The Pursuit of Something Better

The intention of each of my posts is to provide us, the HR Practitioner, with information from some of the world’s leading experts in the various fields related to human resources.

The Pursuit of Something Better is no exception. It is a book that provides us, the HR Practitioner, with another roadmap on how to deliver profitable results through an organization’s people. The authors, Dave Esler and Myra Kruger, illustrate the transformational-journey of U.S. Cellular, from a wireless communications company dwarfed by AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile, to one of the country’s lowest customer churn rates.

The transformational journey of U.S. Cellular into a “Dynamic Organization” was based on its CEO, Jack Rooney’s, vision of an organizational culture based on values and behaviors that would build employee satisfaction and an unrivalled customer loyalty.

Rooney’s formula for building a Dynamic Organization consisted of three main parts: 1) focusing on the customer, 2) leadership development and accountability and 3) doing the right thing. 

(For the sake of space, I will only be reviewing the Customer Service component) 

Customer Service 

We all know that it is very difficult for employees to be convinced to put aside their own self-interests for the greater good of the team. A team focused on helping others—the customer. 

Rooney knew that focusing on providing outstanding customer service would be the easiest starting point for shifting U.S. Cellular’s current culture. In other words, the customer would act as a “Trojan Horse” to undermine the resistance to the paradigm shift. Moreover, the customers were more apt to capture the hearts of U.S. Cellular’s employees and engage them quicker in the cultural changes that would follow than any abstract concept.  

This strategy did the trick. It wasn’t long before employees began to see how their actions affected the customer’s perception of the company and their overall experience. Moreover, the employees began to act differently when engaging with a customer. They seemed to be more diligent in their pursuit to provide the customer with an “ideal customer experience.” The customers reacted favorably and this provided the associates with instant feedback, which made them continue their quest to provide the “ideal customer experience.” 

Now that the employees had begun to accept this new cultural value of creating the “ideal customer experience,” it would open the door for the other components of the Dynamic Organization to be introduced.  

The Authors 

Myra Kruger founded Esler Kruger Associates in 1986 after a successful career in marketing and communications with the 3M Company. In addition, she worked as a consultant to Jack Rooney in building U.S. Cellular’s Dyanmic Organization. 

Dave Esler joined Myra in 1987. Before joining Myra, he worked in communications and human resources for companies like Metropolitan Life and Nortel Networks. In addition, he has authored numerous articles on a variety of business topics. 

The are based in Highland Park, IL and can be reached at www.eslerkruger.com.