CUSTOMER

FOCUS
 CUSTOMER FOCUS
What is custome r focus?

Customer focus means putting your customers needs first. Customer-

focused businesse s foster a compa ny culture de dic ated to e nhanc ing
customer satisfac tion and building strong c ustome r rela tionships.

Customer focus might be the most important principle of quality

management. The c ustome r is the ultimate judge of quality of goods a nd
services, and a s ha s be en e loquently sta ted.

"WITHOUT C USTOMER, YOU DONT HAVE A BUSINESS".

KEY CUSTOMER-FOCUSED PRACTICES
FOR QUALITY MANAGEMENT

• Identify the most important c ustome r groups and ma rke ts, c onside ring
competitors and othe r pote ntial
customers, and segment the customer base to bette r me et differing nee ds.

• Understand both near-term and longer-term customer needs and e xpec tations
(the "voice of the custome r") and e mploy systema tic processe s for listening
and learning from c ustomers, potential c ustome rs, and c ustome rs of
competitors to obtain a ctionable information about produc ts a nd customer
support.
• Understand the linkages between the voice of the c ustome r
and design, production, and de livery proc esse s.

• Create an organiz ational c ulture and support framework tha t allows

customers to easily contac t an organiza tion to conduc t busine ss.

• Manage customer re lationships that build loya lty, e nhanc e sa tisfac tion a nd
engagement, and lea d to the ac quisition of
new customers.

• Measure customer satisfac tion, engage ment, and

dissatisfaction.
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND ENGAGEMENT

The ASQ Quality Glossary defines customer satisfaction as “the result of delivering a
product or service that meets customers requirements. Customer satisfaction is vital to
keeping customer and growing a business.

Customer satisfaction drives profitability. The typical company gets 65% of its
business from existing customer, and it cost five times more to find a new customer
than to keep an existing one happy.
 CUSTOMER
Customer satisfaction and loyalty have evolved into a
ENGAGEMENT
new concept called customer engagement, refers to
customers investment in, or commitment to a brand and
product offerings.

Customer engagement is an important outcome of a

customer-focused culture and the organizations listening,
learning and performance excellence strategy.
Characteristics of customer engagement
include:

• Customer retention and loyalty

• Customer willingness to actively advocate
for a recommend the brand and product
offerings.
 The American Customer Satisfaction
Index
In 1994, the University of M ic higan B usine ss School a nd the Americ an
Society for Quality(ASQ) re leased the first American C ustomer
Satisfaction Index. (ACSI) an ec onomic indica tor tha t measure s c ustome r
satisfaction at the na tional level.
One of the goal of the ACSI is to raise the public perception a nd
understanding qua lity of qua lity, as do the consumer pric e index a nd other
economic indica tors.
The ACSI Model
IDENTIFYING
CUSTOMERS
The first step in being customer focused is to understand who your customers are. Most
employee think that “customers” are those people who ultimately purchase and use a
company’s product.

The easiest way to identify customers is to think in terms of customer-supplier

relationships.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
CONSUMERS AND
CUSTOMERS
CONSUMERS
A consumer is always the end user of a product or service,but might not have purchased
it.
CUSTOMERS
A customer becomes a consumer if they make a purchase and use the product or service
themselves. A customer always purchases a product or service, but might not be the end
user.
IDENTIFYING
CUSTOMERS Customer- Supplier Model
CUSTOMER SEGMENTATION

Customer Segmentation is the practice of dividing a customer base into distinct groups
that share similar characteristics. This allows business to tailor their marketing, sales,
and product development efforts to better meet the needs of each group.

There are many ways to approach customer segmentation. Customer segmentation

might be based on geography, demographic factors, ways in which products are used,
volumes or expected levels of service.
UNDERSTANDING CUSTOMER
NEEDS
Understanding customer needs is the very foundation of successful business or
company. It's about getting into the minds of your customers, uncovering their desires,
motivations, and pinpoints.

At Ideo, one of the worlds leading design firm (which design Apple’s first mouse,
standup toothpaste tubes, and many other innovative products), design doesn’t begin
with a far-out concept or cool drawing. It begins with a deep understanding of the
people who might use whatever product or service that eventually emerges from its
work, drawing from anthropology, psychology, biometrics, and other disciplines.
UNDERSTANDING CUSTOMER
NEEDS
Organization first need to understand the drivers of customer satisfaction- what do
customer want or expect from our goals and services? For example, credit card user
might have following expectations for four key business activities associated with the
card.

