1. The Institute of Customer Service
Rewarding Customer Service
“ The joy of working”
Using reward & recognition to deliver your customer service strategy
Stephanie Edwards
International Business Advisor

2. Institute of Customer Service Chartered Institute of Personnel &
Commissioned by:
Institute of Customer Service
Chartered Institute of Personnel &
Development
Carried out by:
Aston Business School
Professors Michael West & Gary Fisher

3. Aims
Identify impact reward & recognition practices have on customer service & satisfaction
Highlight which practices are most effective
Determine extent of employee satisfaction with rewards & recognition
Identify approaches to reward & recognition most associated with employee commitment and motivation
Understand how job design, training and development and employee characteristics can affect reward and recognition schemes

4. The Organisations
The public organisations included water, local authorities, local government
The not-for-profit organisations included charities, housing associations and leisure centres
The private organisations included financial services, manufacturing, hotels, education services, student accommodation services, recruitment agencies, telecommunication, building societies, and insurance.
The size of the organisations varied from 37 up to 62,000 employees, 22 organisations used, 800 participants

5. Major Conclusions Organisations with the best customer service:
Make extensive use of performance related pay and team based reward & recognition
Emphasise career development of staff and work life balance issues

6. Other Major Findings In organisations with excellent customer
satisfaction ratings:
Few differences between reward and benefits policies for managers & staff
Financial rewards more likely to be based on customer satisfaction and service quality rather than productivity
High levels of employee satisfaction

7. Non-variation of benefits
“our managers would feel quite strange about having different things” Kent Council
“For managers the same performance management system is used” Scottish Water
“At one point we had different holiday allowances, but we realised it’s important, as everybody’s working just as hard, to ensure that everyone has the same type of benefit” - Unite

8. Employee Satisfaction
Employees in good customer service organisations see them as:
Fair
Looking after them
Consultative and open to suggestions
Involving them in decision making
Fair payers
Providing high levels of feedback
Warm & Supportive

9. But, salary is not enough
Employees want:
Greater freedom and autonomy
Responsibility – to be more involved
Recognition
Praise
Achievement
Trust
Personal growth - ongoing learning and development, career
“Satisfaction with pay is dependent on satisfaction with all other factors”

10. Work – Life Balance ideas
Flexible start/finish times
Individual control over hours of work
Career-break schemes
Term-time working contracts
Childcare assistance – crèche/nursery
Supported study
Sabbaticals
Home working

11. A Good Reward Policy has:
Market competitiveness
Internal equity and fairness
Individual/team rewards
Employee benefits
Reward priorities
A good mix for the “total reward”

12. A good reward policy will:
Establish clear relationship between pay and performance, competence and skill
Recognise achievement
Demonstrate that the organisation values skill development and competencies
Reinforce team and individual effort
Concentrate on the priority area
Attract and retain the best people
Improve pay competitiveness
Increase employee commitment

13. Conclusions
Reward & Recognition can only be understood in a cultural context
Employees must feel valued, respected and supported
Employees must be fairly treated and looked after
Important to monitor with regular employee surveys
Constantly seek ways to improve the well-being of employees, especially in work-life balance
Utilise employee knowledge of how customer service could be improved
Reward innovation
Staff enjoy working in organisations that emphasise the importance of good customer service
These actions should lead to much lower turnover – therefore career development plans take on even greater importance

14. Quote “With a diverse workforce, it has been
important to provide a diverse recognition
programme. We have taken a broad look
at different things to reward staff.
You might not want a bunch of flowers, but a bottle of wine or an afternoon off might be even better.”
Kent County Council

15. Case Study Torfaen Council: Introduced team based R & R in call centre
Lost calls fell from 66% to 4.6%
Won National Customer Service Award – Frontline Team of the Year
Virtually nil turnover due to “commitment, motivation, and teamwork. They enjoy the work they do and have job satisfaction”
Gloria Evans

16. Quote
“In the context of increasingly competitive global and local environments, it is vital for an organisation’s survival and growth that customer service staff are motivated, innovative and are committed in their work.”

17. Quote
“If you wonder what getting and keeping the right employees has to do with getting and keeping the right customers, the answer is everything”
Source: Fred Reichheld, The world’s leading loyalty expert

18. The Institute of Customer Service
Final Message:
Develop a Customer Service Culture
Ensure your Customer Service Champion is in the Board Room
Your people are your PROFIT - invest in them
Motivate your staff through Reward &
Recognition programmes
Join the HICS TODAY!