Kick-Ass Customer Service

Consumers want results—not sympathy.

by

and

Rick DeLisi

by

and

Rick DeLisi

From the Magazine (January–February 2017) · Long read

Rami Niemi

Summary.

Why are consumers increasingly dissatisfied with the quality of help they get from customer service departments? The authors’ surveys and interviews with contact center personnel worldwide suggest that companies don’t hire the right people as frontline reps, nor do they equip them to handle the increasingly complex challenges that come with the job.

Every rep can be classified as one of seven types, say the authors. Supportive “Empathizers” constitute the largest group, and managers prefer them. But take-charge “Controllers,” who make up only 15% of all reps, actually do best at solving customers’ problems.

To expand their numbers, companies need a fresh approach to hiring—one that involves crafting job postings and screening applicants differently. Companies should also revamp their training practices, using new curricula and on-the-job coaching to help all types of reps learn to act more like Controllers. Another key step is building a culture that values and rewards Controller behavior. That might mean evaluating reps on their ability to use good judgment rather than follow a script, and soliciting their ideas to improve the organization.

In Brief

The Challenge

Customer service quality is falling. That’s because today’s reps aren’t selected and trained to handle increasingly complex customer issues.

The Fix

Managers should abandon their preference for caring, supportive reps and instead recruit and develop outspoken, take-charge types who quickly and aggressively solve customers’ problems.

Think about the last time you flew. When you checked in, did you use a self-service option—like the airline’s website, app, or airport kiosk—to check your bags, choose your seat, and print out your boarding pass? Or did you instead wait in line at the airport to speak with a human being? If you’re like most people, you used the self-service option. Indeed, our data show an overwhelming preference for self-service: Across industries, fully 81% of all customers attempt to take care of matters themselves before reaching out to a live representative.

A version of this article appeared in the January–February 2017 issue (pp.110–117) of Harvard Business Review.

Matthew Dixon is a founding partner of DCM Insights, a company that helps professional services firms improve business development. He is a coauthor of The Challenger Sale and The JOLT Effect.
Lara Ponomareff is the customer contact and customer experience practice leader at CEB, now part of Gartner.
ST

Scott Turner is a research director in CEB’s customer contact and customer experience practice.
Rick DeLisi is a principal executive adviser in CEB’s customer contact and customer experience practice.

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In Brief

The Challenge

The Fix

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