Of the champions and pigs...

Kenneth H. Blanchard, the quintessential management guru whose works include the famous ‘One minute Manager’ and ‘Raving Fans; a revolutionary approach to Customer Service’ referred to feedback as the breakfast of champions, he could not have been more articulate. To appreciate this notion of feedback well, let us begin from the premise in healthy living, that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. The reasoning is simple; one has slept for eight plus hours on an empty tummy and will face another six. On top of all this, some people might have gone for an early morning workout. This puts the significance of breakfast all too clear. It is essential...and so is feedback. Operating without feedback is like driving a car with no speedometer, learning to cook without ever tasting your food, or playing basketball without a scoreboard. Feedback as the sort given in this column is not only corrective but can be transformative and redemptive. But let’s face it, feedback can be tough. Whether from bosses, spouses or friends, it’s not easy to hear about our shortcomings. I suppose hearing ‘not so cool’ feedback from ‘some upstart’ newspaper columnist who wants to let you know that you can do better is, at the very best, uncomfortable. Feedback can stir up all kinds of self-doubt, defensiveness and even worry. A week or so ago, this column highlighted some ‘not so cool and admirable’ customer service in various sectors in Kigali. The ensuing period has been, to put it mildly, ‘interesting.’ What I have seen and heard made me think champions, goats, ostriches and pigs, if I may speak figuratively. Based on the response of the affected players to feedback we gave in this column we came up with four categories; the champions, the goats, the pigs, and the ostriches (pun and education intended). The champion: Salma Habib is a manager, Data Services at MTN Rwanda. Based on the last column, she sought out and called this columnist to find out what was the problem. She twice tried to solve the situation at hand. What was striking about her approach is the desire to seek and solve the problem as opposed to the all too common defensiveness that characterises these exchanges. That makes her a champion in customer service. I do hope she gets the team and systemic support she needs to solve issues before they get out of hand. The sheep: The renowned Christian author, CS Lewis, in his book, Seven Deadly Sins, captures the difference between a sheep and a pig in a rather interesting way. Whereas both sheep and pigs may find themselves in a muddy quagmire, the sheep try very hard to shake off the mud and the pigs just love it. According to this analogy, MTN would be characterised as sheep. They certainly do not like being on the receiving end of bad customer service publicity. Like muddy sheep they are trying to shake off the ‘mud’ of poor customer service. That is why their champion called back to try to rectify the situation. However the actions of their champion do not get them the championship. They should have, hitherto, had a proper monitoring system that would give them quick and accurate feedback that they would act upon. The technical team must deliver the promises that the front office makes. They must cure structural and systematic failures. We trust that the sheep will shake off the mud. We applaud the efforts so far. The pigs: I called back on the two three star hotels. They were very apologetic but still the concerned parties were either still not available to send me a quote or the system was down or they could not figure an alternate system. How does a person come to work every day, eight to five, and not do their job? This is the pig that just loves wallowing in the mud. The ostrich: The dental clinic believes that their system is just perfect. “This is how we do things around here”. They are the Ostrich that has buried its head in the sand. There is no running or ducking reality. This feedback isn’t just about pointing out others’ weaknesses; on the contrary, it’s about helping them eliminate stumbling blocks in order to build on their strengths. It is “the breakfast of champions.” The writer is an entrepreneurship development consultant based in Kigali.