|
|
Establishing Customer Service Standards
As an owner of a company or manager of a department/division, maintaining a solid and consistent customer base is one of your most critical responsibilities. Given the important nature of this responsibility, it can at times become the hardest aspect of a business to manage. Whether you have a strong customer service standard or you are just starting to develop that standard, here are some suggestions to refine or create a strong customer service standard.
Vision
A vision is a brief statement of what success looks like in the future. Before designing a program or standards, the management team should establish a vision for what customer service is and what it is not. It is important that the company starts with a vision and then builds the details from there. By starting with a vision, you ensure that all of the programs and details remain focused on the original reason for providing customer service. It eliminates unnecessary programs and wasteful practices for everyone involved.
It is also important to note that the vision for each company or department might be different. You cannot take the vision of one company and try to force it to fit your culture. You can, however, use other visions to create ideas and develop your own. As this vision is created, it is important to study your customer's expectations. If the customer is expecting certain behaviors and you provide a completely different response, the customer will leave dissatisfied and your customer service model will be deemed a failure.
As the vision is created, do not build metrics into the vision. Consider the vision statement of GM: "We will earn our customers' enthusiasm through continuous improvement driven by the integrity, teamwork, and innovation of GM people." At one point, Walt Disney was quoted as saying that the customer service standard for his employees was to "make people happy." The vision should be the overall picture of what success looks like. Once this vision has been created, you can focus on the next step.
Measurements and Criteria
After a well written vision has been created, the next step is to focus on how you will measure and track whether employees are delivering good customer service. This can be accomplished in a variety of ways: customer service surveys, complaint ratios, employee feedback, repeat customer purchases, referrals, etc. Not every measurement will be effective for every organization. By selecting the most effective methods, the company can gain a clearer picture of the overall success of the program.
It is also important to remain flexible as time goes on. Just because one measurement has worked in the past does not mean that it will always remain effective. Pay attention to the ebb and flow of business and try to adjust as necessary to those demands. If you develop a new product or service, re-evaluate your measurements to ensure that you are still in line with the most efficient and effective standards.
Once the standards are in place, periodically analyze the results of those measurements and adjust as necessary. If you find that you are receiving poor responses from customers in a particular area, dig a little deeper and find what might be driving those responses. Just be careful not to over analyze the data and infer results that were not originally there.
One way to help track and report customer service statistics is to develop a program for employees to follow. A fast food restaurant in Salt Lake City, Utah built into their program that all customers were to be greeted as they walked through the door, no customer was to wait longer than four minutes to order their food, and that all orders would be delivered to the table of the customer. With those standards, the employees were measured and received regular feedback on how they were performing. "Secret customers" were invited periodically to test these standards and report back to the owner what they experienced as a customer.
Training
One of the most critical aspects of customer service standards is to gain the "buy-in" or support of the employees. When presenting the customer service program, it is important that the employees not only understand what the standards are, but why those standards exist. The employee should buy-in to the vision of customer service rather than the standards of customer service. If the employee knows and understands the vision, the standards and requirements will naturally fall in line.
The training portion of the standard can be implemented in many different ways. Kick-off meetings, regular reminders in staff meetings, posters, email reminders, etc. are all effective means to put the information and vision in front of the employees. Remember to be simple and direct with your employees. Also, by consistently following-up and reviewing the results of the measurements with employees it will help secure in their mind how they fit into the overall vision for success.
RMI has developed trainings and presentations on customer service. To schedule a training for your employees, or for help in developing your own standards into a training, please contact your RMI HR Representative.
Follow-up
The final element of creating a customer service standard is to follow-up. Periodically review the standards and data from the measurements. Encourage employees and managers to adjust as necessary and provide the means to make that adjustment. As an additional piece to following-up, it is critical to hold employees accountable to the customer service standards. Mentor and provide ongoing support to employees who periodically fall short of the standard. Help them to catch the vision and encourage their growth. If the employee consistently falls short of your expectations and standards, follow your normal disciplinary procedure. Please remember that RMI is available and willing to assist you with any type of disciplinary issues you may have that arise.
Who is a Customer?
Mahatma Gahndi was often quoted as saying: "A customer is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an interruption in our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider in our business. He is part of it. We are not doing him a favor by serving him. He is doing us a favor by giving us an opportunity to do so."
