The enhancement of customer service is the driving force behind the redefinition project. It is important to the Implementation Leadership Group that all staff members understand that they are empowered to act on personal initiatives which have positive impacts on our users.

• Explore the concept of customer service
• Understand how customer service applies to libraries
• understand how customer service applies to us in our jobs
• Make personal connections with the idea of improving the quality of customer service in the MIT Libraries

The "What is customer service?" workshop was held eight times: in each of the divisional libraries with branches, in Document Services, in Archives, and in an open session. We have pulled together the input from the eight sessions for the staff's use and as a resource for the Public Services Coordinating Committee.

What are examples of good customer service? In Industries? In general?

What above applies to libraries?

What are examples of bad customer service? In industries? In general?

What above applies to libraries?

What examples of good and bad customer service should be added for libraries?

What do you do that is customer service?

What do you do that is not customer service?

What could you do in your job to enhance customer service?

• Archives
• Barker / Aero/Astro
• Dewey
• Document Services
• Humanities / Hayden Circ / Music
• Rotch /Rotch Visual Collection
• Science / Lindgren / Schering-Plough

Comments and Criticism

From industries: [top]

• Airline:
  • minimum effort to get valuable information: able to get arrival info from 800 number
  • ticket agent taking pains to help passengers reach gate on time
  • curbside check-in -- streamlined procedures/delivery
• Bank:
  • teller says hello and remembers you
  • multiple options
  • keeps you informed
  • provides easy access to account information
  • not too personal: a well- balanced and professional approach
• Education:
  • online preregistration
  • long term advising/ individualized service
  • professors who truly inspire students
  • facilitates learning and does not waste time
• Government:
  • filing taxes by phone
• Insurance agent:
  • flexible: will come to you, can contact by variety of methods
  • offers valuable product
  • accommodating
• Lawyer:
  • free consultation
  • expertise
• MBTA
  • communication: announcements when next train is coming
• Mechanic:
  • reaches out to driver
  • anticipates questions
  • doesn't assume stupidity
• Medical:
  • Personal attention, trustworthiness, inspiring confidence
  • Bending rules/flexibility
  • Emergency services
  • call in hours with a live doctor
  • informs patient of the process and doesn't presume last word
  • long term advising
  • phone reminder of appointment
  • expertise
  • open hours/ stays late
• Post Office:
  • remodeled space
  • differentiated lines
  • self service features
  • sticky stamps
• Retail:
  • anticipating needs: clean nylons and socks at shoe store
  • grocery store goes to extra effort to locate an item
  • dept. store: clerk notified customer when item went on sale
  • personal service going beyond expectations
  • bridal registry
  • grocery store: stock organized and priced clearly, sale stock available
  • jackets available to wear in freezer room in grocery store
• Restaurant:
  • providing beeper when there are long lines
• Web services:
  • online ordering: description of condition of used book proved to be true and accurate
  • special services done well and easy to use: CD's from 8-track tapes ordered over web
  • amazon.com: confirms and keeps you informed of the status of your order
  • accommodates diverse styles

In general: [top]

• personalized attention
• vision and goals clear
• going the distance/ making an extra effort/ thorough/ following up later if you couldn't give an answer immediately
• good humored/ relating personally/ putting people at ease
• positive attitude/ friendliness/ smiling
• courteousness/ respectful/ humane
• accommodating special needs
• organized
• affordable
• cleanliness/ attractive space/ clean bathroom with supplies
• compensate user for slow or unsatisfactory service
• quick response to request or complain
• damage control: trying to make the best out of a situation that is mostly out of the hands of those providing the service
• dumb it down: describing technical/complicated processes in layman's terms
• lots of information and frequently/ providing updates on issues or situations
• good signage/directions/ instructions
• advance notice/ planning/ anticipating needs
• putting customer needs before what you are doing
• timely and convenient
• really listening/ tuning in
• being intuitive
• specialized knowledge
• familiarity with procedures/ being able to explain and enforce rules without alienating the customer
• staff supportive of each other
• offering refreshments
• accuracy about services offered
• patience
• involvement in services by customer/ customer able to evaluate service
• avoiding assumptions
• flexibility/ making exceptions
• share written information
• concerned for safety
• delivery
• world wide access and service

In general, all of the items above can apply to library service.

