I was very fortunate to begin my professional career working at McDonald’s in Australia.
I started as a crew member, then became a crew trainer before becoming the youngest store manager for the company at the time. It was a great feeling running a multi million dollar business at such a young age.
As I reflect, I look at McDonald’s of today (now more known as Macca’s) and ask myself where have the standards gone.
Macca’s is very strict with their systems and processes as they need to maintain a consistent high-quality product across all stores in all countries.
So what is the variable?
It all comes from People. Having the best systems in the world means nothing if you do not have the right people. It is the people that make a difference, and it is the people that create the customer experience, something that is now lacking in many companies.
Companies and their employees have jointly lost the focus on the customer experience. Companies are so focused on getting revenue, especially since Coronavirus, that they have let slip the core basics of customer service training for their people.
The People have not been held accountable for quality service, nor have their companies trained them, and they have created their own poor routines which do not deliver excellence in customer service.
The basics of looking a customer in the eye, speaking with them, asking them how their day has been are just some of the basics that all employees could do to improve the overall customer experience. These activities cost nothing and unless we as organisations start changing our expectations of our people and train them accordingly, we will be left behind and our competitors will rocket past us.
Creating a memorable customer experience needs to be the driving force for all companies and their people and in return you will retain and grow your customer base and of course, improve your overall bottom line.
