Tag Archive for: sustainability
Many companies, particularly in the retail industry, face a high turnover of staff. In any industry, high employee turnover is a problem, even more so in industries where the majority of employees are on the frontline and deal with customers directly.
High employee turnover comes with a host of issues, reasons, and several solutions. We’ve boiled it down to the basics:
The 2 Big Issues
1. No Consistency for the Customer
Customer service has many facets. One of the elements that help improve customer satisfaction is consistency: people enjoy familiarity. A customer who walks into his or her favourite shoe shop and is greeted by a familiar face – that of a long-time employee – who remembers their preferences and needs is a loyal customer.
In the retail industry, this is tricky; many employees view retail as an entry job – one that will springboard them through some work experience into a ‘real job’. Gone are the days when walking into a small community fashion shop would earn you a personal greeting and a ‘…how did that dress work for your son’s graduation?’. Customers crave that type of personalised interaction – it makes them feel valued – but it is incredibly difficult to give them when high employee turnover is in play; it’s not exactly possible to train new employees in individual customer profiles.
2. Continuous, Inefficient, and often Expensive Training Requirements
With high employee turnover, companies face the issue of having to train newcomers constantly and consistently. As a result, training models are often designed and used without adapting them to changing situations. Why waste time building new models when this batch of employees is just going to leave anyway? In a sense, many businesses give up because they can’t keep up: it becomes more time-efficient to just let new employees use the current, un-personalised training system.
This is where new employees face ancient PowerPoint presentations with outdated information. They see that the company hasn’t invested any time or energy into these training packets and switch off – why should they engage with this material if the company hasn’t? And so the cycle continues.
The 2 Big Reasons behind High Employee Turnover
1. No Engagement and Motivation
We touched on this a little already: if an employee doesn’t feel engaged with a business for whatever reason, they’re going to get bored. Employee loyalty, like customer loyalty, isn’t something that just happens: it has to be earned over time. This means that businesses have to put in the effort to engage and motivate their staff.
2. No Support or Management
One of the biggest reasons why high employee turnover occurs is due to management issues. Management, as most of us know, is an artform. A good manager is worth their weight in gold; a bad one much less so. Bad management, or no management, will send employees packing without a backwards glance. Employees want – and need! – to feel like they are being supported; they don’t want to feel undervalued or overworked. It is a manager’s job to dispense advice, constructive criticisms, and compliments in such a way that is most helpful to the employee.
The Solution
There are several ways in which a business can tackle high employee turnover. What it really boils down to is communication.
Understanding employee expectations, requirements, and issues before they come into play is vital to taking control of any employee relationship. This line of communication goes both ways, of course, allowing for a company to relay its expectations, rules, and goals to its employees so that no one operates blindly.
Several months ago, we discussed the importance of an evolving HR policy. A good HR policy will accurately reflect the needs of both the business and the employee – allowing for a dialogue between the two. This is the main, vital thing to help kerb high employee turnover.
The Inevitable
Sometimes, however, it isn’t possible to manage high employee turnover; sometimes, it’s just a fact of life. It is impossible to control everything. A company can go out of its way to increase employee engagement and motivation, and this will certainly help with the issue, but it might not be possible to stop high turnover completely. This can be due to the nature of the work – perhaps it is a high-stress job that people simply can’t handle for too long; or maybe it’s an easy entry-level job that young adults use to break into the workforce.
It’s not always possible to fix high employee turnover, but even in those cases where it remains an issue, it is possible to work with it rather than despite it.
Customer expectations? What’s the big fuss? A customer comes in, makes a purchase, goes away again, right? No big deal? We all know that it’s more than ‘no big deal’. A customer’s expectations are what we, as responsible companies, strive to meet.
What do you mean with ‘customer expectations’?
