CUSTOMER FOCUS SKILLS
This analysis of customer focus skills is useful to managers who are hoping to recruit staff with these skills or assist their existing employees to acquire the skills.
It can also be useful to job-holders who already possess these skills, and would like to be able to describe and define them more precisely, as well as to those who would like to be able to develop the skills further.
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Attribute statement and Spotlight translation |
Spotlight activity example |
Spotlight skill level |
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Customer focused attitude A. Shaping awareness – capacity to develop, focus and shape your own and other participants’ awareness |
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Responsiveness A1. Sensing contexts or situations |
Automatically picks up early warning signs. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Solves problems by sifting key information from a mass of detail. |
3. Proficient problem-solving |
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Shares their approach to solving client problems, so that co-workers’ performance also improves. |
4. Creative solution-sharing |
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Empathy A2. Monitoring and guiding reactions A3. Judging impacts |
Develops understanding of reasons for clients’ behaviour. |
1. Familiarisation |
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Guides others how to behave in a situation. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Automatically minimises others’ discomfort |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Senses when others are becoming to be uncomfortable. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Conveys news at the right time, judging from reactions how much to say. |
3. Proficient problem-solving |
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Deals with conflicting demands about release of information |
3. Proficient problem-solving |
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Commitment to quality A2. Monitoring and guiding reactions A3. Judging impacts |
Learns to predict the impacts of actions on the behaviour of others. |
1. Familiarisation |
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Automatically acts to reduce the stress of others. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Screens unsettling procedures from clients. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Chats to relax clients who might otherwise become stressed. |
3. Proficient problem-solving |
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Constructively challenges practices that may compromise the safety or dignity of others. |
4. Creative solution-sharing |
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Monitors community perceptions of an initiative. |
5. Expert system-shaping |
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Interaction and relationship management B. Interacting and relating – capacity to negotiate interpersonal, organisational and intercultural relationships |
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Integrity B1. Negotiating boundaries |
Learns to establish role boundaries. |
1. Familiarisation |
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Learns to explain each step of a process. |
1. Familiarisation |
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Provides support unobtrusively to enhance others’ independence. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Finds a pleasant way to refuse requests that would deflect from deadlines. |
3. Proficient problem-solving |
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Communication B2. Communicating verbally/non-verbally |
Puts people at ease, keeping their spirits up. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Interprets the needs of people who have restricted ability to communicate. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Uses listening skills, allowing people to express their concerns. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Pitches and paces communication to the varying abilities of different listeners. |
3. Proficient problem-solving |
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Translates between diverse groups, such as children and experts. |
3. Proficient problem-solving |
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Creates a suitable working environment for colleagues. |
4. Creative solution-sharing |
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Crystallises the views of a diverse audience with apt or memorable language or images. |
5. Expert system-shaping |
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Uses understanding of community issues to gain acceptance by a range of audiences. |
5. Expert system-shaping |
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Intercultural focus B3. Connecting across cultures |
Learns to interact easily and respectfully with people from diverse cultures. |
1. Familiarisation |
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Sees one’s own and the work team’s behaviour from the perspective of another culture. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Identifies the correct community spokespeople to approach. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Works with people from diverse backgrounds in the community to overcome prejudice. |
5. Expert system-shaping |
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Works to implement obligations of partnership, participation and protection of indigenous people. |
5. Expert system-shaping |
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Helps build culturally appropriate programmes. |
5. Expert system-shaping |
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Time management and teamwork C. Coordinating – capacity to organise your own work, link it into to the overall workflow and deal with disruptions |
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Flexibility C1. Sequencing/ combining activities |
Sees what needs to be done and automatically does it. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Assesses the urgency and importance of simultaneous calls on attention to avoid crises. |
3. Proficient problem-solving |
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Frequently reprioritises tasks and new demands, to keep within deadlines. |
3. Proficient problem-solving |
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Teamworking C2. Interweaving activities with others’ |
Follows up loose ends. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Mobilises a range of support networks for quick responses. |
4. Creative solution-sharing |
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Develops networks for accessing, tracking, sharing and building on solutions. |
5. Expert system-shaping |
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Resilience C3. Maintaining/ restoring workflow |
Rebalances and refocuses quickly after an interruption or crisis. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Fixes up minor misunderstandings before they escalate. |
2. Automatic fluency |
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Works with others to find a way around or through obstacles. |
4. Creative solution-sharing |
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Works to maintain continuity and stability as well as responsiveness to change. |
5. Expert system-shaping |
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