DHL

Challenge

DHL set themselves the challenge of becoming “the most customer-centric people in the industry” and they needed the Ministry to create a roadmap showing how to get there.

Approach

The Ministry conducted filmed in-depth interviews with experts in the field of service, including a butler who worked for a princess, reps from the Apple Store and Danny Meyer’s Hospitality Group, the head of Personal Shopping from Barneys, various authors of books about customer service, and a behavioral psychologist, to identify values and behaviors that contribute to a culture of service. Then we produced a documentary to share these learnings internally, along with a playbook detailing recommendations on hiring and training.

Learnings

Select corporate behaviors that inform superior customer service:
– Hiring candidates who consider service a dignified calling.
– Avoid heavily scripting customer service agents; empower them to be themselves.
– Allow customer service agents discretionary use of surprise and delight.
– Maintain open feedback channels for customer service agents on improving protocols.
– View management techniques as customer service for your customer service employees.