|
Letter from 
Big Tony
CI to I
Process Improvement Team
By Debbie Pincura and Jeff Mastej
The "CI to I" Process Improvement Team recently presented their recommendations as to how we could foster an image of a "small town" home medical equipment company within Central Intake. How could we more personalize our service? Is there a perception, due to the telephone or fax referral process, that we are just too automated? Are we too big? We listened to our customers, both internally and externally, and the committee did a fantastic job of "answering the call"!
The group first had to decide their mission and in doing so, an interesting coincidence occurred. We looked at our core values in customer service: customer intimacy (CI) and customer involvement (CI), and the name of the department under study – Central Intake (CI). The committee now had their name – "CI to I!"
The committee had a more rigorous schedule then most Process Improvement teams. We met each week for about 9 weeks. The group looked at the current situation from the perspective of the level of performance Wright & Filippis as an organization needs and the levels of performance the customer needs. Gaps were identified in expectations. To fill the gaps, we looked at the root cause(s) of the perception issues.
Establishing more defined Account Representative relationships with the Central Intake Team was crucial to overcoming the perception issues. We looked at what was successful in other Wright & Filippis facilities, and looked at how we could deploy in Central Intake. The task at hand was a bit more complex, due to number of staff involved. The group came up with an Account Representative/ Central Intake cross-reference guide (complete with 8 x 10 glossy photos) to better identify metro-Detroit referral sources, and the Account Representative assigned to these referrals. The group definitely saw value in opening the lines of communication between Central Intake staff and the Account Representative Team.
The committee also made recommendations on customer service training, from the true sense of customer service. We looked at past agendas of training seminars, and the focus seemed to be primarily on the operational aspects of the job description of a Customer Service Representative in Central Intake. Without taking away from these important attributes of operational excellence, we needed to expand the customer involvement aspect of their job descriptions from a referral source awareness perspective. Relationship training is currently under way, as we look to also modify job descriptions.
The goal of any improvement team is to develop changes that really make things better. The committee did just that, and A.J. Filippis and John Wright agreed. They worked through the issues with successful results. Thanks to Ken Eick, Nancy Hakala, Steve Klau, Sabrina Loza, Rhonda Nowitzke, Fred Rose, Dawn Ruiz and Margie Yankovitch for their participation in the committee. The committee is still meeting on implementation. Additional thanks to current and past members of the Customer Service Process Improvement Team and Communication Process Improvement Teams; the themes presented from these committees certainly helped accomplish our goals
Process Improvement Team
By Debbie Pincura and Jeff Mastej
The "CI to I" Process Improvement Team recently presented their recommendations as to how we could foster an image of a "small town" home medical equipment company within Central Intake. How could we more personalize our service? Is there a perception, due to the telephone or fax referral process, that we are just too automated? Are we too big? We listened to our customers, both internally and externally, and the committee did a fantastic job of "answering the call"!
The group first had to decide their mission and in doing so, an interesting coincidence occurred. We looked at our core values in customer service: customer intimacy (CI) and customer involvement (CI), and the name of the department under study – Central Intake (CI). The committee now had their name – "CI to I!"
The committee had a more rigorous schedule then most Process Improvement teams. We met each week for about 9 weeks. The group looked at the current situation from the perspective of the level of performance Wright & Filippis as an organization needs and the levels of performance the customer needs. Gaps were identified in expectations. To fill the gaps, we looked at the root cause(s) of the perception issues.
Establishing more defined Account Representative relationships with the Central Intake Team was crucial to overcoming the perception issues. We looked at what was successful in other Wright & Filippis facilities, and looked at how we could deploy in Central Intake. The task at hand was a bit more complex, due to number of staff involved. The group came up with an Account Representative/ Central Intake cross-reference guide (complete with 8 x 10 glossy photos) to better identify metro-Detroit referral sources, and the Account Representative assigned to these referrals. The group definitely saw value in opening the lines of communication between Central Intake staff and the Account Representative Team.
The committee also made recommendations on customer service training, from the true sense of customer service. We looked at past agendas of training seminars, and the focus seemed to be primarily on the operational aspects of the job description of a Customer Service Representative in Central Intake. Without taking away from these important attributes of operational excellence, we needed to expand the customer involvement aspect of their job descriptions from a referral source awareness perspective. Relationship training is currently under way, as we look to also modify job descriptions.
The goal of any improvement team is to develop changes that really make things better. The committee did just that, and A.J. Filippis and John Wright agreed. They worked through the issues with successful results. Thanks to Ken Eick, Nancy Hakala, Steve Klau, Sabrina Loza, Rhonda Nowitzke, Fred Rose, Dawn Ruiz and Margie Yankovitch for their participation in the committee. The committee is still meeting on implementation. Additional thanks to current and past members of the Customer Service Process Improvement Team and Communication Process Improvement Teams; the themes presented from these committees certainly helped accomplish our goals