Customer Experience as a profession.

Contrary to popular belief, managing the Customer Experience of an organization is serious business. Different institutions will require varying strategies to achieve the same goal of customer satisfaction. You may also have a clear strategy to start with, but that will gradually metamorphose into a more customized one as you respond to the specific needs of your customers.

The profile of a typical customer is always dynamic in nature and with developing trends comes ever changing expectations. Thus, connecting emotionally with your customers becomes key as it helps one gauge and predict to a certain extent the complexities of their needs over time. This of course takes a lot of time and effort. Once that is successfully achieved, your work is almost done.

Now, you have to keep in mind that the customer will interphase with different aspects of the business and as such you are to do same – oh and proactively too. You need to understand each employee’s work, be ready to wear the hat of your customers and to proffer viable and workable alternatives if need be.

You often hear people say, ‘let’s just get the issue resolved first.’ While that is the desirable outcome, the steps taken to get there is also of significance to the growth of your business. Identifying and resolving the actual root cause of a challenge is the only way to ensure that the next customer doesn’t face a similar situation. This process is a daunting task as some team members will be reluctant to cooperate because they find your insistent probing unbearable.

Closely related to the root cause analysis is its associated cost implications. Sometimes, resolving the problem may require that the organization invests a bit more. Perhaps that is the reason CX Officers/Managers have been wrongly labeled ‘Cost Officers’ or ‘Expense Makers’.

Organizations like Amazon, Apple, Zappos and FedEx with excellent customer experiences have however changed the narrative. They have demonstrated that effective management of your organization’s customer experience is an investment that guarantees your profitability.

Let’s go back to your organization. The secret to a successful customer experience management is the employees. Your work again requires that you manage their diverse concerns and create a culture of excellence where each employee is empowered to think about the customer first.

You also need to find a fine balance between being ‘nice’ and being ‘firm’. Employees should freely approach you and believe that you have their best interests in mind but at the same time, must understand that you won’t condone acts that mar the experience of the customer. When well executed, employees that do not buy into the culture easily stand out and may be forced to change or move on.

My day starts with a tall list of deliverables and a fresh energy to get these done within a specific time frame. There have been very few times my day goes exactly how I planned.

A challenge may pop up and you would have to stop everything to get it resolved. You may be reviewing data and identify a trend that may require a deep dive altering the trajectory of your day. In addition, since your work is an all inclusive one, completing a simple task may take the inputs of different stakeholders.

I have however come to love the unpredictable nature of my job, even more when I’m able to make an impact daily no matter how small it is.

Effective management of customer experience involves a lot of attention and strategic planning. It involves more than the beautiful smiles and great composure.

If you’re one who had misconceptions about your customer experience team, find time and spend a day with them. You may be pleasantly surprised.

If you’re a CX officer or manager and you’re not tired after a day’s work, check again. You may be doing something wrong.

Yvonne Quashie

CX Head, UBA Ghana
Nat. Organiser, CXP Ghana