Customer Service 101

“Customer is always right”, this is the phrase that we always hear in most businesses. For me, in case to case basis, this is not true. There are customers that are not right for your business or service. And in some cases, customers may tend to abuse you, and be more demanding of the service that he wanted you to deliver.  Like what happened in our previous account in IBM Global Process Services, we named it Whitney account. Whitney’s line of business is online marketing. The requirement that the account needs is a fast internet connection because they are using Citrix to connect to their servers.

We haven’t encountered any problem on this account during its first month. They have a smooth and productive operation. Then, after several months, the account experienced a lot of outages, and reported many Sev-1 incidents because of slow internet connection. The incident is repetitive and frequently happened every other week.

Since the reported problem is internet connection, we typically troubleshoot the problem by using the Speedtest.net website. And then we conduct continuous ping and use trace route to their servers. We also have a ping plotter tool to help our Network Team to trace the problem. Upon checking on our end, we do not find any problems, and we still provide the bandwidth requirement for the account. And then, we found out that the incident was caused by one of their servers. However, the client insisted that the Whitney servers are functioning properly, and they do not have problems in connecting to that server. They claimed that the problem is in our end. The client demanded for an increase in bandwidth, and since GPS cares for its clients, they gave what the client has required.  But still, the problem still persisted, and they always deny that the problem was in their end. The management has decided to close this account and be replaced by another account. Forlornly, the Whitney account lasted for about a year.

Customer Service is a series of activities designed to enhance the level of customer satisfaction – that is, the feeling that a product or service has met the customer expectation. Before we can provide the best customer service to our clients, here are the first steps that you should track:

Step 1: First Impression Last

In order to entice customers, you must impress them by your credibility, as a great employee and as a great company. Make sure that you are ready to present and prove to them that you can deliver the service that they want.

Step 2: Courtesy Counts

As an adult, you are not going to receive constant praise for being courteous, but people will appreciate these behaviors. When you act courteously, you send a positive and powerful message. When you make a conscious effort to use courtesy words and phrases, they will soon become a natural part of your vocabulary and personality.

Partner for Client's Success

Step 3: Attitude is Everything

Customer service is all about human relationship – how you go about helping others to provide their needs as customers. To do this successfully requires the right attitude. That is, an attitude that is positive and sincere, thriving to give your best to assist your customers.

Step 4: Doing the Right Thing – Ethical Issues

Always be honest. Do the right thing. Do what you say you will when you say you will, and be accountable for your actions.

After taking these steps, you should consider familiarizing the Three Key Elements in Customer Service:

1. Expand Your Definition of Service

“Service” should provide the customer with more than a product or action taken on his/her behalf. It should provide satisfaction. In essence, the customer should walk away pleased at the result of the transaction – not just content but actually happy. A happy customer will continue to be a buying customer and a returning customer.

2. Who are Your Customers?

Customers, buyers and clients want to pay a fair price for quality service or products, and feel satisfied they have paid for a service/product and received what they have paid for in return. They also want someone to take care of them. They need someone to understand their needs and help answer them. They need someone to hold their hands and walk them through a process. Customer service starts with the ability to listen to the customer and find out through polite questioning what he/she needs or wants.

The other most important aspect to do is to listen to what the customer is saying. If people do not understand what is motivating the customer, they will not be successful in handling them. Do research on customers, their habits, and what they want and expect.

3. Develop a Customer Friendly Approach

One commonality among all companies or organizations that provide good service is the development of a system and attitude promoting customer friendly service.

Two critical qualities to the “Customer Friendly Approach” are communications and relationships.

And then in providing customer service you must do the following approach:

1. Respond to Clients As Soon As Possible

Check and answer your email regularly. Make sure that your phone is active, and reachable.

2. Keep Clients Updated

Make sure that your customers are well-informed about their account through reports. If you’re experiencing trouble with something, let them know right away. It shows that you’re keeping them in the loop and that you have things under control. If it’s something major, communicating your concern right away allows clients to plan for possible delays in the project’s completion.

3. Go The Extra Mile

If a client asks for you to do something that truly won’t cost you a lot in time and income, you have the option of going the extra mile and doing it for them. Not only will this result in an indebted and happy client, it can also go a long way in terms of keeping yourself in their radar for future projects.

