What Businesses Need to Thrive
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Alice Milligan, chief customer-experience officer at Citi, emphasizes the importance of loyalty for business success, both from customers and employees. She shares strategies for developing loyalty, such as understanding customer perceptions, engaging employees, and recognizing their contributions. Milligan also highlights the necessity of fostering a supportive company culture that balances the needs of customers, employees, and shareholders.
What Businesses Need to Thrive
- 1. COMING BACK FOR MORE How to Build Loyalty BROUGHT TO YOU BY
- 2. Alice Milligan, Chief Customer-Experience Officer of Citi Cards at Citi, firmly believes that what businesses really need in order to thrive is loyalty. From her tenure leading customer-experience strategy at companies like Coach, American Express and ATT, Milligan has witnessed firsthand how loyalty—from both employees and customers —can make or break a business. MEET ALICE MILLIGAN!
- 3. Alice answered questions about loyalty in business from members of Connect: Professional Women's Network. Here's some of her most popular advice.
- 4. We've just launched a new business. What more can we do to show that we are an authority on the subject and begin developing loyalty? Begin by asking questions to inform your strategy: Identify influencers, bloggers or other people in the field who might believe in your product/service. Are there opportunities to leverage them and their following to build awareness and recognition?
- 5. HOWTO: BUILD CUSTOMER LOYALTY Ø Conduct focus groups to understand how you’re viewed by customers/users and how you can differentiate. Ø Ensure you know the value you add outside of the big competitors––and that customers can see it. Ø Make sure you’re going to where your potential customers are vs. expecting them to come to you. Ø Research what content, social or otherwise, your customers consume. Are you present there? Ø Create a consistent loyalty program that rewards/incents the behavior you are looking to drive.
- 6. Any advice for training our representatives to show they truly care about our customers? Find out what customers are saying about the best, most empathetic reps. Are they things you could replicate and scale? One way to drive employee engagement is by asking those top rate agents what they do and why. They could be mentors and coaches to others to help improve overall performance and it recognizes them as starts as well.
- 7. If you're new to an organization, how do you gain the loyalty of existing employees—particularly when they're resistant to change? First, listen. When people are excited about coming into a new organization they are usually full of ideas on how to make things better. However, even if you've been brought in to create change, you should spend plenty of time in your first few months listening.
- 8. HOWTO: GAIN EMPLOYEE TRUST LISTEN: What's working and what's not? Who is a change agent and who might be a blocker? Listen and observe. Then, adjust your plan to incorporate learnings. RECOGNIZE: The successes the team has had, the barriers they face and the progress they have made. ENGAGE: Once you do the above, set out the clear vision and rallying cry of where you will go as a team.
- 9. How can I advise fellow leaders on retaining the talent they’re losing without offending them? One of the most effective ways to get leaders to listen is to show them what it means for them and their bottom line. Position the feedback in a way that isn’t about them, which can make someone defensive, and be sure to schedule private time with them.
- 10. HOWTO: RETAIN TOP TALENT FRAME your advice, for example: I'm committed to ensuring that we're successful and effective. I want us to be the team everyone wants to work with or on. One way I think we could be more effective is X, Y, Z.” FOCUS on the solution and provide objective data, i.e. team attrition rates vs. overall company average, success rates on acquiring top talent, declines in avg. tenure and costs associated with those in lost revenue, training costs. If you lay out the facts in an objective way, provide specific examples and provide solutions, I've found leaders to be very receptive.
- 11. What role does company culture play in developing and maintaining customer loyalty? How employees treat customers and each other is driven by company values, rewards systems and culture. If employees are recognized and rewarded for going above and beyond then they will. Their ratings and reviews should balance the three most important stakeholders in a company: customers, employees and shareholders.
- 12. What are some ways to recognize and show appreciation for my staff? Showing employees they are valued is very important for gaining loyalty and keeping everyone motivated. I try to ask employees during updates and one-on-ones how they like to be recognized so that I know.
- 13. HOWTO: SHOW GRATITUDE • Write specific thank you notes about what you observed, why it was great and how it felt. • Give them unexpected time off • Buy them lunch, flowers or a car wash • Give them a gift card to take their significant other, friend or child out to eat. Send thank you notes to their family when they have put in significant time in the office, too. • Recognize them at a team meeting for an accomplishment, and arrange for them to present their project or success to senior leadership • Give them a raise if you have the power to do so and it is deserved–– without them having to ask. • Send them a happy birthday note. The fact that you knew means a lot. • Ask them to mentor new or junior employee.
- 14. ©2015 LinkedIn Corporation. All Rights Reserved. JOIN THE CONVERSATION! LinkedIn and Citi’s Connect: Professional Women’s Network is an online community with more than 420,000 members that helps women achieve the careers they want and discuss issues relevant to their success. Visit linkedin.com/womenconnect for more information and to join the group for free! For more great insights on negotiation, check out Alice Milligan’s chat in Connect. PHOTO CREDITS: 1: Brand New Images/Getty Images 6: Sam Edwards/Getty Images 11: Oppenheim Bernhard/Getty Images 12: Stephen Mallon/Getty Images
- 15. CONNECT: PROFESSIONAL WOMEN’S NETWORK©2015 LinkedIn Corporation. All Rights Reserved. 15