It’s nice to write an article dealing with the topic of training new employees. I have had several Signature Worldwide clients contact me indicating they have new employees and need help with developing a plan for training them.
Additionally, as a result of the economic turmoil, there are many employees in positions in which they have not received the proper training. Often they ended up in these roles out of necessity. It is my guess that these employees already have a pretty good grasp of the technical and operational responsibilities of their jobs. These skills can be easy to train and reinforce if the person was transferred from within the organization because they already understand the industry and your company. And, most likely they have had exposure to your systems.
If the person is a new employee, we have found they typically have industry experience. They have knowledge of your products and services and understand how they are applied. For example, if the new position is on the parts counter, the new employee will most likely know how to access parts using your parts system.
Also, new managers with industry experience are typically comfortable teaching technical and operational skills. These are the skills in which they are most proficient so it is easier to transfer that knowledge.
The area that requires the most training for new employees is customer service and sales skills. Ask yourself if your customer-facing/front-line employees have the skills necessary to perform the following activities:
- Respond to a customer who is upset
- Consistently and proactively ask for
the sale - Professionally suggest related items
- Establish relationships with customers
- Manage customer interactions when they are busy
These are fundamental skills needed to deliver legendary service and generate additional revenue for your company. You can’t assume your employees, whether they’re new to the company or the position, have these skills.
Who is on your front line?
Having an “order-taker” in this position is not good enough. You need an individual who understands that it is his or her responsibility to see that customers are more than satisfied with your company. They are your front line and they have tremendous influence over your bottom line. This group typically interacts with your customer more than any other department in the company.
A person in this role does not have to be overwhelmingly charming or outgoing. They don’t have to be experienced or aggressive sellers. They do have to be trained in key customer service skills and fully understand your customer service and sales expectations. They should demonstrate a genuine desire to help your customers (and your company) to succeed.
Here are some simple suggestions for developing your new staff to deliver exceptional customer service:
- Detail your expectations for the position that include customer service and sales standards. People need to know what is expected of them. These standards will help define your culture. Examples might include their appearance, length of time it takes to greet someone entering your facility and phone greeting.
- Be a mentor. Set the tone and expectations within your facility. Be a positive example for how customers should be serviced over the phone and in person. Talk with your employees about the importance of loyal customers to the success of the company.
- Offer formal training. Formal training exists in many formats. There are many online, webinar and onsite programs that teach customer service and sales skills. Find an effective program that is in your budget. Where practical, make sure you, as a leader, take the program first so you can review the content with your employees. These types of programs are important for employee development and demonstrate your willingness to invest in your employees.
- Coach and develop your staff. Even after you implement your formal training program, the learning process must continue. Training has to be more than an event. Role play with your staff and look for opportunities to provide both positive and constructive feedback. Building a culture of great service requires a commitment.
- Measure these skills. Where possible, measure the effectiveness of your training plan. Many of our customers ask us to conduct mystery phone calls to their business so they can better assess how their customers are being serviced over the phone. We record and evaluate these calls and make them available to the client. These calls are an inexpensive and practical way to monitor progress and identify opportunities for improvement. Another tool for measuring skills is to survey your customers. There are many survey tools available (phone, web, paper...), so it’s important you select one that obtains the voice of the customer in your measurement.
Our customers are telling us that business is improving and they are looking to restore some of the employee development programs that were suspended as a result of the economy. Reintroduce training to put employees in a position to succeed and represent themselves and your company in the best possible manner. The benefits will be numerous in terms of happier customers, better focused employees and greater revenues.