If there is one person who excels at creating a culture of customer service, it’s Sir Richard Branson. Orange Branson is the owner of Virgin Airlines, Virgin Mobile, and a ton of other companies. Branson actually chooses to enter businesses others avoid like the plague and cannot make money in.
But then, for Branson it’s all about the customer – and it shows. When front-line staff use “they,” instead of “we,” it’s the first clue that there are significant communication problems and other issues within the company. “They” (management, or some unnamed group) changed the policy on this or that, or “they” decided something or another. However, it also originates with management who start to claim that “they,” the front-line staff, don’t adhere to this policy or just don’t do one thing or another. But two “they” don’t make a “we.”
Branson argues that it is often a blockage of information, caring, and communication, which fosters this mindset. When Virgin Atlantic designs new interior cabins, the flight attendants are involved from day one. It creates huge pride, a sense of involvement, and caring. It also becomes a whole lot cheaper than retrofits and changes later when it turns out that the layout is unworkable for passengers or crew.
Many companies also continue to make the problem worse with more and more reliance on impersonal communications, or policies and procedures, sent by e mails as a done deal. The “how-to” improve the situation is easier, and a choice. What’s much harder is getting staff to actually start to listen to each other. Maybe the next time you hear a “they,” it’s worth asking the person if they don’t work here, too?
Bronson’s attitude about customer service very much reflects that same mindset. In his companies, it is always “first to know – first to handle.” In other words, whichever staff member hears about a concern from a customer is in charge of resolving the matter. Branson believes that, in order to truly stand out when it comes to customer service, rules should be seen more as flexible guidelines. Yes, Bronson is Orange, and every Orange sees it that way. But then, results speak louder than words – and Bronson’s companies stand head and shoulders above others, in a ton of businesses, when it comes to customer service and retention.
In the words of Branson: “Any manager who believes rules are rules and policies are written in stone likely doesn’t work directly with customers. It’s also likely to be a company or department which has the “we vs. them” mindset.”
For anyone who prefers the opposite approach, meet Michael O’Leary. O’Leary is the CEO of Ryanair, the widely successful discount airline operating in Europe. You may recall that his airline first floated the idea last year of pay toilets on airplanes. While that may be a ways off, O’Leary did ban cover sheets on faxes and requires his employees to buy their own pens.
O’Leary has worked hard to become one of the most unpleasant people in Ireland, but he’s proud of it. But when it comes to customer service, his attitude is entirely different from Bronson’s. Here is his quote to Bloomberg Businessweek: “One of the great MBA-speak ideas is that the customer is always right. The customer is usually wrong. The only time you hear from a customer is when they’re usually complaining because they want to break our rules. Why can’t I get a refund for my non-refundable ticket? Bugger off!”
Then, as if to prove O’Leary’s us vs. them policy, Ryanair had a flight diverted due to fog this winter. The captain announced that they would not wait for the fog to clear, but would be bussing the passengers for six hours to their destination. However, the passengers revolted in a reverse-hostage taking, and refused to leave the airplane.
At that point, the crew blocked access to the washrooms and cut the passengers off any water or snacks in an attempt to force them from the plane. When the passengers still didn’t budge, they simple called the police and had them forced off the plane and onto the busses. How’s that for PR? In fact, the story made headlines across Europe for weeks! So, personally, I’ll go with the Branson approach….
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