Ron Kaufman

Deep inside an enormous software company, a team of passionately committed individuals works day and night to improve their customers’ and partners’ experiences. These committed service heroes know that satisfaction is not enough to retain loyalty and gain market share. They want more than quick recovery when things go wrong; they want to prevent things from going wrong in the first place. They want more than just meeting expectations; they are serious about customer delight. And though the company is sprawling and diverse, these employees believe everyone should step up in service, creating the next great experience together.

Unfortunately, their leaders do not seem to agree. Or perhaps they do not understand. During a workshop, one thundered that he was sick and tired of all the problems and simply yelled at his people to “Fix it!” Another took the stage in front of hundreds, with thousands more watching on video around the world and said, “Customer satisfaction is our...

In a harsh global economy, great service is the price of admission. Companies whose cultures aren’t built around the ability and the willingness—no, the eagerness—to delight the customer won’t survive. You know this. And if you’re a leader at global enterprise, no doubt you’ve gained more than a few gray hairs worrying about it. It’s true: Transforming a culture that crosses many boundaries is no small task. But I have a question that might put it all in perspective: If an entire nation can build a service-based brand and culture, what’s stopping YOU?

If you’ve never heard of Mauritius, take note. This small island nation is now doing what your company can and should be doing—and it’s starting to do it very well.

Before the global recession, Mauritius was a popular vacation destination for Europeans. In recent years, though, it has struggled to compete for the reduced number of tourists coming out of Europe. So one of the nation’s largest hospitality...

Generally, companies try to stay on their best behavior all year long by applying these Customer Service Tips. But during this holiday season—with decked halls, crowded malls, shrinking bank accounts, and frayed nerves—providing great service is even more critical than usual. Much like Santa, customers have their own “naughty or nice list,” and they won’t hesitate to give you the business equivalent of a stocking full of coal (i.e., taking their business somewhere else) if you make your way into the wrong column.

There’s no better time of the year than the holiday season to uplift your customers with highly effective Customer Service Tips. Unfortunately, there’s also no easier time of the year to do or say exactly the wrong thing.

Often at the holidays companies find themselves overbooked and short staffed. Supplies of popular items run out of stock. Departments aren’t prepared for the increased volume of customer inquiries and complaints. Employees are too distracted...

You know you’ve got unhappy customers so you’ve decided it’s time to do a complete service overhaul. You’ve spent hours with your C-level executives crafting a strategic plan and making sure your i’s are dotted and your t’s are crossed. The idea is to roll out the new plan in one area of your company—for example, your call center—and get things under control there before you move on to the next department. Over time, as you get your strategy perfected and everyone buys in, you’ll surely reap the benefits. Makes sense, right?

Sorry, but that’s no way to start a revolution. When you’re transforming a company culture to be more service-focused and effective, you have to move more boldly and get the message out to everyone more quickly. You don’t have time to let culture change drip down to the masses or bubble up from the bottom in one or two departments. You must cascade your transformational effort in a much wider and deeper effort from the beginning.

Creating a...