Effective and meaningful customer service is an essential piece of growing and sustaining a business. By establishing a clear and direct vision, building measurements and criteria from the vision, training employees, and by holding employees accountable through regular follow-up, a customer service standard moves from words on a page, to a meaningful approach to customer satisfaction and retention.
For additional information on customer service, please refer to the 2011 First Quarter Employee Newsletter by clicking here. For more information or help in developing a customer service standard, or for help in training employees on customer service techniques, please contact your RMI HR Representative. |
|
Notice of Employee Rights Under the
National Labor Relations Act |
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has issued a final rule requiring employers to post a notice outlining certain employee rights. The NLRB is a federal agency that acts to protect employees' rights to organize, unionize, improve wages, working conditions, and prevent unfair labor practices. The notice covers a variety of rights under these categories and can be viewed here.
The NLRB rule says that the notice must be posted conspicuously where other workplace notices are commonly displayed. If such notices are usually posted on an Internet or Intranet site, an employer must include the notice there as well. If an employer's workforce consists of 20% or more employees that speak the same foreign language, the notice must be posted in that language. If an employer fails to post the notice, the NLRB may charge the employer with an unfair labor practice.
Originally, the notice was to be posted no later than November 14, 2011. The NLRB recently extended that deadline to January 31, 2012 to give employers time to implement the new rule. Additionally, there is pending legal action, including two bills before Congress, which could delay implementation further or invalidate it altogether. RMI will continue to monitor the status of this notice and will notify you if and when it should be posted. For questions or concerns about this notice or where to post it, please contact your RMI HR Representative. |
| IRS Guidelines for Cell Phones |
On September 14, 2011, the IRS released updated information providing guidance on the tax treatment of employer-provided cell phones. The information below summarizes these revised guidelines. If you have questions about how these revisions apply to you, please contact your RMI Payroll Manager.
The updated guidelines for employer-provided cell phones were issued in response to the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 which removed cell phones from the "listed property" provisions of Code Section 274(d). This reduced the strict record-keeping requirements for employers who provide business-related cell phones to employees. The recent IRS notice clarifies that when an employer provides an employee with a cell phone "primarily for non-compensatory business reasons," both the business and personal use of the cell phone is generally nontaxable to the employee. Recordkeeping of business use will not be required by the IRS in order to receive this tax-free treatment.
What does this mean for you? If you have employees with employer-provided cell phones, the costs and charges may qualify to be tax-free. In order to qualify, the cell phones must be "primarily for non-compensatory business reasons." This standard is met if there are substantial business reasons for providing a cell phone to the employee. The IRS notice includes the following examples of when this condition is met:
- The employer needs to contact the employee at all times for work-related emergencies.
- The employer requires that the employee be available to speak with clients at times when the employee is away from the office.
- The employee needs to speak with clients located in other time zones at times outside of the employee's normal work day.
If the cell phone is actually issued as a means of providing the employee with additional compensation, to boost morale, or as a means of attracting potential employees, this is evidence that there is no "non-compensatory business reason" and the tax relief outlined in the notice does not apply.
In addition, the IRS announced in a memo that a similar method applies for employers that provide a cash allowance or reimbursement for the business use of a personal cell phone. If there are "non-compensatory business reasons" for requiring the employee to use a personal cell phone for business purposes, the reimbursements for that use may be nontaxable. For a nontaxable cell-phone to apply, however, "the employee must maintain the type of cell phone coverage that is reasonably related to the needs of the employer's business, and the reimbursement must be reasonably calculated so as not to exceed expenses the employee actually incurred in maintaining the cell phone." The reimbursement must not be in place of a portion of the employee's regular wages and cannot apply to unusual or excessive expenses.
If you have been providing taxable cell phone wages through payroll, by this time the RMI Payroll Department has already contacted you to confirm if these employees now qualify for this to be a nontaxable item. If you still have someone who may qualify for this, please contact your Payroll Manager to review the situation and confirm if they qualify. Please be aware that this should be determined on an employee-by-employee basis to ensure if each is used for substantial non-compensatory business reasons. |
Important Things You Need to Know
About the Upcoming Flu Season |
Let's start with some statistics. Most years, 5 to 20% of the U.S. population will contract the flu. Over 200,000 people are hospitalized and approximately 36,000 people die from the flu each year. Those individuals who are at high-risk for the flu include young children, people over age 50, pregnant women, people with chronic medical conditions and those who have close contact with people who are at risk for the flu such as doctors, nurses and family members.
