1. MSA CUSTOMER SERVICECENTER: CHANGINGTHE WAY MSA DOES BUSINESS
REV.3-1-14-00
(LORRIEANSWERINGA CUSTOMER CALL).
LORRIE:
Hello,thisisLorrie. Howmay I helpyou?
(CUT TO FINGERS MOVINGACROSSKEYBOARDAS ZOOM OUT TO SHOW KEYBOARDANDLAYERED
COMPUTER SCREEN).
ANNCR:(VOICE-OVERTHROUGHOUT)
Whetheryouneedtoplace an order,track an order,are lookingfortechnical support,oryousimply
wantto check on productavailability,ourCustomerService Associates are here tohelp!
Born out of the ever-growingneedsof ourcustomers,thisteamhasbecome anintegral partof the way
MSA doesbusiness!
In 1993, MSA foundthatyour needswere changing,so,forMSA to continue tobe the leaderin
protective equipment, we neededtochange,too.. .
Andchange we did! Startingwitha veryaggressive visionstatement...tobe the leadinginnovatorand
providerof qualityproductsandservicesthatprotectpeople'shealth,safety,andthe environment. And
to provide satisfactionof customerneedsthroughthe effortsof motivated,involved,highlytrained
employeesdedicatedtocontinuousimprovementinquality,service,cost,value,technologyand
delivery.
2. Soundslike alot,but itboilsdowntopeople! Primarily,people helpingpeople tobe safe inthe
workplace.
That's MSA's vision.The nexthurdle: implementation!
Basedon the resultsof a comprehensive customersurvey,MSA concludedthatcenteralizingcustomer
service woulddramaticallyreduce customerconcerns. So,inJune 1994, the CustomerService Center
beganoperationsatMSA's worldheadquartersinPittsburgh.
The newlyformed-CSC-CustomerService Centerteamsetoutto meetsome veryclearobjectives...
To dramaticallyimprove MSA'scustomerservice andorderentryprocess.
To use informationgatheredtoimprove MSA'sproductsandto avoidproblemrecurrences.
In short,to achieve total customersatisfaction.
Today,the CSC has evolvedintothe largestsingle teamof people atMSA,comprisedof over60
CustomerService Associates.
These teamsare brokenintofive regions,coveringthe Northeast,Southeast,Midwest,Southwest,and
MountainPacificareas. There are alsoAdministrative,OrderIndex,LogoExpress,andCustomerCare
Teams. And an overall managerreportsdirectlytothe vice-presidentof salesatMSA.
Whena customercallsthe MSA toll-free telephonenumber,fromanywhere inthe unitedstates,the call
isautomaticallyroutedtothe appropriate CustomerService Team. Thisisimportantbecause the
customergetsto knowthe membersof hisor herteam, and they,inturn,get to know the customer.
3. MSA CustomerService Associatesare equippedwiththe knowledge,experience,andequipmentto
handle all customerneeds.
For example,each CustomerService Associate'sworkstationallowsthemtoview several different
screensat one time. Theycan checkpricing,productavailability,view andprintcopiesof orders,and
have access toon-line drawingsof products...gettingthe customerthe informationtheyrequire,fast!
Andonce a customerplacesanorder,a confirmationof thatorderisautomaticallyfaxedtothe
customer.
Team membersalsohave accesstothe internet,allowingthemtoquicklytrackproductshipments.
While the customerisstill onthe phone,the CustomerServiceAssociatecanquicklydeterminethe
statusof a shipment,the date andtime of delivery,andwhosignedforthe shipment.
To ensure thatCustomerService runsatpeak performance,supervisors,usingspecializedsoftware,can
easilydetectif inboundcallsoutweighthe numberof associatesavailable,andmake the necessary
adjustments. Thisistohelpminimize the time anybodyspendsonhold.
To enhance theircapabilities,CustomerService Associatesmuststay currentintheirknowledgeof over
4,000 MSA products. So,theyspendaboutfive percentof theirtime-that's2hoursa week-intraining
programs. Trainingis ongoing,yearround.
One specializedgroup,the logoexpressteam, iscomprisedof ahalf-dozendedicatedindividualswho
will walkthe customerthroughthe complete processof orderinglogoedheadprotection. Theirsingle
goal is to make the orderingof customimprintedheadwearaseasyas possible.
There'salsothe CustomerCare Team,whichis workingtowardournumberone goal.. .total customer
satisfaction.
The CustomerCare Team focusesonprovidinganswerstocustomer'scritical situationsintwohoursor
less. They're alsodedicatedtobuildingcustomerloyaltyandsatisfaction,byimmediatelyfollowingup
on emergencies,andanylarge ornewcustomerorder.
4. The membersof our CustomerCare Teamhave the authorizationtocall anyone atMSA, at anytime,to
resolve acustomerissue.
In addition,beginningthe firstquarterof 1999, a complete technical supportgroupwillbe anintegral
part of the MSA CustomerService Team. Justone more wayto meetthe needsof the customer.
To furtherimprove performance,the MSA CustomerService Centeralsohasanincentive programto
rewardteammemberswhogo above andbeyondthe call of duty.
How well doesthe MSA CustomerService Centerteammemberssatisfycustomers? Toanswer,we'll
lookat the resultsof a call centerbenchmarkreportconductedbyPurdue University. Whencompared
to call centersfromothercompanies,MSA'sCustomerService Centerteamranksas one of the best!
In addition,MSA CustomerService Centerwasthe recentrecipientof asilverawardforcall center
excellence fromTeleprofessional Magazine. Anindependentpanelof judgesusesfourcriteriatoselect
the award recipients.
Specifically,howwell acall centerintegratesintoacompany'smarketingorbusinessplan...
Creative use of resources...
Responsivenesstocustomers...
Andeffectivenessinachievinggoals.
The team membersof the MSA CustomerService Centerare proudof theiraccomplishmentsand
achievements. Soare manyMSA customers,whowrite toexpresstheirthanksfora jobwell done!
Each letterof gratitude meansa lotto the teammembersandis displayed,inclearview,foreveryoneto
see.
