Last summer, a family approached an
employee at the Akron Zoo with a
quandary. The family, who was unfamiliar with the area, had gotten lost on
their way to the zoo. Now, on their way
out of the park, they were nervous
about getting lost again while returning
home.
The employee had already clocked out
for the day and was heading home herself,
but she stopped and provided the family
with typed out directions back to the highway. As she handed them the directions,
she could still sense some hesitation, so
she offered to lead the family back to the
highway herself. She had them pull up to
the Welcome Center, met them with her car
and led them to the nearest highway
entrance so they could make it home without delay.
Though the above is only one case study,
it represents President and CEO L. Patricia
Simmons’ comprehensive approach to customer service that is boosting attendance
at the Akron Zoological Park. By empowering employees to take charge through a
Guest Recovery Policy, the zoo’s management ensures that all guests avoid potential
lapses in service.
The policy begins by highlighting some of
the more common obstacles to a positive
guest experience: difficulty reading maps,
food spills, dissatisfaction with exhibits,
etc. Staff is then trained on how to identify
those obstacles and, more importantly,
how to rectify the negative experiences in
which they could result. If a child drops an
ice cream cone, for example, an employee
can go to a refreshment stand to request a
new one. If an elderly guest is having trouble navigating the park, an employee can
offer him or her transportation.
By empowering workers to make those
decisions, the zoo has drastically mitigated
negative guest experiences and broke a
new attendance record in 2007 — the fifth
attendance record in as many years.
HOW TO REACH: Akron Zoological Park, (330) 375-2550 or
www.akronzoo.org