Transcript Document
Customer Service for
Fire Departments
The how and why
of being nice…
Massachusetts Fire Service Project
Customer Service: East meets West
Revision: Summer 2008
Captain Jim Vuona – Shrewsbury Fire
Contributors:
Lt. Jeremy Souza – Swansea Fire
Lt. Stephen Walsh – Quincy Fire
Capt. Phil Field (EFO)– C-O-M-M Fire
Goals
Provide
the highest level of
customer service to the
community
Enhance the image of your
department and the fire service
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Objectives
Understand the concept of customer
service
Define who our customers are
Avoid the common pitfalls
Examine the potential benefits
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Objectives
Explain the ways customer service can
affect us
Improve communication skills
Provide a higher level of customer
service
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Customer Service - Defined
What is customer service?
“An organization’s abilities to
supply their customers wants
and needs”
Does this go far enough? … or should we exceed customers
expectations?... And provide “excellent customer service”
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Customer Wants and Needs
What do our customers want?
Make a list…
Someone to Help Them
Timely Response
Sympathy
Courtesy
Understanding
A Solution to their Problem!
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The Customer Service Model
Phoenix Fire Department
Provide best possible service to Customers
Always be Nice
Execute standard problem solving outcome
Regard everyone as a Customer
Consider how/what you are doings looks
Don’t disqualify Customer w/ your Qualifications
Customer – centered Organizational Behavior
Continually improve Customer Service
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It’s all about
perception!
Remember, to the Individual
Perception is Reality
Public Perception
The
attitudes that we have
Treat
everyone with respect
Those
on the front lines
represent everyone
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The Golden Rule
The Customer is Always Right…
(even when they’re wrong!)
It’s more important to be Polite, than Right!
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It starts at the top!
Fire Chiefs and Company Officers must:
1. Provide leadership
2. Set a good example
3. Communicate the mission
4. Support the troops
5. Recognize outstanding effort
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CitizenKARE
Means Putting Citizens First!
Knowledge
Attitude
Respect
Excellence
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CPR…keeping customer service alive!
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Who are our customers?
Anyone that interacts with the fire service,
on any level, is a customer
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Who are our customers?
Customers are like a
box of chocolates,
you never know
what you’re gonna
to get…
and you never know who they know….
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Turn ‘Lemons into Lemonade’
“Unhappy customers are always
a concern. They’re also your
greatest opportunity”
Bill Gates
CEO Microsoft
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Angry Customers
The Assassin – tells
others about your
flaws
Strategy:
provide apologies
ask for specifics
seek win/win options
avoid absolutes
never underestimate their
connections
Follow up
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Angry Customers
The Butcher –
demands go to the
extreme or the
impossible
Strategy:
indicate you want to help
explore alternatives
develop a matching offer
know your limit
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Angry Customers
The Pincher – nitpicks
the small stuff, ignores
the big stuff
Strategy:
don’t sweat the minor details
redirect
focus on the big picture
be sure to document
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Angry Customers
The Grenade –
angry about one
thing, rants about
everything
Strategy:
allow them to vent
find mutual agreement
clarify problem/solution
act promptly
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Angry Customers
The Vampire – wants to
make you angry more
than fix the problem
Strategy:
tell them what you can do
be empathetic
don’t take it personal
don’t respond in kind…
that’s just what they want
to Suck the Life out of You!
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The Bottom Line
Listen to your customers
Don’t argue with them
Accommodate them promptly (if possible)
Nod and smile!
(when appropriate)
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“What you do to or for your
customers is the difference
between success and failure”
Thomas Faranda
Pitfalls
What could possibly go wrong?
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What could possibly go wrong?
Broken promises/failure to provide the
service
Unpleasant surprises
Unrealistic customer expectations
Delayed responses
Ignoring/minimizing the customer’s
problem or concerns
Bad manners
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Broken Promises
You said you were going to save
grandma!
I scheduled an inspection for this
morning and you didn’t show up!
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Unpleasant Surprises
Forcing entry on false alarms.
Tracking dirt into a home.
Don’t create more damage than
the Emergency!!!
Hippocrates said “first, do no harm”
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PFD - Mission Statement:
Prevent Harm – Survive – Be Nice
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Unrealistic Expectations
Why can’t you save
grandma?
