The Forgotten Employee

Have you ever walked out of a store because of poor customer service?  Or felt frustrated because the employee at the other end of the phone didn't seem to care?  Or after enduring a bad experience with an employee at a particular establishment you said, “never again"?

Customers react first and foremost to the employee they're dealing with, the one they're facing, whether the transaction is financially significant or not.  To the customer, that employee is your company, and these decision-makers will consider the treatment they receive a reflection on your company, for good or ill.

The forgotten employee

It's worth noting that the person who just caused you to take your business elsewhere is likely one of the lowest paid employees in that organization.   Does that reward / impact relationship make sense to you?  Perhaps the organization doesn't recognize / reward (value) the impact that their employees can have on customer relations.

Many companies have long ignored the importance of the customer-facing job (non-direct sales) in determining a position’s value to their organization.  They consider education (what you know), experience (how long you've been doing something) and competitive survey data (what others are paid) in setting their pay scales.  The fact that the position also has the power of gaining or losing customers is often lost on them as “just part of the job description.”

Some job evaluation systems may give a nod for those who face customers on a regular basis, but such recognition is not often viewed as a critical factor – nor does it help determine where in the salary range the incumbent is paid.

Oftentimes it's the position with the least amount of “cachet” that presents the jobholder with the opportunity to influence customer action and reaction.  As an example, the employees most commonly approached by guests at Walt Disney World are the Custodial workers.

Is it not surprising then that these employees can have as great an impact on customer good will and retention as managers?  Studies have shown that having a pleasant experience when dealing with a company often outweighs price considerations and marketing glitz.

What to do

However, that doesn't mean that you have to pay more to these employees than the marketplace suggests, but it's in your best interest to ensure that they're fairly treated:

• Ensure that actual pay centers on the middle of the range or higher.  Don't risk having minimum pay scale workers interact with your customers (outside of fast-food outlets).

• Hire well into the salary range.  This isn't a time to be cheap.  That dollar you saved today could cause you to lose a great deal more later on.  

• Modify your performance appraisal process to recognize the customer facing role; attitude is just as critical here as know-how and experience. 

• Avoid structuring these as “dead end” jobs.   Offer upward opportunities for higher performing employees.

• Listen to them; they're talking to your customers and their suggestions for process improvements – even new products and services - should be considered.

How do you know whether your company is vulnerable?  1) Ensure that these positions are regularly surveyed for competitive pay practices, and then 2) Create a metric that segments the actual pay of your customer-facing employees to determine the average compa-ratio and spotlight the presence of low paid workers.   Then you'll know how well you're paying those closest to your customers.

Remember that each scenario of customer vs. employee reinforces the financial and long term impact of those who represent you in the marketplace.  Your reputation and business success hang in the balance.

So don't be "penny-wise and pound foolish."

Chuck Csizmar CCP is founder and Principal of CMC Compensation Group, providing global compensation consulting services to a wide variety of industries and non-profit organizations.  He is also associated with several HR Consulting firms as a contributing consultant.  Chuck is a broad based subject matter expert with a specialty in international and expatriate compensation.  He lives in Central Florida (near The Mouse) and enjoys growing fruit and managing (?) a brood of cats.

Creative Commons image courtesy of arka D

Comments

[Dan Walter]

When I was kid I worked at Nordstrom. They made the people on the floor feel like they were the most important component of success, besides the customers.

I learned a lot there, but the best lesson was that people who are treated like they are essential act like they are essential

[Jacque Vilet]

Great article Chuck.
I would go a step further. If you identify the job that is really key to your company you might want to pay higher than the 50%ile. Remember Y2k and the Cobol programmers that were paid on a separate salary scale because they were so key?

Regardless, at least find a way to make these people feel special:
1)special mentor programs to focus on career path,
2)special lunch/meetings with traveling executives in each city to recognize their importance to the company,
3)allow results/comments on customer feedback forms to lead to special rewards/awards tailored to each recipient (not "one size fits all" in general recognition programs for all employees).

We shouldn't let our fear of unequal treatment of employees get in the way finding special ways to recognize their value.

[Helen]

It is hard in an employer's market to command a certain salary especially when your skillset is common. The bottom is if an individual accepts a job where they are earning less than what they anticipated it does not give them to right to not do their job. When they accepted the job they knew what their salary was going to be. While I understand that maybe they feel they are not getting paid enough, they are being overworked, etc they have to do their job.
I have banned establishments where the service has been mediocre. I am a paying customer and the expectations is that when I enter a store I am going to be treated with excellent customer service. It is just not ok for someone not to do their job. If they really feel like that then they should quit.

[Shawn Miller]

Very easy to understand, but difficult to do, particularly when in a retail organization. Think about Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Home Depot, Target, all the big-box stores. These organizations have thousands of customer-facing employees. What is it that sets one apart from the other? What draws people back to these stores?

It's not always the people, particularly today--its the value proposition.

Wal-Mart gets the most noise, but people shop there because of their low prices. Target offers a 'hip' product portfolio. As Dan noted (above), Nordstrom's has traditionally been noted for outstanding customer service -- and their prices are higher.

Thoughts?

[Karen Campbell]

Thanks for the excellent article. Prior to the recession, front-line employees were often forgotten. During the recession, however, forward-looking companies rediscovered that customer service is a primary competitive advantage, and began to redefine the role, broadening customer service and technical skills. There's no doubt -- companies who will ignore this key group will do so at their peril as the level of customer service skill, company knowledge, teamwork, and commitment drives performance.

[HR Manager]

I agree with Jacque. You talk about compensation as key but more and more individuals who apply for jobs either have stagnated skills or their version of proficiency is so poor, that I don’t know how they remained employed for the period of time they were. Could be the employer had the same level of illiteracy, the employee was well liked by someone who is no longer there or this person was passed over. The info given by the applicant is generally the same, new manager did not like me but the applicant failed all the proficiency exams given. I was making too much money but the applicant failed all the proficiency exams given. Either the former employer was afraid to fire or felt sorry for the employee. (This happens more than you think.)

Pay well into the salary range, sorry. I may work be working at a midsize company but basically it has remained afloat due to the ability of the managing board. Paying well into the range will not cut it with today’s lack of talent, the need to re-educate (I don’t mean train) and we refuse to offer training for basic software that a high school student knows better. If I have to hear one more time that an former employee is still working on MS Word 98 because ‘this is what my boss used’ I will scream. When I ask about their investment in themselves they look at me as if I lost my mind. You mean spend my time learning the current operation software system? OMG what kind of a person are you interviewer?