Front-Line Employees: Critical To Success

FRONT-LINE EMPLOYEES: CRITICAL TO SUCCESS

by Emily Huling

According to a research study conducted by the Service Research Bureau, 59% of lost business results from a poor customer service experience. That service was probably performed by a clerk, receptionist, accounting personnel, sales assistant, or a customer service representative. What’s your lost business experience? Maybe the following scenario fits your business:

Good salespeople bring the business in, but your account retention isn’t what it should be. Your salespeople and your lost customers tell you that negative customer service experiences are driving business away. Without a doubt, front-line people are critical to success.

Front-line employees have a tough job. They need to be cheerful and helpful, provide solutions, communicate well, and know about the workings of your operation. Retaining key people in a tight labor market is a challenge. Many people take these jobs as entry-level assignments, seeing little room for personal growth and advancement. And the pay for these non-sales and non-management jobs is generally low.

So what can you do to develop and retain the quality staff you need for these front-line positions?

Be clear about job expectations and goals. People want to succeed in their new jobs, but they can only achieve success when they know what’s expected. Job descriptions and job measurement criteria set the standards for performance. Include both quantitative and qualitative standards. Discuss these standards thoroughly during the interview process, and don’t abandon them when the new hire begins. Meet with your new employee at 30, 60, and 90-day intervals to track their progress.

Make your new hire feel welcome. First impressions make or break any relationship. Put your company’s best foot forward during the first days of a new relationship. Match your new hire with a coworker who’ll introduce them to others, familiarize them with the office, and show them shopping, banking, and lunch options in the area. This new-hire buddy system will last through the months and help your new employees feel like they have a go-to person for non-business issues. Provide donuts or bagels just outside the workspace of the new worker. By the end of the morning, most of your staff will have introduced themselves.

Create a formal job-training program. All new employees need to learn about their new job duties, your company, and your culture. A formal training process will provide the information and feedback necessary for success.

Make one person — either a supervisor or an experienced peer — responsible for setting up the training program, which should last from one to three months. The key to a successful training program is to include other team members who are experts in specific areas, including automation, the telephone system, product knowledge, company relationships, customer service, and so on. Make each expert responsible for their area of expertise.

Familiarize your new employee with key vendors, companies, and customers. Help them to understand the food chain of your business. Schedule time for them to observe how others do their jobs and the relationships among job functions. This will help your new hire become knowledgeable about your business and confident in the job they do.

Make education and training an ongoing process. Don’t stop development once the new hire is up to speed. Our fast-moving and changing world requires constant adaptation.

Give your front-line staff customer feedback. Customer satisfaction surveys help management do a better job of business planning and coaching, and let front-line staff know what they’re doing right and what needs to change to maintain top-level customer relationships.

Conduct customer satisfaction surveys, lost prospect and client surveys, and claim satisfaction surveys in two ways. Use personal phone calls and written surveys on a regular basis with a cross-section of clients. Mail written surveys with a cover letter from the manager and a self-addressed stamped envelope marked confidential. The manager should respond to all written surveys. Share customer feedback with employees to recognize good work and to improve processes.

For sample customer surveys, click here: http://www.imms.com/members/toc/13-e.htm.

Reward and recognize each person continually. Ongoing praise from peers and managers sustains high performance levels. Deliver feedback personally and publicly. Provide verbal feedback through hand-written notes or e-mails. Offer small tokens of appreciation, such as movie passes or coupons for lunch or car washes. Spontaneous, heartfelt appreciation goes a long way in making people feel good about the jobs they do. Create team rewards by office or department to acknowledge each person for the contribution they make to the whole. Find reasons to celebrate success.

Facilitate employee friendships. Offer your staff fun relationship-building activities such as bowling, movies, and picnics held monthly after work. These activities break down communication barriers, and that translates into better, more enjoyable office relationships.

Make front-line people part of the team. Include them in sales meetings and staff conferences. Give them responsibilities that vary their daily routines, such as putting them in charge of special projects. Keep them informed about company news and ask them for their opinions and advice.

The time you spend educating and developing front-line people helps retain business and makes your organization a better place to work. Isn’t that what all owners and managers want?