Giving gold-star service

Put forth some extra effort to score big points with the end users you support.

By Drew Robb
Network World, 06/11/01

The market downturn may signify fewer career-change or promotion opportunities, as well as more competition for existing IT jobs. So now is a good time to make sure your work stands out from the pack.

Here are a few tried and true steps that will keep you well-known and well-thought-of among end users.

Listen.

Listening carefully to others is becoming something of a lost art. What does the end user really need? What's the actual problem?

What dial-up options would be nice extras, and which are essential? If you don't have a good handle on such points, your determination to deliver good service will certainly go underappreciated, and perhaps even be maligned.

"If I don't understand what is needed, I can't design something that will be effective," says Craig Nolin, a senior IT analyst at Litton Industries in Woodland, Calif. He rates listening as the primary skill in servicing others well.

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On the flip side, however, what do you do when users don't know what they want or what the problem is? Again, listening makes all the difference, mixed in with the right combination of diplomacy and incisive questioning. Because you are often the one in the know, taking an interest in users' needs and wants often unearths the fact that they haven't inspected them well enough themselves. Listen intently and help them focus on those features that will most closely match their needs.

Expect feedback.

These days, follow-up is becoming an essential element in any service-related job. You have to be willing for users to take issue with your work. By making a big point of fixing things quickly, you communicate that you care and also prevent situations coming back to haunt you.

Nolin, who fields calls almost daily from customer sites around the world, believes you should drop everything when a customer calls with a problem or question.

"The bottom line is that if I don't answer their questions properly or help them out quickly, they will lose confidence in our ability to respond," he says.

Add value.

Most companies and individuals operate on the basis of fair exchange. You request something or pay for something and receive what you asked for. While this operating basis doesn't create enemies, it won't earn accolades either.

A better approach is to seek to deliver more value than a user expects. Instead of just fixing a problem, for example, take a moment longer to find the cause or educate the person on a small point of technology.

"It would be quite simple to follow requirements to the letter," says Jay Braun, a network engineer at Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, Calif. "But we also try to see holes in the new requirements and remedy them before anyone else is aware of them."

Braun is also an advocate of being willing to stay late to solve problems. "We typically stay after-hours to diagnose and fix anomalies for the next day's activities," he says.

Make your work stand out.

Adding extra value is only half the battle. If no one knows that you or your department deliver great service, your efforts may not earn their due reward. So if you're going to go to the trouble of traveling that extra 'good service' mile, you may as well publicize it.

"If we do something above and beyond the call of duty, we tell everyone who we believe needs to know," says John Sestak, MIS manager for Interstate Chemical in Hermitage, Pa. "We also let them know when we are constantly battling with brush fires so that they understand why we may not respond quickly at all times."

Be honest.

Just as there is a time to toot your own horn, it's also the case that you must be honest and upfront in your dealings with end users and colleagues. If a problem comes up or a budget estimate begins to look like wishful thinking, don't sit on it.

"People don't expect perfection; they expect responsibility," Braun says. "I've learned from experience that it is best to assume, at first, that some anomaly is my fault."

Address causes.

While you may be fixing the same problem whenever it periodically crops up, the only way to solve it is to address the reason why it occurs in the first place. "Always look to remove the cause, not just address the symptoms," Sestak advises.