Service is Best When It Comes from Within

"Fatima, print this. Fatima print that too….by tomorrow morning please". This is just another day for one of our on-site Service Representative, Fatima Beevi, at Raffles Girls School (RGS).

When one is tasked to print and collate hundreds of worksheets, exam papers and administrative documents, all in a day, it can be quite a taxing job. But Fatima takes it all in her stride. In fact she says RGS is the best place to work at.

"The actual procedure is that teachers are supposed to submit their printing request at least 3 days in advance," says Fatima. "Sometimes they have some urgent jobs to do, so I try my best to meet their deadlines". To her, customer satisfaction is paramount and it starts with going into the work with the right attitude.

She believes that service must be heartfelt, with a sincere desire to help the customer. Even though with each urgent request she gently reminds them of the need for advance notice she understands that the teachers too are also caught in a tight schedule. "You must feel the need to serve your customers the best way you can. After all isn't that what you are paid for?" explains Fatima.

She never leaves for home with work half done, which means a lot of overtime especially during the first quarter of the year when the school is especially busy gearing up for a whole new year and a lot of assessment papers are being prepared. "The feeling that I finished the day with a job well done and having helped my customers the best way I can gives me a lot of satisfaction".

Getting the job done well is also about time management. "I take my job seriously, so I have to focus on getting the job done on schedule. I don't want to take unnecessary breaks talking with my colleagues", she says. "As an on-site staff, I am like a Fuji Xerox ambassador. I must always do my best to keep my company's reputation high".

While a sense of ownership helps one to give good service, she says, the other secret behind great customer service is patience. When she first joined Fuji Xerox, she was given a one-time training for operating the production machines, but she has gone the extra mile to help her customers anyway she can.

All her efforts are not gone without notice. Fatima has won the hearts of the teachers and principals of all around. "She is definitely super efficient," says Ms. Audrey Chen, a teacher at RGS. "She makes our work easier, not because she is obliged to but she is truly caring and excellent". Another teacher, Ms Syahidah agrees. "I speak for my colleagues when I say we truly appreciate Fatima rushing our last minute job requests. We actually miss her when she is not around". The many Thank You cards that adorn the wall beside her production machine is a testament to the service excellence she has attained.

Fatima also attributes the great support she gets from Fuji Xerox office. When the machines break down, Fuji Xerox engineers are always very responsive to calls for help from service staff like Fatima. They will get to the location within an hour and fix the technical problem as quickly as they can.

Fuji Xerox's operation executives, who manage service staffs, also do their part to ensure that their welfare is taken care off. Ms Irene Neo, Fatima's supervisor, says, "We don't just check with the customers on the level of service quality of our service staff. They are an important part of the Fuji Xerox family. We visit them frequently to touch base with them and ensure that they have a good working environment and help them address any work related issues that they might be facing".

To Fatima, service is best when it naturally flows from your innermost being. When it comes from your heart everyone can see it. No amount of customer service training can help teach this fundamental principle of service excellence.