What'S The Secret?: To Providing a World-Class Customer Experience

Chapter 5. Commandment I: Service Vision

A clear purpose of why the business exists

A company's Service Vision serves as a rallying point across the organization by being the one thing that all employees have in common no matter what the individual job or title may be^[50].

—Disney Institute

First and foremost an organization must have a strong Service Vision that communicates clearly the type of service culture to all of their employees. The vision articulates the true underlying purpose of why your organization exists and offers customers what they can't get elsewhere.

The level of service you wish to provide must be established before many other aspects of your organization can take shape. The Service Vision influences hiring standards, training, leadership philosophies, and your overall business model.

When James McManemon, General Manager of The Ritz-Carlton was asked, "If you were starting a new business, any business, and wanted to make customer service your value proposition, what would you do first?" His response, "The first thing I would do is create the Service Vision for the company. Be crystal clear with what the company's Vision is and be able to articulate that extremely well. Then I would hire talent based on that same belief, only adding employees that share those service values, and finally create the processes and training to achieve that Service Vision."

Sounds pretty ...