By Ian Ferguson

Research suggests that the ‘people factor’ in service matters more than products and processes. Your facilities, equipment and products matter, but the people delivering service can make or break your business.

Identifying service gaps must be the order of the day in every work environment serious about securing loyal customers, and improving the business’s reputation and ability to attract new ones.

Many of these gaps, though, are not easy barriers to overcome. In fact, some of them are culturally-entrenched behaviours that are so commonplace they may require some very deliberate actions to eradicate them from the service environment. Step one in this process is to identify them as behaviours and attitudes that lead to service failure.

Here is the top 12 list of such behaviours:

• Sucking of the teeth. The suck teeth is often not even directed at the customer, but the impression the customer receives is that the service professional is annoyed at them).

• Cutting of the eye. This negative body language is most offensive, and everyone in all cultures views it as rude.

*Short, abrasive answers. This communication gap sends the message to our customers that we do not want to be bothered.

• Loud, friendly chatter and laughter. Bahamians are quite animated and celebrate in very electrifying ways. We sometimes forget the on-looking customer and do not realise they are terrified by our borderline violent acts of camaraderie).

• Public swearing and profanity. We have seemingly developed into a quite crude and vile speaking bunch. Public vulgarity and open talk of sexual exploits seems quite acceptable in many circles even in the presence of visitors.

• Common terms of endearment. Baby, sweetie, darling heart, sweet-boy, souljah, general, lion, kingman and hundreds of others are quite commonly used among service professionals, many of whom do not understand the offense caused. The inappropriateness of these terms is usually received negatively by persons from other cultures.

• Use of the ‘N’ word. For example: ‘Dese Chinese Niggas’. Words obviously have different meanings and value to different people. Casually using words that are generally offensive to others must be avoided at all cost.

• Sarcasm. Blatant or subtle, we must fight hard to remove all acts of sarcasm from the service environment. No matter how silly the question seems or how many times it is asked, the customer deserves a respectful and informed response.

• Passing the buck. The ‘that’s not my job/responsibility’ syndrome has almost become common place in the Bahamian workplace. Blaming others for service failure and not accepting responsibility and ownership for what has gone wrong is a sure way to lose the customer forever.

• Late arrival. If Bahamians tell you 7am, they really mean 8am. Being fashionably late or ‘island time’ adversely impacts the customer experience. As often as we hear it, we still seemingly have issues getting people to respect basic time standards.

• A laid back nature in service/no sense of urgency. Some fault our slave past with this inherent ill that continues to plague our people. Too many seem to have a ‘don’t rush me’ spirit. Truth is, no one loves to wait longer than a fair or reasonable timeframe for products and services. Our response must always be to put ourselves in the position of the person waiting and to get to it.

• Purging or getting stuff off the chest. We have somehow developed this habit of letting people know bluntly what is on our mind and considering the consequences later. Bahamians must learn tact in addressing their true feelings about things, processes and people. Great motto to live by: You talk some and you save some.

• NB: Ian R. Ferguson is a talent management and organisational development consultant, having completed graduate studies with regional and international universities. He has served organsations, both locally and globally, providing relevant solutions to their business growth and development issues. He may be contacted at tcconsultants@coralwave.com.