Managing Customer Expectations
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Excellent customer service and high customer satisfaction must start with understanding customer expectations. Whether your customers are internal (i.e., HR, Finance, Marketing business users) or external, you need to know who your customers are and what their goals are before launching any business initiative. If not, you’ll never win. Pulling from her industry experience in Government, Legal, Education and Healthcare, Strategic Engagement Manager Shannon Duplessis will use the Sparkhound Assessment Model (SAM) approach to show how to assess client needs, agree upon desired expectations and results, and then develop the right KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) to measure success.
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Managing Customer Expectations
- 1. MANAGING CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS SHANNON DUPLESSIS, STRATEGIC ENGAGEMENT MANAGER
- 2. A LITTLE ABOUT ME Professional Stats 10+ years in State Government IT 5+ years with Sparkhound PMP Certified Personal Interests I used to be a runner…primarily half marathons Now, I coach middle school track and co-host my own event, “Run, Drink, Repeat!” I do volunteer work throughout the community 2
- 3. AGENDA What are Customer Expectations … and Why You Should Manage Them Tips for Managing Expectations The Customer Expectation Management Process What To Do When Things Go Wrong: Two Communication Techniques
- 4. 4 WHAT ARE CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS AND WHY YOU SHOULD MANAGE THEM?
- 5. DEFINITIONS OF RELATED TERMS Customer Expectations - the total perceived benefits a customer expects from a company's product or service Customer Service – the process of ensuring customer satisfaction Customer Satisfaction – a measure of how products or services meet or surpass customer expectation 5 Expectation + Service = Satisfaction
- 6. WHY IT’S IMPORTANT TO MANAGE 6 High customer satisfaction Improved customer loyalty Increased sales Additional client referrals
- 8. IDENTIFY STAKEHOLDERS There are several types of Stakeholders. ALL need to be considered Primary – directly affected by project Secondary – indirectly affected by project Key - may belong to either or neither of the first two groups. Can have a positive or negative effect on an effort, or who are important within or to an organization, agency, or institution engaged in an effort. Create a stakeholder roster to capture their level of impact and their needs 8
- 10. IDENTIFY EXPECTATIONS Every stakeholder has perceived expectations when going into a business relationship 10
- 11. DEFINE EXPECTATIONS 11 Excellent customer service and high customer satisfaction must start with understanding customer expectations
- 12. 12 Source: Project Management Tree Swing
- 13. PRIORITIZE EXPECTATIONS Customer expectations can have two levels Desired - the level of service the customer hopes to obtain Sufficient - the service level which the customer finds acceptable Expectation prioritization should be communicated to the entire project team including the client stakeholders Expectations are at the center of the Project Management Diamond 13
- 14. OUR METHOD FOR IDENTIFYING & PRIORITIZING EXPECTATIONS Sparkhound Assessment Model (SAM) A proven methodology to align IT with Business Unit goals and objectives Key stakeholders needs are addressed from Business Unit and Departments Key performance indicators are identified to measure success Key information and process workflows are identified to streamline operations Addresses People, Process & Technology for improved efficiency Defines information requirements of each stakeholder Why SAM? Reduce the risk of “missing the target” by providing a stronger understanding of the clients business challenges and creating solutions that align with organizational needs Provide a clear road map to show “as is” and “to be” vision Ensure the investment in IT is optimized to meet client requirements and avoid poor implementations
- 15. DEFINE KPI’S 15 “That which is measured is managed.” - Shannon’s version of Pearson’s Law
- 16. TIPS FOR MANAGING EXPECTATIONS Honesty Communication Consistency Relationship Building Reporting 16
- 17. HONESTY 17 Make promises that are realistic and achievable Under promise/over deliver in order to maintain control of expectations It is important that you understand how to say NO to the customer Your customer will feel as if the business goes above and beyond for them rather than feeling like a promise has come up short
- 18. COMMUNICATION 18 Be proactive and consistent in your communication Be readily available to your customers Plan communication and let the customer know the plan Reiterate expectations back to the customer for validation
- 19. CONSISTENCY 19 In all aspects of the customer relationship: Communication Reporting Service Builds trust Promotes a long-lasting relationship A lack of consistency can cause confusion
- 20. RELATIONSHIP BUILDING 20 Relationships are important. Customers want ongoing, personalized relationships with the familiar representatives from the company. You should try to understand the ins and outs of the customer. Know their values. Know not only WHAT they are buying but WHY they are buying it.
