Arthur Andersen: Four keys to exceed customer expectations

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Apr 19, 1999 by Terry Neese

Perhaps never before has exceeding customer expectations been more important than it is today. That's why Arthur Andersen is on the cutting edge of customer service values.

Companies are facing unprecedented competition for goods and services worldwide, and the most successful ones recognize that they must differentiate themselves from their competitors. One key area of differentiation is how well and how quickly they respond to their customers' demands.

By consistently exceeding customer expectations, companies provide the kinds of products and services that bring customers back and build long-lasting relationships. To accomplish this goal, Arthur Andersen's Global Best Practices team has found that the best practices of today's leading companies address four key areas: corporate focus, market understanding, value sharing, and process alignment. Corporate focus. Leadership helps the organization focus its efforts by defining goals and continuously communicating customer- oriented values through the leaders' own active involvement. The best customer satisfaction practices begin at the top with corporate leaders who sustain the momentum for customer satisfaction. They do this by defining concise and consistent vision statements and goals, regularly reviewing customer-related performance measures, communicating with line employees, spending time talking with customers, and investing resources in organizational infrastructure to guide the development of customer satisfaction practices within the company. Market understanding. Leading companies involve all parts of the organization to achieve an intimate understanding of the benefits that appeal most to customers throughout their entire experience with the company. They begin by listening to the customer on multiple levels to gain both a strategic and a tactical understanding of their needs. By gathering information from various perspectives, assessing the overall customer relationship, and exploring value-in-use, leading companies understand specifically what customers want and the tradeoffs they tend to make when deciding to purchase. Value sharing. Companies that apply best practices invest heavily in developing employees who are experts at improving customer satisfaction. These companies break down barriers to understanding customer issues so that their employees take ownership of customer needs. They also work hard at building the skills employees need to continually improve customer satisfaction. These companies develop comprehensive incentive and evaluation systems that encourage customer-oriented behavior. Process alignment. Top performing companies involve customers, employees, and others in discovering ways to adjust processes to be both efficient and aligned with customer needs. By understanding the driver of customer satisfaction -- specific product features or service characteristics that meet customer needs -- re-engineering can focus on eliminating features and functions that add cost but do not increase utility or value to the customer. Essentially, by involving customers, employees, and others in determining how processes should be aligned and by creating teamwork across functions, these companies develop highly effective improvement programs that deliver real value to customers while reducing costs. Perhaps the most important factor of all in successful change will be the company's commitment to seeing the best practice put to work. As the plan is implemented, Arthur Andersen suggests keeping these ideas in mind to keep the team motivated and working hard: * Pull employees toward the goals. Generating excitement and enthusiasm pulls people toward change. Many executives mistakenly believe that employees fear and resist change. The truth is that employees fear and resist change that appears meaningless or threatening. They embrace change that clearly makes their work easier, more rewarding, and more secure. * Keep everyone informed. Informed people are involved people. Keep people current on the progress being made and any alterations that may need to be made in the action plan. Share progress and results with people throughout the company. Good news energizes people, so make sure everyone hears it. * Recognize every effort. Managers should continually let employees know that they are aware of and appreciate every success along the way. Recognition can take the form of prizes, bonuses, perks, and parties. But don't forget the impact a simple "Well done!" from the team leader can have. Avoid the common tendency to focus only on what's wrong; instead, take the time to talk about what's right! Whether you have been in business five years or 25 years, applying these simple best practices in your company or organization will only enhance customer relationships. Terry Neese, founder of Terry Neese Personnel Services and past president of the National Association of Women Business Owners, may be reached by phone at 942-8551, by fax at 942-2840, or by e-mail, tneese