External customers
These are individuals and business customers who buy or use the goods and services provided by an organisation.
With staff who can speak a wider range of languages, Halifax and customer service has improved. They monitor holiday costs constantly to give customers a better deal. Plus, they can give customers a guaranteed minimum 5% discount on a wide range of brochure-priced holidays and charter flights!
Halifax also meets its customers’ needs by giving eye contact, explaining transferred telephone calls to customers and colleagues, being genuine and sincere, knowing about their products or services, knowing about its policies, treating customers as individuals, and minimising queuing times.
Home delivery
For home delivery, orders placed in a branch or over the phone before 2.30pm Monday to Friday are usually delivered to the customer’s home address by 12 noon the next bank working day (excluding Saturdays). Orders placed on Saturday or Sunday are usually delivered by 12 noon the following Tuesday. All home deliveries are by Royal Mail Special Delivery. There is a charge of £5 for all home deliveries. Home delivery is not available for orders placed online.
Always giving extra to customers with particular needs
Halifax group is committed to providing all their customers with excellent service, whatever type of relationship they have with them. They do their outmost to help all customers with special needs. Their cash machines are generally installed at a lower level to make them easier to reach, and the newer machines have been adapted for the visually impaired to use.
Halifax has around 800 branches in the UK, most, of which are open plan to make it easier for customers to find their way around. The majority have a reception desk, with seating provided. And their staff are always on hand to discuss specific needs or answer queries.
Wheelchair users
Getting in and out of Halifax’s branches is usually easy, with level or ramped access from pavements. And, wherever possible, doors are automatic.
Call Assistance
At some branches steps are unavoidable, so a 'Call Assistance' bell system was installed, so that a member of staff can be called.
Servicecall
Some branches are fitted with the 'Servicecall' system, so that customers with a Servicecall transmitter can alert staff of their arrival.
Lifts
Where branches have split-level banking halls, Halifax provides internal ramps or wheelchair lifts.
Low-level counters and counter queuing rails
Lower level writing surfaces are increasingly being provided at the counter. All branches have counter queuing rails, often with lower level writing surfaces.
Other banking options
To help make it easier for all their customers to manage their finances at their convenience, they offer a number ways to access Halifax as well as via other large network of branches across the country:
Online
Customers can apply for a Halifax Current Account online. Then once it is registered for telephone banking they can do their banking online via Halifax’s website 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Click for more details.
They also offer a Share Dealing service online, and applications for other products such as Personal Loans, Credit Cards and Travel Insurance can be made via the web site.
Telephone
Halifax Direct is a 24-hour telephone Current Account service. Customers can use it for everything from checking their balance and ordering a statement to arranging an overdraft. Arrangements can also be made for customers to pay bills and transfer money to other Halifax accounts.
All Halifax customers can telephone Halifax direct for other services, for example a Personal Loan or travel money.
Customers who are hearing impaired, can contact Halifax Direct using textphone on 0845 732 3436
Contact Halifax
They have undertaken an extensive disability awareness programme to help staff overcome the barriers which people who have a disability face. To help them continually improve their services, if you would like to make any comments about their site or the services they offer customers with disabilities, they request the customers to use this form.
Philomena Gray, Disability Manager
by e-mail:
or at:Halifax plc
Trinity Road
HALIFAX
West Yorkshire
HX1 2RG
How Halifax deals with customers’ complaints
Once Halifax is prepared for any potential problem a customer may have brought to them, their next step is to use the company’s complaint system the company has in place for dealing with complaints.
Halifax deals with complaints in many different ways. This can be done through:
- The telephone
2. Face to face
3. In writing: typical written communications involve providing information on the services provided, prices of mortgages, statements of accounts and safety procedures.
Because Halifax actively seeks and encourages complaints, they are able to understand and meet the needs of their customers. If a customer is dissatisfied and is unable to express that dissatisfaction, Halifax will never see that customer return. What is worse, the customer may also persuade potential customers not to stop within Halifax too.
