By Laura Lynch
Credit union drive-up windows often have signs instructing members about the forms they need--and requesting that members have those forms filled out before pulling up to the window. Members don't always comply.
"If a member doesn't have a deposit form filled out correctly, a member service representative would never scold the member and send them away. That kind of behavior could get them fired!" said Michael Neill, CSE, president of Michael Neill and Associates, Inc., Atlanta, during a recent CUES webinar, "The Critical Role of Internal Service in Credit Union Sales & Service Culture."
"But, at some credit unions, those behaviors are tolerated among support staff" when they're dealing with other staff members. (Listen to the webinar recording.)
The often stark contrasts between external service standards and internal standards are most telling when it comes to measurement and expectations for improvement, according to Neill, also CUES' strategic provider for ServiStar and the Internal Service Survey.
"Credit unions measure everything! When we talk about what we measure, and the fact that we don't measure internal service, it creates a juxtaposition. We track external service through mystery shoppers, balancing at the drive through, etc. What we don't measure is internal service. It creates a compelling case that we need standards for internal service."
Another way to encourage staff to provide outstanding internal service: "catch 'em doin' it right," a contest currently underway, sponsored by Neill and CUES. Make an employee who's performed a great act of internal service at your CU eligible for the $1,000 prize! Simply grab your smartphone, video the employee in the action of providing excellent internal service, or have them tell their story to the camera. Then post it to the ServiStar Facebook page. The contest deadline is this Friday, Feb. 28.
Laura Lynch is CUES' products and services coordinator.
