By Dhananjay Bapat
Humanising customer experience is about planning and executing interactions that are authentic, genuine, empathetic, personal, and emotionally connecting. The objective of customer feedback is to improve business performance, enhance customer experience, and build strong relationships. Customer feedback proves beneficial only when implemented thoughtfully. Nowadays, it’s common for customers to be presented with a constant stream of feedback surveys to assess customer experience. While organisations benefit from the application of feedback management, concerns arise regarding feedback fatigue amid the nonstop requests from organisations. Further, there have been instances of attempts to manipulate the process.
Performance score
There is a trend towards real-time performance metrics and using feedback as a performance score. Organisations can benefit from using real-time feedback and a cutting-edge analytical view. While organisations could derive benefits, there are chances of a cognitive bias. This happens in a situation where a measure becomes a goal; it stops being a good measure. This is the reason that feedback needs to be used sensibly and to uplift the employee. The concept of the service profit chain links employee performance with organisational performance. At times, customers need to be considerate of the employee’s contribution and the prevailing situation. Instances of customer collaboration and employee appreciation by customers can elevate the service experience.
Is customer feedback relevant in all situations? While feedback is helpful in development efforts, its implementation very much depends on values and purpose. India has a rich guru-shishya tradition. This tradition has created Bharat Ratna, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, and cricket superstar Sachin Tendulkar. The question is whether Pandit Sawai Gandharva (Guru of Pandit Bhimsen Joshi) and Ramakant Achrekar (Guru of Sachin Tendulkar) followed the student feedback system the way it prevails now in some institutions? The guru-shishya tradition thrived on instilling educational value, rigour, discipline, and, of course, dedication and commitment by the guru and shishya.
Leadership style
We then look at the role of values through genuine actions. There is anecdotal evidence that Herb Kelleher, founder and chairman emeritus of Southwest Airlines, set an example by loading luggage, serving drinks, and chatting with passengers. We also come across Sir Ratan Tata following a unique leadership style. This shows the scope of instilling values through genuine and authentic actions. The role of top management can be transformational in setting priorities towards value and purpose.
Organisations need to recalibrate the process of managing customer feedback and linking it with human values and organisational values, and purpose.
The author is associate professor, marketing management, IIM, Raipur