By Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD
Does your call center have a mission? If you don’t have a mission statement, now is the time to develop one. Start today; don’t delay. A practical mission statement will support and guide your staff; don’t let them flounder. Remember the proverb, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”
If you already have a mission statement, is it a hang-on-the-wall, feel-good, marketing-ploy type, or a succinct adage to help staff? Is it short enough for your staff to remember? Does everyone readily understand the statement? Does it serve as a guide for daily decisions and actions?
The conventional wisdom to create a mission statement is to make it a group activity, with input and review throughout the organization. This is to seek the “buy-in” of all stakeholders. Yet, such mission statements become irrelevant over time, due to turnover. Then, every few years, a new committee forms to write a new one.
This group approach is wrong. Yes, you need staff support, but mission formation is a leadership issue. It must come from the top. Then, communicate it regularly. Over time, staff will embrace and internalize the mission statement.
Starting with leadership first, and then management, your mission statement will permeate your entire call center, directing action and guiding decisions. Make 2014 the year to draft or update your call center’s mission statement. Make it a top priority; your future may be at stake.
Read more in Peter Lyle DeHaan’s Healthcare Call Center Essentials, available in hardcover, paperback, and e-book.
Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD, is the publisher and editor-in-chief of AnswerStat and Medical Call Center News covering the healthcare call center industry. Read his latest book, Sticky Customer Service.