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Guest Opinion
Is It Armageddon For Customer Service?
By Bill Kalmar, retired
Aug. 26, 2005 - You see and hear them everyday –
signs and commercials heralding that “Customer Service Is #1” or “We
Treat You Like Family” or how about “The Customer Is Always Right”. The
other day I came across a particularly revealing motto: “We’re Better
Than We Used To Be!” Whatever the slogan or motto, as consumers we
expect extraordinary customer service and frankly, if you are like me,
retired and on a fixed income, you want to experience customer service
beyond your expectations and you want those services and products to fit
your budget. And you look for “senior discounts.”
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Aug. 1, 2005 - Many senior citizens approach their
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Some organizations have come to the realization
that to differentiate themselves from the competition, extraordinary
customer service has to become the norm. That means having articulate,
well-trained staff who are congenial and empowered to make customer
service decisions without having to confer with management.
Unfortunately, some organizations have such a stringent set of
guidelines in place that there is no flexibility for staff to respond
imaginatively to consumer complaints or problems. These rigid or
impenetrable processes are the reason that customers respond by using
their feet and departing from the premises, never to return.
Recently I encountered a situation in customer
service that is beyond belief. It is the Armageddon of customer service.
Let me explain.
Our daughter Cathy was given a pajama set as a
present during an illness. Unfortunately she preferred a smaller size
and asked me to return it to a major nationwide department store – not
for a refund but to exchange it for the same set in a smaller size.
Armed with the gift bag and the pajamas I approached the Customer
Service Department and described my dilemma. The clerk graciously
pointed me to the counter containing the pajamas and I obtained a
smaller size and returned to the counter.
To my surprise, astonishment, incredulity,
bewilderment and frustration, the clerk informed me that I owed $6. It
seems that the pajamas were purchased on sale for $14 and since I did
not have a gift receipt (and frankly in my opinion, most people do not
have a gift receipt when returning an item) and since the pajama set was
now at the full price of $20, I was responsible for paying the
difference. My calm but firm protestations to the clerk went unheeded
because I was informed that “this is the procedure and we don’t deviate
from that procedure ever!”
Let’s examine this ridiculous rule for a moment: if
you try to exchange an item for the same exact item but in an alternate
size, you are responsible for paying the difference if it is no longer
on sale. Explaining to the clerk that the returned pajamas could be sold
again for full price and that the store was extracting an additional $6
from me elicited a similar response of some procedural mumbo jumbo.
Sure, it was only $6, but what if she had received a riding lawn mower
in a color that clashed with the interior of her garage and it was
purchased on sale and the regular price was now a difference of $150?
Well, enter the store manager and assistant
manager. Coupled with the clerk in my transaction, I was dealing with a
three-headed monster all babbling incoherently about processes,
procedures and rules. My response was this: if a procedure is in place
and if that procedure is never broken or altered, then management is not
needed since in my opinion the role of management should be to review
processes that are detrimental to customers and to sales, and then
intervene and make changes. If that is not the case, then management can
be eliminated since only clerks are needed to comply with these
unalterable rules.
That stance on my part evidently either made sense
or they were seeking a way to move me through the exit doors. In any
event they spent the next 15 minutes attempting to override the system
to give me $6. When I suggested that one of them just give me $6 out of
their own pocket and then override the system later brought another look
of consternation and indignation from the three headed monster.
My final retort centered on dividing their three
salaries into the twenty minutes spent resolving this “very intricate
transaction” and determined that the company just spent close to $23 to
resolve my $6 dilemma. How many companies would tolerate such
shortsightedness?
This episode illustrates a need for customer
service personnel and management to exercise a bit of common sense when
dealing with customers even if it means deviating slightly from their
rigid processes. At times, senior citizens are reluctant to question or
challenge store policies. Store personnel might then not be as flexible
with policies if seniors remain reticent and not complain. Others speak
up and thus obtain concessions.
The goal of customer service should be to “Wow”
customers and not make them feel like they are on game show – if you
fail to adhere to their rules, you lose! In this instance I felt like I
had just experienced a segment of the TV program “Survivor”!
 About
Bill Kalmar
>
Former Director of the Michigan Quality Council (1993-2003)
> Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Program Examiner (1996-1997)
> Baldrige Board of Overseers (Appointed to three-year term by Secretary
of Commerce)
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