Arnold Beekes

Last week I did attend a Center for Service Leadership webinar   about Georgia’s roadmap to faster, friendlier and easier customer service. It was very impressive to see the results of such a large project, which covers 130.000 employees. I know that it is a popular subject to complain about the government’s performance and customer service. But this is an example how you can significantly improve customer service without huge investments. Their focus is on 4 area’s of service: -        Faster, the main complaint from customers are the waiting lines -        Friendlier, creating a customer focused and value based culture -        Easier call handling and internet access -        Improving employee satisfaction This focus on customers as well as employees creates a win-win situation. Why is that the case? Well, if you have been waiting as a customer fo...

Many organizations are starting to see the need to innovate. However still many of them still have the (strong) opinion that they can only innovate themselves, so innovate from within. Open innovation, crowdsourcing and the use of any other outside expertise is a bridge too far. The reason for this attitude is really a cultural heritage. The management of an organization often shares the same attitudes on how the business should be conducted. In sharing these management attitudes, you can see them as collective attitudes, collective beliefs. Together they form the culture in your organization. This culture heavily influences the thinking and thus the actions, both internally and externally. Recent research on companies that are among the most successful innovators points to one common denominator – the right culture. “Innovation is no longer about money, it’s about the climate:   are individuals allowed to flourish and take risks?” William Weldon, chairman Johnson ...

In December I did fly to Copenhagen for the Climate Change Conference. The day before I departed I could check in online. Nothing special you would say. However, I was pleasantly surprised when they offered the option to receive by boarding pass on my iPhone. So, there was no need to print it. Cool! My mindset was already in Copenhagen so if I could save a little bit by not printing that would be good. And as long as I have my phone with me, I would also have my boarding pass there. The boarding pass looked like a bunch of dots and should be shown to a special reader. So, when I was at the departure gate, the only thing that I had to do was to show the mail (i.e. the boarding pass) to that reader and I was set to go. Wow, this is progress, this is technology in action, which makes life (a little bit) easier for me. I clearly wanted to repeat this experience when I left Copenhagen again. So, I did check in online and then I went to the regular check in to deliver my suitcase. Wh...

For products most collaboration takes place in the design and manufacturing phase.   During that time there are different departments involved in designing and building the products. E.g. marketing, R&D, design, logistics, supply chain and manufacturing.   But once the new products are ready to be sold, when they are in stock and on the shelf, the product itself is fixed. Every time the product is sold, it is exactly the same product. For services this is different as there is an ongoing need for collaboration. Of course there is the collaboration in the design and building phase, but also when the service is being delivered. At the point of delivery a service is every time being build for the customer. Although the processes and procedures (as in a Service Delivery Kit) are standardized, it is still the customer service employee who is the real-time ‘vehicle’ for delivery. For instance when an engineer is being dispatched to fix a hardware problem with a customer, h...

The iPhone is the most popular smartphone in many countries. One of the reasons for that success is the availability of many, many useful applications (apps) in the Apple store. An app is software, which is to be used on your iPhone only, The crucial difference with any other software is the ease of use, the focused functionality and the price. Above all, the customer needs are truly at the center of every app.   Traditional software vendors should learn from the success of these apps. So many users buy now apps, who didn’t buy much software for their pc earlier. A great example is the “Appie”.   I know for the moment it is only available in The Netherlands, but I am sure that its success will drive international implementation. The Appie is an app from Albert Heijn, one of the largest supermarkets in the world. Basically Appie helps me with my shopping, as I can see the special offers of the week, read product info and build my shopping list. One of the most useful...

EIM did a large research (650 companies) into the effects of smart working in the Dutch SME market. Companies who invested in smart working have on average: -        16% higher growth in results -        9% higher growth in productivity -        8% higher growth in revenue -        5% higher growth in employment They define smart working as innovation, which is targeted, at organizations and employees. Using the potential of your employees -        How do you use their strengths? -        How do you effectively use their knowledge? -        How do you involve them in the growth of your organization? -        Which employment conditions are best suited? Having efficient processes in place -        How t...

Last week in Copenhagen I attended a side event in the Climate Change Conference (COP15). The topic was the importance of growing the service industries. There were two presentations from the hotel business and two presentations from the ICT business. One hotel presented their efforts to be carbon neutral, which is a huge success in itself. They also were very good in keeping their employees engaged throughout the whole process. I do think that this is the key to their success. The frontline employees are really their ambassadors for the services that they deliver. Much of what they did was internally focused. There is still a big opportunity in translating this greening of the business into great customer experiences. They had plans to buy electric cars. But what about picking up your customers from the airport with these electric cars? Or giving them these electric cars in the city? They also explained the Green Key program. Although this is a fine program in itself, but what do...