Over the last year or so we’ve done an extensive amount of training & development work within social housing and other public services organisations to help them provide real help to vulnerable customers whilst operating in a heavily regulated industry.
From this experience, we’ve found four key insights that have made a significant impact:
1. Effective Leadership with Managerial Courage: Effective leadership brings clarity and prioritisation. Managerial courage is essential – the confidence to speak up and do what’s right for customers in vulnerable situations, providing direction and inspiring teams towards service excellence.
2. Impact of Listening: Recognising the importance of keeping promises and managing expectations is paramount. Active, empathic listening ensures a better understanding of customer needs and the ability to realise when commitments have been made…and deliver on them.
3. Efficiency Over Blind Acceptance: We’ve seen a tendency towards blind acceptance of processes that actually don’t help the customer, particularly the need to hold meetings to agree almost anything! We encourage a pause – ask yourself what tasks are vital for the day’s success and if a meeting is truly necessary?
4. Empowerment That People Take On: Empowerment isn’t just about giving authority; it’s about what individuals take on. Empowering your people to handle vulnerable customer situations involves genuine trust, support and a no-blame culture. Remember, true empowerment is 20% given and 80% taken!
By focusing on these four pillars – effective leadership, impactful listening, efficiency, and empowerment – we’ve seen remarkable improvements in our clients’ ability to navigate the challenges of helping customers who are in vulnerable situations and just need help.
