Getting Employee Buy-in

Aligning employees' motivation with their company's interests can be a challenging task, but it's an essential part of building an organisation capable of delivering outstanding customer service. Companies should strive to put employees in a position where their intrinsic motivation leads them to the right action, rather than try to manipulate employees through incentives that may have negative side effects.

Summary of solutions:

• Hire people who will love their job and love your company, so they will naturally want to do what you ask them to do
• Involve frontline employees in decision making and problem solving so that they will take ownership of company goals
• Frequently monitor employee performance so that you can recognise positive achievements and correct mistakes
• If you must use financial incentive such as commissions or tips, be sure to align them with team goals rather than individual accomplishments
• Do not assume that commissioned or tipped employees need less supervision than employees who aren't paid by their performance. They require the same monitoring and coaching as anyone
• Make employee recognition an unexpected event and offer it only after good performance. This approach shows employees they are appreciated while keeping their focus on customer service rather than earning a prize. Use broad service guidelines rather than detailed standards to allow for more flexibility and personalisation