Commissary officials raising the bar on customer service

  • Published
  • By Millie Slamin
  • DeCA Public Affairs Office
FORT LEE, Va. (AFNS) --  Even with customer satisfaction at an all-time high, the Defense Commissary Agency's leaders are raising the bar and sending every one of their 18,000 employees to Dale Carnegie Training on World Class Customer Service. 

"We are focused on building upon our strengths so we can provide the very best customer service to our patrons," said DeCA Director and CEO Philip E. Sakowitz Jr. "The first step in this process is to provide training for our employees - from those at our headquarters and region offices to every store associate, worldwide." 

To some this may seem a lofty goal, but officials at DeCA and at Dale Carnegie Training already have put in motion plans to conduct this training, following the signing of a $2.4 million contract June 26. DeCA's first-ever corporate training sessions begin Aug. 1 and continue until Sept. 30. 

"We already have a schedule for all of our locations," said Richard Nuffer, DeCA's chief of leadership development. "There will be 30 people in each of the 648 single-day (eight-hour) sessions. 

"Training will be conducted in either the stores or somewhere on the installations," he said. "If those facilities are not available, we'll have to look into holding the training at a commercial location." 

As for new employees hired after Sept. 30, Mr. Nuffer said a follow-on training plan will be developed to address future training needs. 

A few of DeCA's store associates were pleasantly surprised to hear that they will be attending the same training as their managers, directors and corporate leaders.
 
"Wow! I'm really impressed that I have the honor of going through the same training Mr. Sakowitz will be going through," said Josephine Craig, DeCA store associate for the commissary at Fort Lee, Va. "That really makes it personal and makes me feel a part of the team. 

Ms. Craig, whose husband Donald is an Army chief warrant officer stationed at Fort Lee, said she has been employed on and off with DeCA for 12 years and received her customer service training by taking DeCA courses online. 

"Customer service is always number one in my mind, so I'm hoping the Carnegie training will help me remember some of the things I've forgotten over the years," Ms. Craig said. "I'm really excited about this!" 

Even the employees who have been with DeCA for only a few years, like Christopher Hawthorne, store associate at Fort Lee, say they welcome the opportunity to improve customer satisfaction through the upcoming World Class Customer Service training. 

"I really love working at this store," he admitted. "There's great chemistry with everyone who works here, and the customers are really nice. 

"But there are times when a customer will come in, someone who might not be having a good day, and I won't know what to do to make it better for them," Mr. Hawthorne said. "So, maybe with this training, I'll learn how to handle customers like that, rather than having to go to get the manager or director." 

Carnegie's World Class Customer Service training is expected to pay huge dividends to DeCA employees, customers and stakeholders by unifying best business practices that will exceed customer expectations and strengthen customer ties. 

Fort Lee Store Manager Michael Pfister said he sees where customers worldwide will definitely benefit from having DeCA employees attend this training. 

"This is a great concept," he said. "If you think about it, this training will help not only customer relationships; it will improve employee to employee relationships." 

Being in a management position, Mr. Pfister said he is keenly aware of the importance of good customer service, but also admitted that it is something that always can be improved upon, even with DeCA's already outstanding customer satisfaction record. 

"It's extremely important to be committed to customer service," he said. "It's also important for the military to know that we are all getting uniformly trained. That way, they will know that they will be getting the very same great customer service no matter what commissary they shop, either here or overseas." 

The World Class Customer Service training will take DeCA employees through a four-phase training improvement cycle, which includes reinforcing a positive attitude, building a knowledge base, applying knowledge to real-world situations and developing skills. 

"The need for having everyone go through this course is consistent with our goal to provide the very best customer service possible," Mr. Sakowitz said. "Once everyone is trained, our customers will see that their benefit is provided to them uniformly at each and every one of our stores."