Customers with bad experiences were twice as likely to tell others about it as those with a positive story to recount.
Customer complaints are viewed as opportunities to improve a service offered rather than problems ignored. The causes of the complaints are dealt with the and lessons learnt. Customers making complaints are seen as contributors to the process of improving customer services rather than awkward individuals who enjoy making life difficult for staff. By respecting customers and treating them accordingly Halifax is able to monitor and improve the quality of service offered.
Many products arise because the law has been broken. There is a large number of laws that try to protect the customers. Halifax tries not to break the laws. The major consumers’ laws include;
The descriptions Act 1978, which makes it illegal for Halifax as a business to give misleading descriptions of their services and products.
The consumer safety Act 1978, which make sit illegal to sell goods, which may be harmful to customers.
The consumer protection Act 1987, which makes it illegal, amongst other things, for a business to claim that its prices have been reduced when they have not. It also makes suppliers responsible for any injury that results from defective goods.
The consumer credit Act 1974, which requires Halifax to have a specific licence because it offers credit otherwise they will be committing an offence.
If the law has been broken, customers can take Halifax to court. This may cause the business money and give it a bad reputation. That is why they make sure that they do not break the law. Halifax also makes it certain that customers are happy with the services they provide.
Details of all customers’ complaints are recorded. This is done so that there is a record of what action was taken in case the customer wishes to take the complaint further.
Recording the data also allows staff and management to use it for capturing customer details. The nature of complaint and the service involved is recorded and quite often the name and address of the person complaining is recorded.
Halifax has a special service desk for dealing with customer complaints, and also specially trained staff. When customers approach with a complaint Halifax staff make sure they:
- Reassure them that their complaint is being taken seriously
- Decide on an appropriate action
- Apologise if the business is responsible
- Record the details of the complaint
Checking that customer’s complaint is valid
Halifax won't take customers’ complaint seriously if it's something, which is not their fault. For example, if your current account has no overdraft facility but you regularly overdraw the account, you can't really complain if Halifax charges you for doing so. If, however, charges on your account push the balance into the red, it should not charge you for being overdrawn. Halifax deals with complaints about something in relation to:
- Customer expectations not met
What happens next?
If a customer’ complaint is something Halifax has the power to deal with, they will usually start by seeing if they can help the customer to resolve matters in an informal way. One of their staff (usually called a caseworker) will take a fresh look at the facts and let the customer know how they think the customer could reach the agreement. This approach is often called mediation.
If a customer has a problem, Halifax can always help
They aim to offer customers the best possible service, but there may be occasions when customers feel they have cause for complaint. If so, Halifax will always try to resolve the problem quickly and to your satisfaction. If the customer is unhappy with their response, he/she can take his complaint further through their complaints procedure outlined below. Following Halifax’s complaints procedure does not affect a customer’s legal rights.
1. Where the customer first makes his complaint
Halifax aims to resolve customers’ concerns within 24 hours. Sometimes it may take longer to look into the matter fully. If this happens, they will let the customer know within five working days who will reply.
The people a customer first raise the matter with are often able to help, but there may be occasions when a specialist area needs to be involved. If the customer doesn't know who to contact, they can:
-
Call Customer Relations on 08457 25 35 19
-
Textphone Customer Relations on 08456 00 17 50 (if you have a hearing impairment)
-
Write to them at: Halifax plc
Halifax Customer Relations
Trinity Road
Halifax
HX1 2RG
They will then arrange for the right person to look into and respond to the customer’s concerns.
2. Customer Relations
In the unlikely event that the customer remains unhappy, he /she can ask for his complaint to be referred to a Customer Relations manager for further review. If the customer is still not satisfied he can, at this stage, ask the Financial Ombudsman Service to help, or for service-related complaints about Halifax Estate Agencies Limited, the Ombudsman for Estate Agents
The Halifax supports fully and is a member of both the Ombudsmen Schemes. These are impartial and conduct independent investigations.
