How many times have you heard (or said…) “Everything would be fine if our computer system was better…” Another version of this is “We’ve done everything we can to solve our service problems, but things are still bad because we’re waiting for the computer system to be fixed.” The problem is, that’s not the problem. Waiting for the computer system to be improved is simply an excuse – another in what I call the long list of ‘I can’ts”… Although many service (and manufacturing processes) rely on interactions with computer systems, those aren’t the only parts of the process. Interactions with customers on the phone and in person, decisions about whether or not and how to process customer work all occur outside of the ‘computer system’. This week’s challenge: Change your thinking! Take the ‘computer system’ out of the mix and, start figuring out what you CAN do to improve the service your customers receive RIGHT NOW. Your customers need your help and I assure you, with a little creative thinking, you don’t need to wait for better computer systems to start improving!
