4 DIRTY LITTLE SECRETS OF EMPOWERMENT

    "Empowerment does not exist."

/24-7PressRelease/ - MINNEAPOLIS, MN, April 26, 2006 - So says John Tschohl, founder and president of the Service Quality Institute in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and author of several books on customer service. Why is he concerned about empowerment? Because, he says, it is the backbone of customer service, and without it, customers will take their business elsewhere.

"Without empowerment, an organization will never be a service leader," Tschohl says. "Empowerment is the most critical skill an employee can master and a company can drive in order to lure—and keep—customers."

Tschohl defines empowerment this way: Bending and breaking the rules to take care of the customer to the satisfaction of the customer, not the company.
So, why is empowerment almost non-existent? "I've discovered four dirty little secrets of empowerment," Tschohl says. "And those little secrets are preventing 99.9 percent of companies around the world from providing the superior service customers want. As a result, they are driving many of those customers away."

Those four dirty little secrets are:
1. Management doesn't trust customers. "They think customers are liars and cheats and, if given the chance, will rip off the company," Tschohl says. "To prevent that from happening, they develop ridiculous rules, policies, and procedures."
2. Management doesn't trust employees. "They have no confidence in their employees," Tschohl says. "They think that a frontline employee who is earning minimum wage couldn't possibly be trusted to make a decision without the customer taking advantage of him."
3. Managers are afraid of empowered employees. "They fear that, if employees are empowered to make decisions, their roles in the organization will be diminished or eliminated," Tschohl says.
4. Employees are afraid of empowerment. "Making empowered decisions means taking risks," Tschohl says. "Many employees fear being reprimanded, or even fired, for making what management might view as a bad decision."

Now that the dirty little secrets are out, Tschohl has recommendations on how to deal with them. The first, he says, is to understand the benefits of an empowered workforce. "When an employee is empowered to make decisions that will benefit the customer, everyone wins," he says. "Employees win, because they gain self-confidence as they make decisions that result in satisfied customers. Managers and executives win, because they have more time to focus on other issues. The organization wins, because it will have loyal customers who wouldn't dream of leaving and doing business with the competition."

Training is critical in order for empowerment to work, Tschohl adds. "You must train employees, trust them, and empower them to provide the best customer service possible," he says. That training, he adds, should include role playing in which employees spontaneously respond to irate customers and learn to defuse potentially combustive situations, turning them around and sending them away singing the company's praises.

"Recognition is another important element of empowerment," Tschohl says. "Employees who make empowered decisions should be recognized and rewarded. Celebrate them. Feature them in the company publication. Give them a prime parking spot near the front door for a week. Throw a pizza party. By doing so, you are sending a message to the rest of the workforce that empowerment is important."

Policies and procedures, two major roadblocks to empowerment, must be changed or eliminated. "You can't tie employees' hands with cumbersome policies and procedures and expect them to provide exceptional service," Tschohl says. "It's also important to let employees know that it is OK to make a mistake in the process of working to win customer satisfaction."

Customers who experience a problem with a company and have that problem solved quickly and to their satisfaction tend to be more loyal than customers who never had a problem with the company. "They also tell everyone they know about the wonderful service they received—and nothing is more powerful, or inexpensive, than word-of-mouth advertising," Tschohl says. 'If the customer wins, the company wins. Empowered employees are the magnet that will draw customers—and their money—through your doors and keep them coming back to you."

John Tschohl is an international service strategist and speaker. Described by Time and Entrepreneur magazines as a customer service guru, he has written several books on customer service, including Loyal for Life, e-Service, The Customer is Boss, Achieving Excellence Through Customer Service, and Ca$hing In: Make More Money, Get a Promotion, Love Your Job. John also has developed more than 26 customer service training programs that have been distributed and presented throughout the world. His bimonthly strategic newsletter is available online at no charge.

The global leader in customer service
John Tschohl is a service stategist and customer service guru.

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