No Wrong Door

Very often when we call a company's customer service, we were told to hold the line while they transfer us to another department. One thing that can happen is the latter department then needed to transfer us somewhere else again, or more frustratingly, back to the first department.

We cannot control what other companies do.  Hence this is about what we can do at our work, to improve customer service, and, our work performance. 

In many companies, there is a No-Wrong-Door Policy.  However, I believe that we should follow this policy even if our company never specifies it.  

Let's say we receive a call from the public requiring information or action from another department in our company, instead of telling the person to call another department or transferring the person to another department, this is what we can do.  Obtain the caller's name and contact number, clarify what he/she needs, and assure the person you will call back as soon as you can (a simple rule: easy tasks - within the day unless it is already at the end of the work day, more complicated task - within two days).

Then go to your colleague in the other department (or call), get the information, and return the call to the customer. We can, of course, get the colleague to call the customer.  But if it takes only a few minutes for us to do the job, why risk our colleague sitting on it, or worse, forgetting to do it.  We promised the customer, we close the loop.

Yes, that's despite how busy we are.  Because everyone is busy.  What makes the difference is how we manage our time.  At the year-end work review session with our boss, we can bring this up.  I am sure our boss will affirm our thoughtfulness and good efforts.

It doesn't mean that if we are not in the service industry, we do not need to bother about giving good service.  Good service includes dealing with colleagues. For example, if a new colleague comes to ask us something, try not to say that's not our department business and shove him/her away.  What we can do is, call the colleague from the relevant department, get the information, and get back to the new colleague.  I am sure your new colleague will adore you from then.

PSD on no-wrong-door-policy