C&T Scene: What is customer service?

Excellent customer service leads to satisfied customers, patients, and co-workers here at Yale. Those who display these skills are described as courteous and helpful. Customer service involves understanding and responding to the needs of others, and at times anticipating and going beyond expectations.

Who is the customer?
Customer service isn’t about only your interactions with patients, callers or external vendors. It’s also about the interactions and services you provide to coworkers, managers, students, and faculty as well.  Excellent customer service skills are regarded by hiring managers as a valuable asset. Yale assesses customer service satisfaction by utilizing a variety of methods:

• Managers provide direct feedback through the annual review process.  
• Colleagues (department heads, managers, employees) may give feedback on a great service experience.
• Patients provide information about their experiences through surveys like Press Ganey.
• Employees also communicate feedback about their experiences on job search sites like Glassdoor.

How can I offer excellent customer service?
As a professional that wants to give excellent customer service internally and externally, consider the tips below:

• Greet with a smile
  If you are unable to give individuals your full attention, address their presence by smiling, making eye contact, and giving a nod. These small gestures alone will make a visitor feel acknowledged and welcomed rather than ignored. Greeting someone with a smile is particularly welcome in the virtual world.
• Meet expectations
  Deliver what you promise. If you are unable to complete a task because of a problem you encounter, let customers know the cause of the delay and when they can expect a resolution. This will establish a shared understanding of an expected turnaround time and allow you opportunities to prioritize next steps and keep them in the loop.
• Anticipate needs
  One of the most appreciated customer service skill is when colleagues’ or customers’ needs are anticipated.  Rather than just complete the task, take it one step further.  For example, if you are providing the final changes on a faculty member’s slideshow, save it on a shared drive and a thumb drive just in case there are network issues during the presentation. This is also a way to show your initiative.
• Offer assistance
  If you find your co-worker seems particularly busy, ask if there is anything you can do to help. This gesture promotes teamwork and encourages your co-worker to reciprocate the assistance in the future.
• Speak their language
  Limit use of acronyms or kindly explain what an acronym stands for to be sure parties understand the information you are conveying.
• Watch your energy, tone, and body language
  To be engaging during interactions, make sure your energy matches the tone of the conversation. When greeting someone at a front desk or virtually, be sure you are upbeat, maintain eye contact, and use an open body stance, such as hands by your side, and squarely face the person.
• Express appreciation
  Do not forget to say, “Thank you.” Even when you may have a difficult encounter or someone brings you a problem, look at it as an opportunity for you or your office to improve.

To help you further develop excellent customer service skills, watch these LinkedIn Learning videos.