W. Warner Burke, from Columbia University, is an expert in organizational change. Burke’s work with a variety of organizations indicates that for a true change initiative to be successful, focus and change must occur at multiple levels:
- Systems level
- Work-unit level
- Individual level
Text Box: Through our work at ServiceElements, we have seen many aviation-related companies struggling to breathe life into customer service initiatives, hoping that they will become “part and parcel” of their culture. But it takes more than hope. Inevitably their initiatives failed because they were not addressing all levels of their companies.
So, what within these levels can change?
System Level – The system level includes mission, strategy, service culture, and leadership. Is customer service an explicit strategy that the leadership of the organization agrees upon? Does the overall culture reflect this strategy as a priority?
Work Level – The work-unit level includes standard operating procedures, management practices, reward systems, and strength of teamwork.
Individual Level – The individual level includes training programs for employees, managers, and leaders, and whether the right people are in the right jobs.
The bottom line? Hiring a company to do a one-day workshop on customer service (which means change is being initiated at the individual level only) is doomed to failure. It must be accompanied by critical analysis of the company’s system and work-unit levels. Clearly, the training will do little good if, for example, customer service is not a part of the company’s mission and leadership does not address work-unit level activities such as developing standard operating procedures and reward structures that reinforce the training and the mission.
Sure, training is a natural part of any customer service initiative – but so is assessment. Leaders must be bold enough to assess their organization at all three levels. Companies must understand where they are at now, in terms of customer service, and compare that to where they want to go in the future. It can’t be done without a comprehensive service audit. If service is truly going to differentiate your company, then you must embark on a total solution. Those who address only one of Burke’s levels without addressing the others will never do anything more than just talk the talk…or maybe even worse.