In a previous article, we discussed how customers want to be reassured that they’ve made the right choice. They want the product or service they bought from a company to meet their expectations. They don’t want to feel like they’ve lost time, been tricked, or – worse of all – wasted their money. A customer who leaves feeling used is never coming back, and they will spread the word. People are far more likely to share negative feedback than they are to share compliments.
Promising someone the stars and only coming back with a faintly glowing rock, is not the best way to get return customers. If you promise 100%, then you have to deliver 110%; that’s just the way customer service works. People want to feel special – they want their decision to use your company validated – and as a result, managing customer expectations is one of the key skill-sets required in the customer service game.
Another thing to remember is that not everyone has the same expectations. Or the same interpretation of what we, as companies, think are customer expectations.
Defining the Expectations Clearly
Last week, we talked about why knowing how to have a good conversation can empower the frontline team and drive the bottom line. It’s great to carry a good conversation; part of that is to have the same conversation. It’s not so great if the customer has a different understanding of the words that are coming from your frontline.
If a sales rep is talking about oranges and the customer is hearing apples, there’s going to be some issues!
Similarly, companies can be overzealous when it comes to promising quality. When was the last time we saw an infomercial at 3am that promised us smooth abs and great triceps in six weeks? Think back to the last advertisement you watched for a car, with the fine print warning that the clip was shot in optimal conditions and ‘real results may vary’. It’s difficult to manage customer expectations and boast the quality of your service or product.
Again, if we promise 100% then customer expectation is at least 100%. Any good customer service rep will do their best to make sure they’re giving 120%.
A Note about 100% Satisfaction
Everyone has different opinions, so how do we make sure we’re meeting customer expectations? Legally speaking, the promise of 100% satisfaction is all about the judgement of a ‘reasonable person’ [Source]. In this way, companies can protect themselves from irrational demands and unreasonable expectations.
How far do we go?
This is a good question. The answer varies depending on the practicality of the request. A customer coming into a green grocer to buy apples when there are none, is easier to please than a customer who walks into a car show demanding to buy t-shirts. Is there a practical way to meet their expectations? Then use common sense and strive to meet them! Unreasonable customer expectations? Do your best, but remember that there’s just no pleasing some people no matter how hard you try. Some people who will never be satisfied. Doesn’t mean we shouldn’t give it our best shot though.
Multicultural workplaces have become a reality. The nature of the world is that cross-cultural barriers are coming down, allowing for multiculturalism to establish itself in the workplace. Several weeks ago, we discussed the impact of globalization on businesses and their customer service experiences, today we’re going to touch on how globalization has created multicultural workplaces and what that means with regards to employee and customer relations!
The Evolution of Multicultural Workplaces
Many companies now boast a global presence. This has lead to a rise in multicultural workplaces. In an age where most of us are celebrating diversity and cross-cultural communications, this is the face of the future. Just as it made sense for Victorian explorers to hire local guides to lead them through the heart of Africa, it made sense for businesses venturing out of their comfort zones to employee people with local knowledge.
That need has evolved.
With the growth of regional and global markets, diversification of industries and the growing availability of education, companies are able to hire people based on their merits rather than their place of birth.
There are still hurdles to be crossed, racial issues to be fought, and it’s certainly not paradise on earth yet. All judgments aside, humanity has come a long way from those Victorian explorers.
Go back thirty years – chances were most Western companies would send out ‘Season’s’ Greetings’ cards to their clients and employees around Christmas and New Year’s. Meanwhile Asian companies would do the same for Chinese New Year and Thaipusam, while the Middle East would celebrate Eid al-fitr. Different regions of the world had different festivities.
Now, with the growing diversity and awareness of that diversity, many companies realize they can’t just hold to ‘their’ primary holiday season.
The Internet’s Role in Multiculturalism
This is subject is an entire thesis all by itself. We’ve all accepted that the Internet has been a vital ingredient of globalization. It has brought down borders, opened communication lines, and connected people, regions, and countries – it’s also started social movements, and not always in a good way, but we’re not here to judge today.
