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The Kindness Revolution: The Company-Wide Culture Shift That Inspires Phenomenal Customer Service

The Kindness Revolution: The Company-Wide Culture Shift That Inspires Phenomenal Customer Service

by Ed Horrell
Publisher: AMACOM
Release Date: August 2006
ISBN: 9780814473078
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Book Description

Re-energize your company's customer service--and inspire greater customer loyalty--using the power of kindness.

Despite what some may think, the war against bad customer service will not be won on the front lines by changing specific techniques and processes at the customer contact level. Rather, it's a culture of kindness and consideration--up and down the entire organization--that fundamentally changes employee attitudes toward customers. It's what makes the difference between a short-term relationship and long-term customer loyalty.

Based on extensive research and featuring real-life examples from companies known for their outstanding customer service such as L.L. Bean, FedEx, and Chick-fil-A, The Kindness Revolution examines how eliminating indifference in the workplace from the top down helps fuel unbelievably positive customer interactions. The book shows readers what "kind" companies have in common--a widespread culture of dignity, respect, courtesy, and kindness--and how to replicate it at their own organization.

Inspiring and practical, The Kindness Revolution shows readers how to take the critical step toward truly outstanding--and self-perpetuating--customer service.

Table of Contents

  1. Copyright
  2. Preface
  3. Introduction: My Quest for the Best
  4. Owning Your Customers
    1. They’re Not All Happy
    2. Being in Touch with Customers
    3. An Example of Owning Customers
    4. You have to Ask Customers What they Want
    5. Practicing Extreme Customer Service
    6. The Relentless Pursuit
    7. Beware Complacency and Arrogance
    8. Attitude vs. Skill
    9. A Nice Cup of Indifference
    10. What Makes the Difference?
    11. Indifference is the Service Killer
    12. Zero Tolerance for Indifference
    13. Hiring the Right People
    14. Common Traits of Top Service Providers
    15. What Should Customers Expect?
    16. Common Perceptions of Customer Service
    17. Service at its Worst
    18. Getting Some Direction
    19. Companies that Stand Out From the Crowd
  5. A Top-Down Commitment to Service
    1. A Christmas Story
    2. Built-in Values
    3. Guaranteed 100 Percent Satisfaction
    4. Making Customers Happy
    5. What Can We Learn?
  6. Employees On a Mission
    1. A Shining Beacon
    2. It Started with One Man’s Prayer
    3. Experiencing St. Jude Firsthand
    4. Serving St. Jude’s Customers
    5. What Can We Learn?
    6. Applying these Lessons to Business
  7. Never On Sunday
    1. Fast Food with a Difference
    2. How Much are Your Values Worth to You?
    3. Focus on Employees
    4. Building Customer Loyalty
    5. Values vs. Religion
    6. Will Your Company Legacy Live On?
    7. Are You Willing to Change the Standard?
  8. Talking About Service . . . Every Day
    1. Legendary Customer Service
    2. Finding Out for Myself
    3. What Kind of Example Do You Set?
    4. The Gold Standards
    5. The Ritz-Carlton Model
  9. When Customers Call in Sick
    1. Finding Mrs. Fields
    2. Following Your Passion
    3. One Cookie at a Time
    4. Is Good Enough Good Enough for You?
    5. Mixing Business with Customer Service
  10. Extraordinary Employee Empowerment
    1. First Impressions
    2. The Legend of the Tire Purchase
    3. How Thick is Your Handbook?
    4. The Inverted Pyramid
    5. Hire the Smile, Teach the Skill
    6. Isn’t Empowering Your Employees Risky?
    7. Disempowered Employees at Work
    8. Empowerment and Values
    9. Service is not Always Fun
  11. Absolutely, Positively: The Pursuit Of Perfection
    1. Mr. Smith Goes to Memphis
    2. Striving for 100 Percent Customer Satisfaction
    3. Employee Awards
    4. What Absolutely, Positively Means
    5. Wanted: Executives Who “Get It”
  12. A Place Where Kindness Grows
    1. The Baddour Center
    2. What I Found
    3. Kindness at the Core
  13. Kindness: Starting the Revolution
    1. Choosing a Life of Kindness
    2. We’re Wired for Kindness
    3. How Large is Your Blind Spot?
    4. The Law of Attraction and Customer Service
    5. You Can Attract the Customers You Want
    6. The Onion Effect
    7. Employees with Values are Self-Policing
    8. Kindness Attracts Kindness
    9. How Much Time Does Kindness Take?
    10. Kindness Starts at the Top
    11. Show Kindness by “Learning” Your Customers
    12. The Cheers Model of Customer Service
    13. Start a Kindness Revolution in Your Company
    14. Getting Started
    15. You Can’t Fake It
    16. Showing Respect to Employees
    17. Make Each Employee Feel Ownership
    18. Don’t Compromise—Do the Right Thing
    19. Don’t Fight—Make it Right
    20. Letting all Employees Know that Their Jobs are Important
    21. The Process of Service
  14. How To Eliminate Indifference in Your Workplace
    1. Rules For Eliminating Indifference in the Workplace
  15. The Quick Fix Won’t Work: How to Ensure Permanent Change
    1. Eight Tips for Changing Your Service Culture
  16. Are You Ready?
    1. The Quest Continues
  17. Ten Steps to an Extreme Corporate Makeover
    1. Looking to Implement Change
    2. Make Your Company What You Want it to Be
    3. This Will Work in Your Company
  18. Putting it Out There—on the Net
    1. L.L.Bean
    2. St. Jude Children’s Research Center
    3. Chick-Fil-A
    4. The Ritz-Carlton
    5. Mrs. Fields
    6. Nordstrom
    7. Fedex
    8. The Baddour Center
  19. Conclusions
    1. Every Business has to Provide Service
    2. Perfection is Impossible; Problems Must Be Anticipated
    3. Companies Hire for Skills, not Attitude
    4. Some People Can’t Be Fixed
    5. The Law of Attraction Works
    6. Some Companies Should not Be in Business
    7. Our Public Educational System is Failing Us
    8. Families are the Best Teachers
    9. HR Fears are Controlling How Executives Handle Problem Employees
    10. Values Make the Difference
  20. Some True Stories
  21. Index