Post Sales Customer Feedback - A COP (Customer Oriented Process)?

[GoKats78]

I agree that there are many different types of feedback from customers, but are they part of a process? (Input - step1 - step2 - step 3 - Output). My thought is that most customer feedback is part of daily interaction with the customer and is not a "process". What type of measurable can you put around most feedback? We do have surveys we send out to (and occasionally get back from) our customers. We are looking to improve this process. We are looking at two different processes:
1. Customer Complaints - To handle product and process problems where an 8-D approach would be used.
2. Customer Satisfaction Surveys - Where we measure customer satisfaction using survey results.

[D.Scott]

Surveys play a part in our customer feedback but so do reports from our salesmen, truck driver feedback, telephone contacts, daily correspondence, and other "daily interaction" but if it isn't documented and used in some way you are throwing away a good satisfaction indicator. To rely solely on surveys will give you an indication but I think you will lose the "real" feeling. Surveys are normally sent to a pre-determined "X" department and someone who may or may not have any idea might or might not fill it out and return it. The key with surveys is to get the right person to fill it out and usually the right person just doesn't have time for surveys. Develop a system that feeds contact reports from your salesmen/reps/drivers etc. back through your system. You can develop a value system to the contacts even if it is somewhat subjective. There is a lot of good information in "daily interaction" and unless it gets filtered to the right person, it won't help in determining trends in satisfaction or dis-satisfaction.

Dave

[Sam]

Refer to 7.2.3:
- product information,
- enquiries, contracts or orders, including amendments, and
- customer feedback, including customer complaints.
IMO customer feedback in this instance would mean information related to the product.

also 7.2.3.1 . . . .

[Don Wood - 2011]

In my opinion, based on what I was taught, yes, part of it is a polite way to say customer complaints (thought I thought the PC term for that was "Customer Concerns" ). But it can also encompass how an organization uses ANY feedback from the customer, formal or informal, for continual improvement, through either CAs or PAs.

Keep in mind, Gokats, you're not REQUIRED to use "Post Sales Customer Feedback", or anything else for that matter, as a COP. Nor are you REQUIRED to use turtle diagrams (and I say that even though I personally am a big fan of them). Just ID the processes that make up your business, especially those that involve direct contact with the customer, focus on product realization processes and you'll do well. If you find the automotive process approach hepful in doing so, wonderful. If you don't feel it's value-added and you've got another way to do it, wonderful. Don't try to force-fit the suggested COPs on your organization, that is NOT the intent, and it will likely mess you up.
DW

[LUV-d-4UM]

Thank you but you can apply this to any process other than customer service. I suggest getting a copy of the PRocess Audit book by Karen Welch where the checklist focus of processes including customer service.

[Marc]

Also see: COP (Customer Oriented Process), MOP and SOP Examples and Explanation