with , the Service Desk Manager opposed introducing automated password resets because it would adversely affect his SLA performance by removing these quick-toresolve requests . In that same organisation , the Level 2 team leads resisted sharing knowledge with the Service Desk ( to increase First Level Resolution ) for the same reason .
Prioritises and resources customer-focused initiatives . Saying that becoming customer-centric is a high priority - along with lots of other high priorities - does not cut it . As Steven Covey once said , “" The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing ."
Makes customer satisfaction a standing agenda item of management meetings . Walking the walk means putting customer satisfaction at the top of the management agenda . Not at the bottom where it gets bumped off when time runs out . The CIO and her management team need to take an active interest in customer satisfaction scores , trends , response rates , how team scores compare to each other , the themes that are emerging from customer feedback , and the progress being made on service improvement initiatives .
Recognises and rewards customer-focused behaviour . When the CIO visibly recognises individuals and teams for providing great service , it shows everyone that customercentricity is truly important .
Democratises customer feedback and insights . A rookie mistake , when it comes to measuring customer satisfaction , is using it to calculate a monthly score which then gets buried on page 16 of a monthly management report . Customer feedback , themes ( what are we great at , what we suck at ), and scores need to be shared with everyone in IT .
“ The role of a leader is not to come up with all the great ideas . The role of a leader is to create an environment in which great ideas can happen ”
~ Simon Sinek , Author ‘ Start With Why ’ & ‘ Leaders Eat Last ’
If your CIO is not already on board , you need to win her over . To quote Forrester Research …
“ Every successful transformation we studied began with a customer experience epiphany by a CxO . If that realisation hasn ’ t happened yet , CX pros can help create the spark of inspiration with executives ”.
Here ’ s some tips for helping to create that spark of inspiration :
Tip 1 - Establish a “ coalition of the willing ” with your colleagues . This is what John Kotter advocates in his excellent book ‘ Leading Change ’. Find people around who are open to change and invite them to join you in creating a movement that inspires and infects those around them .
Tip 2 - Show your CIO that customer-centric practices work . Make some changes and actually prove they ’ ve had a positive impact . Emphasise whatever benefits resonate most with your CIO . What ’ s important to her ? Measurement ? Productivity ? Improving service ? Saving money ?
Tip 3 - Avoid describing what you ’ re doing as being a “ better way ”. Describe it as an “ alternative way ”. And allow your CIO to get the credit for any improvements !
# 2 THREE LISTENING POSTS
The foundation for a customer-centric culture is plenty of timely customer feedback .
There are lots of different ways to collect feedback , such as electronic surveys , focus groups , and interviews . We ’ re going to focus on surveys because they ’ re by far the most cost effective .
Surveys enable you to get feedback from large numbers of people , in a short amount of time , and for the lowest cost . We recommend collecting customer feedback via three ‘ listening posts ’:
1 . Transactional surveys . 2 . Relationship surveys . 3 . Compliments and complaints .
Practical Tips
What can you do without leadership ? Without CIO leadership , you will not be successful in becoming customercentric . If you go it alone , it will be difficult and any success you do achieve will be short-lived .
Net Promoter is a set of practices for collecting and acting on customer feedback . It provides a practical , effective and customer-friendly way to do both transactional and relationship surveys . In case you ’ re not familiar with Net Promoter , let ’ s start with a one minute intro …
11 itSMF Bulletin — November 2017