Janet Guilbault Article - OPPORTUNITY 2010

This is the best description of business employee attitude I have seen. Of course this is not all companies, like USAA, and Nordstrom where customer service is world class.

Quoted by Janet Guilbault:
In the so called "new economy" of 2009, business strategy revolved around this miserable mindset:

1. Let's fire everyone we can, cut the pay of those left (they're lucky to have a job, after all), then try to operate normally with one third of the staff.
2. Let customers figure it out. Send them to our website.
3. Let customers wait on hold forever or go straight to voice mail jail.
4. Let customers wait in line.
5. Let customers stand at the front desk and ring a bell if they expect service. We fired our receptionist months ago.
6. Heaven forbid we should pay anybody to talk to anybody! If they need support they can e-mail us.
7. Why should we be friendly or nice? We're in a recession after all.
8. Let's make our product worse to save money. Half the size, half the warranty, half the quality. No one will notice. If they do it will be too late.
9. Let's cut our hours, close locations, and turn down the heat.
10. If we absolutely need to hire someone, let's hire a part time employee, pay no health insurance, no benefits, and give them no training
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YOU CAN BUILD AND ATTRACT MORE BUSINESS BY THE FOLLOWING ACTIONS

Again quoted by Janet Guilbault

Simply make these resolutions:

1. I will grant customers the ability to talk to ME (not to my voicemail and not to my e-mail)
2. I will call them before they call me.
3. I will have live, face to face meetings with my customers whenever I can (what a concept!)
4. I will remember that a crabby customer needs my sympathy more than anything else.
5. I will go out of my way to show I genuinely care by asking directly what the customer wants and needs.
6. More than anything, I will cause my customers to believe they matter, and they are important.
7. I will never allow my customers to know I am feeling crabby, overworked, or underpaid.
8. I would rather have fewer customers that are lavished with attention than many customers who get no service, or poor service.
9. In a world where service is getting worse, mine will get better.
10. I will know my stuff.