In short, the Internet has given the world access to itself. People now have access to each other’s cultures in a way they never did before. It’s not just about the greater awareness of different cultures, but also because, thanks to the Internet, companies don’t necessarily only deal with clients, consultants, or other companies within the borders of their nation/region.
Similarly, customers on the hunt for something specific are no longer bound to use the business down the street. Ecommerce has seen to that – can’t find something? Try eBay.
It’s Not just about Employees
The increase of multicultural workplaces isn’t just about the people who work there. Take our office, for example – we’ve got more than 15 different nationalities across our 8 offices. That doesn’t just mean a diverse cultural awareness, but more than that, it grants us – and our clients and customers! – access to different languages as well! Across our offices, we have roughly 20 languages in house. This helps us overcome language barriers that previously would have made business difficult.
Clients and customers should be able to communicate with a company on their terms, in a way that avoids misunderstandings and miscommunication. This isn’t just about language. Multicultural workplaces have an increased awareness of different customs and traditions. In Thailand, public contact is discouraged, in the Middle East offering your left hand is offensive, while in many parts of South-East Asia pointing with your index finger is the equivalent of ‘giving someone the finger’ in North America. These little bits of knowledge add up to an ability to respect different cultures which put clients and customers at ease.
The Impact of Multiculturalism on Companies
This continued evolution has allowed for multicultural workplaces to spring up all around the world, in all manner of companies, in all manner of countries. Even small businesses operating solely within borders are becoming more and more exposed to the wide world and the many cultures in it.
Where globalization has driven companies to become more competitive, the growth of multicultural workplaces has allowed for an improvement in both customer and employee experiences the world over.
Yes, there are still issues on the table: not all workplaces are as welcoming of multiculturalism as others; but the undeniable fact is that the world is moving towards global multiculturalism, and it is likely that those companies who are going to survive are the ones who can best evolve along with these social transformations.
Global reach, local roots: yes, globalization is a thing. It’s been a thing for a while. It used to be a thing we just learned about in school. Then it turned into a real thing. Ten years ago, before cloud computing and integrated email systems, it wasn’t so easy to claim to be a ‘global’ company with ‘global reach’. The big conglomerates did it, of course, like Coca Cola, Google, Apple, Microsoft, but for the smaller fish, that wasn’t entirely achievable. We tried, of course – expanding into global markets is all part of the game.
What is Globalization?
First things first, what is globalization? A quick Google defines it as:
Globalization is a process of interaction and integration among the people, companies, and governments of different nations, a process driven by international trade and investment and aided by information technology. This process has effects on the environment, on culture, on political systems, on economic development and prosperity, and on human physical well-being in societies around the world. [Source]
Great. Now what does that actually mean? In a nutshell, globalization breaks down political, cultural, and economic barriers through the development of technology. Think Pony Express.
Before the invention of the telegraph, the best means of communicating along the length and breadth of the USA involved riding ponies between relay stations. At the time, it was the best way to communicate across the country.
Now, not being able to access information or communication instantly is too painful to contemplate. Before email, offices relied on faxes, “snail mail”, and, wait for it, memos.
(Would all Gen Z readers please stop laughing, those were hard times! Also, I’ve included useful links explaining these things in case you think I’m speaking in tongues.)
Now, of course, it’s no longer just email – we’ve got Skype, Slack, Whatsapp, Facebook Messenger – and a whole host of other tools that we use to instantly communicate around the world.
The improvement in technology has allowed companies – and individuals – to view the world in a whole new way. We are no longer stuck waiting for correspondence, or for data to be transferred; we can communicate with anyone, anywhere, pretty much at any time, and this has transformed the way we do business.
And Globalization affects Customers how…?
The simple answer is: while businesses have changed the way they do business, consumers have also changed the way in which they buy products and services. Never before has such a wide segment of the population had such easy access to information. We’re now able to compare and contrast products and services in a way we never could before.
