Customer service expert Yvonne Ohui McCarthy has impressed on organisations to recognise their employees and representatives are their internal customers and deserved premium care just as consumers of their goods and services.

The lead consultant at the Institute of Customer Service Professionals (ICSP) said Customer Service Week should not just be about superficial things like “wearing nice shirts, enjoying sweets in the offices”.

“It’s about you recognising your unsung heroes – those that really do the serving but have somehow been lost in the pile,” she asserted, speaking in an exclusive interview on Class 91.3 FM's Class Morning Show with Prince Benjamin (PB).

Insides reflect on the outside

“Imagine you’re walking around with a troubled liver, and your kidney and heart are not doing too well, your skin might look okay for some time but eventually, it’ll start telling on your skin, showing there’s something wrong on the inside. That’s what happens with organisations,” Yvonne McCarthy illustrated.

The West Africa Institute of Customer Service Professionals (WAICSP) Chair encouraged organisations to go beyond strategies to “please the external customer” and give “the internal customer” who “you expect to please the external customer” their fair share of attention and care.

If an organisation’s employees “are not okay, eventually it’ll tell on the way they present themselves and the kinds of experiences they give to the [external] customer,” Yvonne McCarthy admonished.

| Facebook (April 27, 2024): A picture of Yvonne McCarthy after a customer service training session

Employees and how they are regarded and cherished is “pivotal” to the productivity and profitability of a business, she underscored. Thus, she urged organisations to consider “them during decision-making,” and “their mental health, wellbeing, growth, and personal development,” seriously.  

When organisations provide ample “support and resources,” employees “align with their vision and core values, and reach their targets”.

The week ending Friday, October 11, is Customer Service Week worldwide. The 2024 celebration is themed: ‘Above & Beyond’.

Rate your 2024 customer experience in Ghana here.