What is the flu and how is it spread? The flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses. It can cause severe illness and even death. The flu virus is spread from person to person through coughing and sneezing. Some people can become infected by touching something with the flu virus on it and then touching their mouth or nose. You can infect others one day before you develop symptoms and for five days after you become sick.
What are the symptoms of the flu? Flu symptoms usually include a high fever, headache, extreme tiredness, sore throat, runny/stuffy nose, muscle aches and stomach symptoms including nausea and vomiting. Complications of the flu can also include pneumonia, ear and sinus infections, dehydration and can worsen chronic medical conditions.
How can I prevent the flu? The single best way to prevent the flu is to get a flu vaccination each year. There are two types of vaccines:
- The flu shot is an inactivated vaccine that is given with a needle. It is approved for use in people six months of age and older, including healthy people and those with a chronic illness.
- The nasal-spray vaccine is made with live, weakened flu viruses that do not cause the flu. It is approved for use in healthy people age 5 to 49 years who are not pregnant.
The best time to get vaccinated is in October and November, however, getting vaccinated in December or later can still be beneficial since flu season can go through May. You do not have to be in a high-risk category to get a flu vaccination each year. Anyone wanting to protect themselves from the flu should be vaccinated. The Centers for Disease Control is saying that there should be plenty of vaccine to go around this year.
If you choose not to get a flu shot this year, you can take steps to protect yourself from getting sick. These include, but are not limited to washing your hands with soap and water, avoiding close contact with people who are sick, and trying not to touch your eyes, nose and mouth.
Is there anyone who should NOT get vaccinated? Individuals with severe allergies to chicken eggs, people who have had a severe reaction to a past influenza vaccination, children younger than six months of age and those individuals with a moderate to severe illness that includes a fever should not be vaccinated without first consulting their physician.
I received a shot last year. Do I need one for this year? The viruses that cause the flu change often. As a result, the flu vaccine is updated every year. The 2011-2012 flu shots will protect against different strains than the ones given during the past seasons. It is important to remember that only specific strains of the disease can be prevented by the flu vaccine. Even if you receive the vaccine that will protect you from the most common strains of the 2011-2012 flu season, it is possible that you may contract a different strain and still become sick with some form of the flu.
What should you do if you contract the flu this season? Get plenty of rest, drink lots of liquids and take over-the-counter medications such as acetaminophen to relieve the fever and muscle aches that are commonly associated with the flu.
How RMI can help. For those employees who are enrolled in the Resource Management Employee Health Plan, RMI has set up a program through CVS/Caremark that will allow employees and their dependents, age 12 and older, to obtain their flu shot from one of the thousands of participating pharmacies across the U.S. Employees, and their dependents, will need to show the pharmacy their gold EBMS ID card in order to receive the vaccination for free. The pharmacy will bill EBMS for the entire cost of the vaccine. If your employees would like to use this new program, have them contact RMI's Benefits Department for assistance in locating a pharmacy near them. RMI will not be holding any on-site clinics this flu season due to the new program that we have put in place through CVS/Caremark.
For those employees in Washington, Group Health is now offering flu shots on a drop-in basis at all Group Health Medical Centers locations between 8:30 AM and 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday. You can also request a flu shot during a regularly scheduled appointment, or when you are picking up a prescription at a Group Health pharmacy. Non-covered employees can receive their flu shot at any of the Group Health facilities for a cost of $28.
For those employees not enrolled in one of the RMI-sponsored group health plans, you will want to check with your medical insurance carrier to determine what benefits are offered. Most major pharmacy chains are now offering the flu vaccination for a fee ranging from $25 to $30.
