Are Your Employees Empowered to Deliver Exceptional Customer Service?

Think that your employees are empowered to deliver an exceptional customer experience?  Don’t bank on it.  Your policies may be letting you down. I learned this lesson recently during a trip to a bank. It was a Saturday afternoon and I was off to the UK on business on an early morning flight on Monday.  To my dismay, I realized that I did not have any British currency.  No problem, I reasoned, I just need to go to the bank.

As it turned out, my branch was closed by the time I arrived.  Fortunately, another bank on the other side of the plaza was open.  By coincidence, I used to have all of my accounts with the open bank until about three years ago and I still had a Visa card with their name on it.

I waited my turn for the lone teller.  When I got to the wicket, I explained that I would like to purchase some pounds sterling.

“Certainly sir, how much would you like?” came the very pleasant reply.

“£200 should do it, thanks.”

“No problem, just put your bank card in the slot.” she directed.

“I don’t have a bank card.” I explained.

“Don’t you have an account with us sir?”

“Not any more, no.”

“Then I am sorry, I cannot give you your sterling.”

“No problem, I can give you the cash equivalent.” I suggested.

“No, I am sorry, but I cannot accept cash.”

Now this was getting interesting.  I was dealing with a bank after all.  Wasn’t “cash” a day-to-day transaction in a bank? I asked “Why not?”

“Because you don’t have an account and we cannot be sure about the source of the cash.”

“Pardon?” I asked, hoping for some reasonable clarification.  Perhaps I heard wrong.  She repeated her explanation.  I was becoming quite incredulous.  “If you are concerned about the source of the cash, then why don’t you accompany me to your bank machine over there (there was a bank machine just inside the doors) and you can look over my shoulder as I remove the necessary amount to cover the transaction”.

By this time the teller’s manager joined in the conversation and moved me along the counter so that the line-up, which was steadily growing behind me, could be served.

“I am terribly sorry sir, but you must have a bank account with us if you want to buy foreign currency.  There is a place in the mall that sells currency.  Why don’t you go there?” (The “mall” that the manager referred to was at least a 20-minute drive away).

“I have a Visa from your bank.  Can I use this?” I asked, brandishing the card.

“I am sorry sir, you must have a bank account with our bank.”

My options were decidedly limited.  “Okay, sign me up for an account.”

The manager tried to be helpful.  “It would probably be easier to just go to the mall.”

“No, you convinced me.  I will open an account”.

I was shunted over to a chair to wait. In just a few minutes another courteous and friendly bank employee met me and guided me to a small office.  She started to ask the necessary questions to open an account – name, address, etc.  Suddenly she exclaimed, “But you do have an account with us!  You have a line of credit.”

Apparently when I cancelled my accounts with the bank, the line of credit remained in place and, although I had not used it for years, it was still available to me.

“Does that mean I can buy the sterling?”

“I think so.  Let me check.”  She went to speak to the manager and returned with a big grin.  “Yes sir. No problem”.

So I went back to the line and waited my turn.  By this time the teller was informed of the happy news and was able to make the transaction in just a few short moments.  She gave me the money and a receipt for the amount borrowed from my line of credit and I went directly to the bank machine in the lobby and took out the equivalent amount in Canadian dollars.  I returned to the teller and gave her the cash to clear my line of credit.

As I walked out of the bank it dawned on me that the transaction involved three people (four including me) and took about 30 minutes of time – some of that time holding up other customers and negatively impacting their experience.  The cost to the bank would far outweigh the commissions made on the transaction and they did, in a convoluted way, end up doing exactly what I asked for in the beginning – giving me the foreign currency in exchange for cash.  The only difference was it was cleared through my line of credit.

The bank employees were constrained by a bank policy that prevented them from delivering the quality of service they were capable of.  Despite the fact that the bank staff was polite and professional, the experience was frustrating and time wasting and completely unnecessary.  Now, there may be a good reason for this particular policy, but the branch employees were unable to explain it.

What about your policies?  Do they help your employees deliver an exceptional service experience or do they force them down a path that causes frustration for your customers and ultimately cost you money?  Have a close look.  You might be surprised with what you find.

I’d love your feedback! And as always, please feel free to leave a link back to your own blog if you have one via the commentluv feature here on the site. If you are reading this blog post via email, you will need to locate this post on my website by clicking here. Scroll down to the bottom of the page where you will find the comment section.

Jim

“When I go into a bank I get rattled. The clerks rattle me;
the wickets rattle me; the sight of the money rattles me;? everything rattles me.”

– Stephen Leacock, “My Financial Career”.