Measures to uplift customer service standards

Prasanna Perera Marketing & Management Consultant, Chartered Marketeer, Cim U.K.

Every business organization in Sri Lanka is talking about improving customer service standards. However, there is still a great deal of improvement that is required in service standards across all businesses in Sri Lanka. This article aims to address the causes of poor customer service standards in the country.

It must be remembered that a service culture is something that is integral to an organization and cannot be transplanted externally. Hence, organizations that provide poor service have an anti-service culture and this has to be addressed, if service standards are to be improved. Service focused leadership is also an essential element in this regard.

Negative attitudes amongst front line customer facing employees is another contributory factor towards poor service. Some employees simply do not care if the customer is satisfied or not, since they get their pay either way. Recruitment of employees who have a positive attitude is a must in any service business, to maintain service standards.

Employee de-motivation is another contributory factor, due to several reasons such as poor salaries, poor working conditions, lack of empowerment and lack of recognition / appreciation.

Organizations should remember the famous saying, “Pennywise pound foolish” or “If you throw peanuts you get monkeys.” Not only should organizations recruit service oriented employees, they should motivate and reward them to sustain service standards. In most organizations, service standards are not explicitly stated. Hence, staff are not aware of what is expected and the result is inconsistent service standards. Every service business must have service standards developed and published. All employees should be trained accordingly.

Poor communication skills amongst service employees, is another reason for ineffective service. Many Sri Lankans have poor listening skills. They don’t listen to customer and as a result make service mistakes. Part of the communication skills is understanding the body language of the customer. Employees must be trained in this regard. All front line employees must be able to speak all three languages (English, Sinhala, Tamil). This is a must, if service standards are to be improved.

In many service organizations, security services are outsourced. It is important to remember that the security staff are the first and last point of contact in a service business. Outsourced security staff must be trained or else service inconsistencies will occur.

Poor quality and faulty equipment is another reason for service problems. Service staff are helpless when equipment fails. Hence, preventive maintenance and regular maintenance is a must. Equipment should be service enablers and not disablers. In many service businesses, back office staff do not support the front line staff adequately. This results in poor service standards and unhappy customers. All back office staff should be educated on the importance of internal customers (front line staff) and serving them.

Customers are also more demanding and their expectations are rising. They are also less tolerant towards service mishaps. Hence, organizations must constantly review their service standards and update them accordingly. Keeping a tab on customers and their needs on a regular basis is important.

Infrastructure facilities is another reason for poor service standards. Parking problems, lack of adequate space for service delivery, faulty air conditioning etc., are also contributory factors. Many Sri Lankan service businesses are finding it extremely difficult to recruit good quality, service oriented employees. There is a dearth of good quality employees willing to work in service businesses. Against this backdrop, organizations make do with what is available, resulting in poor service standards.