- 21. REPORTING 21 Reports give the client a clear understanding of work that was done over the course of the reporting period and what is planned for the coming period. Reporting does not have to be very long or complicated. Consistency and clear communication is key to reporting.
- 22. 22 WHAT TO DO WHEN THINGS GO WRONG
- 23. WHAT TO DO WHEN THINGS GO WRONG? Admit it. Immediately. Bad news is not like fine wine … it does not get better with time. Have an action plan. Let the customer know that you have a plan to put things back on track. This shows initiative and an investment in the success of the project and the relationship. Reset expectations. 23
- 24. COMMUNICATION: FEEL, FELT & FOUND 24 It is a technique of validating, relating and solving a problem so that you overcome an objection Feel - “I understand how you feel.” This wording lets a customer know that you heard him or her and can relate. Felt - “I/Other people have felt that way.” You are letting the customer know that this initial thought is common, meaning that the situation can change. Found - “What they/I found, however, was that after doing ‘X’ was that ‘Y” happened.
- 25. THE BAD NEWS SANDWICH 25
- 27. MY CONTACT INFO Shannon Duplessis LinkedIn/shannonduplessis (225) 603-1063 shannon.duplessis@sparkhound.com
Editor's Notes
- Perception is reality
- Find a source for this graphic
- Identify stakeholders Identify expectations Define expectations Prioritize expectations Identify KPI/reporting
- Create a sample stakeholder roster to see and talk thru
- Create a sample stakeholder roster to see and talk thru
- Insert a graphic of the stakeholder roster with expectations listed
- Insert a graphic of the stakeholder roster with expectations listed
- so now we have a list of expectations….let’s dive a little deeper. Going thru the exercise of actually defining these expectations clarifies them to the client team and allows you to really understand why this is an expectation to the client. As you can see from this picture each person on the team can have a different interpretation of the same expectation.
- Now that we have expectations identified and defined we need to prioritize them.
- Sparkhound uses a proven assessment model to elicit expectations and to drive the conversations around defining and prioritizing People – understanding the customer’s needs and assessment of current systems, processes and technology Process – understanding of the integration and workflows between departments and system functions Technology – understanding of the technology platforms and utilization of the information delivery capabilities
- That which is measured is managed. Shannon’s version of Pearson’s law (that which is measured is improved) If you are able to measure your teams performance against your clients expectations you will be able to know if you are winning or losing. And if you are able to watch the trends you may be able to head off negative expectation impacts before your customer even knows about it. You will find that your measurements are combination of expectations and project constraints. Ex- budget stats, time line, scope, etc.
- Now that expectations are set you job continues……with management throughout the project life-cycle!
- Companies are supposed to be accurate and dependable and provide the service they promised Don’t misrepresent resource ability Companies should not offer services that they cannot deliver Here is some advice that you won’t get often. It’s ok to say no to the customer. In fact there are times that you should say no. now…I’ll follow that up with some additional advice…it’s important that you explain to them why the answer is no. There will be far more damage to the trust relationship by agreeing to provide a service that cannot be delivered.
- Consistency is key and should be carried throughout the relationship
- Reports can be as simple as an email to the client describing the work completed and planned.
- From time to time you are going to fail to meet customer expectations. This could be for a number of reasons… poor customer service, under-trained staff, incorrectly set expectations, or even changing expectations.
- The key here is how you react to your client, put an action plan into place, and reset their expectations. Owning up to mistakes and communicating a solution with the client is a way to establish trust. There are also a couple techniques I’d like to share to help turn the corner on a bad situation.
- Need to provide an example
- The recipe is easy Possibly give an example?
- Add resource links