4. Fix Your Mistakes

If you did something that didn’t end up working, you should repair it. A quick way to lose a client forever is not admitting that you are at fault and not fixing your own mistakes. You should always strive for a high-quality output; it shows that you have a high level of standards in your craftsmanship.

Not taking responsibility of your own blunders is a sure-fire way of gaining a bad business reputation. Transparency is important in any business; service work is no different.

5. Listen To Your Clients

It’s important to listen to what your clients are communicating to you. Understand what they are saying and ask for clarifications on things that might be ambiguous. Clients might be unfamiliar with certain terminologies in our profession, and what you think they mean might be different to what they actually mean.

6. Keep Your Promises

Reliability is one of the keys to any good relationship, and good customer service is no exception. If you say you’re going to do something, make sure you do it. It’s part of being a professional. If you need more time on something, you should let them know as soon as possible, not after you’ve already missed the deadline. Honoring your commitments is very important.

7. Don’t confuse clients with jargons

Try to explain whatever the problem is as best as you can without making the client feel stupid. When proposing a solution, make sure you state it in terms they understand. You could use analogies that are relevant to them.

8. Be Patient

I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve exhausted my patience on my clients. But I’ve never actually showed them my agitation. If you feel like the client is overstepping their boundaries, let them know in a cordial and professional manner. You just don’t want to start yelling and cursing at the people you make a living off of. Maintain professionalism at all times.

9. Know Everything You Need To Know

You are a paid expert. Someone is giving you their hard-earned money to do something they believe you have a high level of mastery of. You need to keep yourself up-to-date with the profession and always be ready to answer questions your client needs to know. If you exhibit signs that you don’t know your craft inside out, you risk the chance of ruining your professional reputation.

10. Put Yourself in Their Shoes

If you were in their shoes and were being treated the way you’re treating them, would you enjoy that experience? If so, you’re doing a good job. If not, you probably want to get a little better. It’s important to constantly evaluate the way you communicate with others. Our profession is heavily reliant on communication skills.

We should remember that the Customer is King. In any product’s design, production, distribution and marketing, we should have one central focus at the core of all decision-making: the customer. Without them, your business will not exist. We must give our best to serve and pleased them.

IBM believes that customers are very important.  An IBMer like me is a “Partner for Client’s Success”.  When you approach a customer in a partnership, and wanting to have a long term relationship, what happens is that the services or products become a natural by-product of the relationship. Learning what the customers want from you, having an appreciation for their business needs, understanding their business challenges, really getting underneath the covers of what their businesses is about becomes part responsive how you conduct yourself, and how to win for both the customer and IBM.

Effective communication is relevant in Customer Service, and communicating with clients builds a good relationship. In effective client relationship, we should focus on fixing the customer, and not just fixing the problem. Fixing the client is much broader, it also includes fixing the problem, and it talks about miniature that the client has the right skills so that they have the right processes in place, and they have the right people to solve the problem.

Most clients experienced the IBM brand through the IBMer, and it’s not just a single IBMer, it’s actually the whole team of IBMer. With partnering with the client’s success, it’s really important what role that you are playing within the team, and to ensure that you can deliver confidently that particular role, and be consistent in delivering the attributes, and the characters in the IBM Values.

I Think, I Work, and Therefore I Am an IBMer

Cogito Ergo Sum is a famous philosophical statement proposed by Rene Descartes, which literally means “I think, therefore I am”. He used to prove his own existence by claiming that his ability to form thoughts made him a real and living human being. It means that “someone is wondering whether or not he or she exists”.

The IBMers -  IT Team

I used to remember this statement whenever I am in a workplace during my early days in IBM. There are moments that I’m asking myself, “Why am I doing this and that? Why a person like me is required to work? Why is someone else asking me to do this and that?” I’m wondering if IBM really appreciates my efforts.

Allan, Olive and Karlo, with the IT Service Delivery Managers

And then, I saw an IBMer wearing an IBM jacket with a slogan stating “Working Hard to Earn These Stripes”.  I recognized that the word “stripes” pertains to the logo of IBM. I found out that this employee is already on his fifth year in IBM.  I asked him “How’s working with the Big Blue?” And then he said, “I will not answer your question, because I want you to find out what it means to be an IBMer”. He leaves me wondering and thinking about how he responds to my question. For me, it’s vague, and I wish that he will answer me in a usual or in a different way. Perhaps, he wanted me to explore rather than to make his own personal review about the company.

