24 | The Lion King
Customer Service
Riding the
waves of
competition
By Olugbemi Oladipo
C
ompetition has become an
acceptable reality in today’s
business world. In the face of
intense competition, a key competitive
edge for any business is the quality of
customer service. Any organisation that
takes customer service for granted risks
going out of business.
The importance of customer service is
even more pronounced in the banking
industry where competition is intense
and product differentiation almost
non-existent. This means, that for most
banks, the differentiating factor in the
market becomes the quality of custom-
er service delivery.
This is why one of the key targets in
UBA’s Project Alpha is Customer service
transformation. This literally means hav-
ing a massive paradigm shift in the way
staff relate with customers.
It also demands a “no holds barred”
approach to ensure UBA customers are
delighted at every touch point in the
bank’s online and offline interactions.
In line with this desire, the bank has
invested in structures and staff as well as
cutting edge e-banking infrastructure to
drive excellent service delivery.
The drive to achieve Customer service
transformation does not however end
with specific departments of officers
within the bank. Under Project Alpha,
customer service is a collective re-
sponsibility as all members of staff see
themselves as Customer Service Officers
positioned to deliver excellent customer
service to both internal and external
customers.
Customer service is everything we do.
It is as simple as how staff responds to
telephone calls as well as emails and
letters.
Customer service deals with how cus-
tomers are received when they work
into our office or business offices with a
request, when they use or interface with
our e-channel, how we handle their
complaints when things go wrong, and
what we do after we have solved the
problem for the customer.
Customer service is the total impression
“the customer has of the company’s
employees, products and services, and
the way staff members talk about the
business to family, friends, neighbours.”
As we match towards our Project Alpha
objectives, it is important to realise that
only by understanding clearly the con-
cept of customer services and our roles
in it, will we get to meet our customer
service expectations.
Never forget the two great rules of
customer service as stated by Stew
Leonard, CEO, Stew Leonard’s:
Rule 1:
The customer is always right.
Rule 2:
If the customer is ever wrong,
re-read Rule 1
It is important all staff adhere to these
great rules of customer service and
ensure every UBA customer receives a
great customer experience.
