What Would Edith Do? Resurrecting Service to Transform Experience

Subscribe to our Curiously Driven Podcast to listen to this piece while driving to meet a friend, pouring a cup of tea, planning your outfits for America's Credit Unions ' Credit Unions’ Governmental Affairs Conference, or walking around the block.

My Grandma Edith exuded warmth. She smiled all day, every day. She hummed or sang as she ran errands or moved from one task to another. She kindly asked about others with genuine curiosity and always listened intently. Thoughtful and gracious, she prioritized the people in her life. That started with her family, especially her children, and grandchildren, and it extended to her beloved Hillsdale community, including her church, college, library, former students, neighbors, and strangers in the grocery store. I remember nearly daily in my youth, someone stopping me to say, “You know, your Grandma was my teacher. She taught me so much. I always remember her as my favorite.”

My Grandma Edith also adopted technology early. She wrote a book of our family’s history on a computer in her retirement years. As a genealogist before resources like Ancestry and 23andMe and without the ubiquitous design programs we enjoy today, with her research from libraries, cemeteries, and family connections, she typed copy, used the return key for spacing, and scanned pictures to fit in those spaces. During my college years, she typed me a daily letter on that same computer. She discovered the faces she could make on the keyboard, and often, her friendly letters had early-stage emojis. She saw the value in creating human connection using technology as a tool.

I spent countless hours with my Grandma Edith throughout my childhood. Even now, after she has passed, I often think of what she would say to me when I feel pain and how much she would celebrate the bright moments in my life. I ache that she did not have the chance to meet my daughter MacKenzie and feel joy that I could tell her I was pregnant before she passed. I carry her memory closely and try to live up to the expectations I know she had for me. They were abundant, and one stands out: to create joy in each interaction as she always did.

Unfortunately, joyful human connection feels increasingly rare today.

Recently while attending a business event, I leveraged the venue’s valet parking service. As I was leaving, I used a machine to pay for parking, and despite pressing the “receipt” button, I did not receive one. I approached an employer in the foyer, and asked, “How will the valet know this is my truck? I did not receive a receipt when I paid for parking. Is there anything I need to do?” The person assured me that it would be no problem. As a worrier, I immediately said to my colleague who was with me, “Yikes. I’m concerned about this process. Without a receipt, this could go badly. How will they know it’s my truck?”

Sure enough, as my truck pulled up and we stepped into the chilly February Michigan air, the person working as a valet said, “I need your ticket.” I smiled and explained, “I’m sorry. I did not receive one. I used the machine. No receipt was available. When that happened, I asked your colleague, and he said it would be no problem.” The person frowned and visibly moved away from me with the keys to my truck and said, “I need your ticket.” I reiterated the challenge, “Unfortunately, the machine did not return a receipt. May I have my keys please?” Frustrated, the valet raised his voice and said, “I need your ticket.” When I could not produce what I did not have, in frustration, he quickly walked away, leaving me without my keys.

My colleague kindly went inside and asked to speak with the leader on site and, after a debate about how we could prove the truck was mine, finally returned with my keys. As we pulled away from the venue, we both talked about the irony of the situation. I said, “I was worried that might happen. I feel empathy that the team member would not want to be blamed for a nefarious act and yet, I’m not sure what caused that gentleman to be so angry with us. There might have been other ways to approach the conversation and situation.” My colleague also responded with levity and then stated what I have heard so many times in the last several years, “Tansley, service is dead.”

As our country found its path after COVID-19, many have described this as “the post-service era.” The strain of navigating a global crisis combined with a technology-fueled time has left many human beings feeling frustrated, angry, and overwhelmed. At the same time, organizations – under pressure to cut costs and find efficiencies – are working with fewer employees, employing more technology, and demanding more from those they employ. Service levels at restaurants, airports, financial institutions, call centers, and retail stores all feel different.

According to Customer Contact Week’s (CCW) June 2023 “Market Study CX Trends, Challenges & Opportunities,” “Only 4% of consumers feel that their experiences with businesses have gotten much better over the past year. Even more troublingly, a staggering 57% feel experiences have actually gotten worse.” That same study identified the pain points: “Nearly 66% of consumers, for example, say that they frequently experience long wait or hold times when interacting with brands. Other common pain points include having to answer too many repetitive questions (51%), struggling to reach a live person (50%), and spending too much time authenticating their identity (40%).”

This is incredibly challenging because people are also really open to changing their providers. TechSee’s “2022 State of Customer Loyalty and Churn” study showed, “When compared to 2019 pre-pandemic responses, 2022 respondents are more likely to switch products or services if they are dissatisfied with service quality.” Additionally, “80% of customers churned due to dissatisfaction with service quality.” People are experiencing less quality service, are less loyal, and are more willing to leave.

While we all use technology and many seek self-service options, the connection between channels causes pain. The situation with my truck and the valet demonstrates that. I was happy as a customer to leverage technology to pay quickly. However, the process broke when the machine did not return a receipt. The team at the hotel did not have a consistent process for handling it and was likely worried about the trouble that might arise if they could not confirm my ownership. The technology was intended to make the process more efficient and better, yet when it did not work as intended, it caused consternation both for the team and the customer.

