Having Matt join us greatly expands our offerings here at DEG. Since we worked together for close to 10 years we share the same ideas, approach, and beliefs in the customer experience. Matt and I have already started working on some Customer Experience training that we believe will be some of the most unique and effective training in retail today.

Matt is based outside Portland, Maine where he lives with his wife and their young son. In his spare time, Matt enjoys cooking, writing fiction, and watching movies.

Matt shares with you in the next article how to ensure your training becomes a learned skill that results in the demonstration of your differentiation.

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The second-venue effect applies to customer experience skills practice as well. Role-play and scenario-based trainings in the back room or on-line might be sufficient to establish an expectation or model a desired behavior, but that type of development can’t hold a candle to the tangible experience of functioning on the sales floor. It isn’t until the employee is out on the floor, in the actual environment, potentially dealing with real customers, and being coached by a trusted and authoritative colleague that training becomes learning.

Obviously, conducting skills practice on the floor during business hours is rarely easy. Customers’ needs take top priority, and a new employee can feel unprepared and exposed. Veteran employees may feel they’re too familiar with providing exceptional customer experiences to require practice. Everyone might feel they’re being punished for poor performance. However, with some diligence and focus these obstacles are easily overcome and the results are well worth the effort. Here are some guidelines to incorporate on-the-floor skills practice into your training toolbox.

Make on-the-floor skills practice a part of your culture. Do all of your employees strive to improve their skills each day, or is skills practice something that’s pulled out only when a new product, service, or initiative is introduced? Do your tenured employees consider themselves too seasoned for further skills practice? Making skills practice a regular part of daily on-the-floor behavior can be a difficult undertaking, and it should be introduced gradually into the daily routine. It’s important to start with a relatively simple skill (greeting customers or answering the phone a certain way) in order to achieve employee buy-in and success. From there you can broaden the range of skills covered. Veteran employees can be included in modeling the desired behavior and coaching, but shouldn’t be exempt from learning. Neither should you.

Know who your experts are. Do you have someone on staff who regularly takes on the role of trainer? Is he or she truly the right person for each skill that needs to be trained? It’s important to identify those individuals who are the real experts in any given area and let them have the opportunity to share their knowledge. Oftentimes the best subject matter expert is somebody who recently completed the training themselves. If you have a designated trainer on staff, give him or her the opportunity to delegate the facilitation of a skills practice program to another mutually agreed upon employee. This will provide the trainer with valuable coaching experience, allow the facilitator to feel valued as a subject matter expert and further develop their skills in that realm, and foster a culture of shared learning throughout the staff.

Clearly define your Learning Priority. Whether it’s one person practicing their skills, or the whole team, the purpose of the practice needs to be as clear as possible. It’s totally acceptable to literally spell out your Learning Priority prior to the start of training. Be as specific as possible with regard to the skill and how it will be practiced, how long the training will last, and the expected outcome.

Be flexible and patient. Whether you’re facilitating the skills practice yourself or have delegated it to somebody else, it’s important to understand that everybody has different learning styles and preferences. Most adults learn through one of three methods: visually (by watching or reading), audibly (by hearing directions), or kinesthetically (by actually doing). Some learn through a combination of the methods. Consider your own learning style, and how it might differ from somebody else’s. Don’t assume everyone will catch on the first time around. Be prepared to offer individual support in a variety of formats to help everyone attain a standard level of competence.

Provide immediate and honest feedback. Feedback is only effective in training when it’s provided as soon as possible and is as direct and specific as can be. Remember that feedback should not always be viewed as negative or based on correction. Be cautious that your feedback is honest and focused on behavior, not attitude. You can and should give feedback on a job well done in order to create an environment that fosters open communication and doesn’t view critical assessment as a punitive action. However, whether it’s congratulatory or pointing out an opportunity for improvement, it’s imperative that the feedback is fresh. It’s often difficult to do this on the floor, especially on a day when there’s a lot of traffic, but even a quick observation gives your employee an idea of how they’re doing.

Additionally, make sure your team knows you’re open to feedback, and be willing to accept it. Be honest with your team and yourself.

Encourage peer support. Even though you may have a single person facilitating the practice, it’s imperative that every employee supports one another. This encourages the team dynamic, and provides an opportunity for employees to share their abilities. If there’s an opportunity for role-play, have one employee play himself or herself, another play customer, and a third act as a purely objective observer. Once the role-play is done, encourage the employee to talk about what they did well and what they could have done better, using specific language. Then let the “customer” talk about the experience the employee provided. Finally, the observer should offer their take on the situation as a third party. This triad approach frees the “customer” and “employee” to focus more on their respective roles, and less on observation, resulting in a more natural scenario. The employees should then switch roles so everyone has the opportunity to play each part. Whenever possible, you need to participate in the same skills practices your employees are working on. This further establishes the importance of the practice, and promotes future activities.

Acknowledge changed behavior. Once your team has accomplished what you set forth in your Learning Priority, or the stated duration has passed, it’s time to assess the situation. If the goal of the practice has been achieved be sure to recognize the individuals responsible and reward the team. If improvements have not occurred, it’s important to not surrender to the temptation to return to the status quo. Remind the team of the stated Learning Priority and solicit ideas as to why it wasn’t attained. Did you need more time? Were there extenuating circumstances? Consider revising your Learning Priority for the next skills practice. Look for opportunities to improve, not excuses.

It is said that practice makes perfect, but that’s actually been misquoted over the centuries. What the Greek ruler Periander actually said was “Practice is everything.” Musicians do it. Athletes do it. Actors do it. In fact, most occupations that involve providing the customer with a truly unique experience require more time practicing than performing. However, unlike many of those professions your team has the enviable position of practicing in its own venue. You need to take full advantage of this unique situation, as it can only serve to benefit your customer experience.

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Download chapter three: Differentiate - Or Else.

- Doug