101 Ways to Improve Customer Service: Training, Tools, Tips, and Techniques

Part Six. Teamwork

Customer service is generally delivered by a group of people working together toward common goals. Service teamwork relies on the cooperation among individuals, departments, and organizations to provide effective customer service. Even when the service deliverer is a one-person enterprise, he or she relies on service partnerships with suppliers and associates to deliver effective customer service. Therefore, the highest level of service occurs when employees think of themselves, their colleagues, and their customers as one team, working together as part of the same process.

Because most organizations are made up of functional systems that interrelate, customer service can be viewed as the sum total of what an organization does to meet customer expectations and produce customer satisfaction. Although an individual may take a leading part in delivering customer service, it normally involves actions by a number of people in the company. To be successful in maintaining quality service for external customers, employees must be able to provide effective service to internal customers. Service teamwork therefore requires an interactive community of coworkers who collaborate, overcome, and achieve together.

By pooling resources and supporting one another, service teams can meet their goals and objectives faster and more easily. Working in teams allows the pooling of resources in order to meet the demands of an ever-expanding network of customers. This collaboration is especially ...