It’s one thing to declare that providing top notch service is your strategy to outdo the competition, but it’s quite another to actually do it and do it consistently.

These 5 steps will help achieve your goal.

1. Create your service strategy. Effective and remarkable service delivery requires a strategic context that everyone understands at an intimate level.

The service strategy defines how people and systems will “behave” in front of the customer. Without a strategy, inconsistency occurs as employees define “excellent service” their own way.

In addition, your service strategy must differentiate your organization from your competitors in some way; a “me too” plan effectively executed will provide few benefits.

2. Determine no more than 3 service performance metrics to track on your strategy. If you select too many statistics to try and manage, employees won’t be able to separate the critical results from those that are less important.

Use external customer perception as the basis for deciding what measures to focus on as opposed to internal measures which the customer may not feel are important.

What are the top 3 aspects of service THEY think are critical?

Also ask your frontline what measures to pay attention to. They deal with customers all day and know what’s important to them.

3. Post service performance results boldly throughout the workplace. Employees must be aware of how well the service strategy is being executed.

Celebrate achievements and recognize service heroes. Coach individuals when results are underperforming.

4. Incorporate the service objectives into everyone’s annual performance plan. If service results don’t impact how individuals are rated and paid, they are not treated as an important aspect of the job.

They don’t get attention; service results fall short of expectations.

And review results with each employee on a quarterly basis to keep the service priority “alive”.

5. Morph your managers into servant leaders whose top priority is to help make service delivery easier for employees.

“How can I help?” should be the mantra of the leadership team who make it THE priority to look for ways to reduce job complexity and to eliminate the grunge that prevents service delivery personnel from performing their role flawlessly.

Excellent service doesn’t happen by serendipity; it results from a meticulous and well crafted plan, focused effort and a servant leadership culture built on helping people do their job.

Anything short of this will, at best, deliver spotty service and disengaged employees.

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