NEW PROFESSIONAL (6-WEEK) EVENING COURSE

Increasing competition between national and international companies calls for a greater degree of ability and professionalism on the part of all managers. This advanced level management programme is regularly selected by employers seeking a suitable course of study for their middle and line managers. The structure of the programme ensures the participants are able to develop both academic knowledge and practical management skills.

Customer Service:

Importance of customer service, understanding customer satisfaction, excellent customer service, five needs of every customer, cost of losing a customer.

Challenges of Customer Service:

Elements of success, barriers to excellent customer service, power of perceptions, understanding expectations, levels of expectations, scope of influence, reputation management, techniques for exceeding customer expectations, keys to credibility, importance of values, ethics in customer service, current status of customer service, new trends in customer service.

Problem Solving:

Role of problem solving in customer service, creativity & problem solving, problems as opportunities, confronting conflict, problem solving process, problem solving strategies, development of negotiation skills, professional approaches to apologising and conveying bad news, barriers to problem solving & decision making, importance of follow up.

Strategy and Formulating a Plan for Success:

Why a strategy, planning, importance of infrastructure, culture, high touch & low touch customers, segmenting the market, developing a strategy.

Empowerment:

Importance of mission and purpose statements, steps to empowering customer service providers, co- production of customer service, why co-production works, design of systems.

Communications in Customer Service:

Building customer intelligence, methods of communication, listening, voice inflection as a customer service tool, telephones and customer service, words to use/avoid, power phrases, power of eye contact, appeal to the senses, communication and technology.

Coping with Challenging Customers:

Who are challenging customers, why they are challenging, characteristics of challenging customers, respect, empathy, accepting mistakes, benefits from dealing with challenging customers.

Motivation:

What is motivation, needs and wants, motivating factors, understanding morale, self concept and motivation, improving self concept, power of self motivation, power of self motivation, teamwork, motivating others.

Leadership in Customer Service:

Leadership defined, knowing yourself, formal and informal leaders, coach or counsellor, characteristics of excellent leaders, leadership and goals, creating a customer service culture, benefit of job aids, leadership without position, the Boss as a Customer.

Customer Retention and Measurement of Satisfaction:

What is a customer retention, value of existing customers, churn, developing and improving the customer retention programme, measurement of satisfaction, sources of information, benefits of measuring your effectiveness, determining your effectiveness, surveys and reality, business benefits from measuring satisfaction.

Delivering Customer Service to the changing Marketplace:

Today’s changing marketplace, the customer of the 21st century, new technology, call centres, the internet, enhancing service experiences and building customer loyalty.

Excellence in Customer Service:

Excellence as the goal, getting started, rewards of excellent customer service.

Core Text: Customer Service – A Practical Approach – Elaine K Harris (Prentice Hall)

Alternative Texts and Further Reading: Managing Customer Service – Jenny Hayes & Frances Dredge (Gower), Once a Customer Always a Customer – Chris Duffy (Oak Tree Press)