Then, I began exploring IBM, about its core values and culture, the company’s history, the functions of departments and offices, how to reach my goals, how’s like to be well-known in IBM, and how will my journey with IBM become worthwhile.

I realized that each of the departments has its own function that supports an organization. Within that department there are many people working together to achieve a certain goal. Imagine if one department is missing, or is not functioning properly, I don’t think IBM will stay and live in the industry for 100 years. It’s like a human body, if one body part is missing, for example, a leg, and then it will be difficult for you to stand up on your own. I began appreciating my role in the IT department as a back office and production support. IBM has chosen me because the company knew that I have a potential which they cannot find to other person. IBM believes that I can do and perform well in my job because of the experience I gained in my past employers. IBM makes me realized that my career will be meaningful if I will start discovering my other potentials, how to maximize my capability, and be familiar with the career opportunities inside the organization.

Through IBM Career Smart, I started to track my career progress, learning, and development. I used to present my records to my manager every four months; so that he could guide me on what else will I be requiring to attain my desired career path. I seek advises to my seniors and mentors, on how to be well-known and be an effective employee of IBM. I became proactive in my job, makes my manager to became happy and satisfied on my performance, and because of this, I got promoted in the company.

Thomas J. Watson Sr.

All I can I say is earning those “stripes” is not difficult if you know what you are doing, what you want to achieve, and how to understand your role in the team. Another important thing is that, you should never stop learning. That’s the meaning of the phrase “Working hard to earn these stripes”.  

I’m very grateful to IBM, because IBM gives me a lot of opportunities, learning, and work experiences in my profession.

“We must study through listening, observing and thinking. All the problems of the world can be settled easily if men were only willing to THINK.” – Thomas J. Watson Sr.

I THINK, I WORK, and therefore I am an IBMer.

Super Mario and the New Economy

Super Mario

Finally, I finished playing Super Mario Galaxy 2 on my Nintendo Wii. I was an avid fan of Nintendo games especially Mario games when I was a kid. I saw lots of improvements of Mario; from 2D into 3D platform, from 3 power-ups up to several power-ups, from land, sea, air, up to the universe, from sports, party, and dance, adventure, and RPG games. All Mario games were became part of my childhood fancy mind and even up to now. Although Sega launched their mascot Sonic, even though he is smarter and faster, I’d still choose the mascot of Nintendo; an Italian fat guy with a red hat and a mustache, Super Mario. For me, Super Mario is more likeable than any other game super heroes.

The only thing that was left behind is the story of his adventure games. His mission is always to save Princess Peach from the Evil Bowser, King Koopa, the antagonist in the game. Maybe gamers are not diligent of patronizing this type of story. They’re considering the advancement of the game technology, on how the games are made, and not the content or the story of the game itself.

The economy is like technology. Economy has changed drastically. Way back during our ancient times, our ancestors cultivate lands by planting vegetables and fruits. Another source of their livelihood is fishing, and poultry. Earlier economy focuses more on agricultural activities. They use barter or trade system to exchange goods and services. Earlier Filipinos has a business relationship with the other Asian countries because of the barter system. Another is that, Mexicans also trade their goods to the Philippines using their ship called Galleon Trade.

The Galleon Trade

Then, as time goes by, with the emergence of the manufacturing businesses, the Industrial Era was born.  The primary tool for this era are machines for mass production.  Employees were into constructions; buildings, railways, houses, schools etc. Others were in the manufacturing; production of canned goods, garments, equipment, etc. Industrial Era is more on mechanical labor. The economic indicator is the Law of Demand and Supply. The higher the demand the lower will be the supply. The higher the supply the lower will be the demand.  

In our present day, companies are more into knowledge, skills, ideas, and expertise. Their focus is on data and information processing.  We are now in the Knowledge Era. We tend to use IT-enabled innovations to create methods and business processes. The economic indicators are globalization and standardization. Companies were keen to automation, digitalization, coopetition, and service delivery, and are focused on customer relationship management.

The New Economy is the result of the transition from a manufacturing-based economy into service-based economy. This is the full effects on social, economic, and political systems of the information and communications technologies. Information Technology has evolved into a more rich industry by providing IT-enabled services and business processes. Organizational assets are composed of tangible and intangible assets. A tangible asset also known as physical capital is consists of machines that are used in operations and production. These assets are company owned, and highly maintained. On the other hand, intangible assets are the ideas. knowledge and talents of the people. These assets are also known as intellectual capital. The sources of intellectual capital are the employees, the customers, and the organization.

