Similarities between a sports team and a customer service team can be identified. The customer service team can emulate the example of a sports team to achieve the goals of the organization. Coordination and mutual respect are a few qualities that a customer service team needs to develop to achieve its goals.
A sports team has qualities such as mutual understanding and perfect coordination. In the hospitality sector, for example, different departments such as the front desk section, room service, and restaurant division need to exhibit a perfect understanding of the customer needs. Customers, consequently, obtain satisfactory service. In sports, the team members need to exhibit qualities such as perfect coordination, ability to repeat performances, and capacity to deal with problems such as legal disputes. A successful sports team has various features such as a proper purpose, informality, participation, listening ability, clear roles, and work assignments, open communication, consensus decisions, and periodic review of the performance of the team (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2013).
The members are aware of the purpose of the team, and they aim to achieve the purpose. Team meetings are usually informal, which allows members to express their views without any fear of negative reactions by other members. The team members are encouraged to participate in discussions and the decision-making process. The open communication method allows members to interact with others. Members of the team show their disagreement with the views of others in a civilized way. The team prefers consensus decision, as it is needed to obtain the cooperation of various members.
Through a periodic review of the performance of the team, the members can introduce changes in the team structure. The team encourages members to take initiative and act as leaders. The team members are encouraged to develop their unique styles of playing the sport. In a team sport, the members of the team are prepared to maintain relations outside the group to obtain the resources essential to compete with other teams. A customer service team needs to emulate the example of a sports team. This strategy enables the team to provide appropriate service to the customers (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2013).
Customer service is comparable with a team sport like basketball. Each member of the organization, like basketball players, should be aware of the missions of their company. A sports team aims to win the games. Similarly, a team offering customer service should attempt to obtain positive feedback from the customers. To achieve this objective, members of the team should be aware of their pertinent roles. The team leader or other members in the team should clarify the impact of moves of a team member on the overall achievement of the team (Allan, 2013).
To win in a game, players should have knowledge regarding the rules of the game. They should not commit errors, which can affect the game in the end. Team members need to strive for the long-term success of the team instead of achieving their individual goals. There is a need to inform team members concerning the rewards and punishments for their pertinent actions having a long-term impact on the team performance. When team members violate rules, they should be punished. The reward is an important weapon that can shape the future of the team. It is true that individuals should be rewarded for their role in the game, but it is also important to reward the whole team. By using this approach, it is possible to motivate members of the team to achieve the team’s objectives (Allan, 2013).
Like a member of a sports team, the members of the customer service team exhibit an aspiration to win the game. In the case of the business, it is important to win the support of customers. The team needs to be aware of its strengths and limitations. Despite limitations, the team needs to create a strategy effective in achieving victory in the end. Members of a sports team generally have a dream, a vision for their team. Similarly, the members of the customer service team need to share a dream. The members should strive to achieve the vision of the organization (Craig &Yaeger, 2011).
In the process of providing service to customers, the team members may be expected to sacrifice their personal desires. As a perfect team member, one should be able to sacrifice personal desires for the goals of the organization. A perfect team attempts to avoid personal ego clashes. By avoiding such conflicts, it is possible for the team to concentrate on the final goal. A sports team that faces the problem of ego clashes among players is not likely to achieve victory. Accountability is another notable quality of an ideal team member. Individuals who are accountable for their actions are able to support the team in crisis. The team needs to identify its enemy, within and outside the team. After identifying the enemy, appropriate action should be taken to mitigate the same (Craig &Yaeger, 2011).
Trust, loyalty and mutual respect are a few principles that a sports team leader and customer service team leader need to develop. The members of the team should be trusted for their positive qualities. Any negative comment concerning their activities is likely to affect the cordial relationship between the team members. A positive comment concerning a team member is likely to improve the relationship between the team members. The team members should be aware of the fact that they need to act like a team. In this way, it is possible to win games. By using this strategy, organizations are able to obtain positive feedback from customers (Benincasa, 2012).
A member of the team should not be suspected without reliable evidence. In some cases, the leader needs to appeal to the emotion of the team members to improve their performance. It is important to note that respect should not be restricted to particular team members. Through impartial treatment of team members, it is possible to obtain their trust and respect. A team member who respects other members can become an asset to the organization. The Wal-Mart Company followed these strategies and achieved success. Since the 1960s, the company has provided quality customer service (Benincasa, 2012).
Customer service teams, generally, aim to provide appropriate service to their customers, even though in a few cases they may fail to achieve this objective. They need to learn lessons from sports teams that exhibit qualities such as coordination, mutual respect, understanding, trust, loyalty, and goal-oriented behavior. The team members should be aware of their roles in the organization. Teams may suffer due to personal ego clashes and other issues. Through a periodic review of the team’s achievements, the members are able to comprehend their strengths and weaknesses. The customer service team needs to identify its common enemy and devise strategies to mitigate the same.
References
Allan, L. (2013). Seven lessons learned from team sports. Web.
Benincasa, R. (2012). How winning works: 8 essential leadership lessons from the toughest teams on earth. Ontario, Canada: Harlequine Enterprises.
Craig, J., & Yaeger, D. (2011). Gold medal strategies: Business lessons from America’s miracle team. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
Kreitner, R., & Kinicki, A. (2013). Organizational behavior (10th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill/Irwin.