Ombudsmen addresses
For most complaints about Halifax products and services customers can contact: The Financial Ombudsman Service
South Quay Plaza
183 Marsh Wall
London
E14 9SR
Phone: 08450 80 18 00
email:
Website:
For complaints about Halifax Estate Agencies Limited:
The Ombudsman for Estate Agents
Beckett House
4 Bridge Street
SALISBURY
SP1 2LX
Phone: 01722 33 33 06
email:
Website:
Types of customer records Halifax uses
Market research
The final method of monitoring customer service satisfaction is through market research. Market research is a formalised method of obtained feedback and information from customers or potential customers about services that are available or soon to be made available. In Halifax, obtaining feedback from customers is essential in learning how to improve the service offered. The process helps Halifax to understand:
- The nature of the service from the point of view of the customer.
- What the customers are wanting.
- What the customer thinks of the organisation.
- What will make the customer feel valued?
- What sort of initiatives the customers would appreciate.
Halifax is able to show that business decisions are supported by information and evidence gained through research. Therefore through market research, Halifax is able to identify customers’ opinions about:
- Interest rates charged.
- New and existing services.
- After sales service.
- The quality of customer care provided by Halifax.
Business decisions about these issues can then be made based upon the results of the research.
Halifax sends out customer service questioners to 200,000 customers every six months, asking for their opinions on their branch. In addition, ‘mystery shoppers’ posing as potential customers visit and phone the branches to ask for advice. Each quarter, every branch in Halifax network receives two visits and two phone calls from the mystery shopper, who then fills in the research form and marks the branch on factors such as courtesy, speed, and phone handling techniques. All the results are included into a customer service index for each Branch. The findings are also published internally or all to see, with awards for those branches with the best achievements.
The market research I undertook about Halifax provided some interesting results. I decided to measure how much customer satisfaction dictated future buying intentions. The research divided the customers into one of three groups:
- Those with problem that had been resolved
- Those with a problem that had been recently dealt with
- Those whose experience of the bank had only been positive
As was predictable, the customers who remained dissatisfied were the ones least likely to buy any more of the building society’s services. However, surprisingly, those customers whose problem had been dealt with quickly and efficiently were more likely to use Halifax’s services again in the future than customers who had never experienced a problem. 80% of the customers were happy and 20% were not happy. Among the unhappy customers some of them did not visit the branches often nor use Halifax’s machines. Customers responded positively to open, polite and helpful advice provided by Halifax, even if the outcome was not what the customer was seeking, e.g. applying bank charges.
Findings similar to Halifax have emerged from other customer attitude surveys undertaken across a range of businesses. The results of my surveys indicate that by keeping the customers happy, the organisations will retain existing business and will increase future revenue from existing customers.
It is essential that a manager act upon any feedback gained through market research. Customers who provide feedback through market research are usually given recognition by Halifax. I also found out that when Halifax do their market research through the surveys, they thank their customers for their time and effort. This is in the form of a card, letter, or telephone call. A number of methods are used by Halifax to find out what the customer thinks of and wants from the service. These include:
Complaints records
In Halifax, recording customer complaints and implementing changes to ensure that the customer is not dissatisfied for the same reason again are ways to monitor customer satisfaction. Customers are provided with a system where they feel comfortable about recording a complaint. Only by doing so can Halifax ensure that they are fully meeting the needs of all their customers.
When Halifax is dealing with customer complaints, they normally take the customer’s details. This normally helps them to be able to contact the customer when necessary and to know who they are dealing with.
Customer Surveys
Customer surveys are used to get inside the customer's mind and learn what they are thinking about Halifax. Surveys can determine customer satisfaction, complaints, compliments and questions. Halifax likes to know what their customers are thinking because it helps them improve or tailor their services.
Feedback can be a great source of information. Customer surveys can sometimes be a core competency of Halifax.
