If there are niches in which SMEs are like a fish in water, they are those related to services. Small companies have, by their nature, important advantages over large companies that allow them to manage the quality of their services effectively. That is why I invite you, if you are in charge of an SME, to focus on these advantages, to enhance them, and not to cancel them in your growth path, since you run the risk of affecting the quality of the service in that process.
In the book "Marketing and service management", by C. Grönroos, it is explained that the employees who maintain contact with customers, together with the customers themselves (who form the "first line"), are of the utmost importance to them. customers. The rest of the organization, administrative, managerial, and organizational functions provide support for front-line activities.
For this reason, it is proposed, especially when managing services (since in production companies, economies of scale are perhaps more advantageous) an inverted pyramid structure. That is to say, where the leading role is played by the front line, and it is they who must have operational decisions in their hands to the greatest extent possible.
Suppose you have a hotel, and a guest approaches the receptionist to express a complaint. The air conditioning in your room is not working. It is 11 pm on Tuesday. The receptionist has been trained in how to handle complaints, and in the first instance he seeks to verify the problem (that the air conditioning really does not work), and tries to repair it, to no avail. You must immediately give a solution to the guest, so he analyzes that it is best to change the room.
He has two alternatives: a room identical to the one he requested or a higher-level room. This guest is the first time staying at the hotel and there have been some involuntary delays at his reception, so the receptionist thinks that, in order for the client to be conquered despite the inconvenience suffered, and to return on other occasions, he must show him that you are truly sorry for what happened and that you want to compensate him for the inconvenience, so you think that moving him to a superior room will achieve that goal.
But… he has no authority to make such a change in the system, without the intervention of his superior.
This is a case in which verticalism can prevent a customer-oriented action. The front line does not have in its hands the operational decisions that allow it to produce the desired quality of service.
This case illustrates one of the aspects that put SMEs at an advantage in relation to quality management of services. I show you here others:
- Decisions are made close to the market. In an SME, managers are in constant contact with front-line staff, and from them they can obtain valuable customer information. This allows them to make market-oriented decisions. Decisions are made quickly. In the hotel in the example, the superior authorized to make the change in the system is probably the owner of the hotel. In this case, even if it is 11 pm on a Tuesday, it is still possible to call him and make him present, considering the situation. Imagine calling a boss employee of a hotel chain for the same reason. There is a better understanding of the wishes of the customers. Communication is more direct between the front line and management, and everything that happens with customers is known inward.Even many times the management has direct contact with them. But this should be encouraged, since sometimes, despite its ease, the attitude of the management is distant from the market, it is easier to perform the tasks of quality, technical and functional control (the way in which the service). The very closeness that was discussed earlier makes it possible. There is direct observation of the operations and the relationship with employees is more personal, being able to delve into their difficulties, needs and motivations.The very closeness that was discussed earlier makes it possible. There is direct observation of the operations and the relationship with employees is more personal, being able to delve into their difficulties, needs and motivations.The very closeness that was discussed earlier makes it possible. There is direct observation of the operations and the relationship with employees is more personal, being able to delve into their difficulties, needs and motivations.
Well, now that you know these advantages, what you should do is enhance them. If you have an SME, lean on these benefits that your current structure offers you. And if on your growth path you start to look like a great company, try not to cancel out these advantages. Rather, in growth you should be able to favor the following:
- Achieve economies of scale in functions that go unnoticed by the client (such as administration) Have more technological, financial and personnel resources to obtain a better technical quality of the product (service) Take advantage of the greater facility to attract qualified personnel to the enterprise.