This is shown in TechSee’s data in “2022 State of Customer Loyalty and Churn,” which states that “Fragmented omnichannel journeys are the largest driver of customer churn. Customers report omnichannel service flows as being high effort. Customers want to be able to contact brands on any channel or platform. But they also want a fast, unified, and continuous experience.” For credit unions that invested heavily in technology in the last many years, this highlights the importance of mapping the member journey and continually honing the connectivity between channels. We often consider “omnichannel” to be about offering many channels. Members expect the channels to exist. More importantly, they want the channels to flow together, integrate seamlessly, and connect without interruption.

Traditionally, credit unions led with service first. Today, we can redefine service boldly as it amplifies experience via the tools technology provides to strengthen human connection. While we cannot rely on service alone to differentiate ourselves, we can excel at it in new ways, especially in this rapidly changing world where many feel that “service is dead.”

Here are six ways credit unions can channel my Grandma Edith’s warmth and joyful approach to human connection, ultimately building a new age of experience:

(1)?? Invest in Your Team and Culture. I describe my leadership philosophy as “cushions and wings.” We must invest in cushions built on getting to know the team, caring deeply about their lives, sharing meaningful time and space jointly, and growing empathy and trust. When we do, our team can grow wings to try new solutions and challenge themselves by taking risks and experimenting with different approaches. The cushions we create with our teams will model the human investment that great experience demands. Additionally, in challenging situations, when a team member wants to try something new or take a chance within boundaries with a member, the trust built through those cushions will enable even stronger outcomes. As leaders provide those cushions consistently, the organization’s culture will be one of human connection that translates directly to experience excellence.

(2)?? Insist That the Fundamentals Are Just That: Fundamentals. As big believers in storytelling, our Community Financial Credit Union team works hard to mine for impact stories across our organization. We know it’s imperative to capture and document the moments where human connection marries with our subject matter expertise and empathy and our team members walk with our members through their bright and dark moments toward their impossible dreams. Those stories always begin with the fundamentals of service and connection including smiling, sharing pleasantries, and demonstrating care. These fundamentals matter deeply, and they ensure we have the chance to go further. We must insist they are the foundation, not the fully built home. As we celebrate these fundamentals, it allows us to coach toward more and continue to build upon that foundation.

(3)?? Create Opportunities for Your Team to Experience Exceptional Service. Epic service is best understood through personal experience. Consider ways for your team to see it in action. This might be your leadership team serving a meal to your employees. This might be providing gift cards to a local business known for its service approach. This might involve sharing and reading about organizations that have built a service culture. This might be rewarding one or two top service providers annually to enjoy an evening at a nationally known restaurant. Consider these experiences an ongoing investment in shaping the future of experience and weave them into an annual commitment to the team and member experience.

(4)?? Bridge Technology and Humans. Many technology implementations are celebrated when complete, and we monitor member usage to understand the investment and the member impact. Consider an annual assessment of each member-facing technology and the connectivity and continuity between other systems, channels, and people. Create a scoring system for these bridges and map improvements as you unfold the results. Use member feedback to understand where these channels flow well together and where they break. Additionally, set an expectation for new service providers to prioritize the interconnectedness between channels, technology, and people. Technology enhances service and when implemented thoughtfully, makes personal connection even more powerful.

(5)?? Map the Journey. Map the Journey. Map the Journey. Journey mapping is not a one-time effort. The day we wrap the mapping; we need to plan to map it again. As we make improvements from each journey mapping session, we are changing the flow, and thus, an iterative commitment to ongoing learning is imperative. Consider how your current journey mapping addresses channel connectivity and ensure that this is prioritized.

(6)?? Huzzah! for Greatness. One of our core values at Community Financial Credit Union is “Huzzah!” This is how we describe celebrating successes and sharing joyful moments together as things go well. In any organization, the team pays careful attention to what is rewarded and celebrated. Consider how you might share Huzzahs! with your team and individuals who bring service excellence to life. While this might often be done with an annual or bi-annual organization-wide award, consider monthly recognition and public sharing with members. Additionally, gather service stories that can be shared across the organization. Push your leaders to find stories that really elevate the experience, show omnichannel successes, and demonstrate organizational impact.

Both in her life and her death, I’ve felt my Grandma Edith’s impact on the lives of so many. Her positive outlook and care created connection. The benefits of human connection are real, especially when so many feel lonely and isolated. This makes our commitment as credit unions to creating joy and engagement even more critical. “75 percent of one’s overall perception of a brand comes from the experience, and 25 percent comes from the communications, brand story, and the like. To become an emotionally powerful brand, we need to design emotionally powerful experiences,” according to Oliver Wyman’s, “Consumer Loyalty and the ‘Happiness Halo’ by Leis”

We can bring to life an Edith-inspired joy in others by modeling for our teams, strengthening engagement, amplifying member connection via technology, and growing loyalty leading to stronger bottom-line results. Imagine members talking with strangers and friends about your credit union’s impact on their lives.

We can make it so. Experience can be more than we ever imagined with human connection at its core and technology fueling our impact.

Let’s make Edith proud. How will your credit union transform service in 2025?