CX Spotlight – Dr. Birago Antwi- Agyei
Meet Dr. Birago Antwi- Agyei, a seasoned Customer Service Practitioner with over 25 years’ experience in Customer Service. Within this period, she has been involved in delivering customer service in the airline, banking and public sectors. Her areas of expertise include Strategy formulation, Training Needs assessment, Developing and facilitating of training programs.
She has a Doctor of Business Administration from the Swiss Business School, A Master of Applied Business Research with the Swiss Business School, a Master of Business Administration from GIMPA and a Bachelor of Science, Administration with Human Resource as Major. She is also a Senior HR professional.
Dr. Birago Antwi – Agyei, started her career in the Airline Industry as a Flight Attendant with the erstwhile Ghana Airways. She later joined UniBank where she headed the of Service Quality Department. A position she held for six years. During her tenure as Head of Service quality, she developed training modules and personally trained staff from entry level to senior management level. During that period, Birago together with her team won many Customer service awards for the bank, making it the most nominated Bank in the prestigious CIG Banking Awards.
Dr. Birago has special interest in working with the underprivileged; the passion that drove her to push for the setup of a Corporate Social Responsibility desk for UniBank. She took personal interest in setting up the unit and crafting the policy framework to guide the bank in the choice of projects to undertake. This inspired her thesis research work in Corporate Social Responsibility.
Dr. Birago is currently the Assistant Commissioner at the Ghana Revenue Authority, in charge of Customer Experience, a new role designed to change the culture of tax payment and administration in Ghana. She is a Customer Experience consultant, a CSR consultant and advocate, and a Certified Professional Corporate Trainer.
Dr. Birago is an avid reader. Her passion is people- unravelling the mystery behind their behavior. She loves engaging with children, interior decorating, listening to music and being a mum.
CONVERSATION WITH DR. BIRAGO ANTWI-AGYEI …
CXP Gh – Can you describe the journey to your current role?
Dr.Birago Antwi– Agyei – When I reflect on my education and work, I strongly believe every role I have played has led me to what I am currently doing.
I started my career as a nursery school teacher, this, I can say has been the biggest influencer of my life to date. I learnt to understand people in a way I never had, enjoy the simplicity of life and above all, patience.
From there I became a flight attendant. Another role which tremendously improved my interpersonal skills with all kinds of persons. I learnt how to be nice but firm, insist on the right thing, build resilience basically. I learnt to manage the demanding and docile, the lawless and the entitled, all kinds of people really.
Being a flight attendant exposed me to different personalities and how to engage them regardless of the situation. It really did build my confidence, think on your feet, and improvise in tricky situations to satisfy the customer (there are no shops at 37,000 feet). Prior to that I was pretty shy and would rather not socialize. I first held the role of head of CX in the bank. This is where I honed in on the skills I had acquired during my previous roles. I studied HR during my undergraduate, whilst this teaches you how to manage the human capital in the organizational setting, you are not equipped to manage the internal and external customers of an organisation. The closest you can get to getting the needed capacity building for this role is to take up a marketing course. So I pursued an MBA in Marketing. The blend between HR and Marketing proved useful as head of Service Quality. Between being a flight attendant and landing the role as head of Service Quality, I was an SRC secretary in the university, a journalist and an assistant to a Consultant. So, I have been involved in student politics and campaigned, learnt questioning techniques and presentation skills. All these roles have had varying degrees of impacts on the role I play today.
CXP Gh – What is your personal mantra or statement?
Dr.Birago Antwi– Agyei – Would I say I have a mantra? Personally, I have a very grateful disposition to life in general. I believe whatever I have today is what I have been given or fortunate enough to benefit from. So, I live my life thankful and grateful for everything and everyday. However, when tough times hit, I tell myself that I am capable of surmounting it, that tough times don’t last. I guess people closest to me would say I like to say, ‘ this too shall pass’
CXP Gh – Can you share your leadership style and its impact on success?
Dr.Birago Antwi– Agyei – I tend to do what is pragmatic for each situation. I am more situational. With my team, I am that kind of leader who likes my team to be innovative, so I allow room for mistakes. However, not everyone in my team has the ability to be creative within the remit of the role so for such, I guide or buddy them or let them work in groups. I do not punish initiative. What I cannot handle is disrespect in the team.
