CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
Anti Founder’s
Syndrome Customer
Experience
By Carolyne Gathuru
B
usiness
growth
is
exciting.
Irrespective of an organization’s
categorization be it at start up
level, a micro SME, an SME or listed as
one of the blue chip firms, when growth
targets are met there’s great celebration.
What differs somewhat is what the
different organizations have on their
strategic dashboards as growth indicators
with varying KPIs recorded as: growing
the bottom line, meeting financial targets
set over a period; geographical growth
and expansion into different regions of
operation; increase in human capital
within the organization and the fleshing
out of the org structure; partnerships
that add value towards shared end goals;
product diversification from the original
offerings; or increased customer uptake
both in number and customer groups.
Whatever the growth achievements
though, what remains for all organizations
to be sensitive about is to ensure that
quality does not get compromised in
stimulating creation of growth….
Organizations
are
dependent
on
customers - no customers, no growth, no
organization. It is of importance therefore
to ensure customer acquisition and
retention. Provision of excellent customer
service that results in delightful customer
experiences is a low cost solution to spike
growth. Chasing growth needs to focus
on meeting and exceeding customer
expectations in order to deliver results,
and happy customers are an organization’s
pot of gold.
However, keeping customers happy
through the entire growth spectrum,
Great business plans have fallen and
been sacrificed at the altar of terrible
customer service, and terrible service is
given by teams that care not for the or-
ganization’s vision mission and values.
To progress beyond the founder and
to have the staff invest in delivering
growth that is sustainable, they need to
have vested interests in the possibility
of a bright future for both themselves
and the organization.
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requires determined effort. In the growth
cycle, when organizations are starting
up, service excellence takes center stage.
The organization bends backwards to
draw customers in and keep them, with
the understanding that every customer
interaction informs the rest, that customers
will bring other customers and this will
translate to the growth and sustainability.
The customer service delivered at this
point is usually very deliberate all through
the customer journey, from inception
to purchase or service delivery, and the
experience is often seamless.
When organizations get their customer
service right and the anticipated growth
starts setting in, the business begins to
transition into a different playing field.
This stage heralds its own challenges
as progress towards becoming what is
commonly known as a ‘corporate’ is
witnessed.
Customers with whom the business
started off, start to bear the brunt of
this growth. The excellent and often
personalized service that was provided at
the start commences wearing off. Those
that walked with the organization through
the trenches and soldiered on believing in
the dream that it promised, and supported
it when it needed the support most, get
relegated to second place. This happens
with organizations across the spectrum
both in the manufacturing and service
industry.
With growth comes the challenge of
meeting customer needs in the same
way as before, given increased numbers
and the inability for the organization to