So what exactly does it mean to be Innovative and ‘Work Onyour business not in it’ and how is this possibly going toassist you in reaching your long term goals for your lifeand your business?
I had the misfortune recently to be involved in a motorvehicle accident. Nothing too uncommon I am sure you wouldagree. I was lucky in that I walked away with only a fewminor scratches and a bruised ego.
The accident however, gave me the opportunity to witnessfirst hand, how innovation within a company can assist ingetting its customer service right, and on furtherinvestigation it gave me the chance to find out exactly whatthe innovation behind the positive customer serviceexperience was.
From the very first moment that I contacted the insurancecompany it was obvious they were an innovative organization.They actually had a real person pick up the phone. Most ofus would agree that in instances like this you just kind ofexpect to be given the run around and be frustrated bybureaucracy and inefficiency at every turn.
Thankfully my experience was a little different. I had justbrushed myself off and I was still quite shaken, but Imanaged to pull myself together to begin taking care ofthings. I was definitely not in the mood to be interrogatedwith a multitude of questions. I just needed to get myvehicle towed and get myself to a doctor for a further checkup. The friendly yet concerned voice on the other end of thephone seemed to know this instinctively and was able to seteverything in motion quickly and effortlessly. Withinminutes a tow truck was on its way, an ambulance had beenordered and my claim had been started.
And the impressive service did not end there. Throughout thevehicle repair process I was contacted regularly and givenfull and comprehensive updates on the status of my vehicleand was even asked when the most convenient time to becontacted for follow up service calls would be.
This is quite different to the customer service experience Ithought I would receive...
Being quite interested in finding out how innovation inexceptional service businesses worked I decided that I wouldask some questions of the staff whenever they contacted meregarding my claim. I was interested to find out the detailsbehind what enabled them to provide a consistentlyexceptional customer service experience while obviouslyfulfilling their own requirements as a business.
The answer I got back from the staff with whom I asked thequestion was always the same. ‘That’s the way we do ithere’. On further questioning them on exactly what thismeant. I was relieved to find that everything that I hadexperienced right from the opening dialog through to theclaims processing and on to the final delivery of myrepaired vehicle, was all part of their internal InnovationProcesses and their Documented Operational Business Systems.
Every step, carefully thought out, the dialog to use for thephone conversations, the tone of voice and attitude of theclaims staff, the back end processing of the claim, thefollow up service calls. All integrated and consistentacross the company, and all aimed at the best outcome forboth me as the customer and them as the innovative company.
So this is what it is about: This ‘working on your businessnot in it’, Business Innovation and Systemization if youwill. While it may sound very structured and ordered and notflexible enough to work in every business. The truth is thatis does work and can work for you. Imagine your peoplehaving that flexibility to innovate within the well definedsystem that you have created with them. Everyone workingtogether towards the defined goal, your goal.
Communicate to your staff: ‘That’s the way we do it here’Provide them with the required tools and systems to allowthem to innovate.Watch them Grow... Watch them Thrive...
This simply does not happen in most businessesImagine... Imagine the freedom.Imagine satisfaction that would bring you.
Justin Woolich has been involved in Innovative Business Software for over 10 years. Start a Free Trial of Business Systems Manager Software now www.BusinessSystemsManager.com
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