• Applying for an Account: Accessible, responsive, accurate, and professional

• Using Card: Easy to use and hassle free, features, reasonable fees, credit limits
• Billing. Accurate, timely, and easy to understand
• Customer Service. Accessible, responsive and professional.
F I V E P R I N C I PA L D I M E N S I O N T H AT
CONTRIBUTE TO CUSTOMER PERCEPTIONS OF
Q
1. U A L I T Y the ability to provide what was promised, dependably and accurately.
Reliability
2. Assurance The knowledge and courtesy of employees, and their ability to convey
trust and confidence.
3. Tangibles The physical facilities and equipment, and the appearance of personnel
4. Empathy The degree of caring and individual attention provided to customers.
5. Responsiveness The willingness to help customers and provide prompt service.
QUALITY DIMENSIONS OF GOODS AND
PRODUCTS HAVE MULTIPLE DIMENSIONS OF QUALITY:
SERVICES
⚬ Performance A products primary operating characteristics. Using an automobile as
an example, characteristics would include such things as acceleration, braking
distance, steering and handling
⚬ Features The “Bells and whistles” of a product. A car may have power options, a
CD player, iPod connections, satellite radio, and antilock brakes
⚬ Reliability The probability of a products surviving over a specified period of time
under stated conditions of use. A car ability to start on cold days and frequency of
failures are reliability factor
⚬Conformance The degree to which physical and performance characteristics of a
product match pre-established standards. A car’s fit and finish and freedom from
noises and squeaks can reflect this dimension
⚬ Durability The amount of use one gets from a product before it physically
deteriorates or until replacement is preferable.
⚬ Serviceability The speed, courtesy, and competence of repair work. An automobile
owner might be concerned with access to spare parts, the number of miles between
major maintenance services, and expensive of service,
⚬ Aesthetics How a product looks, feels, sounds, tastes, or smells. A car’s color,
instrument panel design, control placement, and “feel of the road”.
The Kano Model of Customer Requirements

• Dissatisfiers (must haves): Basic requirements that customer expected in a

product or services.
• Satisfiers (wants): Requirements that customer expressly say they want.
• Exciters/delighters (Never thought of) New or innovative features that
customers do not expect or even anticipate.
Gathering the Voice of Customer
Customer requirements, as expressed in customer’s own terms are called the voice of the

customer. Voice of the Customer (VoC) is a term that describes your customer’s feedback about

their experiences with and expectations for your product or services. It focuses on customer

needs, expectations, understanding, and product improvement.

WAYS TO FIGURING OUT THE CUSTOMERS
WANT
• Comment Cards and Formal Surveys: Comment cards and formal surveys are easy ways to
solicit customer information.
• Focus Group: A focus group is a panel of individuals who answer questions about company’s
product and services as well as those of competitors.
• Direct Customer Contact: In customer-driven organizations, top executives commonly visit
with customers personally.
• Complaints: Complaints, although undesirable from a service point of view, can be a key
source of customer information.
• Internet and Social media Monitoring: The internet and social media such as Facebook offer
organizations a fertile arena for finding out what consumers think of their products.
LINKING CUSTOMER NEEDS TO DESIGN,
PRODUCTION, AND SERVICE DELIVERY
VOC information must be linked to design, production, and delivery processes. Consider e-
commerce, for example A study of Internet bank service found that customers perceived quality
along three broad categories.

• Customer Service Quality

• Banking Quality, Product Quality
• Online System Quality
L I N K I N G C U S T O M E R N E E D S T O D E S I G N , P R O D U C T I O N , A N D S E RV I C E D E L I V E RY

A good example of one company that Understand the linkage between customer need and its
processes is Advanced Circuits, a small Denver manufacturer of printed circuit boards.
BUILDING A CUSTOMER-FOCUSED
ORGANIZATION
Creating a customer-focused organization takes hard work and discipline. It must be
built on good policies, good people, and good processes.

