Sojourn Clarifies Management Priorities Service Savvy


“A sojourn clears the mind, refreshes the spirit and resets priorities.”


By Steve Coscia


He confessed that he had no idea one


person could be stifling so many latent assets. In addition, he also learned that the front line service reps didn’t like the customer service manager, but were too afraid to say anything. The owner learned about this afterwards when employees thanked him for making the change. Company owner A also confessed that


his fear about the old manager’s indis- pensability was groundless. The news about Company B was less


positive. The company owner shared that business was stagnant and he blamed it on the economy. I listened empathetically, but I knew what was really going on. Company Owner B was still in denial


about his customer service manager’s indispensability. There was an attrition factor at work in Company B. The attrition factor validates the


M


any readers have been fol- lowing my travels during this spring and summer. I find this travel to be therapeutic


in enabling me to make better manage- ment decisions. A sojourn clears the mind, refreshes the spirit and resets priorities. Investing time alone in the wilderness results in self-examination – it boils a person down to their essence. In my consulting work, I serve com-


pany owners who could really use a break – a heavy workload diminishes their effec- tiveness. One of the areas that company owners struggle with is terminating long- term employees, especially those who serve in a management capacity. The fear of not knowing what might happen after- wards is real. The below case study sheds light on the importance of doing the right thing, no matter what. Two clients shared a customer service


management issue. Both managers were long term employees with lots of techni- cal knowledge which made them appear indispensable to the company owners. As the consultant, I had assessed that both customer service managers were a


32 SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2023


corporate liability. In varying degrees, they lacked the people skills, flexibility and operational management acumen to run a service operation. Perhaps the asset which was most deficient was the desire to learn and apply something new. Both managers resisted change. The company owners seemed either


in denial or they were naïve to what was really happening. After consultation and training I concluded that both managers should be replaced. Neither company owner were happy


with my conclusion. They both urged me to find a way to make things work out. I reaffirmed to both company owners that management changes are necessary some- times, and this was one of those times. Company ‘A’ terminated their customer


service manager and Company ‘B’ did not. Months later, the owner at Company A


enthusiastically shared with me that their customer service department was much more productive, teamwork and coopera- tion was the best it had been in years, and customer retention was up. The service department was infused with vigor, vitality and a renewed sense of service excellence.


belief that things can go either forward or backward, but they never stay the same. Therefore, Company B’s false belief that doing nothing would result in unchanged service was incorrect. Terminating employees, especially man-


agers, requires lots of grit along with the help of HR personnel to avert legal issues, but when it’s necessary - it’s necessary. An errant employee with a bad atti-


tude, who negatively affects other employees, becomes a cancer which spreads throughout the organization. An errant manager makes things worse and must be removed. The fear that company owners face


when making personnel changes is expected. What is required is a core belief that improvement lies on the other side of fear. And don’t forget to give your- self enough time off to see the big picture – this is where a sojourn can make a posi- tive difference.


Steve Coscia, CSP is an industry expert that helps HVACR companies make more money through increased customer retention, improved upselling, and reduced job stress.


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