We do our homework:
In the Middle Ages, things were different. If you wanted a table, you went to the carpenter’s guild; you needed new clothes, you’d go to the weavers. It was fairly straightforward and choices were limited, not only because we didn’t have the Internet to double check prices or check if there was another weaver/carpenter in a neighboring city we could go to – but simply because we didn’t have the option to travel to another city. When you needed something, you stuck to your own market place.
Thanks to globalization, markets have expanded and we can now access imported goods, or go onto eBay and get it direct from the source (more or less). The power has shifted from the seller to the buyer. Consumers now have the ability to research their needs and find the products/services that best feed their requirements and their capabilities.
This has resulted in a necessary shift in how we approach customer service.
It’s no longer about the sales pitch:
Before, it was about selling a product. We’d walk into a electronics shop looking for a new MP3 player (again, Gen Z, bear with me here), the salesperson would materialize and talk us into buying the player that they believed would best meet our requirements at whatever price was set. Now, if we’re going into a store to buy an MP3 player – i.e. the latest smartphone – we’ve usually got a better idea of we’re after.
We’ve been online to research the differences between the latest models between brands, we’ve debating the pros and cons of Android vs. Apple with our friends. We’ve checked out reviews to see what our peers think of the technology. We’ve done all of these things before we’ve gone into buy it – assuming we go anywhere, we might as well order it online right?
Customer service representatives have to adapt to these changes. They’re no longer necessarily facing their customers – they might be dealing with people using messengers, email, social media – and they’re no longer dealing with an uninformed crowd – these people know what they want and why they want it.
We know why we want something:
A few years ago – okay, nearly half a decade ago – I walked into a local electronics store in Canberra, Australia. I wanted a new Sony Vaio laptop. I knew all the specs that I wanted. The salesman tried to talk me out of buying it but I’d done my homework and I knew what I wanted. The fact that the salesman was trying to talk me out of my decision simply because “I’d be paying a lot for a fashion accessory” (I know, I know… let’s just leave that can of worms unopened, okay?). When I told him why I wanted it I got a blank look. In his defense, I was wearing pink, had just straightened my hair, and I didn’t look anything like the gaming, computer-savvy female that I actually am.
Point being: not only do we now know what we want, we really know what we want and customer service reps have to recognize that most of us now walk into a store armed with that knowledge. A customer who walks into a shop is already 60% sure of what they’re going to buy and how much they’re going to spend on it. [Source]
Has Globalization destroyed the Customer Service Experience?
No.
Has it transformed it? Most definitely. The most successful companies in this modern age will be those that recognise the changes in consumer behavior and adapt accordingly. Instead of flooding the floor with salespeople, they may choose to set up online sales systems and delivery services. Consumers are more likely to engage online than physically come into a store to ask for information, and as a result companies now have websites, increasing number of social media accounts, and live chat options to field complaints and comments.
We are currently witnessing an evolution of the customer service experience. This evolution will integrate more technology, more 24 hour communication options, and a different approach altogether for the traditional customer service representative.
Is that it?
There are also problems with becoming a global company – customer service can suffer if you’re not prepared to take on the whole hog at once. If you’re going to take on the world, then you’re taking on the world, not just a small part of the world. The Internet has made that impossible – short of some censorship issues in certain areas of the world, all information is now accessible the world over. We can no longer count on the fact that a negative review in Australia will not be seen in the USA.
The world is a smaller place, and that’s both a good thing and a potential downfall.
Global Reach is great…what next?
I guess we’ll see. At AQ, we’ve learned that change is important to survival: if you’re not adapting you’re going to fall over. Yes, we’ve got a global presence with offices all over the world – this gives us intimate access into those markets – but we’re also aware that a global presence is only part of what it means to be a successful global company. Similarly, we recognize that the world is a great place, all in all, but you can’t forget your roots either – focusing only on a global approach is just as important as maintaining local markets and connections. Global reach, local roots.
