It’s What We Can’t Imagine That Matters
I came across one of the most telling points about risk management: it’s the risks we can’t imagine that matter most.
Humans aren’ t good at managing risk because it’s all about imagination. We’re great at responding to things or crises that have just happened as we take the view that what has just happened is most likely to happen again. Where we fall down is imagining a crisis before it happens and taking action to prevent it.
As someone who’s often charged with assessing “risk”, it made me sit up and think. Am I guilty of the same weakness as others? Does it help, when identifying and assessing risk, to do it as a team project where, with luck, one team member may imagine the exact risk that will occur?
There’s an anecdote about the special forces operation that captured Osama bin Laden. When the operators were planning and were asked what the worst thing that could happen might be, one of them replied “Suppose one of the helicopters crashes?” Some told him not to put a “jinx” on the mission. However, that was exactly what happened!
We don’t know if the other operators paid attention to what he said. Luckily, they’d planned for it and we know that everybody got out.
Our problem is, we can’t imagine things that are outside our experience or horizons of imagination. In day-to-day life, I come across occasions when people don’t seem to “get” certain situations. This isn’t their fault, it’s just that they simply have no frame of reference for that occurrence whereas others do.
In the end, the question we need to ask ourselves is not, “what’s the worst that could happen?” so much as, "What’s the worst that could happen that we're unable to imagine at this point?”
At the moment, the only conclusion I can draw is that we have to deal with what happens that we haven’t been able to imagine when it occurs (the eruption of the COVID pandemic is a prime example).
Another solution may be to have “risk brainstorming” sessions that involve panels of people chosen from different functions, areas and levels of experience of the world. Adopting an “I can do it all attitude” maybe our surest route to the very disaster that we want to avoid.
I deliver change in markets ranging from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email.
Labels: Customer Care, Leadership, Productivity, Risk, Strategy, Teamwork
Stop Using Scripts
These days, when I call a customer service hotline it often seems that the person who answers is following a set script. There’s a standard greeting followed by something like, “How may I help you?”
So far, so good. However, when the whole conversation sounds scripted from end to end, then there’s a problem. For example:
Operator: “Good morning, you’re through to (name of organisation helpline), this is (name of operator speaking. How may I help you?
Me: “Good morning/afternoon (name of operator) I need help on issue X.”
Operator: “I’m sorry to hear that you seem to be having a problem…” (another stock response – “operator shows empathy”).
In general, this would be perfectly normal and acceptable if you were calling about a genuine problem. In some cases, though, I’ve called to speak to a particular operator who is aware of my case and its history only to have exactly the same formula repeated!
It can get much worse if one’s problem goes “off script”. This means that the operator’s list of standard questions and responses is insufficient to deal with the problem at hand and things grind to a halt.
If a human is involved, they can at least refer you to a colleague, to a more senior person or to somebody with the authority to make things happen. If the scripted responses are combined with AI, things stop there.
I understand and appreciate that organisations are trying to cut costs by replacing staff with either cheaper (less qualified) staff who, instead of proper training, are given the “standard Q&A List” or with AI. What often happens though is that, in their efforts to cut costs, they end up with a sub-standard service.
People will say that “AI needs to be trained. Indeed, it does but at least let this training not be at the expense of quality service. An organisation that has “real humans” answering calls without a script is likely to take business from those who persist in turning to automation as the solution to everything. As an example, think about Dame Judi Dench training Call Centre operators in the film The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.
No doubt in time to come, AI generated responses will be standard and appropriate to every situation. That time isn’t now however, and if we want to keep our business, we need to keep the “human touch”.
I deliver change in markets ranging from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email.
Labels: Customer Care, Productivity, Selling
“I Can’t Agree with Your Complaint”
I recently used the “complaints” email address for a well-known UK commercial bank - not to make an actual complaint, but to suggest they have a dedicated email address for non time-sensitive issues for which customers didn’t need on the spot resolution.
Sometime after I received a response from a “Complaint Manager” which concluded “As we haven’t made any errors, I can’t agree with your complaint”. The only “error” I was pointing out was that the bank in question lacked a dedicated email service for non time-sensitive issues.
To start with, I was forced to use the complaints email address because there was no alternative for customer suggestions. Secondly, whether the bank agrees or not with my “non-complaint”, to say so in such an abrupt manner displays a lack of understanding of the situation.
Customer complaints/suggestions are an opportunity for any service-based organisation to improve its offering or to correct something that has gone wrong once and could go wrong again. No one likes to receive a complaint (suggestions are always more welcome!) but in the end, it’s free feedback from customers on how to do better.
To compound the problem, the “Complaint Manager” proceeded to tell me about alternatives of which I was already aware and had elected not to use as they involved either making a phone call or using an online AI assistant. The latter proved singly incapable of resolving the situation.
Sadly, it appears that this particular bank has succumbed to the AI/direct response route without considering whether this is suitable in all cases and results in overloading of Call Centre operators.
Before we all jump on the “AI bandwagon” to provide services or resolutions to questions, we need to make sure that what is implemented is actually fit for purpose. The latest interpretations I’ve heard for “CRM“ (Customer Relationship Management) AI systems are “Customer Rage Machines” and “Can’t Resolve Much”.
What also didn’t help was that the letter I received in response seemed to contain a great deal of “approved standard phraseology” which served to dehumanise the situation and the person writing it.
In the end, a customer is still a customer and the way we handle them will decide whether they continue to use our services and recommend us to friends.
I deliver change in markets ranging from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email.
The Dead Horse Theory: A Simple Lesson for Leaders
Muhammad F reminded me of a great theory in LinkedIn in October last year: “If you realise you’re riding a dead horse, the best thing to do is get off.”
But in many organisations, instead of getting off the horse, people often:
· Use a stronger whip to try to make the horse move.
· Form a team to study the horse.
· Send employees to training on how to ride dead horses.
· Rename the horse to make it sound better, like calling it “energy-challenged”.
· Promote the dead horse to a higher position, hoping it inspires others.
The Lesson:
When something isn’t working any more, whether it’s a plan, project or strategy, we need to stop wasting time and energy on it. It may be an unwillingness to admit we’re wrong to others, an inability to see there’s a problem or other causes.
As leaders, our job is to understand what’s going on, admit that there’s a problem, let it go and focus on something that works.
Happy New Year.
I deliver change in markets ranging from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management. I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email.
Labels: Crisis Management, Leadership, Productivity, Strategy, Teamwork
