Great Service Starts Within!

Before any organization can be great at external service, they have to learn how to deliver excellent service to each other within the company. When I have the opportunity to work with a new client, we almost always start with a focus on improving internal customer service. It is surprising how many individuals treat their co-workers one way and then flip a switch and turn on their customer service skills when dealing with someone from outside the organization.

If you are in a role such as accounting, HR, IT, or some other internally facing department, you play a critical role in your teammates being able to provide great service to your outside paying customer. For example, if someone who deals with your external customers receives a call from a customer who has a problem with an invoice. Imagine that the employee places a call to someone in accounting to look into the issue, and the accounting team member decides that because this in an internal request, they don't have to reply in a timely manner. What does that do to the other team member's ability to provide excellent service?

That outward facing employee may have the best intentions to respond to the customer quickly, but they are handcuffed. Yes, there must be mutual respect between departments, but the bottom line is that the internal departments exist to support those who interact with the paying customer.

The same concept applies to those who are in a leadership role. You have three primary purposes:

1. Develop the employees in your organization
2. Remove the roadblocks that prevent the front line employees from performing their jobs
3. Set the vision and overall direction for the company or department

A leader should view the employees and other leaders in their part of the organization as their "customers."

Great organizations develop a culture where internal and external customers are treated with the same amount of respect. The next time you have the opportunity to respond to an internal request, remember they are your customer!