ТОПИК - Happy staff is not the full answer

ТОПИК 

Happy staff is not the full answer

Happy staff is not the full answer

Business gurus have been quick to highlight studies claiming to show that customer service is related to management style. These studies claim that the way service staff deal with their customers reflects clearly how they themselves are managed. Employees express attitudes, behavior and emotions towards customers that reflect their own feelings towards their work, and these sentiments are determined by their managers. Customers then «сatch» these employee attitudes. This leads to the belief that employee morale is closely, directly and positively related to customer service satisfaction.

     Researchers have pointed out that even employees’ own perceptions of the quality of the service they provide are related to both their personal job satisfaction and productivity. They could be wrong but the theory has three principles:

   • When organizations treat their employees well, the employees treat their customers accordingly.

    •When organizations and the work group have policies and practices aimed at maintaining service quality, customers will be happier with those services.

    •The more a company’s employees have contact with customers, more its morale and organisational policies affect customer satisfaction.

The theory holds that the customer is king and needs superb treatment by service staff. Staff at the customer interface need to be supported, trained and directed by their supervisors to ensure high-quality service. All people in the organisation should be directed to this end. So the Chief Executive’s job is to help, support and advise the board, whose job it is to help, support and advise senior managers. Thus all employees are support staff, attempting to support those vitally important staff who come into contact with the people who pay the salaries: customers.

     All service organisations invest in trying hard to get excellent customer service. Airlines, hostels, restaurants and so on conduct serious selection and training to get the sort of person who thrives in customer service. Stable extroverts of sufficient- though not sparkling- intellect seem ideal. Managers rely on many courses, feedback and incentives to keep up standards. And they are aware of the role of demonstrating good behaviour.    

   But managers in the service industry also know that other factors beyond their control affect staff morale, mood and service. Irascible, demanding, downright rude customers can sap the morale of staff, no matter how well they are treated by their managers. Customer service may be emotional labour. There is the same level of exhaustion. And as customers demand more and more for less and less, the customer- facing staff bear the brunt.