Get inside my burning house
and save fluffy!
Take time to educate the
public
Movies and television aren’t
reality
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Delayed Response
I called you 20 minutes ago!
Perception of time slows down for
people having emergencies
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Minimizing the Customer
This call is nothing, you should have
seen what we had last shift
It’s the third time we’ve been here this
week – our response gets complacent
Don’t disqualify the customer with
your qualifications
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Bad Manners
“Firehouse language” has no place outside
of the firehouse
Making comments in poor taste can
easily turn a good customer
away
If you wouldn’t say it in front
of your mother, don’t say to
the general public
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What’s it mean for me ?
How does poor customer service affect
us?
Make a list…
Political Issues
Department Actions
Legal Issues
Makes the Call more Difficult
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Political Issues
Angry customers tell people about their
experience with you
Satisfied customers don’t tell anyone
Happy customers tell people about their
experience, but less than
angry customers
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Statistically
The average customer tells 11 people
about their unpleasant experience…
Those 11 each tell 5 more…and so on…
That’s 56 people negatively affected by
one bad customer service experience
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Department Actions
Customers may complain to
department/city administrators
about your actions
Poor customer service may result in
disciplinary actions towards the
personnel involved
Good or bad service can create
good or bad press – the press
never forgets
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Legal Issues
Good customer service can sometimes
make up for undesirable outcomes
Bad customer service can lead
to legal consequences
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What’s in it for us?
How can Excellent Customer Service
affect us?
– Professionalism
– Turns negatives into positives!
– Recognition (political/media)
– Positive public image
– Community support
– Keeps the Chief off my ***!!!!
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Build Community Equity!
What’s it all mean????
– Winning hearts and minds (and votes!)
– Connecting with community partners
– Marketing the mission (life safety programs)
– Building respect for your department
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Connecting with your Community
Get Involved!
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Public Education & Life Safety
Programs
NFPA – Risk Watch
NFPA - Learn Not to Burn Curriculum
Massachusetts – S.A.F.E. Program
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Station Visitors
First impressions
Professional and
courteous
Any interactions with
the public should be
viewed as an
educational
opportunity!
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USFA – PIER Program
Public Information
Public Education
Public Relations
USFA - Strategies for Marketing your Fire Dept.
Today and Beyond
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Communication Skills
Each of us holds the key to
good customer service:
Quality appearance
Controlling emotions (ours
and theirs)
Controlling attempts at humor
Appropriate language in the
presence of others
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Controlling our Emotions
Maintain a level attitude
Their worst day, is our everyday
Don’t escalate the situation
Stay away from ‘road rage’
Be nice!
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Arrival – EMS incidents
Greet the customer in a friendly manner
Perform your assessment in a friendly,
professional way
Use your listening skills
Many customers are repeat business,
they are comparing you to other
responders’ actions
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Controlling their Emotions
Don’t interrupt the customer
Acknowledge their problems
Confirm the details
Outline steps to solve their problems
Provide updates, both good and bad
Get their input to solve the problem
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Humor
Attempts at humor can ruin good service
If you have to ask, then don’t use it
If you aren’t good with humor,
don’t try to use it
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Language
Our words often say more than we mean
Don’t talk down to the customer
Use friendly tones - it’s not just what
you say, it’s how you say it
Be careful what you say
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Listening
Maintain eye contact
Give customer exclusive attention
Appropriate distance
Be friendly
Stay open and positive
Nod and affirm what they say
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Appearance
How you look often says more
than what you say or do
Take pride in your appearance
First impressions are permanent – if
you don’t look professional, you
may be perceived not to be
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Appearance
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Organization Behavior
Fire departments must be consistently
focused and centered on serving
the customer
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Bringing it to the Field
Fire and
EMS runs
with the
customer in
mind
Taking the Call
Dispatchers must be
courteous
The only voice the public
associates with the fire
department
If the dispatcher made
the caller angry, you get
to deal with the aftermath
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Answering the Phone
Fire Headquarters
Name / Rank
How can I help you?
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Dispatching
Customers can hear you dispatch
Many customers have scanners, they
hear everything you say
Stay professional on the radio
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Responding
Drive courteously!
The public knows who to complain
to about your driving
Road rage and 20-ton vehicles – don’t mix.
