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Five Star Service Requires Five Star Training

by James Koller - October 7, 2011

Five Star Service Requires Five Star Training by James Koller, jkoller@vipdesk.com, 703.837.3525


A properly trained customer service staff is the cornerstone of a memorable experience. The training of a team can get lost in the shuffle of service offerings and budgetary constraints. However, even the most robust services and experience rings hollow when the support team is inadequately prepared to represent the brand.

I recently had the honor to attend a wedding at a postcard tropical resort. Aside from the pitch perfect December weather that provided a respite from the frigid Northeast winter, the resort provided an ideal setting to spend four days. From archery and private beach access to an onsite casino and spa offerings in a painstakingly manicured setting, the resort had everything a vacationer could request.

It was easy to tell that the management had done a thorough research of the types of services that their customers desired and developed accommodations carefully. However, the support staff was not properly trained in how to tie service offerings toservice quality.

As an example of how inelegant service can ruin even the best intentions, my wife and I joined another couple for dinner at the resort’s restaurant. The menu was globally eclectic, with mouth-watering Italian, Asian, Mexican and North American menu items. It was clear that the resort management had a clear understanding of how important it is to appeal to a global customer base. People from any continent not permanently covered in glaciers could easily find something to their liking, a comfort when many miles from home. The menu even listed items by Starters, First Course, Second Course and Dessert.

While not exceptional, the food was still very good when considering the range of cuisines. So why the bitter aftertaste?

The management went to great lengths to set up a global dining experience. What they did not do is to train the restaurant staff on how to serve a meal to customer expectations. The servers did not understand that a plate of appetizers should be served before the meal. When the main courses arrived together before the appetizers, we requested that the appetizers be served first. One member of our party was still served his meal while the other’s offering was withdrawn. During the wait for appetizers, we implored him to eat before his Singapore noodles became cold. The appetizers finally arrived, but were only followed by two of the three remaining main courses. When asked about the missing dish, the servers scurried around for nearly 10 minutes, finally asking, “Do you still want your dinner?” The dish was initially served before the appetizers and set on a counter for nearly 45 minutes as the menu was reordered.

This seems like a classic case of the wait staff messing up, right? It’s easy to judge their performance solely on what we saw. Perhaps, but since multiple members of the young staff (nobody over the age of 25 was to be seen all night) were all perplexed at the concept that appetizers should be served before the main course and that all the main courses should be delivered concurrently, it struck us that they genuinely had no idea how to serve a multi-course meal. The same management that designed the menu of global fare never bothered to train the staff on how to deliver a level of service befitting the location, ambiance or expectations of such a menu. They were left to their own devices, determining when and how to bring the food.

This was a consistent theme among the young team members. With such an inexperienced team throughout the resort, this was almost certainly their first job in the service industry. They were all earnest in their efforts to provide adequate service. Clearly, they did not know how.

Relating this experience closer to home, I was reminded of the following service considerations:

  • Do not assume that your customer service team understands customer expectations. It is not enough to provide a service or product that meets customer expectations, as well as a support team that is available and ready to assist.
  • Provide a blend of experienced team members to mentor younger members. They do not necessarily need to be experienced at your operation, but at least within the industry and customer service career specialists.
  • Your team will only perform as well as you empower them. Training is vital to this performance. If you cut corners here, you are only damaging the reputation of which you spent years to develop.
  • You may design the perfect experience, but it is the customer service team members who serve as the face of your team. For better or worse, their influence will likely be the one that customers remember.

These points are universally applicable to customer service, including call centers and concierge service. Recruiting and training are similar to R&D. Both are easy to ignore in the short-term as a cost center, yet a proper investment can provide lasting profit results that exceed those of any outbound marketing initiatives. Conversely, if you selectively cut corners today, you will be forced to cut even more deeply tomorrow.

 
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