The Service Mentality Leader S Guide

THE SERVICE MENTALITY LEADER’S GUIDE

The Service Mentality

Leader's Guide

Improving the way your organization communicates with customers.

30 Hollenberg Court • St. Louis, MO 63044

PHONE: 314.291.1012 • 800-882-9911

FAX: 314.291.3710

www.telephonedoctor.com

Contents

The Goal Of The Course and Course Objectives 3

Training Outline: The Service Mentality 4

Pre-Program Activity ~ A Mindset for Servicing Customers 5

Before You Begin: Tips for Trainers 6-8

Skill Practice Instructions 9

Discussion Questions & Skill Practice – Key Point #1: Empathy 10-11

Discussion Questions & Skill Practice – Key Point #2: Enthusiasm 12-13

Discussion Questions & Skill Practice – Key Point #3: Ownership 14-15

Discussion Questions & Skill Practice – Key Point #4: Responsibility 16-17

Discussion Questions & Skill Practice – Key Point #5: Adaptability 18-19

Discussion Questions & Skill Practice – Key Point #6: Balance 20-21

Discussion Questions & Skill Practice – Key Point #7: Resiliency 22-23

Before They Go 24

A Quiz on The Service Mentality – Post Quiz / Answers 25

A Call to Action 26

Closing Words 27

Key Points 28-30

Instructor’s Notes 31-32

About Telephone Doctor, Inc. Customer Service Training

Telephone Doctor, Inc. is a St. Louis based customer service training company which offers products and techniques designed to improve the service skills of customer contact employees. This program is presented by Nancy Friedman, our founder and president. Through DVDs, CD-ROMS, web-based courses, books, audio programs and instructor-led workshops, Telephone Doctor, Inc. has helped tens of thousands of organizations increase revenue, improve customer satisfaction ratings and reduce employee turnover. For additional information, please visit www.telephonedoctor.com.

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The Goal of the Course: The Service Mentality

Throughout our professional careers, one truth that will remain constant is there will always be a “customer” in our life. Our customers may be internal, external or a combination of both. Our responsibility is to provide every customer with exceptional customer service. The goal of this course is to identify specific behaviors and characteristics present in people who provide excellent service.

Objectives:

Participants who successfully complete this course will have met these objectives by demonstrating through written, verbal and/or skill practice exercises the ability to:

♦ List the seven characteristics required to provide excellent service

♦ Recognize how providing excellent service gives the organization a competitive edge

♦ Conduct a personal self-assessment of their own service mentality

♦ Gain knowledge and insight into the behaviors required to demonstrate a “service mentality”

♦ Apply the behaviors exemplified by each characteristic to their specific work situation

The long-term value of this program creates a need to utilize the content in a variety of different uses. The following outline is based on a more traditional approach of showing the program in its entirety then participating in discussions.

Additional uses include:

● One key point at a time during a staff meeting

● Use a single segment as a buy-in activity

● Individual key points can be used to add another dimension to other training programs

Training Outline: The Service Mentality

I. Introduction to the Topic (see “The Goal Of The Course” on page 3) (5 min)

A.  State the goal of the course in your opening comments

B.  Include class objectives

II. Getting Acquainted (see “Tips For Trainers” on pages 6 - 8) (15 min)

A.  Introduction of trainer

B.  Use an icebreaker or buy-in activity

C.  Administer: Pre-Program Activity ~ A Mindset for Servicing Customers

III. View Program: The Service Mentality (23 min approx.)

IV. Application of Key Points

For each Key Point: (5 min per point)

♦ Ask discussion questions provided in the Leader’s Guide

♦ Have participants complete the accompanying Participant Workbook pages

♦ Optional: Use corresponding skill practice

V. Wrap Up (see “Before They Go” on page 24) (15 min)

A.  Select method of review

B.  Use a commitment activity

C.  Ask participants to complete evaluation

D.  Hand out Desktop Reminder Cards

NOTE: The total length of this class is approximately 90 minutes using the Key Point discussion questions only. For each skill practice activity included in the session, increase the total length of class by approximately 10 minutes. For example, if using skill practices #1, 3, 5 & 7, the total length of the class is approximately 2 hours and 10 minutes.

Pre-Program Activity ~ A Mindset for Servicing Customers

Why are some people better at customer service than others?

Telephone Doctor, an international customer service training company, recently interviewed several high-profile clients that are well known to deliver and exceed customer expectations. We wanted to know what characteristics these companies look for in employees and why some people are just downright better at customer service than others. The results were transferred to the new Telephone Doctor Customer Service Program, The Service Mentality.

Take a few minutes to answer these questions to see how you score. Circle the letter to the right for the word that best represents you as it relates to the statement:

Frequently (F) Sometimes (S) Rarely (R)

Now review your responses. Any response with “sometimes” or “rarely” indicates an area in which your customer service mindset could improve. Below are the Key Points as they relate to the questions above.

