When employees understand one simple concept, customer satisfaction explodes.

The goal of wanting to provide excellent service is nearly universal–that is, most organizations want to provide excellent service to their customers. However, as we have seen at Disney Institute, through our work training business leaders and organizations around the world, realizing this goal and consistently delivering such service levels over time remains challenging. There are many reasons and situations that might factor into creating the discrepancy. Often, organizations may not provide employees with all of the resources and training necessary to help them meet these expectations. As we explore in our Disney’s Approach to Quality Service professional development course, one of the most important things company leaders can do is to help employees gain an understanding of their organization’s common purpose. For example, when employees can see clearly how their particular roles fit into the big picture, they are more able to not just meet, but exceed customer expectation.

Here’s an illustration from within our own organization:

Sarah, a Cast member in our research division, is tasked with gathering information about our guests as they enter and depart the park. This is an important role, as the information gathered by Sarah is instrumental in discovering the needs, wants and expectations that can help to enhance our customer experience. One day recently, despite not yet having reached her daily goal, Sarah quickly dropped what she was doing when she was approached by a guest who was seeking assistance in planning his day. Sarah happily talked the guest through the park map, showing him what attractions would be the best for his children, and even helped him set up dining and Fastpass+ experiences via his mobile phone. Yes, this interaction took Sarah away from her primary task of gathering surveys, and it potentially affected her ability to reach her daily goal. But, the guest was so thrilled at the attention he had received, that he wrote a letter to us thanking Sarah for her time and assistance.

The most important aspect of this interaction was that Sarah felt confident enough to take a short break from her main task to make our guest feel special. Through her training, she had learned that the guiding philosophical principle in the service situation is “purpose overrules task.” If you are intentionally off-task, it is OK.

Sarah was able to leave a lasting impression on our guest by this simple but remarkable act of service, and that is what counts most.

Think about it…. How do you enable your staff to carry out the little deeds that add up to a significant difference in your customers’ experience?