Last week, companies from across the world celebrated International Customer Service Week, a global initiative which seeks to develop a culture of service excellence and superior customer satisfaction. DHL, the global market leader in the international express delivery business, did not only celebrate the week, but emphasized the importance of customer service to the economic growth of Ghana.

“Customer experience is one of the great frontiers for innovation and most companies have been slow to grasp it. Yet I predict that customer experience will decide the winners and losers in the years ahead”, said Gloria Torres, Head of Customer Service for DHL Sub-Saharan Africa.

Torres pointed out that the degree of choice in goods and services is bewildering. “A history of sustained positive customer experiences increases the chance that a new product gets chosen over its competitors. Companies that deliver exemplary customer experiences share a set of integrated business disciplines that drive their success. Customer service is a crucial touch point between companies and customers,” she noted.

DHL Express celebrated Customer Service Week across more than 51 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, including kick-off events, ‘thank you’ gifts for customers, and some community projects such as planting of trees in some government schools and donations of food items and clothing items to some charity organizations.

“We take customer service very seriously and great customer experiences are full of surprising ‘wow’ moments” said Torres. “In 2012 thus far we’ve already received 61 global awards for our service. As an example, earlier this year we implemented ‘Straight to the Top’ which allows any customer to bypass the call centre and go straight to the top of the organization. Furthermore, there are no machines answering calls at DHL. You speak straight to a person at DHL,” she said.

“Building great consumer experiences is a complex enterprise, involving strategy, integration of technology, orchestrating business models, brand management, and CEO commitment. It's harder than you think!” said Kader O. Coulibaly, General Manager, DHL Ghana. “But it starts with having a great team and this year’s Customer Service Week also provides us with an opportunity to reward our star advisors, and recognize their passion for our business and for our customers.”

Customer Service Week was founded in 1991 and ran from 01-05 October this year.

About DHL

The Logistics company for the world, DHL is the global market leader in the logistics industry and “The Logistics company for the world”. DHL commits its expertise in international express, air and ocean freight, road and rail transportation, contract logistics and international mail services to its customers. A global network composed of more than 220 countries and territories and about 275,000 employees worldwide offers customers superior service quality and local knowledge to satisfy their supply chain requirements. DHL accepts its social responsibility by supporting climate protection, disaster management and education.

DHL is part of Deutsche Post DHL. The Group generated revenue of 53 billion euros in 2011.