Surveys can be administered online, in person or even via phone. Surveys should be constructed to pull the most valuable data from employees so that Halifax can later use that data for the betterment of the company.
Savings and Debit cards
When opening up savings or bank accounts, the staff records your personal details and keep them for further reference. At times this is used to contact customers to participate in surveys, to take advantage of new offers, etc.
Internal
Complaints
When the employees make a complaint, Halifax also takes down their comments and again their details.
Personnel records
The personnel department keeps records of all employees on the payroll. This includes personal information (name, date of birth, address) as well as details of rates of pay, tax, and national insurance number. The records are confidential and should not be accessible to unauthorised personnel. These records are taken during recruitment.
Recruiting
When recruiting, managers take employees details for further reference. This helps them to know how much they deserve to be paid to know their retirement age, etc, which can be utilised by the firm to provide good internal customer service.
The customer service provided in Halifax and improvements
In Halifax, The desire to improve and be the best helps motivate staff by providing them with a challenge. It gives employees the opportunity to suggest ideas, use their initiative and participate in the development of the organisation. Excellent customer service provides a focus for all staff to work towards and results in increased job satisfaction for the employees, as well as increased customer satisfaction. Excellent standards in Halifax’s customer service can only be achieved by having a system that enables them to constantly review and improve the service offered. What is an acceptable standard for a customer today will not necessarily be an acceptable standard tomorrow. Constant improvement is essential.
Because Halifax is an organisation seeking to improve the quality of customer service offered, it set quality service standards, which are:
Having clearly defined standards and a process to monitor those standards gives employees a goal to work towards.
- Providing information
Staff in Halifax provides customers with information, by letting them know what the business has to offer. The information provided is mostly through leaflets and focuses on:
*Lost or stolen cards. * Mortgages * Bank Accounts
*Loans * Savings and investments
*Insurance * Share dealing.
The problem to some members of staff is that they provide wrong information to customers. This happens when they are not sure of the answers to the questions being asked by the customers. Halifax improves this by re-training the staff who have the duty of dealing with customer enquiries. They also provide leaflets containing information of the services they offer.
- Giving advice
Customers often expect advice about the services they know little about Halifax. This is likely to happen with mortgages. When people want to open up accounts from Halifax they expect to receive clear instructions and advice on how to use and maintain them. When a business or an individual goes to the bank, they expect that the staff will know a great deal about banking and that sound advice will be given. But in some cases it does not happen. This is because the member of staff gives wrong advice about the service provided and sometimes it leads to the customer changing him/her mind about opening up an account with Halifax.
For example when I wanted to open up an account with Halifax, I was told to bring both my parents passports back with me. I was really shocked by that and was wondering why every Bank does not ask for that. Anyway I suddenly gave up because the passports where with the home office. After three months, I called Halifax’s head office to ask them why I needed my parents’ passports to open up an account yet I had my own passport. The lady on the phone said that it is not right and I should go back to them and tell them that. I spoke to the manager and she said that it is all right for me to use my own passport since I am seventeen.
This is why Halifax should train the members of staff going to give customers advice and ensure that they have good knowledge of the service product and procedures.
Halifax gives advice on
What is the suitable account, loan or action? What is the best mortgage? What is the cheapest way to pay for mortgage? How to use the accounts and cards. How to store and look after the cards.
- Tailoring the service to what the customer wants
Halifax’s staff ensure that customers get what they really want and are satisfied with the services. They know that is what will make them come back again. So staff work out very carefully what customers want and need. They know that customers want to be served quickly and efficiently but sometimes the queue is too long because some tills are not utilised. This really annoys the customers and makes them to leave and maybe pay the money to another account they have in a different bank.
Halifax should improve this by letting another member of staff cover for the other if they have gone for their breaks and by making sure that any member of staff who is off sick is covered by using staff who do shift work.
- Providing credit facilities
Halifax accepts payment in a variety of ways for example cheques, cash, account transfers. This makes payment more convenient for customers.
