This document discusses re-branding customer service in Nigerian university libraries through adopting the Fish! Philosophy of "Good People, Great Service." The Fish! Philosophy emerged from a 1998 film about a famous fish market in Seattle. It consists of 4 concepts: choose your attitude, be there, play, and make their day. Adopting this philosophy can help libraries build inspiring organizations focused on serving customers well. University library users are the customers, and providing excellent customer service is important as other information sources compete with libraries. The 4 Fish! concepts, if implemented, can help libraries improve user satisfaction and remain relevant institutions on campus. Choosing a positive attitude, giving full attention to users, finding fun ways to

1. ADEKUNLE ALALADE LIBRARY
In-house Seminar for Staff
February 2012

2. RE-BRANDING CUSTOMER SERVICE IN NIGERIA
UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES THROUGH FISH
PHILOSOPHY
Good People Great Service

3. BACKGROUND INFORMATION
• Emerge in 1998
• From a film called Fish! catch the energy, release the potentials
• Produced by John Christensen
• He constructed the film from his observation of a famous Pike
Place fish market employees in Seattle
• And came out with 4 concepts

4. FISH PHILOSOPHY CONCEPTS
Choose your attitude
Be there
Play
Make their day

5. WHY FISH PHILOSOPHY?
• A life-long philosophy that helps us
feel inspired about the work we do.
• FISH! complements what we’re
already doing because FISH! is
focused on “who you’re, while
you’re doing what you’re doing,”

6. FISH! HELPS BUILD GREAT
ORGANIZATIONS
by affirming one
another and in time,
earning each other’s
heart and soul because
making money is easy,
but finding meaning is
not.

7. FISH! IS A PHILOSOPHY, NOT A
PROGRAM.
• You implement a program to change or fix
people, but there’s nothing inspiring
about being “programmed.” You can’t
implement a philosophy. Instead you
explore it, try it out and decide if it’s right
for you. If it is, you live it, because you
believe in it.

8. APPLICATION TO LIBRARY SETTING
Users of the library are our
customers
They are very important
They determine our existence
Without them there is no reason
to work.

9. CUSTOMER SERVICE
• It is important in everything we do in the
library
Our work revolve around people
• Customer Service is therefore an
organization’s
ability to supply its customers’ wants and
needs
in the most effective and efficient manner
possible.

10. WHO ARE OUR CUSTOMERS IN
ADEKUNLE ALALADE LIBRARY?
Our Users
•Students
•Lecturers
•Senior staff
•Junior staff
•Others- external
users

11. WHY DO WE NEED TO TREAT THEM WELL?
There are other services providers competing with the
library services through internet facilities
Users can bypass the library to get information
If care is not taken very soon the library will not be relevant
It takes more energy to make new customer than to keep
old ones.

12. 1. CHOOSE YOUR ATTITUDE.
The Concise Oxford Dictionary define
attitude as a settled way of thinking.
Attitude is the most personal of all the
four fish philosophy concepts.
No one can choose your attitude for you, it
is a personal decision it is your choice.
Attitudes are contagious. Is yours worth
catching?

13. EXERCISE 1
1. Think about your attitude when you come
to work today. How did you react to your
• Co-workers?
• Your customers
• If you have reacted in a negative way, how
has it affected the other person?
• Has it help the organization?

14. 2. BE THERE
• This has more to do with giving your full
attention to a task or individual
• If you are there for your customers,
they will tell the story.
• You need to go an extra mile to satisfy
your customers e.g. Westerville Public
Library says
“what we value has little or no value
unless it
matches that of our customers”

15. EXERCISE 2
• Think about someone who you think
has a great attitude. Describe
his/her attitude. Write them down.
Do the same for a person who has
poor attitude.
• Write down 2ways you will resolve to
choose your attitude at work or
elsewhere.

16. PANDA AND MANDAL (2006)
Observed that library staff who are there for their customers
uses
phrases like:
May I help you?
Here is the information you are looking for.
Do not worry I am here to help you.
We have more information on this
We regret the inconvenience
Are you satisfied?
Here are the recent arrivals to our library!
Please feel free to express your need/concern
Let me get the document/ information from other resource
centre e. t. c.

17. EXERCISE 3
Think about how good you feel when someone gives
you full attention and meet your needs
Think about how you feel when someone with whom
you are interacting look away from you to talk with
others and check his/her watch,
Can anyone share with us when someone was there
for him/her?
How did it impact your life?
The glue in our humanity is in being fully
present for one another.

18. 3. PLAY
Play is NOT about
acting irresponsibly
In a livable workplace,
play is about finding
ways to have more fun
accomplishing serious
goals."

19. Finding ways to "play"
can lead to greater
productivity
creativity a light-
hearted sense of "play"
can be a major
component of
achieving consistent
"efficient action."

20. PLAY CAN BE IN FORM OF THESE
ACTIVITIES:
Stretch at your desk for five minutes
Do secret pal antics to each other
Cartoons on bulletin board
Decorate your environment
Celebrate birthdays
Wear something funny
Have a dress-up day on a random day
Write a “thank you” note to your favorite client,
customer,
Do end of the year party
Joke with users

21. 4. MAKE THEIR DAY
When you make the effort to brighten
someone’s
day— not because you want a reward, but
because that’s the person you want to be
—you receive an internal gift that makes
life even more meaningful as well.
•Has somebody make you feel great
today?
•We can also do the same for our
customers.

22. HOW DO WE MAKE THE DAY OF OUR CUSTOMERS?
Let think of our customers as individuals,
think of what
would make their days
• Is it a simile?,
• A suggestion of something to read?
• Information about new library services
• A positive comment etc.
What is ordinary to one person may be
extraordinary to
another.
Find out what will makes the day of each
customer that
comes across you.

23. EXERCISE 4
a. Mention 3-5 companies where you have
receive great customer services.
b. What do you like about their customer
service?

24. PUTTING ALL TOGETHER.
• Choose your attitude - It is your choice
• Be there - Concentrate on your job
• Play - have fun at work
• Make their day - lift up others people spirits
Now that we have looked at all the 4 concepts of fish
philosophy
we will realized that they all work together to make
great
customer service.
However, if you are good in one, others will be easy
to practices,
then we are creating a work life that makes us happy.

25. Onifade, F.N ( Mrs.)
Adekunle Alade Library
Babcock University
Ilishan- Remo
Nigeria