The New Economy is a high-knowledge industry. Employees are now required to prove and show their knowledge and expertise through professional certifications, not only in technical but also in managing Information Systems. This will give an edge to a company apart from their competitors. 

The New Economy is the new face of the industry.  New Economy is an economy where business firms have learnt to take advantage of both ICT revolution and globalization of business activities in ways which improve productivity. With its three major components: hardware (primarily computers) that processes the information, the communication systems that acquire and distribute information, and the software which, with human intervention, manages the entire system.

The New Economy is the New Super Mario game that we must be getting involved with. We must take advantage of it, and as it continuously evolving and changing, we must do our best to acclimatize and become part of it.

Informal Group of Workers in an Organization – A Total Misconception

Informal group of workers is a hot topic during our debate last Saturday. It was started with the statement uttering that “Management should discourage informal group of workers in an organization.” Our group agreed that the answer should be “Mostly False” whereas Group 1’s answer is “Mostly True”.

For us, informal group of workers are those employees that are outsourced by another company, or we often say as “under agency”. The other group’s interpretation is that, informal group of workers are those workers which are members of a laborer’s union. Workers that are against the organization, and do not agree on its rules and regulations. That’s why they have preferred to answer the statement as “Mostly True”. Our answers don’t match because we have a different definition of the informal group of workers.

And then, our professor interrupted our debate, and he explained what informal group of workers really is. Informal group of workers is a group of individuals who are active in extra-curricular activities/organizations inside or outside of the company.  An informal group may have written or unwritten rules and doesn’t encompasses company’s policies.

Informal group of workers should not be discouraged in an organization. Extra-curricular activities enhance the individual’s creativity. It promotes employee’s talents, ideas, and services that are beneficial for the community.

Informal groups exist in almost every organization. They are as real as the formal organization structure, but function independent of it. With their own leaders, values and behaviors, they can exhibit strong cohesion - group members will assist and support each other. In return, they expect loyalty to the group and its norms.

I identified myself as part of the informal groups because I’m a member of three IT organizations, and two choral groups, though all my affiliations are outside of IBM. I wish I could also join IBM Club in the future. 

I would like to take this opportunity to introduce my affiliations, and their functions/roles in our society.

Here are my affiliations:

                                                                                   

IT Organizations

     1. Philippine Computer Society

Philippine Computer Society is a premiere organization of information technology professionals with over 700 members nationwide. PCS recognizes the invaluable contribution of IT to the advancement of our nation.

Through its activities, PCS actively encourages all who are interested in or professionally involved in IT, to join the PCS. With its vision of continually pursuing excellence in the IT profession, PCS members will be assured of the advancement of promotion of their individual careers.

   

     2. Wikimedia Philippines

   

     Wikimedia Philippines is a chapter of the Wikimedia Foundation (WMF) serving the Philippines and Filipino communities abroad. In line with its aims and objectives, the organization hope to promote and defend the use of free media and content in the Philippines, as well as those made by Filipinos on other countries.

  

     3. Philippine Information Technology Organization

      

      Phil-IT Org is a group of IT Professionals and Developers who are enthusiastic and passionate about technologies, learning, and sharing.

  

Choral Groups

     1. Bukas Palad Online Community Choir - attends mass services every 2nd Sunday of the odd months in Our Lady of Pentecost Parish in Loyola Heights, Quezon City. We conducted outreach program once a year in “Bahay ni Maria – Home for the Aged and Street Children” in Laguna.

      2. Alay Himig Chorale – attends mass services every 1st Sunday of the even months in EDSA Shrine.

Bukas Palad Online Community Outreach in Bahay ni Maria

Bukas Palad Online Community Choir in Our Lady of Pentecost Parish

As we celebrate the 75 years of IBM in the Philippines this July 2012, we are encouraged to participate in a series of employee engagement activities in a meaningful way. We have “Voices for a Cause” concert which will be held on July 19 in Eastwood City, Bagumbayan, Quezon City. This event was organized by the IBM Club. A portion of the proceeds will go to 10 MOVES, a program by the Department of Education, which aims to build 10,000 classrooms in 10 months across the country. This event will showcase IBM talents as they perform on stage.

