Home > Step II: Coordinate an Alignment Audit of Key SCE Practices, Policies, Procedures, Processes and "Rules of Engagement" to Ensu
Steps to Aligning Key Business Practices, Policies, Procedures, Processes and “Rules of Engagement” with the Service Vision, Corporate Standards and Norms
We believe culture
change that focuses on creating an organization renowned for great service
happens in a methodical way. Certain stages are dependent on the
previous stage; certain stages can unfold simultaneously with others.
Aligning an organization’s key business practices, policies and procedures
with their Service Vision, Standards and Norms is a crucial stage in
the methodology of successful culture change. The alignment stage is
tough, tedious work that takes much longer than one might predict.
If done correctly, it will touch every aspect of an organization. It
is this very important work that makes the Service Vision, Standards
and Norms come alive in everything both employees and customers experience.
Below is the CHIP
BELL GROUP proven process for creating a customer loyalty focus and
a detailed description for the process we use to align an organization’s
key business practices, policies and procedures with their Service Vision,
Standards and Norms.
Crafting a Service Excellence Strategy®
Service Vision
Leadership Plan
Communication Plan
On-Boarding Training Communications Customer Feedback Affirmation BPI
Leader Vision
SWOT
Key Loyalty Drivers
Employee Value
Values Standards Norms Metrics Partnering
Quick Wins
Alignment Process
Alignment Process
The sequence of
our process to create a customer loyalty focus is crucial. All
the steps are in fact a part of a critical alignment process.
Values, standards, norms, and
metrics need to be in sync with the service vision. We also
find that developing partnership protocols is crucial to insuring
aligned results (not siloed activity). This provides a foundation
to shape on-boarding (selection, placement and orientation),
training, communications, real-time and periodic customer
feedback, all manner of affirmation processes (recognition,
incentives, balanced scorecards, compensation, etc.) as well as the
overall selling process. This foundation also guides the alignment and
integration of business processes (or BPI, business process integration).
The last groups of initiatives (from on-boarding to BPI) are on-going
alignment efforts. The culture change process involves designing the
methods by which all these components are perpetually aligned and updated
as customer requirements change and the new customer loyalty culture
matures.
A service excellence
vision and plan are high level templates and guides that succinctly
communicate an organization’s unique service distinction in the market
it serves. Unlike a mission or purpose which states “who and
what we are,” a service vision focuses on the customer side of the
business with a goal of communicating a clear vision of “what we strive
to be famous for in the eyes of our customers.” It is a description
of your organization’s distinguishing customer experience and a tool
for driving customer value into the heart of the organization.
A well-crafted
service vision has many benefits:
Upon conclusion of the drafting of an organization’s Service Vision, we typically facilitate the drafting of an initial Service Strategy Implementation Plan by a cross functional team of employees. A typical initial Service Strategy Implementation plan includes the development of the following key components:
Consistent customer
loyalty behaviors and practices will not occur without corporate standards,
norms and processes aligned with the Service Vision. Service breakdown
typically happens at the intersection of two internal units that only
care about their side of the equation. If there are precise worked-out-in-advance
processes and procedures in place, it provides a blueprint of efficient
and effective execution. Our approach includes working with a cross-functional
task force in a series of meetings (populated in part by senior leaders)
to craft new Service Vision-aligned company-wide standards and supporting
behavioral norms.
Often as a component
of this step we initiate a Pilot Test of the process for alignment review
of key organization wide business practices, policies and procedures.
This effort provides a prototype or model both for the entire organization
as well as individual units to create aligned standards and norms for
their specific areas. It is also a means to revise key business
practices that are out of alignment. The overall goal is consistent
practice and aligned efforts throughout the organization. Such
consistency provides customers the trust that bolsters their confidence
in and devotion to the organization.
Bossidy and Charan
said in their book Execution: The
Discipline of Getting Things Done; “Most efforts at cultural change
fail because they are not linked to improving the business’ outcome.”
A major culture change effort is hard work and can be even more difficult
in an arena where you are among industry leaders. Employees will find
themselves “plowing new ground” and will be looking for reinforcement
that their pioneering efforts are in fact on target. Most employees
will want to change but may hesitate fearing the outcome of their new
behavior will not be an improvement. Employees will be looking for
assurance and reinforcement leadership is committed to this new way
of doing business. If they find themselves continuing to use the same
old operating procedures as well as experiencing the same way of assigning
priorities and allocating resources, they will not believe leadership
is committed to a new service excellence culture and will feel is just
another “initiative of the month”. They will dismiss it as a short
term effort and will continue to operate as they always have.
A vital component
in an organization’s successful culture change initiative is the examination
of the way it conducts business--its rules of engagement for internal
and external affairs. Not only does the company’s strategy and structure
need to be aligned with its mission, service vision and corporate standards,
the company’s beliefs and behaviors must be aligned as well. These
beliefs and behaviors are evidenced in everything that goes on in a
company and need to be examined to ensure all are in alignment with
the organization’s new Service Vision and Corporate Standards.
Our alignment process
involves working with a cross functional team, lead by an executive
sponsor, to assist in understanding how the organization’s new culture
should look, sound, taste, and feel for customers and
associates. We then help in developing a methodology for reviewing their
key business practices, processes, and procedures to determine their
alignment with the new Service Vision and the new Corporate Standards
and Norms. Key business practices, processes and procedures often include:
Upon
completion of this review, we typically work with senior management
and the cross functional team to facilitate the revision of anything
found out of alignment with the service vision and corporate standards.
The actual revision and implementation of new processes and practices
is facilitated through the normal leadership structure of the organization.
This cross functional team serves as a check point to ensure new processes
are completed and rolled out that are in alignment with the corporate
standards/norms and are done so on a timely basis.
The next step to driving this culture change throughout an organization
would be to continue this effort by asking every branch and department
to review their own methods of doing business for alignment with the
service vision and corporate standards and to report their findings
to the cross functional team who can coordinate any revision necessary
with the appropriate executives and managers from each area. The cross
functional team serves as a checkpoint and coordination point to ensure
that every department and branch is rapidly moving towards operating
in alignment with the new Service Vision and Corporate Standards.
Our approach to aligning an organization’s
key business practices, processes and procedures with their Service
Vision, Corporate Standards and Norms typically follows the process
shown below:
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