strategic quality management and customer satisfaction week 3 1110[1]

8/8/2019 Strategic Quality Management and Customer Satisfaction Week 3 1110[1]

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Strategic Quality Management

Strategic Quality Management and Customer Satisfaction

Yvette K. Burrucker, Pat Kendrick,

University of Phoenix

MGT/448

Professor Martha Muhammad

November 12, 2010

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Strategic Quality Management and Customer Satisfaction

Mission Statement

At AT&T, wedelight our customers, employees, and shareholders by relentlessly

delivering the platform and technology advancements that become essential to the way we work

and live. AT&T is bringing it all togetherfor our customers, from revolutionary smart-phones to

next-generation TV services and sophisticated solutions for multi-national businesses.

For more than a century, we consistently providedinnovative, reliable, high-quality

products and servicesand excellent customer care. Todayour mission is to connect people with

their world, everywhere they live and work and doit better than anyone else. We are

fulfilling

this vision by creating new solutions for consumers and businesses and by driving innovation in

the communications and entertainment industry.

We strengthen our communities by providing good jobs. We donate our time, resources

and talents, supporting underserved populations and promoting education programs that create

economic opportunity.

At AT&T, we know our success begins with our people. We are committed to investing

in people and providing a positive and inclusive work environment where employees feel their

connection to the company's every daysuccess. Doing so benefits our customers, our investors,

andthe communities in which we operate. Our diverse workforce improves our ability to

understand the diverse needs of our customers and thereby design useful and relevant products

and services for our customers.

Customer satisfactionif not measured and given proper attention and analysis

will result in a companys demise, and ceasing to exist. Many times management makes

the process of measuring quality customer service more burdensome than necessary.

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Planning is the key to customer satisfaction measurement. An organization must have a

strategic approach that includes the satisfaction of customers in the big picture.

Customers are essential to the success or demise of a business, therefore, the plan must

include indicators to measure the quality of service provided to the customer, and the

customers level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction. AT&Ts customer service

measurement focus is divided up in several avenues, the first, customer attrition ration;

this process divides the number of customer leaving AT&T by the number of customers

for the same timeframe. AT&T has elected to use this indicator on a quarterly basis. If

the indicators show a high ratio, this would mean AT&T is not delivering quality

customer service on a consistent basis. Therefore, AT&Ts quality control team would

address this issue and correct whatever the customer issue is to regain his or her

satisfaction. AT&T tracks and monitors this indicator in a newly designed database

linking in with the sales of total services and cancellations of total services. This function

is housed in the call operations center, and quarterly reports are generated and provided

to senior management for review at the companys quarterly meetings.

Another avenue AT&T uses to measure customer service is sales growth. AT&T is one

of the largest and most innovated telecommunications company both domestically and globally.

Therefore, the companys sound reputation in regard to quality, customer satisfaction, and

commitment to the community to attract and retain loyal customers is phenomenal. AT&T

believes if the company continues to sustain growth, and keep loyal customers buying products

and services, and referring others to the company, a customer connection is establishedlinking

growth, satisfaction, and happiness. Thus AT&T provides an annual sales conference to promote

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excellent customer service and role playing for every level of the companys staff. The

conferences are held at the corporate office and branch locations at different times during the

year and are mandatory for every employee to attend and incorporate the lessons learned into his

or her department.

Another strategy AT&T uses is an automated telephone customer service survey called

Accelerate that Tidbit. Customers are encouraged to participate in an automated five-minute

survey after calling regarding billing inquires repairs, cancellations, or additions of services. The

customer is rewarded by providing feedback with five percent off his or her billing invoice for

the next quarter. Although a small incentive, this method has proved effective in soliciting

customer feedback on services and products. The information is gathered into an internal

electronic database on AT&Ts intranet site. AT&T reviews the information and makes

necessary adjustments by means of a quality scorecard in areas rated in categoriesexcellent

service, poor service, needs, adjustments, customer satisfaction, customer dissatisfactions, and

suggestions for improvement. AT&T believes the information obtained from the customer is the

best manner to measure quality service. Therefore, every complaint that is filtered to AT&T

from the systems in place, customer service representation branches and subdivisions are

important and received with a spirit of gratitude.

This permits AT&T to resolve the issues of the complaining customer and regain his or

her trust and loyalty. In addition, this addresses the issue that is not only affecting the

complaining customers but also others not saying anything. These customers may cancel his or

her service or stop purchasing products without a word. AT&T does not want this scenario

because the companys reputation is at stake.

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Therefore, AT&T has customer service quality measurements in place to show

employees, and customers, the customer is sacred to AT&T. A can-do spirit is AT&Ts mantra

and each employee from senior management to entry-level personnel must echo and instinctively

respond, and resolve issues.

In conclusion, AT&T recognizes the companys strategy plan must include SWOT

strengths, weakness, opportunities, and threats. This assists AT&T to avoid window dressing the

companys mission a vision statement, but to have every employee commit to action, the

mission, vision, and goals of the company. Therefore, the strategic plans of action, objectives

are clearly defined in the policies and procedures so every employee is fully aware of the

companys core principles, and values. The customer is sacred and sustains the service, product,

and business. Thus measurements are put in place to empower, acknowledge, and produce

successful results for AT&T, the employees, and customers.

References

Goetsch, D., & Davis, S. (2010). Chapter Seven -- Customer Satisfaction, Retention, and

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Loyalty. Retrieved from https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/content/eBookLibrary2

AT&T. (n.d.).AT&T. Retrieved November 10, 2010, from http://www.att.com/general

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