I think I have one of the best teams in the institution. Very committed and always looking for creative ways for us to excel. We constantly meet or exceed our targets. I have built quite a solid team in a relatively short time.
CXP Gh – What are your thoughts on the state of CX in Ghana?
Dr.Birago Antwi- Agyei – CX in Ghana leaves a lot to be desired. It is a paradox really, because you would think that for a people generally perceived as warm and welcoming, we are yet to fully grasp the concept on Customer Experience and excel at it. I think it stems from the general Ghanaian attitude of tolerating mediocrity. We have a really high tolerance for things that are below standard. The worst in service delivery in my opinion in Ghana is the hospitality Industry and the Public Sector. The Private sectors are doing a lot better when compared to the aforementioned. However, when compared to international standards, even the private sector falls short in the delivery of service. There is a lot of room to improve CX in Ghana however It is gratifying though that a lot of awareness of the importance of CX is being created thanks to associations like CXP GH. The business world has been at the forefront of the call to improve service delivery and academia has also heeded the call to train our human resource to be more service focused.
Therefore, we can only improve as the customers continuously demand higher standards of service delivery.
CXP Gh – How do you determine the success of your CX strategies?
Dr.Birago Antwi- Agyei – Apart from the established measurement tools, like the CSI, NPS, NES etc. I like the personal feedback from staff and Customers.
I think the best way to gauge success is changed behaviour and the willingness to improve the way we engage with both the internal and external customer.
That personal realization that satisfying the customer brings you satisfaction; to me is the best indication that strategies are working. It is knowing that you have influenced the way staff feel and that they take pride and responsibility of actions that lead improved relations with and satisfaction of customer.
CXP Gh – How do you keep up with the latest CX trends and technology?
Dr.Birago Antwi– Agyei – I am an avid reader. I have a great team who like to research and keep me updated, and I have a network of people in similar industries who update me.
I am fortunate to have a few speaking engagements which means I have to ensure I keep my self updated, but those conferences are also great learning opportunities.
CXP Gh – What is your approach to solving problems in your role and prioritizing tasks and projects?
Dr.Birago Antwi- Agyei – I do not undervalue the importance of having a great team. I guess being a successful manager lies in your ability to prioritize and know what demands your personal attention and what has to be delegated. There is the need to determine which meetings you must attend and which ones to send your apologies. There are a number of project management tools you can also use, Outlook, Microsoft all have tools to help you manage your time effectively.
CXP Gh – How have you contributed to advancing CX in your current position?
Dr.Birago Antwi- Agyei – I am not sure I can say I am where I want to be in terms of influencing improvements in service delivery, but what I am proud of is that, in an organization where customer service hasn’t been part of our operations, it is comforting to know that awareness and resultant changes in behavior are growing. Improving service delivery in the public sector is my ultimate goal.
CXP Gh – Can you highlight any notable achievements in the CX space?
Dr.Birago Antwi– Agyei – Awards in the Banking Sector-UniBank was the best bank in service delivery more times than any of its competitors.
Set up of the CX unit in GRA and acceptance of CX
Organised the first ever CX conference for GRA
The CX units achievement has received recommendations by a number of tax administrations including HMRC and the World Bank.
CXP Gh – How do you collaborate with other departments to achieve CX goals?
Dr.Birago Antwi- Agyei – In GRA there are 3 major divisions. I have built very good relations with most heads of departments, especially in DTRD and Customs. I identified the influential staff early on and built on those relationships to improve service delivery one office at a time. This helped to achieve some positive impact early as consensus was built on how to improve service delivery in a way that wasn’t threatening or seen as an imposition.
CXP Gh – What steps should one follow to pursue a career similar to yours?
Dr.Birago Antwi- Agyei – Interesting question. As I said at the outset, many situations have shaped the career I have today. Every role has impacted who I am as a person and by extension what I do currently. I guess I would every situation or role is an opportunity to learn. Yes, the paper qualifications matter, because they are evidence of what you “may” know but do not underestimate the power of relationships. Your ability to relate well with people will take you further than any degree can.
CXP Gh – Do you have any advice for aspiring CX professionals?
Dr.Birago Antwi- Agyei – If I had any advice, it would be that they should not be afraid of work. They should always remember that their work output is a reflection of who they are. Be teachable and ready to learn. Be reliable and have a positive disposition to life.
