[The following news item appears in the June 1994 edition of
_Quality_Progress_, pages 14, 16, and 19.]

            COMPANY MEASURES INTERNAL CUSTOMER SATISFACTION  

     What do you do when your external customers are concerned
that your frontline employees' service needs improvement and your
frontline employees, in turn, cite lack of support from other
areas of the company as a barrier to providing better customer
service?  

     That was the problem facing ED TEL, an Edmonton, Alberta,
Canada, telecommunications company. ED TEL, which began its
improvement efforts in 1991, decided to launch an internal
customer satisfaction measurement program in 1992.  

     ED TEL's internal program consisted of five steps:  

     Step 1. Communication. Frontline employees were asked what
they needed from internal suppliers. Interviews were also
conducted with every management level, considering that its
internal-supplier needs might differ from those of the frontline
employees.  

     Step 2. Questionnaire. A questionnaire was developed from
the concerns generated from the interviews. Customers were asked
to identify the importance of each service and grade how well it
was delivered by the supplier. Three-quarters of the employees
responded to the questionnaire.  

     Step 3. Findings. Separate results were compiled, formatted,
and presented to suppliers and customers. Some of the findings
were anticipated, while some were surprises:  

     -- Managers and frontline employees had differing needs with
     regard to suppliers.  
     
     -- Frontline staff was less satisfied with internal services
     than managers were.  
     
     -- Internal suppliers got higher marks from customers than
     they expected.  
     
     -- Individual supplier groups had different priority
     customer groups: The inventory and purchasing groups viewed
     the frontline installers as their most important customer,
     whereas accountants saw management as their most important
     customer.  
     
     Step 4. Action plans. The suppliers developed action plans
to close the most important performance gaps. The first challenge
was to look at how important a specific service was as ranked by
customers and how it was graded for satisfaction with delivery.
For example, although customers were dissatisfied with the
statistical reports they received, they didn't regard the service
as important. Suppliers defined improvement opportunities as: The
more important the service is to the customer and the more
important the customer group is to the supplier, the bigger the
need for a higher satisfaction rating.  

     Step 5. Implementation. The final step showed results and
action plans to customers, and the process of implementing
improvements began.  

     The internal customer satisfaction measurement program
illustrated several important findings to ED TEL and several
critical factors that contributed to its success:  

     -- Service providers took the time to consider and discuss
     how the findings could potentially be used before they
     received the results. By the time the results were
     presented, the service providers were motivated for action. 
     
     -- Using an external firm to conduct the focus groups and
     compile results provided credibility and ensured that the
     process was unbiased. Customers appreciated the
     confidentiality, and suppliers were responsive to the
     objectivity.  
     
     -- Using graphics to display the results allowed the
     findings to speak for themselves.  
     
     -- Customer needs were emphasized before performance results
     were presented. This method stressed both the strengths of
     the supplier and the areas that needed improvement.  
     
     According to Janet Menzies, ED TEL's corporate measures
manager, the project has created improved awareness of customer
needs and the diversity of those needs. "It clearly identified
the needs of the frontline staff as a priority concern to the
company and led to better communication along the customer-
supplier chain," she said. "It has highlighted a genuine desire
from suppliers to improve, and each has voiced a commitment to
close performance gaps."  

     Menzies added, "By pinpointing the frontline employees' most
vital concerns, the suppliers have prioritized their improvement
efforts. The internal customer satisfaction measurement
effectively distinguished the barriers that impeded Frontline
employees from providing the best possible service to external
customers."