Most companies have what they call mission, purpose and vision statements, but I have found that very few have a true customer service vision statement (CSV).
The true underlying value of the what and how your front line delivers to each and every customer provides a meaningful purpose for your employees.
The CSV is the what. A CSV should match the following criteria:
- Easy for all employees to relate to and understand
- Simple, concise and memorable
- Actionable and empowering
- Measurable, observable and trainable
In my own experiences through working with and helping many great companies create a CSV, I have found that the pre-existing vision is great, but many times too “big” for the frontline employees to understand the role they play for each and every customer interaction. So it gets moved to a purpose statement and we re-craft a CSV that fits the stated criteria. Here are two examples of my own companies’ CSV evolution.
| Company | Old CSV | New CSV |
| John Robert’s Spa | To enhance the quality of lives around us | To be the best part of our customer’s day |
| The DiJulius Group | Changing the world by creating a customer service revolution | To be the best investment our clients have made |
I felt extremely passionate about our existing service vision statements; however, they did not tell our employees what their role was in their interaction with the customer. The new CSV was significantly more measurable, trainable and actionable. Over time our initial CSV became our respective companies’ purpose if we hit our CSV consistently.
Supporting pillars
The supporting pillars are the how everyone from your front-line employees to the CEO performs on a daily basis in each customer interaction, and therefore executes the CSV. There are traditionally three pillars that support the CSV.
- Refers to the quality/expertise of the service or product your organization is selling.
- Refers to the customer interaction.
- Creates the autonomy for your employees to exceed the norm.
“People want to be part of something larger than them. They want to be part of something they are really proud of, that they’ll fight for, sacrifice for, and that they trust.” – Howard Schultz