From Industries: [top]

• Banks:
  • poor access to account information
  • bad voicemail system
• Education:
  • overcrowding classes
  • judgment made without critical feedback
  • not giving tenure to good professors
  • safety not being paramount/ poor judgment in situations requiring safety
• Lawyers
  • indiscretion
• Medical:
  • no home visits
  • general incompetence on the personal and structural levels
  • misdiagnosis
  • overcrowding/ doctor not available at time of visit
  • endless referrals
  • indiscretion
  • careless/ unprepared
  • delivery of shocking news without preparation
  • no bedside manner
  • surgeon's watch left inside body cavity
• Restaurant:
  • does not acknowledge problem or mistake
• Retail:
  • no stock for sale circular items
  • sale prices not entered into scanner
• Transportation:
  • delays/ doesn't run on time
  • long lines
  • overbooking airlines
  • lack of uniformity of service (airlines)
  • irrational pricing
  • won't say "I don't know?"
  • miscommunication
  • poor meal ordering process
  • unintelligible announcements
  • brakes sound unsafe

In General: [top]

• getting the right person is not obvious/ service providers inaccessible
• bureaucracy that slows everything down/ infighting/ rigid hierarchy
• overdoing the personal touch
• filth
• no eye contact/ apathy towards customer/ ignoring the customer/ minimal aid
• personal income and financial gain is above care for the client
• not getting what you paid for/ charging for what should be free/ unexplained fees
• untrusting behavior
• discrimination/ xenophobic
• inflexibility/ rigid/ unimaginative
• incompetence/ untrained/ lack of knowledge
• under staffing
• automated systems that don't work (phone trees, etc)
• being off schedule (and not acknowledging it)
• no advance warning of problems
• lying/ blaming/ denying about problems
• poor communication (inc. not listening)
• transition to new services poorly handled
• promised service not available/ false advertising
• expert presumes last word
• no focus on or consideration for user/ not knowing your audience's needs
• failure to follow through/ no response to feedback
• callousness/ arrogance/ rudeness/ disrespect/ inconsiderate
• poor survey design
• inconvenient hours
• long lines
• customer does not know what the next step is; information service requires prior knowledge
• unfairness/ unevenness of service
• service provider allows his/her mood to affect the service
• no compensation for foul-up
• lack of preparation
• ambiguity of information
• information overload

In general, all of the above could apply to libraries.

• Good:
  • organized (stacks, etc.)
  • anticipation of long term needs (collection development)
  • prescriptive collection building
  • getting user feedback
  • being good listeners
  • pre-due email notices
  • net drops
  • Athena clusters
  • overnight service for extreme needs
  • take advantage of developments/ services already out there
  • allowing for cultural differences
  • remembering to extend politeness to colleagues
  • balance between providing basic services and new and innovative ones
  • acknowledge strain and stress of being in Public Services
  • space and funding to support libraries essential
  • clear policies ensures even and fair service; policies supported at the highest level
  • appropriate balance between consistency and flexibility
  • anticipates customer needs
  • balance between lowest common denominator and an educational stance
  • appropriate timing of services
• Bad:
  • safety hazards (falling books)
  • overwhelming answers -- flooding users with information
  • fines
  • hours too short
  • cell phones and noise level uncontrolled
  • people don't understand the difference between libraries and archives; we forget that
  • no control over legal issues relating to materials
  • slow when speed is essential
  • how do we deal with demands for what we don't or can't offer?
  • human and machine error
  • library sprawl -- resources spread out over campus
  • outdated equipment
  • inconsistency in applying rules
  • no control over legal issues relating to materials
  • cannot serve distant/nonresident users
  • inconsistency in service
  • poor signage
  • misleading information
  • counterintuitive
  • currency of collection

The majority of things we do provide customer service.

