Creating and Sustaining a Culture of Service

1. How to Deliver Exceptional Customer Service in Support of Student Achievement Organizational Advancement Division Creating and Sustaining a Culture of Service

2. Overarching Goal/Theme and Definition of Excellence “Excellence in Everything We Do” • Effective teachers, leaders and support staff • Rigorous and relevant curriculum • Maximum academic and social growth for all students • Safe, orderly, welcoming and well-run schools • Robust family, community, stakeholder and school partnerships • Fiscal responsibility and accountability • Climate of trust, ethical behavior and accountability • Highly efficient systems and processes • Effective board governance

3. Ground Rules • Respect all contributions • No sidebars • Share the air • Silence phones – please step out of the room before answering a call • No checking email • Ask questions • Be actively engaged and participate

4. Agenda • Who are our customers & what is customer service • The urgency of customer service • Benefits of great service • Everyone’s role in customer service • What every customer wants and needs • Setting goals

5. Five Wants and Needs of Every Customer • Made to feel welcome • Made to feel important and valued • Listened to • Kept informed • Made to feel comfortable with our service We believe that every customer should be:: The Five Wants & Needs of Every Customer

6. Who are your customers? (Question #1 – Worksheet or Group Discussion) 1. Engage Leaders

7. Who are your customers? • Students • Parents • Community members • Business partners • Colleagues • You cannot provide quality service in a silo • You need to work with “process partners” to deliver exceptional service • Treat your co-workers as customers • Standards for discourse between colleagues

8. What is Customer Service? • The practice of providing customers with a positive, helpful experience when they enter the school, throughout the time they stay at the school, and even after they leave • A commitment to consistently meeting and exceeding the needs of our customers • How we use our skills and what we know about our jobs to address the needs of our customers • More about perception than reality

9. Why Are We Concerned About Service? • There are students who live in the APS attendance area who do not attend APS schools • Exemplary customer service can have a positive impact on perception • Customers are the reason we are here • Customer service is a priority for the Superintendent

10. Everyone Has a Role • Everyone is involved in customer service • Customer service is important at every touch point • Every administrator, staff member, and teacher must “walk the talk” • Every personal contact is a reflection of your individual and organizational customer service environment

11. A Word on the Role of Teachers • Teachers have to pitch their lessons to grab their students’ attention and then maintain it throughout the class period • Students and parents must be satisfied with teachers • Teachers must be responsive to students and parents • Parents often want to know what you are teaching and how you are teaching it

12. Make Me Feel Welcome • Welcoming schools are important for students • Students who experience acceptance at school are more highly motivated, engaged in learning and committed to school • Students in schools with a greater sense of community are: • More academically motivated • Have higher educational aspirations • More likely to develop social and emotional competencies and enjoy school more • Work to ensure that all children feel respected, seen, and understood

13. Ideas for Creating a Welcoming Atmosphere • Shake hands with everyone who enters the building (a 2010 Texas Exemplary School, Duryea Elementary does this) • Verbal welcome • “Hello, how are you doing today?” • “Welcome back” • “Have a great day” • Be proactive • Have events for new or prospective parents, such as a new parent reception • Offer materials and have signs in different languages as needed • Greet your customers • O.C. Allen Elementary School in Aurora, Illinois opens car doors for students and greets students at the curb

14. Thoughts on Students and Parents • Treat every student better than we expect someone to treat our own child • New students should be welcomed and acclimated to a school with a positive, proactive plan • The student voice should be a primary source of data • Parents and students have a right to expect exceptional customer service from each and every employee, from the superintendent to the person who helps at school events

15. Make Me Feel Important and Valued • Students • Our students want to feel important too • Do you greet each student with their name each time you come in contact with them? “The deepest urge in human nature is the desire to feel important.” ~John Dewey

16. Make Me Comfortable With Your Service • Maintain privacy and confidentiality • Keep place of business clean and maintained • Dress appropriately for the job • Assure customers you will follow through with what you say • Uphold a high “say”/“do” index

17. Worksheet How should visitors to your school be greeted? What are some general guidelines you believe your school should formally adopt? (Question #2 – Worksheet or Group Discussion)

18. Traits of a Customer Service Star ”The customer is not always right, but let the customer be wrong with dignity.” Disney Handle angry customers effectively • Develop rapport • Accept responsibility and ownership

19. Watch What You Say Be careful what you say, and be careful how you say it!

20. How to Say It Don’t say: • “That’s against our policy.” • “The only thing we can do is…” • “You’ll have to…” • “Hang on a sec, I’ll be right…” • “You’re wrong.” Instead say: • “Here’s the way we handle that.” • “The best option for handling this is…” • “Here’s how we can help with that…” • “I’ll need to ask…are you able to wait?” • “Let me give you the information you need.”

21. Handling Mistakes • Apologize sincerely for their inconvenience with the problem • Take responsibility and don’t blame or make excuses • Solve the problem quickly • Do what is most useful to the customer, not what is easiest for you • Do something extra

22. Setting Goals • Now, you will begin setting goals for service by developing customer service standards • These will be guidelines that can be referred to and used as a guide for current and future employees • You will work with your group to discuss and finalize your standards

23. Organizational Advancement Division Staff Panya Lei Yarber Executive Director – Continuous Improvement pyarber@atlantapublicschools.us Dr. Alexis Kirijan Chief Strategy and Development Officer akirijan@atlantapublicschools.us Rebecca Kaye Senior Research Associate - Policy rkaye@atlantapublicschools.us Melvynne Reed Program Director, Balanced Scorecard mreed@atlantapublicschools.us Mary King Program Director, Systems and Processes mxking@atlantapublicschools.us Dionne Stewart Project Manager II ddstewart@atlantapublicschools.us Dyvonne Mincy Project Facilitator dmincy@atlantapublicschools.us Kathleen Yarbrough Project Manager II kyarbrough@atlantapublicschools.us Website www.atlantapublicschools.us/strategy

24. References • Customer Service: How To Do It Right! by Peggy Morrow • Cleveland Metropolitan School District • Parkway School District • Presentation by Sara Branner of Spotsylvania County Schools • Austin Independent School District • Chicago Public Schools – Department of Human Resources • Nick Drake-Knight – an author and director of a customer service and mystery shopping consultancy • www.welcomingschools.org – “Why Welcoming Schools are Important”