It Comes Down to Doing the Right Thing
MIPRO was founded on the now-famous PeopleSoft tradition and culture of “Outrageous Customer Service”, so from day one our being able to measure our customers’ experience was important. Since the first employee interview we have been asked about this aspect of our company and we can honestly say that what this really means, in our own words, is that it all comes down to doing the right thing. Of course, it would be unrealistic to say that every experience is 100% positive, but more the more important measure is, when things go a little sideways with a project, how quickly you react and resolve any situation. We take pride in always doing the right thing and our customers tell us time and again how this has us apart from other professional services firms.
Surveys are the center of the age-long debate regarding what information you ask customers to provide you as feedback. We have opted to use the Net Promoter Score (NPS) approach as one of our tools to gauge our clients’ experience. We worked with an independent third party to initiate, collect and compile our NPS. Net Promoter has been embraced by leading companies worldwide as the standard for measuring and improving customer loyalty. Companies like Apple, Microsoft, Vanguard, PwC and Sony use NPS, to name a few.
In our survey , one question is asked with an optional open ended question: “Would you be willing to recommend our services to a friend or a colleague?” And the optional open-ended question: “Why did you provide us this rating?” The insights gained from these verbatim responses are priceless. Customers tell us, candidly and in their own words, what we are doing right and also if there is an area that needs improvement.
So simple, yet so elusive to so many companies.
Incidentally, here’s the nutshell explanation on how NPS is calculated: percentage of Promoters (those who gave ratings 9 or 10 on a zero-to-ten point scale), minus the percentage who are Detractors (rating 6 or lower). The average U.S. company has an NPS of 10% – 20% and many score negative (having more detractors than promoters). NPS scores above 50% are considered something special. Top 2011 scores for US companies ranged from 41% to 87%, with Apple receiving 72%.
We are delighted that our latest battery of MIPRO Consulting results have been recently complied and calculated and we received 69% — the highest score we ever received. This was an increase of over 30 points from prior years. Here are some of the comments we received on the survey regarding our services.
“Great company with knowledgable resources.”
“Very easy to work with. A great partner to have.”
“Very thorough and patient.”
And this was my personal favorite – “I was a bit concerned at the start our requirements were not completely understood. Those concerns melted and we are in a very good place with the work and the approach. Thanks!”
The core of MIPRO truly is about doing the right thing. It’s been that way since day one, and while it may sound trite on the surface, in practice it becomes a powerful differentiator. When it goes beyond mission statement and marketing to when your customers begin to notice, that’s something special.
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More links:
MIPRO Consulting main website.
