Show grace. On a recent trip to Las Vegas, I was late to a time-share presentation and was immediately confronted with one of the managers- he was abrupt and "law-centered." I was wrong; therefore, he treated me as "wrong" and  prevented me from attending another session.   I was devastated - the room rate on the condo units I was staying at was over $500 a night and since I didn't attend the "sales-pitch," I was obligated to pay the full rate!  Mercifully, the woman who sat at the front desk provided a reassuring and grace-filled response and she contacted the Marketing Director who promptly placed me in another presentation.  How do you treat a customer who is clearly "in the wrong?"  What training are you providing your staff so that they know what rules are flexible?  Is your organization showing grace or law to your customers?  There is no other place where we can show the grace of Christ than when we show compassion and mercy during those times when our customers don't deserve it. After all, that is what grace means - unmerited favor.   

Show care.  A manager of one of the franchises of a well-known printing and copying organization shared a story that illustrates the countless opportunities front-line staff members have to treat each customer as an individual.  A woman came into his store with dark sunglasses and a request to copy memorial service programs.  She mentioned that she was a part of an organization for parents whose children have been murdered.  Suddenly, the manager realized that he was placing a print job for this woman's son's memorial service and he was so shaken up that he had to excuse himself from crying openly in front of the customer.  He later shared his depth of sorrow for her loss and promptly filled her order with love and compassion.  His ability to feel  the pain of this grieving mother spoke volumes about his capacity to truly walk in the shoes of his customers and to show Christ in a meaningful way.

Share support.  Any long-lasting change on culture needs to be supported by top management, otherwise the focus on service will be short-lived.  What does support look like?  Rick Warren's latest book, Better Together:  What on Earth Are We Here For? points out that the word "support" means to "lend strength to."  How appropriate since this is exactly what leadership can provide for their staff!  Leaders who can create and nurture an environment where their staff can feel safe to share ideas, provide candid feedback, and even fail, are cultures where a service initiative "sticks!"  Another important way to offer support is to make sure that all your systems support your service focus. What kinds of training opportunities are you providing your staff?  How is your recognition system reinforcing the desired service behaviors? What about your performance evaluation system?  Are people being evaluated on their service performance?