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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Omega Sets Global Standards
for Service Excellence
with New ‘Customer Bill of Rights’ Benchmark
New standards for B2B customer service excellence emerge from direct
input by top
service industry executives. Benchmark points the way for organizations
to boost
revenue, profits by following proven quality standards for customer
service and loyalty.
BILLERICA, Mass.; June 23,
2008 – Organizations striving for excellence in customer
satisfaction and loyalty now have a template to follow with today’s
announcement by Omega Management Group Corp. of a groundbreaking new
Customer Bill of Rights -- the first benchmark standard for the global
services industry. Omega is a recognized expert in customer experience
management strategies.
The Customer Bill of Rights is
the result of research and analysis of global best practices in
business-to-business (B2B) customer service and support operations
conducted this year through a web survey of members of Omega’s new View
from the Top (VFT-500) Research Panel-500SM
program. Announced in October 2007, the VFT-500 program consists of
VP-level executives in customer-facing positions and/or chief customer
advocates at 500 leading global companies, and is devoted to the
continuous improvement of the global customer service industry.
Omega’s Center for Loyalty
Research conducted the survey -- the first ever based on customer
responses exclusively -- and analyzed and reported the results. The
survey examined best practices in virtually all customer-facing
operations and methods of customer interaction. Companies sponsoring the
initial VFT-500 research are Customer Relationship Management Institute;
Anthony & Alexander Group, LLC; GoldMine TeleServices Group and
ProSearch Services Group. Sponsorship includes contributing to the
research process and/or providing other services to the VFT-500 program.
The new Customer Bill of Rights
comprises 10 articles that define best practices for organizations to
use when interacting with customers and employees:
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Deliver Quality Products and
Services
-
Provide a
Supportive Workplace Environment
-
Reward
Employees for Customer Service Excellence
-
Appoint a Senior Customer
Advocate
-
Measure
Levels of Customer Satisfaction & Loyalty
-
Report on Customer
Satisfaction & Loyalty
-
Take Corrective Action where
Needed
-
Benchmark Performance within
the Industry
-
Seek Independent Audit of
Customer Service Processes
-
Conduct Annual Review of
Customer Service Processes
A Global Vision for Service
Excellence
“Loyalty
is the result of consistently exceeding customer expectations,” said
John Alexander Maraganis, president, founder and CEO of Omega Management
Group Corp. “Our vision for the View from the Top Research-500 program
is to build a global foundation encompassing customer-driven metrics for
satisfaction, loyalty, service operations and good corporate
citizenship.”
Currently there are more than
130 global members of the VFT-500 Research Panel, with the goal of
reaching 500 global members. From this group, 25 VPs comprise the VFT
Advisory Board, which acts as a steering committee for the research and
analysis agenda, such as the new Customer Bill of Rights. The VFT-500
operates as an online community, with a prestigious list of member
companies.
“Not
since the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award has there been a
structured methodology that promises to revolutionize the consistent
quality of products and services delivered to customers,” said Dennis
Gershowitz, chairman of the VFT-500 Advisory Board. “Given the direct
impact of service quality on customer satisfaction, loyalty and
bottom-line corporate performance, we expect this Customer Bill of
Rights to have a profound and positive impact on the global business
community.”
Comments from members of the
VFT-500 Advisory Board on the initial research agenda include:
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Dan Wiersma, SVP, Service
Platforms, Sony Electronics: “This index tool, founded upon best
practices, will help organizations with customer loyalty
transition.”
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Karen Hartzell, Division VP,
Customer Care; Comcast North Central Division: “The importance of
our work is to arrive at loyalty drivers that will allow companies
to compare where they stand against the competition, and within
their industry segment. This would
become a predictor of future
performance."
-
Angelo Rago, SVP Global
Customer Services, Advanced Medical Optics (AMO): “Put simply, this
is an elite group of service thought leaders making a difference in
our industry.”
-
Michael Calderwood, VP
Customer Relationship Management, Pitney Bowes: “The significance of
these standards is that they are based on customer-driven metrics
that have a direct impact on your bottom line.”
Members Benefit from Global
Best Practices
Each VFT-500 member who
participated in the research project received detailed reports on the
data gathered and related analysis and recommendations. Each quarter,
Omega’s Center for Loyalty Research will issue a new VFT-500 survey that
will further define specific benchmark metrics regarding best practices
and industry dynamics in customer-facing operations. VFT-500 service
executives express their opinions on survey topics related to the
service business, and in return stay up-to-date on service business
trends through a secure online community.
About Omega
Since 1984, the Omega Management
Group Corp. has been a recognized expert in developing and implementing
customer and employee experience management strategy (CEM) programs that
lead to increased product and service revenue and profits. Services
include customer and employee surveys, employee incentive programs,
benchmark research and analysis, consulting, key account retention
strategies, win-back strategies and communication plan of customer
satisfaction results to employees, customers and the marketplace. For
more information on Omega and View from the Top-500 program, visit
www.omegascoreboard.com
or call (866) 610-6700.
All
trademarks, service marks and company names are the property of their
respective owners.
Note to Editors:
the complete Customer Bill of
Rights is attached, and is posted on Omega’s website
http://www.omegascoreboard.com/customer_bill_of_rights_.shtml
Copyright 2008 by the Omega
Management Group Corp. All rights reserved.
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