Customer Focus Award

This award is given to a staff member or group who demonstrated concern for meeting internal and external customer needs in a manner that provided satisfaction for the customer. (“Customers” can be co-workers, peers, or managers, as well as external consumers of a service, such as students, parents, or community members.)

Criteria
Demonstrated a combination of the following

• Asked questions to identify customer needs or expectations.
• Checked understanding by stating what was understood to be the customer’s needs or expectations and asked the speaker to verify or clarify.
• Considered the impact on the external customer when taking action, setting policies, or carrying out job tasks.
• Looked for external trends that are likely to shape the wants and needs of customers in the near future.
• Involved stakeholders in the decision-making or problem-solving process as early as possible.
• Looked for creative approaches to provide or improve services that may increase efficiency and decrease cost.
• Worked to remove barriers that got in the way of giving customers top-notch service.
• Asked questions of customers to assess satisfaction with service being provided.
• Referred customers to the appropriate department or employee to solve specific problems and followed up to make sure that the customers had been taken care of.
• Sought ways to continuously improve external and internal customer satisfaction with product or service quality and on-time delivery.
• Understood organization of the customer’s business and how various functions interrelate.