In the 1990s, Halifax has been facing a great deal of competition and one way of attracting customers is to offer better credit packages than competitors. Actual details of credit terms have therefore become highly variable and now Halifax is trying so hard to provide the best deal. Halifax is required by law to publish the APR and this does allow some basis for comparison. APR (Annual percentage rate of interest). This shows the actual rate of interest that borrowers must pay on average over the full period of the loan. But in some cases, some customers do not receive their interests which cause complaints and this results to the business loosing customers if the others hear about one’s complaint. This is normally caused by errors on the computers, which they use to automatically offer interest to an account according to its type. So to improve this problem, Halifax management and staff should make sure that the machines are checked regularly to prevent unnecessary errors like that.
- Credit
They also offer credit cards to allow customers to buy goods and services and pay for them when they receive their statements from them, usually at the end of the month. When a customer uses a credit card to pay for an item the shop demands its claim for payment back to the Halifax that then pays the shop. Because Halifax must wait for payment from the customer, they usually charge the shop for the right to let customers use the credit card. This explains why the major supermarkets and a growing number of major stores are now offering their own credit cards. For some credit cards, a high rate is charged which makes Halifax lose its customers. They have improved this by putting the rates at a lower charge in order to attract more customers.
- Administration
This is the management of services that help to support the smooth running of department. Every department in Halifax carries it out. These general administration functions might include;
- Reception
This includes greeting people visiting a specific branch, dealing with their enquiries, and taking outside phone calls and connecting customers to right departments. It is also known as the customer service department. When customers come in the branch to make enquiries, in most circumstances there is a long queue. This really annoys customers in that they will complain and give pressure to the member of staff attending to them which will lead to her making mistakes and giving wrong or incomplete information to the customer she is serving.
This can be improved by letting the members of staff who are available (not doing any work at that moment) to help out on the reception. This helps Halifax to deal with customers courteously and promptly.
8. Security
Ensuring the security of the building property and staff. If there is no security in Halifax, people’s money will not be safe hence loosing customers because all they want is security and trust from the building society. To improve this, CCTVs are installed in the building to keep track of all that is going on in the premises.
Most people who come into the Halifax and find it untidy and dirty get the wrong impression and neglect opening up accounts with them. This has been improved by arranging for outside contractors to clean the building, and cater for staff.
The clerical work of making records managing records, filling, photocopying. Organising meetings, keeping minutes.
Ensuring that internal communications (within the department) operate smoothing.
Ensuring the department staffs arrive on time, have the facilities they need and have been paid.
Each department will operate in a slightly different way, so it is highly that different departments will have some administrative tasks that are unique to that department, e.g. The human resources department will have to ensure that it has a complete and accurate database of all employees, with contact addresses and telephone numbers.
9. Providing an efficient service
This is done when keeping appointments, Replying to enquiries within the shortest time possible, Fast, efficient and friendly service, helping and assisting the customer, answering all telephone calls within five seconds and following the basic principles when communicating with customers on the telephone. Sometimes all this is not done by the employees. They become rude to the customers and act like they have been forced to do their work. They do this by being very slow when serving on the checkouts and not speaking loudly and clearly on the phone.
10. Ensuring that replies to requests for information are with the customer within a reasonable period of time e.g. three days. Documentation is always up to date and accurate. Letters are addressed personally, well typed and without spelling errors.
11. Dealing with customer complaints
Sometimes customers’ complaints are ignored or forgotten about because the member of staff has too much work to do which makes the customers loose interest in Halifax. This can be improved by setting up a Procedure for dealing with customer complaints and problems and since sometimes the procedure is not followed, they should improve this more by establishing a customer service department in each store, appointing a member of staff to be in charge of customer services, Communicating effectively with customers and ensuring that customer complaints are dealt with to the satisfaction of the customer.