If you or your employees have any questions or concerns regarding this year's flu season, or how flu shots are being administered, please contact the Benefits Department at (888) 764-0200. Please note that the information in this article provides general information only and should not be construed as medical advice. You should consult a physician in regards to all matters concerning your health and the health of your family. |
| Safe Driving Tip |
| Traffic Safety Facts - School Is Open |
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Traffic Safety Facts 2007 Data - Pedestrians showed:
In 2007, one-fifth (20%) of all children between the ages of 5 and 9 who were killed in traffic crashes were pedestrians. Children ages 15 and younger accounted for 8% of the pedestrian fatalities in 2007 and 23% of all pedestrians injured in traffic crashes. Thirty-six percent of the 354 young (under age 16) pedestrian fatalities occurred in crashes between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Since 1997, 152 school-age pedestrians (younger than 19) have died in school transportation-related crashes. Over two-thirds (69%) were killed by school buses, 7% by vehicles functioning as school buses and 24% by other vehicles involved in the crashes. One-half (50%) of all school-age pedestrians killed in school transportation related crashes were between the ages of 5 and 7.
NHTSA Safety Rules for Motorists
Motorists also need to observe traffic safety rules around school buses. In every state, it is illegal to pass a school bus that has stopped to load or unload students.
Motorists must learn to stop when the "flashing signal light system" is activated. School bus drivers use this system to alert drivers that the bus is going to stop to load or unload students:
- Yellow flashing lights indicate the bus is preparing to stop to load or unload children. Motorists should slow down and prepare to stop their vehicles.
- Red flashing lights and extended stop arm indicate that the bus has stopped and that children are getting on or off. Motorists must stop their cars and wait until the red flashing lights are turned off, the stop arm is withdrawn and the bus begins moving before they start driving again.
Motorists should also observe the following traffic safety rules:
- When backing out of a driveway or leaving a garage, watch out for children walking to the bus stop or walking or bicycling to school.
- When driving in neighborhoods, especially in school zones, watch out for young people who may be thinking about getting to school but may not be thinking about getting there safely.
- Slow down. Watch for children walking in the street, especially where there are no sidewalks. Watch for children playing and gathering near bus stops.
- Be alert and ready to stop. Children arriving late for the bus may dart into the street without looking for traffic.
For more information on safe driving, please contact your RMI HR Representative. |
| Workplace Safety Tip |
| Helping Prevent Struck-by Incidents |
Things happen fast, and quite often incident-producing injuries occur because you do not have time to react before the worst happens. This is true when it comes to being "struck by" something at work. You cannot count on your ability to react, duck or move fast enough to avoid being struck and injured.
Risk Factors
According to the Liberty Mutual Workplace Safety Index, "Struck by Objects" is the fifth-leading cause of all workplace injuries. Many situations increase your risk of getting struck by something at work. Some of these are unavoidable, but knowing about high-risk situations will help you take precautions.
Some High-Risk Situations Include:
- Walking or standing underneath work being performed overhead;
- Working near materials suspended by a crane or hoist;
- Working near someone using a hammer, an air gun, a pneumatic chisel, a powder-actuated gun, saws or other hand/power tools; and
- Walking or working near mobile or moving equipment, such as forklifts, pallet jacks or conveyors.
Protect Yourself
Help protect yourself by using the following safe work habits:
- Wear the designated personal protective equipment, such as a hard hat, eye protection, gloves, safety shoes and high-visibility clothes.
- Be sure people using hand and power tools near you are aware of your presence in the area.
- Be alert to your surroundings and changing conditions.
- Maintain good housekeeping.
- Make sure work material is secure.
Help Protect Others
- Don't handle or allow coworkers to handle awkward or large loads alone.
- Take only the necessary tools up a ladder with you.
- Know who is around you before using any power or hand tools.
- Work as a team.
Things to Consider
- Are planning sessions held to establish safe job methods for all "nonroutine" tasks?
- What objects can fall and strike you while at work?
- How can you help others stay safe in work areas?
Quick Tips
- Keep aisles clearly marked and unobstructed, with adequate clearance.
- Train and supervise lift-truck operators.
- Enforce speed controls and install mirrors at blind spots to enhance visibility.
- Stabilize overhead storage.
- Avoid storing or displaying products or equipment in areas where people walk or are transported.
- Restrict access underneath work areas.
- Use equipment and power tools only with the manufacturers' guards in place.
- Maintain all equipment and tools by following the manufacturers' guidelines.
- Train workers approaching mobile equipment to always make eye contact with the driver.
For more information on prevention of struck-by accidents, please contact your RMI HR Representative. |
| To access the online Workplace Safety Training Log click here. |
|
|
|
