REVIEW: Inside information
"Video Arts has upped the ante by including a self-study workbook and group training material ensuring this is a well-priced package with mileage." Video Arts silo-buster's guide to internal customer service is reviewed by Training and Coaching Today
One would be forgiven for thinking that the recession had sharpened companies' professionalism and communication skills, but Video Arts feels there is a gap in the market for films on the subject and I think it is right. But allow me to digress to a personal anecdote before I dissect this package.
Two days before Christmas my sister received some long-awaited parcels, packed, she hoped, with the crockery suitable for catering for lunch for 12 on Christmas Day. Except they weren't. A department store had sent her two boxes of unwrapped, hence broken, china. To its credit, the store refunded the cost of the china and £40 as a goodwill gesture. However, it was unable to find or send a replacement and we sat down on the big day to a mismatched combination that included melamine Disney plates. A customer service representative told my sister that she wasn't surprised by her complaint and it was the sixth that morning. "We've got problems with packaging and despatch," she said. "But they don't listen to us."
If only customer services and packaging had watched this DVD together. It tackles the notion that good internal communications will lead to better external relations - and more business. The film is set in fictitious Stratfold Conferencing, where departments such as marketing, IT and finance work in separate silos. We hear comments such as: "I'm an accountant so I don't have customers", and we watch a stony-faced manager learn that staff serve customers, staff serve staff and managers serve everyone.
The main story line is supplemented by three extra learning chapters on the internal customer pyramid understanding what your organisation offers and tips for breaking down silos.
This is a package with longevity. It balances warmth and instruction with serious messages about focus and professionalism. The humour comes from the characterisation, such as the excellent James Dreyfus, who plays people-phobic Greg in IT, which means that it would be suitable for all levels of staff.
Video Arts has upped the ante by including a self-study workbook and group training material ensuring this is a well-priced package with mileage.