12. Reliable systems, facilities and procedures
Sometimes when customers come into a Halifax branch to open up an account, they find that the phone or computer does not work. This annoys them and either walk out or complain to the staff, which will disorganise the other services. That is if the customer makes a scene. This is improved up setting up quick and efficient technology with good backup, making sure that customer facilities are kept in good working order, by understanding of procedures by all employees
The financial sector is a fast moving and rapidly changing environment. Many of these organisations rely on call centres to handle the huge numbers of enquiries received. Unfortunately high staff turnover is a major problem within many branches, so recruitment of the right candidates as quickly as possible is essential.
Recognising the need to make quick recruitment decisions, that are valid, objective and more cost effective, Halifax Plc developed a new recruitment process, which met their criteria.
Some years ago the Halifax implemented a competency-based application form, using job relevant competencies that are scored through a standardised procedure, and found they could make initial selection decisions quickly, confidently and objectively.
For this project the Halifax saw the need to review their competencies in the light of organisational changes. They reviewed their initial selection process, to ensure that the competencies to be used were still appropriate given organisational changes, and the increased organisational emphasis was on business related competencies.
The first stage involved reviewing a number of job roles to identify the key job tasks. The results from this early stage were used to develop a telephone checklist. The checklist is used as an initial sifting mechanism, aimed at ensuring that applicants are aware of job demands before they are sent the application form, thus reducing the administrative burden.
Before the final structured application form was written a concurrent validation was conducted on a trial group of current job incumbents to identify the key competencies.
It was found that specific competencies from the application form correlated highly with manager's ratings of performance, additionally these competencies also correlated highly with the Customer Contact ability test scores of job incumbents. This suggested that people with higher scores on the competency based questionnaire and the ability tests are far more likely to perform better in the job than those applicants who perform poorly on the competency based application form.
The Halifax is just one example of where Structured Application Forms have been used successfully.
12. Employee feedback system
An employee feedback system is a structured approach to recording employees’ views and suggestions about the service provided and ways in which to improve that service. In Halifax, employees deal with the customers’ daily and therefore are able to provide useful advice and information to the employer about the views of customers and whether the service provided meets the needs of the customers. Very often, the employees can make valuable suggestions about how to improve the quality of service offered.
14. Quality review system
This is a structured system in Halifax that enables an employer to determine the quality of service being offered to customers and the response of customers to that service. A check sheet or rating form can be used to identify the key areas to be audited. The manager will use the form to review at regular intervals the standard of service provided and customers’ responses against the criteria.
An employer quality review system involves the manager being out where the customers are and seeing the activities taking place. The system involves the manager observing, examining and evaluating the quality of service offered by different employees in different sections or departments. The manager also listens carefully to customers’ questions, because the issues raised forms part of the evaluation of customer service.
A description of any legal constraints affecting the customer service situation
There are five main Acts of parliament Halifax knows and they understand the rights they should give to buyers. Most of these Acts are joined towards firms that sell products rather than service products.
The sale of goods Act 1979 and 1995
One of the most important Acts today is the sale of goods Act 1979. It covers the fundamental requirements of purchasers, i.e. that goods must be:
- As described which means that they should conform their description for example water proof must mean that the items do not leak.
- Of satisfactory quality in relation to the price paid, the description, age of the item.
- Fit for the purpose for which they are intended which means that goods must carry out the purpose they are made for, i.e. a pen must make a clear legible mark.
- The goods must be for a specific purpose the buyer has made clear to the seller at the time of the sale.
The supply of goods and services Act 1982
The service standards are affected by this Act. It states that all services should be carried out:
- For a reasonable charge
- Within a reasonable time
- With reasonable care and skill
- Using satisfactory materials
The consumer protection Act 1987
This Act relates to price and safety. The consumer protection Act is enforced by Trading Standards Officers. It is also an offence not to cooperate with Trading Standards Officers during any investigation. Under the Act it is an offence:
- To mislead consumers as to the price of goods, services, accommodation or facilities (e.g. by missing out the VAT when quoting the price)
- To mislead consumers over sale prices and claim exaggerated price reductions
- To supply goods which are not reasonably safe.