1. Empathy Question 1

2. Enthusiasm Questions 2 & 3

3. Ownership Question 4

4. Responsibility Questions 5 & 6

5. Adaptability Questions 7 & 8

6. Balance Questions 9 & 10

7. Resiliency Question 11

Before You Begin: Tips for Trainers

In order for participants to receive the maximum benefits from this course, here are some tips for success:

Assemble Learning Resources

■ Locate the program: The Service Mentality

■ Using The Service Mentality Participant Workbooks will greatly enhance the training

■ Desktop Reminder Cards for each participant will encourage behavior modification

■ You’ll need:

A flip chart or white board and markers, or chalkboard and chalk

Media equipment: TV with DVD player or computer with DVD drive, speakers and screen or wall

Create a Comfortable Learning Atmosphere

■ Choose a comfortable, well-lit room with no distractions.

■ Arrange straight tables in a u-shaped set-up or use round tables. Either way, it is important that each participant be able to make eye contact with other participants.

■ Use name tents or name tags for participants.

■ Encourage note taking by using the Participant Workbooks or supply pencil and paper.

■ Introduce yourself. Give the participants a brief sketch of your background, your experience and how you relate to the training subject. The more comfortable the participants are with you, the more effective you will be in facilitating their learning.

■ Allow the participants to get comfortable with each other. Use self-introductions or icebreaking exercises to get the group relaxed.

1. The participants can use your introduction as a model, which will help them overcome any natural reluctance to talk about themselves.

2. Divide the class into groups of two. Give each pair of participants a few minutes to interview each other. Each one in turn introduces his or her partner to the group. This will speed the process of getting the participants to function as a group.

3. Multiple sources for icebreaker exercises exist. Visit your favorite bookstore or local library.

■ Schedule breaks every 1½ to 2 hours.

Before You Begin: Tips For Trainers (Cont.)

■ Acquaint the participants with “housekeeping” items. Advise the participants regarding the important features of the training environment (e.g., location of restrooms and lounge facilities, breaks, etc.).

■ Establish clear goals. The specific learning objectives for this class are included in the Leader’s Guide (page 3). Keep in mind that the clearer the participants’ understanding of their objectives, the more likely it is that they will achieve those objectives.

Involve The Participants

■ The corresponding Participant Workbook provides a “Pre-Program Activity ~ A Mindset for Servicing Customers.” This activity has a dual purpose. It can be used as a pre-test or buy-in activity which sets the stage for immediate involvement.

■ Choose the segments of the program that best meet your needs. Decide the viewing method that works best (start/stop, all inclusive, minus the review segment, etc.).

■ When using Telephone Doctor® Participant Workbooks, there are a variety of ways to complete the questions.

1. Divide participants into two groups, assign each group a page and have the group prepare to discuss one or two questions from each page.

2. Prior to class, instructor selects most pertinent questions to be completed during class.

3. Assign homework to participants to complete remaining questions.

■ Verify participant understanding by asking questions. Make them do most of the work. Resist the urge to take over. Facilitate, but don’t dominate. Ask questions, coax answers, encourage give and take.

■ Encourage involvement of the participants, by beginning questions with phrases such as:

“What did you think about that?”

“Tell me what you just saw.”

“How do you relate to that vignette?”

“That was interesting, what was your take on it?”

“What were your initial impressions?”

“How did that scene make you feel?”

NOTE: Telephone Doctor encourages you to create skill practices for each characteristic to simulate issues specific to your organization.

Before You Begin: Tips For Trainers (Cont.)

■ Reduce participant’s apprehension by positively reinforcing their comments with statements such as:

“That’s interesting; tell me more about what you mean.”

“I hadn’t considered that angle yet.”

“Okay, thanks for sharing that with us.”

“That’ll be one of the things we need to consider.”

“I really like your insight.”

“That’s sure a unique perspective. Who else has some ideas?”

■ Reward participants for their enthusiastic participation. Prizes are always coveted and Telephone Doctor has many fun promotional items available for purchase.

Skill Practice Instructions

A skill practice is simply a bit of make-believe that teaches us a lot about the real world.

The purpose is to practice the skills presented in this course. On the following pages we’ve prepared six scenarios to reinforce the key points from The Service Mentality program.

Using the following skill practices as examples, we encourage you to create your own skill practices specific to current issues in your organization.

Here’s how to make the skill practices pay off for the entire class:

1. You’ll find instructions for skill practice scenarios on the next pages. For each scenario, choose one participant to play the employee and another to play the customer. The remaining participants will be the observers.

2. Give the employee the profile entitled “Instructions for the Employee” to read. Give the customer the profile entitled, “Instructions for the Customer.” Both will have the opportunity to refer to the printed profiles during the skill practice.

3. Have the customer and the employee play out the scenario. As they “act out” their parts, have both parties sit as though they were in an office.

4. After the skill practice, have the customer and the other participants (observers) critique the part of the employee in the skill practice. Make sure they address and discuss these questions:

a.  Did the employee apply the skills discussed in the training?

b.  What specific words or actions were used to make the employee effective?

c.  What feelings did you experience as you watched the scene unfold?