101 Ways to Improve Customer Service: Training, Tools, Tips, and Techniques

Chapter 90. Port of Call: Partnering Strategies

Goal

To facilitate group interaction for sharing best practices for partnering. Participants will assemble into groups based on various parts of a ship and similar destinations and then share strategies for partnering with customers and support units.

Time Required

Approximately 40 to 50 minutes

Group Size

Subgroups of six or seven persons each

Note

This exercise works best with a large group of participants.

Materials

• One index card for each participant

• One card-stock sheet for each group

• Flip chart and felt-tipped marker for facilitator

Process

1. Prior to the session, prepare the materials as follows. A table tent for each group can be made by folding a card-stock sheet in half and writing the name of a different port of call (for example, Buenos Aires, Naples, New York, Marseilles, Singapore, Stockholm) on each. You also will need a set of seven index cards for each port of call being used, with each card in the set containing the name of the port plus one of the following parts of a ship: Hull, Deck, Anchor, Rudder, Stern, Bow, and Mast. You will have seven cards for each port, and you will select enough ports to accommodate one card for each participant. Note: Some groups may have fewer than seven members, depending on the total number of participants. ...