The trade description Act 1968
This Act is designed to prevent the false or misleading description of goods, e.g.:
- Selling goods, which are wrongly described by the manufacturer.
- Implied descriptions, e.g. a picture on a box, which gives a false impression.
- Other aspects of the goods, including quantity, size, composition, method of manufacture etc.
Usually the spoken word of the seller overrides the written description of the goods as the buyer can rely on the expertise of the salesperson. However, this is obviously harder to prove if there is dispute.
The consumer credit Act 1974
This is more applicable to Halifax and requires all businesses, which offer credit to have a specific licence otherwise they will be committing an offence. The Act provides for:
- Customers who sign credit agreement in their own home to be allowed a cooling off period of five days. During this period the customer can change her mind or cancel the agreement without any penalties.
- Customers to demand within 28 days that retailers provide details of the name and address of any credit reference agencies, which have been used to ascertain their credit worthiness. It is an offence for a retailer not to do this.
- The credit reference agency to provide full details to the customer if the request is made in writing, and small administration fee is paid. Any incorrect information must be corrected if further information is provided by the customer.
- Advertisements offering credit must include the title charge for credit and the APR (annual percentage rate of charge). The Act also restricts the way in which advertisements are worded and the prominence of financial information relating to charges.
- Sellers must provide written details of credit terms if requested by the customer in writing or orally, either in person or on the telephone, unless such a quotation has already been provided.
The Health and Safety at Work Act 1978
Not only do employees have a right to expect employers to provide a safe, working environment, they also have a responsibility to ensure the Health and Safety for existing and potential customers. The Health and Safety at Work Act requires employees to:
- Take reasonable care for the Health and Safety of themselves and others who may be affected by what they do and what they fail to do.
- Cooperate with employers in fulfilling their duties for Health and Safety.
Employees who fail to comply with health and safety regulations may be prosecuted.
The requirements basically mean that employees must not act recklessly at work. They must follow safety procedures. They must take reasonable care in carrying out their duties and employers should fulfil their obligation as prescribed in the Health and Safety at Work Act.
The sex discrimination Act 1975
This Act makes it illegal for anyone to be discriminated against on grounds of gender either directly or indirectly. Even if this is done unintentionally, the organisation is still guilty. So Halifax has to comply with the provisions of this Act.
Race relations Act
The race relation Act is very similar to the sex discrimination Act. It makes it illegal to discriminate in the work place on the grounds of race, colour, nationality or ethnic origin.
Disability discrimination Act
Under this Act it is illegal to discriminate against a disabled person in the recruitment and selection process, the contract of employment and the conditions of pay, provisions of training and promotion opportunities, treatment with the workplace.
Halifax is expected by law to comply with the provisions of the various Acts. The Health and safety Act 1978 affects both the internal and external customers.
Implications of not complying with the provisions of the consumer laws or legal requirement are:
- Costs: legal costs of going to court and compensation.
- Bad reputation: Negative / Bad publicity hence loss of customers leading to the company collapsing.
The roles of the employees in providing good customer service
Internal customers
Halifax has so many different branches throughout the UK. All of these are internal customers’ to the regional or ‘head office’. Staff working for Halifax are the internal customers.
Managers in Halifax want to get the most out of your employees. Generally, the better their employees perform the better their department or company will do.
Recruiting the right people
Recruiting the right staff is a crucial component of creating the workforce profile Halifax needs to achieve its organisational objectives and they take careful planning and consideration to recruit successfully.
While Halifax wants staff who can do the job they're offering and who are interested in it, the crucial factor in choosing the right team is personality. The managers can teach them the job, but they can't teach them how to be the right person!
Because managers are responsible for recruitment and selection decisions in Halifax, they are aware that hiring or losing staff can be costly, especially if they get it wrong.
