Looking Glass Land - Part 3

The following is the final (Part 3) of a three part article by Perry Been, Public Sector Services Director.

In Lewis Carroll’s (Charles Lutwidge Dodgson) sequel to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865), Through the looking Glass, and What Alice Found There (1871), we find young Alice pondering what the world is like on the other side of a mirror's reflection. Climbing up on the fireplace mantel, she pokes at the wall-hung mirror behind the fireplace and discovers, to her surprise, that she is able to step through it to an alternative world, the Looking-Glass Land.

After spending 18 ½ years in the public service arena, with the last 9 ½ of those years serving as the Deputy Director of the State Energy Conservation Office (SECO), I now find myself in Looking-Glass Land working in the private sector for DMI Entegral Solutions. I enjoy telling folks that I am doing the same thing I did for the State: I’m dealing with the same end-users, but now I can tell them what I really think. While said tongue-in-cheek, there is a lot of truth in that statement and I would like to share just a few things that I have learned and observed during the past 24 months of my life in Looking-Glass land.

Click here for Looking Glass Land - Part 1
Click here for Looking Glass Land - Part 2

Lesson 3 – Customer service is hard work, but it is the best part.
It will be difficult to write this without coming across as “prideful in my humility”, but I am going to give it a shot.  Those who read this just have to trust that there isn’t a prideful bone in my body. I try every day to be the best that I can be, given the limited abilities that God has chosen to bless me with, (Oops… now I suppose I am portraying “false humility”…), but I am never satisfied with my performance.  I suppose the lessons I learn about my industry, career, and myself are enough of a reward.  I am digging a hole; I better shut up and write.

When I was at SECO, I watched people that I knew in customer service roles with a critical eye.  Some did a very good job, while I can think of a few examples of really poor customer service.  I remember thinking about how important it was, but I honestly didn’t know what good service actually involved, how hard it would be, or how easy it could be to end up accidentally giving the poor service that I had self-righteously judged.  In the Looking Glass Land, I have come to appreciate the people I observed give good customer service, much like an amateur golfer appreciates how easy the pros make it look.  I know how hard it really is, and the fact that they make it look so effortless is very impressive.

So what is good customer service to Perry Been?  Unfortunately, I don’t have a fancy definition; but I think I know what the ingredients are, at least for me, to cause good service to come out of the other end.  I believe those key ingredients to be the following:

1. A genuine caring for the person you are serving;
2. An understanding of what is required as a servant; and,
3. A willingness to do what is required.

While each of the ingredients seems simple, I contend that they are indeed very difficult.  The proof is all around us.  If it was easy, we would never have occasion to get mad when we are on the phone with the satellite TV provider, or when the flight attendant snaps at us, or when we are trying to get an answer to a computer problem.  Furthermore, I think there is more to each ingredient than meets the eye.  Here is a taste of how I look at it:

Ingredient 1: A genuine caring for the person you are serving

Notice that this ingredient wasn’t worded “caring about the account” or “caring about the relationship.” I believe that is where a lot of mistakes are made.  Many subscribe to the “enlightened self interest” thought process that hypothesizes that if we do what is best for others, it will be best for ourselves; therefore we should do what is best for others.  While I find it hard to argue with, I would rather think of it as doing what is best for a person because it is the right thing to do.  If we always view other people as human beings, and not accounts or some form of nebulous “relationship” that we have to protect, the outcome is noticeably different.  I can tell when someone cares more about my wallet, or being tied to me in some way than simply caring about me.

Ingredient 2: An understanding of what is required as a servant

There is a big difference between what is required as a servant and what many people think is required of a servant.  It isn’t good enough to be cordial, check in every now and then, and offer lunch once a month.  A servant understands the emotional needs of his Client, as well as the physical needs. He understands that sometimes they “don’t know what they don’t know” and he will have to help.  He understands that there is always a tinge of “buyer’s remorse” when the Client second guesses his decision, and he will have to be there. He understands that his Client will sometimes get conflicting information from random sources, and he will have to hold his hand through it.  He understands that a Client will have internal battles within his own organization that cause anxiety, and he will need to help him through.  He understands that the Client will need constant reassurance, even when the decision is logical and based on sound information.  In short, he simply understands.

Ingredient 3: A willingness to do what is required

Lastly, and most importantly, a servant serves.  That requires a setting aside of yourself and putting others first.  I believe that most people that fail at customer service fail because of a lack of will.  The path of least resistance is to self-serve.  It is easy to feed yourself; it is humbling to feed someone else.

So there it is. The best part of all is that I actually enjoy it. I get more out of serving and making people feel taken care of than I do any other part of my job. I know the definition is homemade, and overly simplified, but it works for me. In reality, the three ingredients are tied together in such a way that you can’t have one without the others. It starts and ends with a decision to be humble. What a great quality; what a great challenge. How will you put this into practice?