Making it personal: IBM's Customer Obsession Program

IBM's Customer Obsession Program (COP) is focused on achieving a world-class client experience, service delivery that is consistently the best, and a passionate commitment to the customer. The goal is to communicate to customers that a specific person at IBM cares whether their business does well. In a recent speech at an executive education symposium sponsored by the Center for Services Leadership at the W. P. Carey School, Scott Dougall, general manager of IBM's GTS Americas Technical Support, explained how "customer-obsessed" service results in customer relationships that drive profitability in the good times and sustain you through the bad.

It was a second trip to a neighborhood oil change shop that hooked Scott Dougall. He had been intrigued the first time. They asked the IBM executive for his name; they asked him if he wanted cream in his coffee. He ordered their mid-price package at $24.99, and then they handed him a remote control for a closed circuit TV so that he could watch the mechanics working on his car, or view a documentary about the oil refining process.

"For a technical guy, this is heaven," he quipped in a recent speech at an executive education symposium sponsored by the Center for Services Leadership at the W. P. Carey School. A couple months later he visited the shop again. As he pulled in, the service rep walked up to his car and said "Good morning Mr. Dougall. Do you still take your coffee black?

And by the way, do you want the gold service again?" They knew his name; they remembered how he likes his coffee and which product he had purchased. He was delighted, so what did he do? He upgraded to the 'platinum' service: $29.99. "It's the same stuff! They just made four bucks in profit on a $29.99 sale — $4 right to the bottom line," he said.

The oil change is an example of what Dougall, general manager of IBM's GTS Americas Technical Support, calls "customer-obsessed" service. You may have heard a movie gangster say "It's not personal — it's just business." You may even have heard it in a business setting. But Dougall will tell you that success in services business is personal. A personalized experience is a key component of great customer service.

Ironclad bonds

Dougall explained how IBM set out to create a culture where employees build "ironclad relationships with customers." The company was tracking customer satisfaction, and the numbers were pretty good, he said. Even so, he said, customers will sometimes walk, even if you are performing at an eight on a scale of 10. So the firm launched the Customer Obsession Program (COP).

Extending to every employee, it's focused on achieving a "world-class" client experience, service delivery that is consistently the best, and a "passionate commitment" to the customer. The goal is to communicate to customers that a specific person at IBM cares whether their business does well. Result? "Ironclad" customer relationships — the kind that drive profitability in the good times and sustain you through the bad.

"With the kind of success we're talking about — if you have loyal customers — a lot of really good things happen," Dougall said. "Your revenue grows, your profit grows — and I apologize for saying this, but it's just my nature — you will kill your competition."

The vortex of customer service

Why the focus on relationships? Because the contact between people is what Dougall says is the vortex of customer service. Consider the UPS example. In the past the company's ads showed their trucks and planes, and the sorting facilities in the Louisville, Kentucky hub. Now, Dougall said, many of the UPS ads feature the drivers. Why? Because customers aren't really interested in the mechanics of a business operation.

"What's important to me is a tracking number and knowing that my package is going to arrive on this day — and that Mike will bring it," he said. "It's not UPS; it's Mike!" Mike is the route driver in Dougall's neighborhood, and in addition to knowing where Dougall wants his packages left, he notices that Dougall owns a motorcycle.

"He picks up the little things," Dougall said, that make the encounter personal. "Do you know that every UPS executive has to drive a delivery truck when they first start? They have to make deliveries because the real service delivery — the touch point of service — is Mike and Scott." It's personal. But how do companies get it started?

Over-the-top commitment

Business success begins and grows with a great product and competent follow-through. But customer loyalty is key, whether those customers are individuals who buy automobile service and ship packages, or corporate clients who buy thousands of dollars of goods and services. The techniques used by UPS and the oil change shop apply. The foundation is recruiting and training, Dougall explained. Some of the attributes Dougall ascribed to these employees are similar to the values good parents instill in their children: sincerity and respectfulness.

Add to that a high level of knowledge and readiness, creativity, dedication to the customer's success, passion for your product, and a commitment to produce win-win results for your company and the customer. To get things started, Dougall said he asks all of his employees to pick two customers and "become obsessed with them." It's all about focusing on those customers, and what they want and need, personally and professionally.

Study up on trends in their industry and in business, he instructed. Learn what their interests are, what they cares about outside of the office. "Think end-to-end client experience basics and build on that foundation," he advises. Pay attention to the small things, he said. Put clients' names on the welcome sign when they visit you for a meeting; make their security badge for them in advance. Send directions and reserve a parking spot.

Mail out customized thank you notes — not automatically-generated form letters — for every contract signed. Set up "status" meetings at a coffee shop. Some of Dougall's advice will take you off the strictly business agenda. His employees are expected to know about major events in a client's life — a marriage, a loss, a passion for charity, a favorite activity or sport. They invite clients to company events.

They send cards — the kind that require a stamp ("yes, they do still sell them"). They pull strings occasionally to get tickets to the Masters golf championship. You know you are successful if your clients are accepting your invitations, and if they are returning the gesture. The relationships that grow in these interactions build the trust that your company can handle the important job of meeting your clients' needs.

At IBM, Dougall added, these relationships are handled carefully during transitions. Each employee has a back-up person who knows almost as much about these "obsessive" relationships as the primary contact. If the client needs help when you are on vacation he should not feel like a stranger when he reaches your back up. And for your company's most important relationships, minimize disruption, Dougall advises.

Even if your senior representative is taking another assignment, he or she should continue to cultivate existing C-level relationships. The pay off sometimes comes when things go wrong, Dougall said. The client's CEO should feel comfortable calling his contact in your firm to say that "we need to talk." Similarly, strong client relationships can mean you get input into the planning process that leads to an RFP (request for proposal).

Client relationships in a transparent world

The climate of scrutiny that has developed in the Enron era makes the client courtship a delicate dance. Some firms, especially in highly regulated industries, have placed restrictions on the gifts and favors their employees can accept.

But customer obsession is not the same as bribery, Dougall said. Instead, it is a deliberate focus on the customer's goals, and creating confidence that you can and will help achieve them. Confidence sprouts and grows as you continuously demonstrate that you are paying attention and will respond.

"If the RFP is out today and responses are due in two weeks, then this weekend is not a good time to offer golf tickets," he said. The important thing to remember, he explained, is that you will never forge a good relationship with a client unless you are "above board and honest." Besides, a greeting card sent at the right time can be more effective than the expensive gesture.

Bottom Line:

• Start by discovering what your employees want and need, then provide for it. Employees will pass along this thoughtfulness to your customers.
• Don't "COP out." Customer obsession means you spend the money and time to develop a relationship. If you need to reduce expenses, find another budget to cut.
• Sincerity matters.
• Sometimes small, unexpected gestures — like a hand-written card on an important occasion — work as well or better than the expensive ones.
• Don't confine this initiative to your sales force. The "vortex" of customer service is the person-to-person contact — service technicians as well as sales reps.
• Make sure your sales and delivery teams coordinate.
• Share success stories monthly.