Is your organization’s customer service lower than you’d like it to be? Does your customer service training create some short-term change, but then after the training, behaviors revert back to the way things were before? Do members of your team agree conceptually that you exist to serve your customer, but then make decisions that are not customer oriented and make it harder for frontline servers to serve customers?

For all the talk about customer service it has improved very little!

My second book, Firing on All Cylinders: The Service/Quality System for High-Powered Corporate Performance has sold over 100,000 copies since its publication in 1990. If I might say so myself, it’s helped many organizations dramatically increase their customer service. My two-day workshop, Leading a Customer-Centered Organization has also helped many management teams move their service levels to the next level.

But as a customer experiencing all too often indifferent, and downright awful service, I often feel like I’ve made only a small dint in the overall problem. Of course, if millions more managers purchased my books and attended my workshops, the world would be a much better place!

Here are a few of my favorite and most popular articles on leadership and customer service, freely available on our web site:
Blame Management for Poor Service
Several issues facing declining service levels and finding ‘what’ rather than ‘who’ went wrong.

More is Said Than Done About Improving Customer Service
Most management teams are interested in becoming more “customer-driven.” Many aspire, some understand, but only a few truly do. And those who do provide the highest levels of service/quality enjoy the richest rewards.

A Customer Culture is Built on a Service Ethic
Technomanagers are leaders who focus first on technology and management systems, before focusing on their customers and internal/external partners. They must discover the key “servant leadership” principle — success comes through serving others.