Many of those who use computer systems to serve customers (internal or external) are experts in dealing with people. Others are better at working magic with the computer application itself. But few are good at interacting with both at once. Often, there’s a disconnect between functional application training and customer service training – it’s awkward for staffers to switch between the two.
To help trainees manage the interaction with customers and systems, I recommend guided rehearsal sessions. In guided rehearsals, trainees are paired off and assigned to be the staffer and the customer, following a set of parameters provided by the trainer. For instance, the “student” (EMPLID provided) is said to be confused about how his/her most recent payment (date provided) was allocated to charges. The “staffer” is directed to check and review with the “student” the breakdown of charges to which the payment was applied.
There are a couple of prerequisites for training of this sort – it must be preceded by hands-on application training, and possibly customer service training, before the two types of skills can be “blended.” After working through a few increasingly difficult scenarios, trainees gain confidence in their ability to answer real customer challenges, because they’ve “been here before”.
Learn More
At Alliance 2013, Kent Sipes will be co-presenting a session on this topic with Shanna Rahming, Business Analyst for Truckee Meadows Community College, titled: Integrating System and Customer Service Skills on Monday, Mar 18, 2013 (04:30 PM - 05:30 PM).
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