Share your best/worst 2010 service experience (Part2)

By Sandra idossou

“The most destructive criticism is indifference,” says Edgar Watson Howe, a famous American novelist. Today we live in a society where most of us have become indifferent to many matters which should be important to us. We have become so egocentric that so far as the issues do not affect us directly, we tend to shy away from them.

When we started last week this series on sharing our best and worst 2010 service experience, someone said to me that: “What is the use? Nothing will change so there is no need wasting our time in writing these service experiences.”

Most of us are in an environment where people do not often say clearly and publically what they think of certain issues. But the fact here is that being indifferent is a sign that we lack emotion, drive, concern and even patriotism. Being indifferent on service delivery in this case has made many to become too complacent. Is it because many feel helpless, doubtful or simply afraid to voice out their impressions?

Well, if we really want things to improve here, we cannot remain indifferent or silent because if we are not part of the problem, then through our concern and empathy, we should be part of the solution.

In today’s article, your columnist has decided to publish Pesh’s worst 2010 service experience. You too, you can share in this column and for the coming weeks, your own personal positive or negative service experiences by being honest and objective.

Remember, this is the best way of encouraging and emulating those who offered you extraordinary service and at the same time emulate others to do the same

Dear Sandra,

I just read your column in The Business Times and I felt the need to share my worst service experience in 2010. It was on December 15, 2010 when I went to BNR to pay for my tuition. I got to the bank, did the usual filling in of the deposit slips and struggled to find a counter with the shortest queue and finally ended up on a queue with just one “client”!!! Counter No. 6 (I think!).

Little did I know that I would stay longer than those who were on queues of 8 people! I waited for up to 10 minutes until I realized the teller was actually having a conversation with the “client”! When I complained about why they were having a conversation over the counter, the teller’s excuse was that she was serving a “client” and that the system was also slow.

I raised my voice a little higher (am not quite a shouter), and then the “client” realized that I could create havoc and she took off…to her office…she was actually a colleague in BNR who (simply) having a conversation over the counter with the teller. She had no remorse whatsoever for the mistake.

On the brighter note, the teller who served (Brigitte) did a very good job to calm my nerves. She apologized for her colleague’s behavior (please note that the wrong doer was still defending her mistake), she was very pleasant and did her best to serve me in the shortest time possible.

Thank you for the good work that you are doing to address the service issue Sandra. Customer service should be in our blood, it is a pity that people have to be reminded to serve clients well. Wish you and all readers a successful customer-centric 2011. Pesh G”.

Expecting to receive your own worst and best 2010 service experience

The author is a customer service consultant and the publisher of The ServiceMag

sandraidossou@yahoo.fr