Lucy Kiruthu: Focus on employees for better customer experience

A happy saleswoman attends to a customer. Companies that focus on staff experience create a happy and engaged team that in turn results to happy customers.

File | Nation Media Group

By  Lucy Kiruthu

Management consultant

What you need to know:

• Smart businesses are intentional about their employee experience. Such businesses focus on the staff experience from recruitment to exit.
• The fact that employees and customers are people first calls for a human connection between firms, their employees and their customers.
• Businesses that provide better experiences will continue to hold on to their employee and customers.
• It is therefore very important for businesses to prioritise their focus on their employee experience.

Many businesses focus on customer experience with some enthusiasm. However, the same level of gusto is not seen in the employee experience.

Why don’t businesses concentrate on staff experience with the same zeal as they do customer experience? Do business leaders realise that happy employees create happy customers? 

These and many other questions need answers from business leaders.

Companies that focus on staff experience create a happy and engaged team that in turn results to happy customers.

Smart businesses are, therefore, intentional about their employee experience. Such businesses focus on the staff experience from recruitment to exit.

Over the years, it has been evident that one of the weakest links in customer experience relates to employee experience and engagement. It is time for HR professionals in Kenya to show the way.

A few days ago, I co-hosted a webinar for business owners on the role of employees experience in customer experience.

Juliet Gateri a human resources expert at the SNDBX said many businesses with unhappy customers have employees that are not engaged or that are actively disengaged. Are you as a business leader aware of this connection? What are you doing about it?

Improve staff engagement

Businesses considered the best places to work also have happy and loyal customers. To improve staff engagement, Juliet recommends the need for employees purpose to be in line with the company’s plans. She highlighted the need to provide a conducive environment and a healthy cultural environment.

Are your employees’ purpose aligned to the ends of your company? Are the physical and cultural environments conducive?

Do employees feel valued and appreciated? Do the employees support their companies achieve their goals or do they only show up for the salary? Are negative staff attitudes a concern for your business? What are you doing about it?

Both customer and employee experience will remain critical to business success. The fact that employees and customers are people first calls for a human connection between firms, their employees and their customers.

Businesses that provide better experiences will continue to hold on to their employee and customers.

Company leaders need to recognise employee experience as the starting point of customer experience. It is therefore very important for businesses to prioritise their focus on their employee experience.

It is expected that business leaders who do not focus on their employees will continue to have challenges in customer experience.

What has your business done recently to improve the employee experience? This is a call to action for all business leaders to focus on employee experience to improve customer experience. Be a Shujaa employer!!