Values Based Customer Service in Extension

Customer service is the backbone of Extension at the county level and beyond. For years, we’ve been training front line staff to be good at customer service. Sometimes we succeed, and we offer great customer service. Other times we leave lots of room for improvement. We all have good intentions to be the best we can be and to provide the best customer service possible. Consistency is just the start of the challenges we face as a statewide campus of our universities. What we ultimately lack, though, is a focus on values within the organization as the backbone to the customer service plan. This presentation will share an innovate approach to values-based customer service. We will share examples of designing and implementing a values-based customer service plan for the organization based on simplifying the organization’s values into 3-4 memorable keys that every employee is introduced to at orientation. Then, the keys are repeated and used throughout the training process to emphasize what Extension does. These keys help the organization stay focused on the values it which it believes and guarantees customer service is delivered in the best possible ways using the keys. Beyond the values-based plan, we will review the four steps to writing a plan for and providing excellent, awesome customer service. The plan elements include Prepare, Respond, Recover and Improve Practices. This cyclical process approach to the customer plan that is based on organizational values ensures continues improvement, versus a concept that is often talked about but rarely implemented across the board.

Customer service is the brand in action. Knowing what customers think of you and how they interpret your image is a great way to start a plan to improve customer service in your organization. There are four steps to providing excellent, awesome customer service:

  1. Prepare – Write a plan, train and empower employees.
  2. Respond & Mitigate – Understand it is a long term relationship, not just about the issue at hand. Fix things. Respond on social media.
  3. Recover – Have a plan for potential customer service fails. Designate who is in charge. Communicate.
  4. Improve Practices – Update the plan. Prepare for next time. Anticipate future customer service issues.

Customer Service Discussion Guide 2020

Example of Keys