Expert Recommends Employee
“Standards of Behavior” Contract
“Obviously, you want employees to leave a positive impression on customers,” says Quint Studer, author of the Wall Street Journal bestseller Results That Last: Hardwiring Behaviors That Will Take Your Company to the Top. “It’s also important for morale to have everyone behaving in appropriate ways. Employees who frequently behave in ways that their coworkers deem inappropriate are certainly not contributing to a happy, unified, productive team. And here’s the real bottom line: If you don’t spell out which behaviors are acceptable and which are not, you can’t hold people accountable for them.”
His solution is to create a document that everyone from the company president to the part-time sales associate signs. It can address interaction with clients, phone etiquette, “good manners” and positive attitude markers like smiling or saying thank you.
“You may worry that enforcing Standards of Behavior will create a company of robots, a company in which human differences are discouraged in favor of mindless conformity,” he writes in Results That Last. “That is not true! A business unified by agreed-upon standards is a far more pleasant place to work. Plus, individual responsibility flourishes, because it’s clear what everyone’s responsibilities are.”
Here’s a sample document created by Studer that can help you prepare a contract for your business.
Behavior Standards Sample*
Client Relations
• I will treat our customers in a kind and professional manner.
• I will maintain eye contact with customers.
• I will be courteous and friendly in speaking and in “body language.”
• I will introduce myself to customers and ask open-ended questions to find out how I can help them.
• I will use the customer’s name as soon as I have heard it or as soon as it is written.
Customer Service
• I will commit to excellent service and ask customers to tell me if I am not meeting their expectations.
• I will treat everyone in a courteous manner; rudeness is never acceptable.
• I will take action when I recognize that the customer’s expectations have not been met.
• I will remember customers are not an interruption of my work; they are the reason I am here.
• I will find someone else to meet a request if I am unable to do so.
• I will introduce other staff to customers when a hand-off occurs, and explain that the person will provide excellent service.
• I will always strive to meet a customer's needs by using HEAL:
H: Hear them out
E: Empathize
A: Apologize (“I’m sorry the acrylics you ordered didn’t get here more quickly.”)
L: Leap into action to solve the problem
General Etiquette
• I will notice if someone appears in need of assistance and offer help immediately.
• I will not discuss staffing or internal issues with, or in the presence of, customers.
• I will speak with appropriate voice level.
Commitment to Coworkers
• In verbal and non-verbal communication, I will treat coworkers respectfully and professionally by listening and avoiding defensiveness.
• I will respond promptly to any form of communication.
• I will report to work as scheduled. I will communicate delays as appropriate.
• I will offer to assist coworkers and other departments when needed.
• I will respectfully approach fellow employees and refrain from discipline or constructive criticism in public.
• I will discuss issues directly with coworkers and not go to other people unless the issue cannot be resolved.
• I will take responsibility for solving problems regardless of origin.
• I will provide coworkers with a mini-report for continuity of workflow when I am planning to be out of the office.
• I will be mindful and respectful of others’ time and schedules.
• I will be accountable when completing assignments.
• I will respect deadlines.
Telephone Etiquette
• I will be courteous on the telephone.
• I will make every effort to answer calls within three rings.
• I will introduce myself and my role.
• I will screen calls with the phrase, “May I say who’s calling?”
• I will use the caller’s name if I know it.
• I will use a tone of voice that is alert, pleasant, distinct and expressive.
• I will not eat, drink, chew gum or smoke while talking on the telephone.
• I will avoid phrases like “Okay,” “Yeah,” “Hold on,” “Honey,” and “See ya.”
• I will answer the telephone with a greeting, my department and my name (and title if appropriate).
• I will ask for permission before placing a caller on hold or using a speakerphone, and wait for an answer. I will thank the caller when I return to him or her.
• I will acknowledge customers placed on hold every 30 seconds.
• I will give the caller the extension number of the person he or she is being transferred to.
• I will be knowledgeable in the use of facility phones and their features.
• I will smile when speaking on the phone to convey a pleasant tone of voice.
• I will return messages within 24 hours or the next business day.
• I will offer further assistance to the caller upon completing the conversation.
E-mail Etiquette
• I will use my e-mail for business only.
• I will use my e-mail tool options appropriately when I am going to be away for a period of time.
• I will be aware of potential computer viruses. I will open e-mail from outside the facility only if I know the sender.
My signature below indicates that I have been given a copy of the Behavior Standards. I will try to uphold these standards to the best of my ability.
Name: ____________________________
Date: ____________________________
One copy to employee. Second copy signed and filed with manager.
*Copyright 2008, Studer Group®. |
