You don’t need a weatherman: Bob Dylan on Metrics
Everyone loves numbers. Numbers are easy: you can add them up, subtract them, divide them, and it’s all so clear. And percentages are like numbers made easy: people give you a percent and it’s like all the work’s been done–you didn’t even need to do the math. Even more removed from actual numbers are dashboards and graphs, the pretty pictures Jaeger mentions in his comment to yesterday’s post.
People often measure what’s easiest to measure, not what’s most important. Help Desk managers might measure response time or call resolution time, not customer satisfaction. And when you do try to measure customer satisfaction, it’s hard–surveys get poor response rates and are expensive for the benefits they might provide.
What to do? Use the metrics that are easy to generate and don’t overestimate their importance. Encourage customer complaints and respond to them thoughtfully. Customer complaints are probably one of your most valuable sources of feedback: a customer who takes the time to complain actually cares about your service. Attend to his or her needs, address his or her problems in a systematic way rather than through “one-time exceptions” and you might actually improve your services. And know when to let it go: some customers will never be happy; some expectations are truly unreasonable given our resources.
kdghty said:
Jun 17, 08 at 7:18 amI have been frustrated recently by the complaint to the supervisor that isn’t shared in full. Have told my supervisor that if I don’t know who has made the complaint, and about what, it is null and void as far as I am concerned because I cannot address it. Truth is that if 20 people streamed in and complained about our help desk, that’s still less than – uh oh – here comes a percentage – 2% of our contacts over a year. Still, I don’t want that. I think a big part of the problem is that the complaints are often personal. I once had one get back to me that my email responses were insufficiently warm. Timely and accurate and professionally courteous apparently does not suffice – we have to ask about the kids and comment on the weather as well. I want to do my job well and effectively and need the tools to do so. Feedback is a vital tool.
Kyle said:
Jun 17, 08 at 7:45 amThe point about resources and unreasonable expectations really hits home for me. I find it a daily struggle to explain to customers what we can and cannot do for them with a staff half the size of other institutions our size. Most people are understanding and thankful for the explanation, but a few just don’t care.
I have also discovered that anything someone doesn’t understand is automatically easy to do. Today our continuing ed dean asked to have “chat on their web site” and is confused about why we can’t do that for her this week. She’s seen other web sites that have it, and it’s easy to use. She equates “easy to use” to “easy to implement.”
rufusb said:
Jun 17, 08 at 10:49 amThis is one of my favorite topics. In a recent school-wide survey my group was singled out as being “the worst IT support on campus” and “incredibly helpful, conscientious…”. Which is it? Neither. Who actually knows who is “best”? No one. Are we always helpful and conscientious? No. Sometimes we can’t help. Surveys mostly serve to enable people to express old grievances and recent successes. It can never be an accurate measure of your organization’s effectiveness. So what can? I believe you have to have a close working relationship with your customers. Only then can you have your finger on the satisfaction pulse. You also have to be very clear about what you can/will do in order to set a baseline level of expectation. People want structure and you need to provide it. Think about the last time you went to the movies. You wait in line for tickets, for food to exit…everything. No one questions it. And if someone tries to cut the line becomes self-policing. People need guidelines. If you can provide them clearly and deliver them consistently you can reduce the complaints significantly.
kdghty said:
Jun 17, 08 at 11:35 am> People need guidelines. If you can provide them clearly and deliver them > consistently you can reduce the complaints significantly.
I have always felt I’d rather say I’d do my very best than promise something that’s out of my control to deliver. From the other side of the table, I appreciate that. What’s unfortunate is when staffers higher up the food chain mistake unconsidered acquiescence for service and start sending mixed – and unfulfillable – messages.
Sukey said:
Jun 17, 08 at 3:56 pmWhat?!? No post about Firefox 3?
They’re TRYING to set a Guiness World Record, people!!!
Read all about it and more at Lifehacker…especially the post: The History of Firefox 1.0 to 3.0 in Screenshots
http://lifehacker.com/tag/feature/
Firefox download day 6/17/2004-6/18/2007
http://www.spreadfirefox.com/en-US/worldrecord/
kdghty said:
Jun 17, 08 at 7:56 pmjust to be silly – how’s this for a customer service policy:
“We are committed to making the customer happy until we get annoyed and stop.”
:^)
admin said:
Jun 17, 08 at 8:12 pmActually, KD, I think you’re sort of right in your final post–we care, we care, we care, we really care, we really really really care, and then, suddenly, we don’t care at all and wish you would just go away. Sort like when you have sex. Yes, I just wrote that.
Sukey–stop spamming us! Firefox is old skool. 🙂
rufusb said:
Jun 18, 08 at 6:17 amI think if we are all honest we’d admit that we have a blacklist. It’s probably a short list, but it does exist. I think this is necessary to feel at least minimally empowered. Especially since we aren’t in the private sector and can’t just say “Fuck off and go to Geek Squad”.
Sukey said:
Jun 19, 08 at 4:08 pm@admin
Are you kidding!?!…Kickin’ it old skool is what I’m all about! 🙂
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2aP0gFs8ObA
admin said:
Jun 19, 08 at 9:15 pmWow. That was, well, really, it was just kind of sad…. and hilarious.