process. Senior managers are often impressed at the thoughts shared by employees regarding culture, they are often more tuned in than mangers might expect.
These victories can be perceived as ‘epiphany-type’ moments, but are really simple tasks done by hourly employees many times each week. A “Moment of Truth” for a service culture is not just closing a sale, but rather taking the time to answer the call, staying with an issue through resolution regardless of specific job description, and simply helping people, or partnering with people (even angry people) to help solve problems.