The Five Diamonds of Customer Service Leadership
Diamond
#3: Give Freedom AND Hold Responsible
Is your staff EMPOWERED? The staff was hired to perform at a level
higher than they had achieved in the past, and trained in the very clear
expectations of Five Diamond service. Once properly trained and
demonstrating the needed skill levels, I give folks the freedom to do their
work and avoid being a micro-manager. People want to be treated as
the adults they are.
At this point, I felt a strong and clear signal would be
to provide a
financial incentive that was never offered before. I felt it would provide a
tangible recognition of their efforts, as well as our commitment to the
tasks.
If we were successful in attaining the Five Diamond Award,
everyone on the staff would receive a significant cash bonus. And it was
all or nothing; a team accomplishment. In announcing the terms of the
cash bonus, there was visible excitement; it was clear we had struck a
positive nerve. It also provided an unintended benefit - a self-correcting
feature. I soon overheard a new term among the staff, “Come on now,
you know that’s not Five Diamond!!”
Also, I am willing to let employees “mess up,” that is
make a
mistake as long as they reasoned what they had done. We could then
teach or learn depending on the result. Those who made mistakes or
didn’t live up to their attained skill levels would quickly find themselves
in
a direct, yet caring conversation with me about what issues needed to
be addressed and how; always with a follow-up to ensure continued
growth and development.