What can HR learn from top baseball teams about turning business partners into "raving fans"?
Nothing says spring like Grapefruit League baseball. Recently, I took the opportunity to introduce my two daughters to this while on a trip to Florida. I was immediately struck by how much attention was given to creating a fantastic experience for the Blue Jay and Astro fans in attendance at Osceola County Stadium that day. In one afternoon my girls had baseballs signed by smiling and friendly players, were close enough to the action to see and interact with stars they usually only see on TV and were consistently treated to a fun and exciting day. Major League Baseball created “raving fans” that afternoon. How many or our HR departments can say they even approach providing that type of client experience for their staff and managers?
Now we know every day in HR isn't like a baseball game in sunny Florida in March, but the steps used to provide a great client experience are the same.
Make Client Experience a Priority
Your entire HR team needs to know how integral an outstanding client experience is to your strategy. Your HR plan needs to specifically address both the expectations and the required outcome. Be very specific with your client experience goal. Start with the end in mind and clearly identify what you want the result of the interaction to be. What do you want the client to say about their experience with your team? What areas will cause frustration or emotion?
Create the experience for THEM not YOU.
Make it Personal
Nothing creates a stronger impression or a more positive experience than a personalized interaction. Create an emotional connection by knowing your clients and treating them like people – not employee numbers. Outline team expectations for things like personalizing emails, delivering timely responses and always looking for the opportunity to go the extra mile. Each interaction is an opportunity to WOW, demonstrate competency and ultimately give your HR team a voice and influence.
Deliver WOW!
We Deliver Wow - is forever etched into the top of my whiteboard. If you're at the top of your game, you've realized that your goal every day is to win people over and deliver results.
Reward and recognize your team members for delivering that top notch experience and they will look to do it again. Make We Deliver Wow your team slogan and always look for ways to make your service WOW worthy by adding that unexpected added touch only your team can provide.
Get Feedback and Act
Ask your clients what they think about your service provision and use that feedback to get better. Use direct surveys, engagement surveys or informal discussions to be sure you are always getting better and evolving as the needs of your clients change.
Create your own raving fans and play to win.
Jamie Allison is a Certified Human Resources Professional and President of epitome. - a human resources consulting organization focussed on elevating client results. Jamie has over 15 years of human resources and leadership experience in organizations ranging from government and healthcare to retail and finance. He is the author of Jackpot!: A Step-by-Step Guide to a Winning On-Campus Recruitment Campaign.