Set a good example – Wear Seatbelts!
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Treatment – EMS incidents
Introduce yourself
Explain what you are planning to do
Don’t condescend
Don’t argue with your partner
Clean up after yourself, particularly
after nasty calls
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Transport – EMS incidents
Make the patient comfortable
Humor usually isn’t appropriate
At the hospital, hand off your patient
in a respectful manner
Keep from disparaging remarks
Visit the patient just before you
return to quarters – leave
on a good note
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Arrival – Fire Incidents
Park for safety, but do not
block traffic unnecessarily
If possible, leave a driver with
the apparatus to move if blocking
parking spaces
Be respectful of property when laying
hose lines or setting up equipment
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At work – Fire incidents
Try before you pry!
Do not break things “because we can”
Perform salvage work with a
serious intent
Show compassion towards those
who’ve had a fire
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After the Fire
Try to leave the building in
a good condition.
Salvage work continues after the
fire is out.
Assist the occupants in working with
their insurance company.
For businesses, do what we can
to help restart them at a
temporary location.
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After the Fire! Returning to Normal
Free from U.S. Fire Administration
Booklet or Downloadable PDF File
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Scenarios
Applying Customer Service to
Real-Life Calls
Scenario 1
You respond with your company and a private
ambulance to a 58 year old female not
breathing. Your company arrives in less than 3
minutes. Upon arrival, you find the patient in
cardiac arrest, with four family members there.
You recognize the patient’s husband as a town
selectman. Firefighters and paramedics use an
AED to quickly manage to restore the patient’s
heart rhythm on scene, another comforts the
family. She survives the incident.
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Scenario 1 - Discussion
What is the customer’s perception
of the call?
What things went right?
What things went wrong?
What outcome can be expected
from the call?
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Scenario 2
Your engine company responds on a first
alarm assignment to a room and contents
fire in a dwelling. After a quick knockdown
and overhaul, firefighters are seen giving
each other high-fives on the lawn in front
of the family.
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Scenario 2 - Discussion
What is the customer’s perception
of the call?
What things went right?
What things did go wrong?
What outcome can be expected
from the call?
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Scenario 3
You respond to a residential fire alarm
activation. Your crew parks on the lawn,
forces entry through a front door, and
destroys several expensive vases in the
homeowner’s collection. When confronted
about the damage, the company officer
swears at the homeowner, shouting
“don’t tell me how to do my (insert
colorful exploitive) job.”
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Scenario 3 - Discussion
What is the customer’s perception
of the call?
What things went right?
What things did go wrong?
What results can be expected
from the call?
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Improving Your Own Department
Remember, improvement starts
with the individual
Enhance your department’s image
Changing / Implementing SOPs
Awareness training for line personnel
Fire Officer’s–Lead by Example
Improvement is a Continual Process!!!
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“The highest form
of wisdom is
kindness”
The Talmud
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Review
Understand the concept of customer
service
Define who our customers are
Avoid the common pitfalls
Explain the ways customer service can
affect us
Improve communication skills
Provide a higher level of customer service
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The Internal Customer
Don’t forget your brother and sister
firefighters are customer’s too!
Essentials of Fire Department
Customer Service – Section 2
“Always be nice – treat everyone with
respect, kindness, patience, and
consideration.” …(including Us!)
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Fortune Cookie
Customer Service
is like taking a bath;
you have to keep doing it…
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Have a Nice Day…
Special Thanks - Chief (Ret.) Alan V. Brunacini
Phoenix Fire Department
Stephan Sanders – Sanders Communication
Massachusetts Firefighting Academy
Anna Maria College, Paxton MA
References
Essentials of Fire Department Customer Service – Alan V. Brunacini - Fire Protection
Publications
Chief Fire Officer – IFSTA, Second Ed.
Fire Officer Principles and Practice – Jones and Bartlett
Uncommon Sense, Leadership Principles to Grow Your Business Profitability –
Thomas Faranda
Business @ the Speed of Thought – Bill Gates
USFA – Strategies for Marketing your Fire Department Today and Beyond
Delivering Unforgettable Customer Service – Stephan Sanders – Sanders
Communications, Inc.
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Thank You!
Captain Jim Vuona
– [email protected]
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