After considering this topic for years, I’ve finally screwed up the courage to put it into words. The specific “name” that I’m referring to in the title is CSR, or as some say, CSA. Those initials refer to the back-office people who manage the day-to-day facets of our clients’ business with us.
When I talk with agency owners and management, they describe their CSRs as the frontline people who deal with customer concerns and issues. However, when I talk with CSRs, they describe their roles in the agency as primarily data processing and paper pushing. The annual performance reviews at most agencies nurtures this dichotomy. Unfortunately, because it’s difficult to quantify quality of service, many agencies evaluate CSRs based on processing efficiency, backlogs, computer proficiency, etc. This further alienates the staff from their service role! After all, if you’re going to be judged on how well you process paperwork, then a phone call from a customer becomes an annoyance, rather than an opportunity.
So let’s look at the moniker of CSR. First, we generally allocate the “C” to customer. Webster defines “customer” as “one who purchases a commodity or service.” On the other hand, Webster defines “client” as “a person under the protection of another; person who engages the professional services of another.” Understanding these definitions, do you want customers or clients? If you want clients, why would you identify your service people as serving customers? From my perspective, the first thing I’d do is switch “customer” for “client” so that the title now becomes “Client Service Representative.”
This brings us to the word “service.” We all know what this used to mean, but what does it mean today? If a client has a claim, particularly in Personal Lines, most agencies defer to the carrier’s call center – rather than handling them in-house, as in the past.
Do you make your CSRs responsible for serving the needs of your clients? Do they call client proactively to review coverages, ask about changes, identify gaps, and discuss future needs or plans?
Very few agencies do this! In fact, agency owners complain incessantly that they can’t get their CSRs to cross-sell and upsell. The reason is simple: their desks are piled high and computers are overloaded with data processing that needs to be done—and those pesky backlogs will hurt their performance review and future pay increases. From my perspective, we need to evaluate what we want our CSRs to do, rather than use a title just because that’s we’ve always called them.
As for the “R,” this takes us back to the last question: What do we want these people to do? For instance, if the data is the critical issue, then perhaps we should call them CDPs (Client Data Processors). If your agency has a serious backlog in policy checking, maybe you need a CPC (Client Policy Checker). If you want your staff to focus on client relationships, fostering growth and retention for more profits, then perhaps you want do define their role as CRDs (Client Relationship Developers). Note: Although I prefer Client Relationship Manager, risk managers are already using this acronym.
By way of example, watch one of your people when they check Commercial Lines policies. They seldom actually sit down and check an entire policy through to the end without any interruptions. Usually they get started, and then someone comes by their cubicle and interrupts them. They lose their place, and start anew. Then the phone starts ringing, and they lose their place again and start again. Is it any wonder that mistakes slip through and backlogs seem to increase?
Imagine the growth potential within your agency if your production team focused 100% on getting new business and your client-interfacing staff focused 100%on nurturing the client relationship for loyalty, growth, and retention. Producers could spend all of their time “producing” and your Client Relationship staff could spend their time protecting the client relationship. This means that CDPs and CPCs could handle all the processing work, eliminating the inconsistencies of today’s reality.
Before you classify me as a utopian, I acknowledge that the perfect world doesn’t exist and there will always be some crossover duties within every position. However, changing a title can be an initial step in the right direction. Classify your employees based on what you really want them to do. They just might surprise you with the results they generate.
On a final note, for the past year and a half, I’ve been working with ReSource Pro, a business process outsourcing company. I’ve seen firsthand the remarkable growth that an agency or an MGA can realize by removing routine and mundane processing activities from the back-office desks. Redeployment into true relationship activities and supporting producers and clients alike, allows these firms to achieve growth significantly beyond their expectations. Every agency has a lot of talent within the ranks. So ask yourself if you’re using this talent to the maximum potential – or are you dis-incenting people with low-level tasks that waste their productive time?
As you move forward, step back and ask yourself if you’re getting the maximum value and performance from your staff. If not, what can you do to change this?