The smartphone is the most important customer interface in our present time. It is no wonder that every service provider wants to be visible there. For example, in the form of an app. And it is no wonder that every service provider wants to collect the data that the user emits along with their smartphone. These data are true treasures. For the smartphone to be effective as a smart interface, it needs two things: time and power. It sounds very much like physics - but it is worth taking a closer look here. And to think about these two things together with the factor of "freedom." Time: For call center operators, time is a cost factor. That is why effective time management is crucial for success. And how can one effectively manage time in a call center? With RichtigRichtig.com, we took a closer look at this with a supplier company from southern Germany. The company had two call centers: one for B2B and one for B2C. In the B2B call center, employees were given a time limit for their conversations with customers as usual. In the B2C center, they were not. And now guess who was more effective overall: the employees without a time limit. Employees can handle freedoms very well. The good ones, at least. The corporate monkeys, not so much. Why? "The happy slaves are the most bitter enemies of freedom." (Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach) Power: But what use is a perfectly running call center if the customer's smartphone has no power? Exactly: None. Therefore, now on to a completely different topic. When I am at the hotel reception and have forgotten my charger, what do I want then? I do not want the receptionist to ask her supervisor, who asks his supervisor. And especially, I do not want the receptionist to say, "I am sorry, Mr. Rath, I cannot help you." Yet, I hear that constantly. Why? Because she does not have the authority to get something, to buy something, to bake a charger, whatever. Because so many do not have the authorities they actually need. For me as a customer, this is totally frustrating! I do not want to be able to charge my phone only when the boss is there and can be asked. I want to charge my phone, damn it. I do not want a crash course in bad leadership. I say:
Excellence needs freedom.
So: Let us give our employees the freedom to talk with our customers for a meaningful duration. Instead of watching the clock. And let us give our customers the freedom to make the best use of their most important work tool and their most important interface to us, the service providers. Let us give them Wi-Fi, let us give them power. Sometimes I think: Power for the smartphone is the modern version of blood donation. Wishing you an excellent week!
