Every company uses the catch phrase ‘Customer Satisfaction’.
After all, which company can hope to
market their solution and get any traction in the marketplace without adhering
to this buzz word as one of the core tenets of their offering. Though companies
mean well and most of them actually strive to have client satisfaction as a
goal, it is debatable as to how highly on their list they are willing to place
this particular aspect of their service. Unless you live on Planet Utopia, the
possibility of getting a bug free and totally business compliant solution is
only a pipe dream. However in the real
world, Mr. Murphy does tend to be hyper active when and where you least expect
him to and how the vendor responds to these unexpected and often unpleasant
circumstances is what ultimately determines the failure or success of a project.
As the saying goes, life is not about the challenges that you face but about
how you face up to those challenges.
Client satisfaction taken in the literal robotic sense
devoid of any human sentiment can be measured in hard cold statistics that
provide a seemingly irrefutable scorecard on the number of issues that have
failed or not working as they were supposed to. However a mere scorecard cannot
really capture the intangibles, as it
does not reflect deadlines missed due to inaccurate or incomplete requirements,
mission creep and other delays caused by acts of God.
Though customers obviously expect on-time and under budget
deliverables, in the unfortunate instances when this is not possible, it is the
attitude and approach of the vendor in dealing with these challenges that often
times mould the reaction of the client. In the spirit of transparency, if the
vendor discloses the challenges and outlines the potential pitfalls as the
project progresses, that ensures that the client gains a valuable appreciation
of the nuances of the project and at the same time helps calibrate their
expectations. This is a much more preferred approach than working in a vacuum
with minimal periodic or insightful updates creating a false feeling of comfort
on the client’s side which gets disturbed rudely when details of an unexpected
unsatisfactory outcome are disclosed at the last minute.
Those kinds of approaches will understandably result in
strong backlash and is at the core of customer dissatisfaction. Honest communication lines need to be open
between the vendor and the client in order to achieve any semblance of customer
satisfaction. Trust is an incredibly core tenet of the client vendor
relationship and that is something that has to be earned from day 1 and is obviously
not an attribute that can be taken for granted at the outset of any client
vendor engagement. I have personally
seen cases where a relatively major adverse impact on a project was met with a
reasonable response from the client as they realized that the outcome was in
spite of the vendor putting in their best efforts due to a rapport developed
between the vendor and the client. Conversely relatively minor issues have been
blown out of proportion by clients owing to a toxic client vendor relationship.
The ultimate measure of customer satisfaction is typically
gauged by how likely the vendor is willing to put his or her reputation on the
line and recommending the solution to his or her peers. That perception on the client side is shaped obviously
by the merits of a solution and it’s execution but what a lot of vendors fail
to realize is building trust and rapport through a human connection with the
client is hugely important. Ultimately a great solution is not just one that
has the most bells and whistles but also that which places a lot of importance
on the intangibles involving inter-personal relationships.
We at RTS are proud to proclaim that our client services
team has won multiple acclaims around the globe not just in terms of being
subject matter experts in the revenue management domain but by nurturing relationships
with clients through constant, courteous and consistent communication.
Rather than engaging in typical client-vendor relationships, we strongly
believe that working with clients as partners goes a long way in smooth project
management and enhanced customer satisfaction. We realize that you do not treat
your passengers like mere statistics and we likewise view our clients as much
more than just a number.
Please let us know what factors influence the satisfaction
levels that you feel with your products. If you are thinking about a revenue
management or pricing solution, we invite you to consider us and experience the
award winning RTS customer service that a number of our existing clients can
attest to.
Pradeep Bandla
VP, Passenger Solutions
No comments:
Post a Comment