On July 21, we will be having our “One IBM Service Marathon for Education”. This will personalized our mission to be truly essential to communities, where IBMers will be deployed across and beyond Metro Manila to help various programs that aim to better the state of education for the Filipino youth, in and out of school.  Activities include Mentoring (Iskul Blue-Cool); Rehabilitation and refurbishment of classrooms/ school grounds (Brigada Eskwela), Outreach for out-of-school street kids in Cavite (Kariton Klasrum); Reading Program (Read to Lead) and KidSmart turnover to select public schools and non-governmental organization.

Soft Skills VS Hard Skills – What Really Matters?

While we were discussing this topic during our debate, I recalled a story shared by our professor during my college days. This is about the two guys who are applying for an IT job position in an international company. Both of them have a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Engineering but they came from different universities. The first guy is from AMA Computer University, and the other one is from De La Salle University.

The head hunter can’t decide which of the two will be considered for the IT position. By the way, the IT position is Systems Engineer. They were given an IT project scenario and they have given an opportunity to demonstrate their expertise. The AMACU graduate made a schematic diagram which comprises servers and network architectures, and since it was proven that AMAers are the best in IT technical skills, no doubt, and I’m very proud of that. That’s why it was so easy for him to do such project. On the other hand, the DLSU graduate wasn’t able to complete his work, and he is having difficulty in creating diagrams out of the given scenario. And then their time was up, and they were required to explain their work.

The student from AMACU was called and he was given enough time to defend his work. But unfortunately, he wasn’t able to explain his work. Although he is confident that his work is correct, he remained silent for the whole session. He also wasn’t able to answer the panelists’ questions correctly. On the other hand, the DLSU student was able to explain the work of the AMACU student. He didn’t use his schematic diagram because he knew that it was not correct, and incomplete. He decided to use the schematic diagram of the AMAer, and he explained it well in the panelists. Every questions raised by the panelists were answered correctly, and flawlessly. The panelists were happy and convinced about his presentation. Now, guess who was considered for the job position? Of course, the DLSU graduate. Ouch!!! We’re such a loser!!! : (

Being technically expert is good. However, technical skills are easy to observe. Technical skills are operational. You can acquire these skills on your job itself through experience. On the other hand, soft skill or people skills are hard to observe. They are needed for work and for everyday life. 

Way back 3 years ago, when I’m just starting at IBM. I can’t understand why IBM has a lot of soft skill trainings compared to technical trainings. In my point of view, I recognize that IBM is an IT company, and this will attest that IBM must provide more technical trainings than soft skill trainings. “Do I really need soft skills in my profession?” I asked myself. While browsing our corporate website, I was navigated to read about the IBM competencies, and I found out that I was wrong. Technical skills are not reckoned to gain the IBM competencies, and because of this, I started to enroll in our soft skills training programs.

These are the soft skills training programs in IBM; it was categorized with the 9 IBM Competencies:

IBM COMPETENCIES

        1.       Build Mutual Trust

a.       IBM Values and Building Trustworthiness

        2.       Act with a Systematic Perspective

a.       Time Management

b.      Conflict Management

c.       Stress Management

d.      Project Management for Non-Project Managers

        3.       Collaborate Globally

a.       How to make Collaboration Work

b.       Make Your Contacts Count

        4.       Embrace Challenge

a.       Managing from Within: Self-Empowerment

b.      Setting Goals and Objectives

c.       Problem Solving and Decision Making Skills

        5.       Partner for Client’s Success

a.      Customer Service 101

b.      Leading a Customer Focused Team

        6.      Influence through Expertise

a.      Discovering Your Strengths

b.      Steps in Creating Your Most Successful Self

        7.       Continuously Transform

a.      Creativity and Innovation

b.      Adapting To Change

c.      Coping with Criticisms and Feedbacks

        8.       Communicate for Impact

a.      Effective Presentation Skills 101: Build Your Presentation

b.      Effective Presentation Skills 102: Double Your Impact

c.      Effective Presentation Skills 103: Optimize Your Presentation

d.     Grammar Refresher (GSpa)

e.     Effective Business Writing

        9.       Help IBMers Succeed

a.      Business Coaching

b.      Being Effective Team Member

Through these IBM competencies, I have learned that soft skills are more important than technical skills. “Soft skills really matters. Soft skills are the greatest!”