Good Service Starts at the Top and So Does Bad Service!

Have you ever called the owner or the manager of a company and had them talk to you through their speakerphone? Or have you ever observed how some owners and managers seem to purposely make their next appointment wait for a long time? There are even some who never learned the common rule of etiquette of getting up from behind their desk to greet you.

Bad manners? Absolutely. What’s even worse is that it is just plain bad business! Not only does this kind of behavior imply to the customer that this business owner/manager doesn’t care, it sets a bad example for the staff and employees.

Customer satisfaction starts at the top. In the above examples, not much will change unless the owners and managers of the company start taking responsibility by modeling basic behavior changes them¬selves.

An owner’s or manager’s’ gruff treatment of a customer or employee is one of the best ways to teach those same employees the WRONG way to deal with customers. So why do so many owners and managers persist in behaving this way? One reason is that they don’t totally realize they are doing it. It’s a little like body odor. We all have it. Some of us have a little and some have more, and some are just real “stinkers.

It seems that there will always be owners and managers of companies who need help in dealing more professionally with their employees and customers. Until those people take responsibility to change their own behavior, they will continue to reap their just and fitting “rewards.”

Companies practicing the philosophy that good service starts at the top, will find that their customers will be happier and more faithful and their employees more productive and dedicated. That is real success.

Tom Borg is president of Tom Borg Consulting, LLC. He is a business consultant, trainer, coach and author. He works with small and mid-size businesses and organizations and helps them develop their most valuable asset – their people!