Customer-focused organizations focus on four key processes;

1. Making sincere commitments to customers.

2. Ensuring quality customer contact.

3. Selecting and developing customer contact employees.

4. Managing complaints and service recovery.

A good example of customer focused organization is Deer Valley Ski Resort.
CUSTOMER COMMITMENTS

Organizations that truly believe in the quality of their products make sincere commitments
to their customers. Effective commitments address the principal concerns of customer, are
free from conditions that might weaken customer trust and confidence and are
communicated clearly and simply to customers. A customer commitment might be as simple
. as guaranteeing that your call or e-mail inquiry will be returned promptly.
CUSTOMER CONTACT AND INTERACTION
Customer interact with organizations in many different ways. Every interaction between a
customer and the organization whether it be face to face with a salesperson or customer
service representative or online on a website is called a moment of truth.
During moment of truth, customer form perceptions about the quality of the service by
comparing their expectations with the actual outcome. Thus, customer satisfaction or
dissatisfaction takes place during moment of truth.
CUSTOMER CONTACT REQUIREMENTS
Customer contact requirements are measurable performance levels or expectations that define
the quality of customer contact with an organization.

St. lukes Hospital of Kansas City Customer-Contact Requirements.

• Greet patients/guests by introducing myself, address patients/guest by last name unless otherwise told.
• Ask sincerely, “ How may I help you?”
• Knock, request permission to enter the room , and explain what I am going to do
• Complete initial assessment on all patients within eight hours.
• Acknowledge all patient/guest request and be accountable for follow up.
• Address all complaints within 24 hours or less.
• Introduce any replacement caregiver.
St. lukes Hospital of Kansas City Customer-Contact Requirements.

8. Promote family-entered care : listen thoughtfully to all patienst/guest, and provide timely communication to
the appropriate preson(s) for action
9. Respect and acknowledge diversity: culture and values of my patients, their family, visitors, and my co-
workers.
10. Maintain confidentially of all information.
11. Know, or have access to, legal and regulatory requirements and standards of care related to my specific
responsibilities.
12. Thank my customers for choosing Saint Luke’s Hospital.
SELECTING AND DEVELOPING CUSTOMER
.CONTACT EMPLOYEES

Customer contact employees are particularly important in creating customer satisfaction as they
often are the only means by which a customer interacts with an organization.
MANAGING COMPLAINTS AND SERVICE
RECOVERY
All in all, complaints management truly is an essential component of customer service and
business success. Not only is it the means to gather valuable customer insight, it also helps
your company progress to improvements that lead to reduced costs, increased profitability
and increased customer satisfaction.
MANAGING CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS
Excellent organizations foster close relationships with customers that lead to high levels
of satisfaction and loyalty.

Customer relationships can be fostered through strategic partnerships and alliances and
using technology to facilitate better communication with customers and linkages to
internal operations.

CUSTOMER-SUPPLIER PARTNERSHIPS
Long-term relationships characterized by teamwork and mutual confidence-represent
an important strategic alliance in achieving excellence and business success.
CUSTOMER-FOCUSED TECHNOLOGY

Technology can greatly enhance an organization's ability to leverage customer-related

information and provide improved customer service.

Technology is a key enabler of CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT (CRM),

which is designed to help organizations increase customer loyalty, target their most
profitable customers, and streamline customer communication processes.

The goal is to improve customer service relationships and assist with customer
retention and drive sales growth.
MEASURING CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND
ENGAGEMENT

Customer feedback is vital to a business. Through feedback, a company learns how satisfied
its customers are with is products and services and sometimes about competitor’s products
and services.

An effective customer satisfaction measurement results in reliable information about

customer ratings of specific product and service features.
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND
ENGAGEMENT MEASUREMENT ALLOWS AN
ORGANIZATION TO DO THE FOLLOWING:
1. Discover customer perceptions of how well the organization is doing in meeting customer needs,
and compare performance relative to competitors.

2. Identify causes of dissatisfaction and failed expectations as well as drivers of delight to

understand the reasons why customers are loyal or not loyal to the company

3. Identify internal work process that drive satisfaction and loyalty and discover areas for
improvement in the design and delivery of products and services, as well as for training and
coaching of employees

4. Track trends to determine whether changes actually result in improvements.

Customer satisfaction measures may include product attributes such as product
quality, product performance, usability, and maintainability.

Service attributes such as attitude, service time, on-time delivery, exception handling,
accountability, and technical support.

Image attributes such as reliability and price and overall satisfaction measures.

It is important to understand that customer satisfaction is a psychological

attitude.

It is not easy to measure, and can only be observed indirectly.

DESIGNING SATISFACTION SURVEYS

The first step in developing a customer satisfaction survey is to determine its purpose.
Survey should be designed to clearly provide the users of the survey results with the
information they need to make decision.

A critical question to consider is “Who is the customer?” Managers, purchasing agents, end
users, and others all may be affected by a company’s product and services.
THANK YOU FOR
LISTENING