Almost all of us were aware, as children, of the Golden Rule, “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.
But many times, once we become adults, we forget about the Golden Rule and rarely apply it in the business world. It’s a principle that, if adhered to in the business world, will serve employees and customers well. It can even create competitive advantage for companies and career-advancement opportunities for employees. My focus is how your awareness and application of this principle can enhance your entry or re-entry into the workplace.
In this blog, we explore ways to treat those in our workplaces as we would like to be treated ourselves.
Recent Business Practices Often Ignore the Principle
Increasingly, more and more companies are using artificial intelligence, robotics, big data analytics, online promotions, and other types of automation to expand their market penetration, and thus their profits and growth. But many times, a dependence on automation diminishes the quality-of-care companies provide to employees and service they provide to customers.
In this high-tech environment, the Golden Rule is more relevant than ever in defining how employers should treat their employees and customers. With constant assaults on our privacy and companies’ reliance on machines and voice software, it is more important than ever to gain sustainable competitive advantage (the essential goal of strategy) through strong and personal customer service. Millions of consumers are turned off by some of today’s “creative” but impersonal and intrusive marketing and servicing techniques. By facing and addressing this reality, your company’s leaders can help their bottom line greatly by making a concerted effort to follow the principle.
Entering a company as a new employee, initially you won’t have decision-making authority to change much of what you read about in this blog post. However, even as a new employee you can distinguish yourself by demonstrating an awareness of these issues and you can begin to position yourself for possible management or leadership roles in the future.
In this blog, I suggest a number of action steps. You can apply them in stages, as your knowledge evolves over time on issues relating to the application of the Golden Rule.
Today’s Lack of Personalized Customer Service Presents an Opportunity
Now that technology is an integral part of the business landscape, sometimes employees’ efforts to abide by the Golden Rule are compromised.
Heavily automated processes, which many companies install to reduce operating costs and increase efficiency, can interfere with the human interaction that enhances customers’ overall experience with companies. For example, studies have shown that many customers dislike international call centers and robocalls.
It is remarkable to reflect on the changes that have occurred over just the past few decades. These changes demonstrate a strong and rapid movement away from the wisdom of the Golden Rule.
This situation creates an opportunity for you, over time, to begin to reverse the trend and provide meaningful and constructive input to the management of your own company. However, I would advise you to proceed cautiously as you begin to make observations and communicate your suggestions to those who can ultimately effect change.
The one universal area for meaningful and sustainable competitive advantage is in the company’s relationship with its customers and the services it provides to them.
The Golden Rule as an Ancient Principle
In this age of impersonal communications, technological advancements, and fewer direct human interactions than historically has been the case, the Golden Rule is even more relevant and more important than when it was originally articulated in ancient manuscripts.
At work, at home, and in every interaction, we have with others, the Golden Rule is a simple and abiding guideline that encourages us to treat others well and show compassion.
Action Steps
1. Your best opportunity to observe customer interactions and communicate ideas for improvement will come only after you become a customer yourself. Purchase some of your own company’s products and then, as a customer, interact with the customer
service department, either by telephone or online. Read all its communications, whether you received them in the mail, by email, or via the internet. Note who you spoke with, what types of communications you received, and your observations from those interactions, both good and bad. Keeping these notes will enable you to come back and review this information later.
2. Obtain valuable customer feedback from your company’s distributors. No matter what type of products or services your company is offering, someone sells them. Distributors of your products are on the front lines and closest to the customer. As a
result, they can provide you with the best insights regarding how customers are treated by, and tend to interface with, the company. If necessary, ask your direct supervisor how you can be introduced to one or more of the company’s distributors.
Just asking that question will likely impress your boss. Make note of which distributors you spoke with on which dates and summarize key information you gathered.
3. Develop the habit of thoughtfully observing human interactions among employees within your company. Here are a few examples of common employee-to-employee or company-to-employee internal interactions. As you observe these interactions in your job, note any situations here that are not up to par with your company’s ideal standards:
a. A face-to-face meeting with a superior, a peer, or a subordinate.
b. An email, voicemail, or text communication.
c. A corporatewide communication to all employees.
d. A performance review by your immediate supervisor.
e. A verbal confrontation in a staff meeting, public reprimand of you or someone else.
4. Observe the processes that people follow throughout your company. Which ones, in your opinion, are so technology- based that they interfere with or prevent sincere face-to-face interactions and personal communications? Make note of which processes seem to be heavy on technology and light on personal interaction. For each one, identify your suggestion for improving the process so it still makes use of technology but also enhances customer interactions.
Cautions
1. Most of the advice given on this website can be implemented early in your tenure with a new company and on a relatively aggressive timetable. But in the case of communicating your critique of interactions with the company’s employees and
customers, caution is the better part of valor.
2. Early in your career or in a new job, it is wise to proceed cautiously. You don’t want to appear arrogant or risk antagonizing someone who implemented technological enhancements in a cost-saving exercise.
3. As your career advances and you begin to manage others, you will certainly be a more effective coach or mentor after learning what you have learned from the above practices.