• reconciling budget
• excessive meetings can be detrimental to good customer service
• professional development (very indirect)
• internal administrative functions
• internal MIT functions
• watering plants
• low tea
• payroll
• defrosting
• cleaning staff areas

• Archives:
  • better seating
  • better signs
  • more exhibits
  • more info on web site about our holdings
  • being friendly, smiling
  • sharing information among staff and library staff
  • have an 'open house' for library staff
  • programs for new faculty and admin. staff
• Barker / Aero/Astro:
  • find way to do speedier super-rush book orders for titles that are urgently needed
  • explore better signage: not just restrooms but floors, stairs, IEEE, etc.
  • improve existing signs
  • link Barton record to map of stacks
  • Arrow(s) on each floor
  • walk person to microfiche/ go ahead and demo how to use the machine (anticipate the question)
  • coin option for microfiche machine
  • publicize weeding project
  • Hours: adjust? Publicize? Evaluate?
  • Investigate reasons behind requests for longer hours (quiet place to study? reference help?)
  • pocket guide to each floor
  • food and drink: let them do it? Provide a place close by
  • better custodial services
• Dewey:
  • fetch books from staff if resources are available
  • follow up on reference questions
  • be able to do all processing in house
  • go to Toronto to learn more about data
  • continuous and constant training
  • inform users of online materials in journal search process
  • serve on new committees
  • making working papers web page
  • expand subject web pages
  • redesign data top level pages
  • customize resources to current research at MIT
  • hire new staff
  • expand collections -- endowed funds
• Document Services:
  • be aware that each interaction may be with a first time user; will explain procedures, etc. in depth and with courtesy
  • if we currently don't do what is being requested, we will see if there is someway we can do it and will not dismiss the request outright
  • snazzy bow ties for Tim and Marc
  • be more knowledgeable about all library units and outside resources
  • try to make the ordering and delivery technology more user friendly
• Humanities / Hayden Circ / Music:
  • smile more
  • get to know users and have conversations
  • proactively put out stack fires
  • return correspondences and calls (while smiling)
  • review LAN contents and make inventory
  • get a color printer for the library
  • find a better way to respond to and prioritize circulation problems
  • find a service oriented Access services librarian
  • fight for a new reference coordinator
  • address staff shortages
  • how to deal with stress of no backup?
  • more sharing of staff with other libraries; more reciprocity/ a circulation floater?
  • develop a training system across libraries
  • share students across libraries
  • need to look at the libraries as a whole; not separate units
  • teach students/staff the hold queue
  • share information cheat sheet across units
  • talk about directional signage and the problem changing signage
  • try to make signs more artistic and usable; make them noticeable; attention getters
  • be more open to new and different ideas
  • find ways to make better use of our space
  • clear reshelve areas
  • try to make uniform rules across libraries; update blue card (room for exceptions still needed; let everyone know what is uniform)
• Rotch / Rotch Visual Collection:
  • solve backorder problem
  • re-claim serials
  • immediate withdrawals
  • update web page
  • hand staff pictures
  • pursue long-overdues
  • finish database (AKP images)
  • update computer map
  • communicate deadlines sooner
  • revise IRIS images web page
  • develop reserves orientation
  • regular training for reference
  • more effective outreach
  • improve computer stuff communications
  • hover more
  • learn more about how people learn
• Science/ Lindgren / Schering-Plough
  • help finding materials
  • maintain computers
  • fill paper trays
  • "point of purchase' help
  • outreach to customers, maintaining dialogue
  • hiring and training appropriate students
  • shelving
  • teaching, guides, signs
  • increasing body of knowledge
  • expediting service to meet user deadlines
  • protecting materials from damage
  • update staff skills
  • stressing basics
  • user surveys/ suggestion boxes
  • business cards for referrals
  • take extra time
  • acknowledge presence of customer
  • get substitute when in bad mood
  • don't over-volunteer
  • recognize you are representative of organization
  • cross-training
  • smiling
  • understanding big picture
  • have current information
  • people support each other
  • teamwork
  • develop listening skills

Some staff expressed concern about the construction and message of the "What is Customer Service?" workshop.

• Professional and commercial services/relationships are fundamentally different. Libraries fall under the professional category. Why are we comparing libraries to commercial services?
• Public Service vs. Customer Service. Do we want to make ourselves over in the business model? We do not accept the terminology... where was the initial discussion?
• Why is the word 'user' used in the introduction and 'customer' in the objectives and everywhere else?
• We do not have the resources to model ourselves as a business
• The more people come in, the less we can spread our resources to help them (without money).
• The concept of customer service doesn't necessarily reflect the best possible service to an international community (i.e. smiling)