Page 91 - Exceptional Service, Exceptional Profit: The Secrets of Building a Five-Star Customer Service Organization

72 Exceptional Service, Exceptional Profit

Try this exercise sometime: Ask a friend to think back on a great
dining experience she had, even as recently as a couple months ago.
Then cross-examine her:

Do you remember the de´cor of the place?
Not precisely.
Do you remember the face of the waiter?
No, I can’t.
Do you remember the face of the maitre d’?
Nope.
What did you have for an appetizer?
I can’t quite remember.
What did you have for an entre´e?
I can’t quite remember.
What did you have to drink?
I can’t quite remember.
Was there anything special about the valet parking?
I can’t remember.
Then what was so great about it?
I don’t know exactly, but it was a great experience.

Using Lean Manufacturing’s methodology (that only what is valued
by the customer has value), everything above, taken individually, could
easily be thrown into the classification of muda (waste): the excellence
of the valet parker (for all the description you got, your friend might
have taken the bus), the faceless maitre d’ (she could have seated her-
self ); the faceless server (a buffet would have been very practical); even
the excellent quality of the food, wine, and de´cor, none of which she
remembered in much detail. Yet all of these touch points, and so many
more, ultimately built an experience that was more than the sum of its
parts: The collective is what does it. That’s why the attention to details is
so important in the service business: making sure that each one of those
touch points is well executed.

By the way, we could make an educated guess as to the details that