First class or coach?
What is the difference? Pricing? Comfort? Recently, as I returned from a business visit that had gone very well, I looked down into the seat pocket ahead of me. I noticed the safety information card and I felt a cerebral drift as the announcement began...
I was exhausted from pouring my heart and soul into the project I had been working on over the previous couple of months. We were working on management infrastructure and implementing staff hiring, training and evaluation protocols. IMPLEMENTATION! That word should grab you as this is the phase in management where the rubber meets the road - veterinary medicine and the "business". It's the everyday life of a practice manager.
As I stared at the Onboard safety card, I vacillated between reflections of newly developed confidence in a business owner and making the connecting flight home. I was truly elated for the practice just visited and the upward launch towards success awaiting the practice team.
On the other hand, I could not wait to return home to familiar feelings and sentiments which only a home can give. My eyes refocused on the safety card. I was sitting in 2C on a 737. I was in first class. Well, that was a lucky placement. Or was it any "luckier" than ant other seat?
I was merely a customer. A paying customer in their eyes. Yes, the legroom was nice and the seat wider, which was also nice! However, a distinct difference in the eye contact and customer care exuded from the flight attendant in this compartment vs. the compartments stretching behind me. Why? Was it simply the flight attendant to customer ratio? Was it the training? Was it that I was in the top 10% of purchases? (I managed to get 'bumped up' during boarding. ;-) )
My mind was fast at work again! How do we compartmentalize our customers? Do we have "First Class"? How could I possibly still be working???
The announcement was over. The silence overhead drew my thoughts into absolute silence. I looked at the Safety Card again. The safety information card in first class is no different than the cards in any other seat pocket on the plane. What was this telling me? I would be one person looking for a way out in an emergency. Or, I could be one person looking for a way out in an emergency. Would I lead? Would I follow? Would I assist others? Would I manage? Could someone in seat 12B or 22F have a better chance than I to escape in an emergency?
As I pondered my thoughts and felt the cool air from the blower above, the flight attendant politely asked, "White or Red?"
Are we offering our clients First Class amenities and service? Are we training our teams to deliver customer care as well as patient care? How are we revisiting our efforts? Are we sure we are onboard with what our clients need and want?
What do you do to be sure you are reaching top levels of customer care in your practice?
Btw, I asked for a pillow. And, it was nice, too.