HR Corner Performance awards to reinforce service culture by Nicole Wong Recognition motivates banking professionals to go the extra mile Since members of the public have come to expect high standards of service from banks in Hong Kong, they usually don't regard them as out of the ordinary or requiring special comment. As an employer, though, HSBC knows exactly what it takes to achieve and maintain consistent service levels. Therefore, the bank has introduced a programme of "local hero" awards to give due recognition to star employees and encourage others to exceed customer expectations. "Our primary goal to recognise exceptional performance at work and strengthen our culture of outstanding service," says Teresa Au, Asia-Pacific head of service and sales for personal financial services. "With the example of our heroes, we hope to highlight that going beyond the call of duty is a virtue we really cherish." Already in its third year, the scheme has also actively involved the bank's customers, who submit on average 1,500 comments a month praising frontline staff. Managers, peers or subordinates can nominate colleagues, including back-office employees in any department, for an award. "For instance, if a data entry clerk goes out of his way to provide extra information to help the frontline team, they can make sure his performance doesn't go unnoticed," Ms Au says. Good service must come from the heart All-round appreciation Department and branch managers review all nominations and then forward the most notable to the service quality department, which, every quarter, selects a maximum of 14 local heroes. At the end of each year, those winners compete for the "super local hero" award judged by a panel of senior managers. There are cash prizes of HK$1,000 for each quarterly awardee and HK$5,000 for winners at year end, with the top two getting to join an overseas convention as well. "In selecting our winners, we look for candidates who understand that good service must come from the heart," Ms Au explains. As an example, she mentions that one of last year's "super local heroes" showed just this attitude by helping a tourist couple from Japan report the loss of their credit cards to other banks and retrieve their missing baggage by contacting the airline. "They were not our customers, but obviously needed assistance, so our manager did everything possible to help," she says. After returning to Japan, the couple wrote to explain what had happened and to express their heartfelt thanks. Wider selection As the award scheme allows for customer participation, Ms Au says it has also strengthened HSBC's relationship with clients. Besides making nominations, customers are also invited to attend award ceremonies and, thereby, see how their appreciation of good service translates into other forms of recognition. "Many customers have been touched to hear the different heroes' stories and welcomed the opportunity to thank our employees another way," she adds. The bank also sees this as a chance to build long-term relationships and enhance customer loyalty. The programme is steadily evolving to include additional selection criteria, a rotating panel of judges, and to encourage more nominations right across the organisation. One current initiative is to get more senior managers from operational departments to act as judges, bringing a broader perspective and representing the back-office functions. This will also help to reinforce the concept that high service levels for customers require "end to end" delivery throughout the organisation. "One aim is to refine our judging criteria by specifically keeping in mind the customer's perspective," Ms Au says. "When giving an award, we want the recipient to feel like a hero, but we also want all our staff to recognise what it takes to deliver excellent customer service." Salient points Service awards recognise staff and reinforce a culture of outstanding service Frontline and back-office staff at all levels and from all departments can be nominated Customer participation helps to strengthen the bank's relationship with clients Changes in judging criteria add new perspectives and encourage involvement Taken from Career Times 7 April 2006, p. A20 Your comments are welcome at [email protected]