Smart appearance of all staff
Customers will often assess the quality of Halifax by the appearance of the staff. This has been improved by providing them with uniforms which all of them have to wear and this helps the customers to recognise the members of staff easily.
Politeness
When employees understand and feel a part of the larger picture they provide better customer service because they feel better about their roles and understand the critical nature of their jobs to the overall success of Halifax.
A positive and helpful attitude goes a long way toward having satisfied customers, and is important for a positive environment with co-workers. Employees in Halifax know that they should always be polite to customers and be very helpful.
Arriving at work on time
Employees make sure that they arrive at work on time because they know that if this is not done, they will lose customers hence loosing profits for they company. When they arrive on time, the branch is also opened on time.
Teamwork
Teamwork is an important part of building a quality Halifax. Having Halifax work like a team involves getting all of the team members to work together towards one common goal. Teamwork through employee training programs can help Halifax team achieve that goal.
Teamwork helps the staff first identify the goal it is working towards, whether that's increasing sales or improving customer service. Once the goals are identified, then they can work on whatever issues may be currently preventing them from achieving those goals. After those issues are addressed, the employees can more effectively work together as a team.
Team works can build communication skills and employee motivation. Both of these items contribute to a more successful team and organisation. A successful organisation means more profits, happier employees, and fewer turnovers.
The results from a team building exercise can actually help Halifax perform better as a whole. Halifax can benefit by taking time and resources to help their employees achieve their goals by putting them in training program and giving them skills they didn't know they needed. Teamwork is part of an employee development program that can really benefit Halifax.
Health and Safety
Health and Safety policies are integral in Halifax business operation. They ensure that the law making employers responsible for the health, safety and welfare of all employees at work is followed. They also help employees to understand and accept their responsibility for their personal behaviour at work as it affects their own, and others' health and safety. Good Health and Safety procedures ultimately save money and prevent lost time through injury and illness.
Because Halifax has more than five employees, they have a written Health and Safety Policy and bring a published Statement to all employees' attention. Employees are informed that behaviour against the Health and Safety policy is a disciplinary offence.
Part of the Health and Safety procedure is to notify the appropriate enforcing authority for registration, at least one month before servicing starts. Authorities are:
- Health and Safety Executive
This body, besides providing information for businesses, ensure that Halifax meets the regulated standards for:
Carrying out their duties
All employees make sure that they carry out their specific duties.
Managers should be able to carry out their duties by making sure that employees are happy. They can do this by:
Motivation
Halifax cannot succeed if their employees are motivated to do a good job. You can motivate employees in any type of work environment. Employee motivation is one of the many keys to Halifax’s success.
Employee motivation can be achieved through a variety of ways. Employee training programs can be administered on a regular basis. Making an employee feel like they are an important part of Halifax also increases motivation.
Appraisals
In Halifax, members of staff are interviewed on a regular basis by their line manager and assessed on their performance. It is also an opportunity to discuss any problems and to determine any training and/ or training needs. Performance may be related to pay or bonuses. Care should be taken not present staff appraisal as a hostile or intimidating ordeal.
Praise
Managers make sure that they praise their staff when they have done well. This makes them happy and also do their job better because they know that their bosses appreciate.
Training
Managers in Halifax want to get the most out of your employees. Generally, the better their employees perform the better their department or company will do.
In Halifax, it is not always possible to find someone who is perfectly suited to a job, with all the necessary skills and experience. They are likely to need some training. This is made even more likely by the fact that as working conditions change, due to new technology, reorganisation, expansion and so on, staff will need training to be able to meet the new challenges. Managers may also provide staff development to enable them to broaden their existing abilities and experiences and to help them achieve their potential for Halifax building society.
Finally, motivated staff, teamwork, etc, ensures that employees are committed to their work. Commitment from and carrying out duties and responsibilities by all employees are the prerequisite for good customer service. Good customer service requires input from all employees, and not to be the duty of frontline staff alone.
