Customer-Centric
Organizations
Presented By: Jolie Duncan
Lauren Balliet
What is Customer Centricity?
“An approach to doing business in which a company
focuses on creating a positive consumer experience
at the point of sale and post-sale. A customer-centric
approach can add value to a company by
differentiating themselves from competitors who do
not offer the same experience.”
What is Customer Centricity?
 Emphasis on superior quality of service and customer
relations
 Time spent visiting with customers and listening to them
 Examining customer and market issues-trends, needs,
opportunities
 Creating value for the customer and value for the firm
 Employees are advocates for the customer
The Starbucks Experience
 “Expect more than coffee”
 Focus on the entire coffehouse experience
 The Three P’s: People, Place, Product
 “When we are fully engaged, we connect with, laugh
with, and uplift the lives of our customers – even if
just for a few moments. Sure, it starts with the
promise of a perfectly made beverage, but our work
goes far beyond that. It’s really about human
connection.”
The Starbucks Experience
 “Hi, Welcome to Starbucks. What Can We Do for
You?”
 “Bottom line is we can’t exceed expectations of
shareholders unless we exceed the expectations of
customers first. And we do both by inspiring our
partners and refocusing them on the customer.”
The Ritz Carlton
Gold Standards
 "We are Ladies and Gentlemen serving Ladies and
Gentlemen.“
 Three Steps Of Service
A warm and sincere greeting. Use the guest's name.
Anticipation and fulfillment of each guest's needs.
Fond farewell. Give a warm good-bye and use the
guest's name.
The Ritz Carlton
Gold Standards
Service Values: I Am Proud To Be Ritz-Carlton
 I build strong relationships and create Ritz-Carlton guests
for life.
 I am always responsive to the expressed and unexpressed
wishes and needs of our guests.
 I am empowered to create unique, memorable and
personal experiences for our guests.
 I understand my role in achieving the Key Success Factors,
embracing Community Footprints and creating The RitzCarlton Mystique.
 I continuously seek opportunities to innovate and
improve The Ritz-Carlton experience.
The Ritz Carlton
Gold Standards
 I own and immediately resolve guest problems.
 I create a work environment of teamwork and lateral service
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so that the needs of our guests and each other are met.
I have the opportunity to continuously learn and grow.
I am involved in the planning of the work that affects me.
I am proud of my professional appearance, language and
behavior.
I protect the privacy and security of our guests, my fellow
employees and the company's confidential information and
assets.
I am responsible for uncompromising levels of cleanliness and
creating a safe and accident-free environment.
Best Buy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZ5qWtlQmZE
Best Buy
 "If we do nothing, Wal-Mart will surpass us by the
simple fact that they open more stores than we do
each year. There is no point in trying to compete on
price.”
 Decentralization: “Instead of head office telling the
store what to do, it would be the store asking what it
can do in assisting its customers”
 Focus on five customer segments (at least one per
each store)
Best Buy
Five customer segments:
 Swinging single professional
 Gadgeteers
 Cherry pickers
 Affluent soccer moms
 Small business
How Does It Apply to Libraries?
“Almost everyone who enters library/information
service does so, in part, because of a strong drive to
serve or help people.”
How Does It Apply to Libraries?
 Front line staff are in charge of innovation
 Effective immediately
 Instability equals safety
 Patrons are our partners
Nottingham Trent University
 Customer Value Discovery Workshops
 Customers prioritize values
 Resulted in redirecting funding to value added
services
 Increased customer satisfaction in all cases
“You Asked” and “We Responded”
 Licensed additional e-journals for 24/7 access
 Created a user friendly interface to the online
catalogue and website
 Color zoning across the library
 Annual customer service training and staff
development
 Revised student charter to reflect values identified by
students
Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
 Electronic and eye-catching signs
 Open layout conducive to browsing
 Coffee shop
 More teen space
 Elimination of jargon
 Maps and information at “break points”
Now You Respond . . .
 How can you apply some of the corporate ideas of
customer centricity to libraries?
 Have you seen any of these concepts already in
action in a library setting (other than Nottingham
Trent and CLP)?
 Most libraries use the terms “users” or “patrons.” Do
you think it is important to switch our thinking and
use the term “customer”?
Resources
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(2003). Developing customer-centric employees at Ritz-Carlton Hotels.Training Strategies for Tomorrow, 17(1), 2731. Retrieved from ABI/INFORM Global.
(2006). Designing Better Libraries: An Approach to Customer-Centric Innovation Retrieved from http://dbl.lishost.org
Customer centric definition . Retrieved from http://www.businessdictionary.com
Dion, James. Is Your Store Customer-Centric? Retrieved from http://www.microsoft.com
Hanft, Adam. (2005). What You Can Learn from Starbucks. Retrieved from http://www.inc.com
McKnight, S., & Berrington, M. (2008). Improving customer satisfaction: Changes as a result of customer value
discovery. Evidence Based Library & Information Practice, 3(1), 33-52. Retrieved from Directory of Open Access
Journal.
Reiss, R. (2009). How the Rtiz stays at the top. Forbes Magazine. http://www.forbes.com/2009/10/30/simoncooper-ritz-leadership-ceonetwork-hotels.htmll
Rossi, Karen. (2006). Customer-centric. Library Journal.com. Retrieved from http://www.libraryjournal.com
The Ritz Carlton corporate website. http://corporate.ritzcarlton.com/en/Default.htmm
Schwartz, Paul. (2008). What IS the Starbucks Customer Experience? Retrieved from
http://customeru.wordpress.com
Shah, D., Rust, R., Parasuraman, A., Staelin, R & Day, G. (2006). The path to customer centricity. Journal of
Service Research, 9(2), 113-124. Retrieved from ABI/INFORM Global.
Smith, Steve. (2004). Best Buy gives details on “customer centricity” Retrieved from http://www.twice.com
Starbucks corporate website. Retrieved from http://www.starbucks.com/