Customer service is about building relationships, solving problems, and fostering trust. However, according to a recent article by customer-service expert Shep Hyken, one of the biggest obstacles to great service is pride. When pride gets in the way, employees and managers can become defensive, argumentative, and resistant to change—all of which damage the customer experience. Businesses that want to cultivate a culture of exceptional service must recognize the dangers of pride and take proactive steps to counteract it.
Customers Aren’t Always Right, But Deescalation Is Key
It’s a well-known adage that “the customer is always right.” In reality, customers can often be mistaken, unreasonable, or just plain difficult. However, an employee’s job isn’t to prove the customer wrong—it’s to solve the problem in a way that preserves the relationship. When employees allow pride to dictate their responses, interactions can quickly turn into confrontations, which serves no one. Instead of escalating situations, employees should focus on de-escalation, listening with empathy, and finding solutions that align with company policies while maintaining customer goodwill.
Pride Creates Defensiveness—Humility Creates Solutions
Employees who take customer complaints personally may become defensive, leading to unnecessary arguments rather than resolutions. Pride can make employees more concerned with being “right” than with finding a solution. Training employees to lead with humility—acknowledging mistakes, staying calm under pressure, and focusing on customer satisfaction—helps ensure that service interactions remain constructive and not destructive. A workplace culture that encourages humility will create an environment where employees feel empowered to resolve issues without feeling the need to “win” the conversation.
Leadership Sets the Tone—Pride at the Top Leads to Failure
Never forget that company culture starts at the top. If managers and business owners refuse to acknowledge flawed policies, ignore employee feedback, or insist on rigid rules out of pride, it creates a trickle-down effect that impacts both employees and customers. Leaders must be willing to set aside their egos and listen—to employees, to customers, and to data. Admitting when a policy isn’t working or when customer feedback highlights a weakness is a strength, not a failure. Businesses that prioritize transparency and adaptability will always have an edge over those that cling to ineffective practices out of pride. Leaders should lead by example.
The Power of Feedback: Customers and Employees Have the Answers
The best way to overcome pride in customer service is through consistent and unbiased feedback. Businesses should implement tools like mystery shopping, as well as customer and employee feedback surveys, to gain a clear picture of how their service is perceived. These tools provide invaluable insights into areas of success and opportunities for improvement. More importantly, they help companies create actionable strategies for improving both the customer and employee experiences in ways that remove ego from the equation.
A Slice of Humble Pie with The Brandt Group
To truly elevate customer service, businesses must be willing to challenge their own assumptions, embrace humility, and seek honest, impartial feedback. The Brandt Group specializes in mystery shopping, customer and employee feedback tools, and leadership training courses designed to help businesses like yours thrive. Contact us today to learn how we can help your company build a culture of service that is driven by real-world data and solutions—not pride.
Let’s build a company culture you can be proud of—and not prideful for.
Recent Comments