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When you think about the customer experience, do you think about the investments you’ve made in your employees? Thoughts around great quality service may not start with the internal team, but you’re missing key opportunities if you start elsewhere. Yes, you need to have an executable strategy and standards, but if you’re not focusing on Performance in People (PIP), you may not hit those standards.

A recent blog post by customer service software provider TeamSupport highlighted the concept of PIP as a model of excellence that sets specific standards so that everyone on the team understands what fantastic customer service looks like. To make this a reality, you have to be specific about your standards and what you expect your team to deliver.

The concept behind PIP actually fits perfectly into the customer service software industry as it uses self-evaluation to review performance. Companies map out standards that are aligned to customer requirements and then maximize them commercially. Staff is hired and trained according to these standards, but then also coached along the way so the training isn’t lost and consistency is a reality.

The self-evaluation piece provides sustainability. Old habits can set back in and an employee may behave outside of the set standards without realizing it. If they can review their own behavior and identify where they went off track, they can identify areas where they need to improve. This strong and memorable approach to coaching helps to reinforce existing skills and knowledge so as to avoid deviations in the future.

If behavior is reviewed and the employee doesn’t see the issue and you do, there’s a training problem that needs to be addressed. He or she doesn’t have full understanding of your standards and it’s likely that the service they deliver on a regular basis is falling short of your standards and expectations.

Contact centers throughout the industry are already using PIP, even if they don’t know it. Call recording and monitoring, especially when integrated with customer service software, provides agents the opportunity to hear themselves during customer interactions. They should be able to identify deviations from the script, a lack of enthusiasm, failure to meet customer expectations and more, just through observation. If not, supervisors know it’s time to go back to the basics in training.

This training is really the key to PIP and making it work. Setting those standards and ensuring employees understand the how and why are critical to overall success. The competitive advantage today is found in quality customer care. If your employees don’t understand how to deliver, you’re missing the mark and likely creating opportunity for your competitors.