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Customer Service in a
Multi-Ethnic Society
An InFoPeople Workshop
Winter-Spring 2002
Instructor: Nancy Kelly
Introduction
Understand how multi-ethnicity relates to customer service
Recognize bottom-line impact
Encourage sensitivity
Essentials of good service
Personal awareness
Present Challenges
Communication skills
Exercise #1
You make the difference
Let’s hear from you...
What do you want to gain from this experience?
What are your concerns? What topics are you most
interested in that you would like to focus on today?
Importance of Customer Service in a Multi-Ethnic Society
Satisfied customer remain loyal encourage new business
Dissatisfied customer may have a negative impact
Customer determines if good service is provided
Changing Customer Base
Shifting demographics Immigration from more different
countries than before New languages & cultural values People lump groups together
Why is delivering outstanding multi-ethnic customer service important?
20 million Americans primary language is not English
Ethnic dishes now comprise 30% of restaurant entrees
According to United States Travel and Tourism: 45.5 million tourists annually $77,000,000,000 (seventy-seven billion)
By 2040, U.S. population will exceed 355 million, 14% foreign born
Consider These Differences
Customer expectations culturally based
Communication style differences Protocol and courtesy Customs, religious needs, holidays
Ground Rules
Listen while others are talking Encourage candor, open participation Everyone’s view is equally valued
no right or wrong answers group does not have to reach
consensus There are no stupid questions
Exercise #2
Icebreaker: Identity Check
Names Are Important
Often is the first thing we hear
Err on the side of formality
Avoid assuming others want to be
greeted/treated just like we would
Exercise #3
Customer Relations: The Good and Bad
WORST Behavior
Ignored me
Continued personal conversation
Treated me rudely
Ignored my complaint Continued to mispronounce my
name
BEST Behavior
Made me feel important
Spent time helping me
Smiled at me
Used my name
Asked if I needed more help
Culture is…
The total way of life of a particular group of people: think, feel, say, do and make
Written and unwritten, verbal and non-verbal rules people live by
Variation among group members Defines our common sense and
acceptable behavior
Exercise #4
Comparisons of
Cultural Patterns
US Customer Service Norms
Use of first name is friendly Customer is free to browse & not buy Appropriate -point out customer &/or
provider mistake for correction Customer and Provider are equal Customers appreciate informality (self-
service) Provider - smile, make friendly talk Customers served on a first-come, first-
served basis
Norms Outside the USA
Use of first name is disrespectful Customer knows purchase, provider gets Inappropriate to point out a mistake
made by provider or customer C&P-different social class, treat as such Rules of who should speak to whom
based on age, gender and hierarchy Customer appreciates formality Providers should be reserved and
respectful to the customer
Cultural Differences
Customers expectations are culturally based
Can be a barrier between us, and our customers
Even if you make a mistake, people will appreciate your efforts
Stereotypes
“Judgment of a group without regard for the
individual”
Stereotypical Statements, Behaviors and Thoughts
To describe individual by their group membership
Consider individuals exceptions to the rule if they don’t fit the stereotype
Label or judge behavior rather than seeking to understand it
Expect an individual to be a “token” or spokesperson for everyone in the group
How do Stereotypes Affect Customer Service?
Don’t allow room for individuality of the
person
Harmful to the holder because they often
distort information
May act on stereotypes in the
subconscious level without knowing it
Different behavior doesn't mean deficient
Exercise #5
Multiethnic Bingo
BINGO Answers
Chitlings are part of a pig Yonsei is a fourth generation Japanese
American Chinese New Year is usually celebrated in
February Mexican Independence Day is Sept. 16th Kiva is a sacred, ceremonial structure used
by the Pueblos Orale is an expression equivalent to “Cool”
Let’s talk Multi-Ethnic BINGO
What strategies did you use? Did you get misplaced? How did you
feel?
Categories you hesitated about &
why?
What Good Are Stereotypes?
Makes people feel more confident when in multi-ethnic situations
Often people may need to “prove they’re correct”
Stereotype sources: home, peer group, school, work, mass
media, socioeconomic background, culture, gender and race
Exercise #6
Multiple Modes of
Communication
Multiple Modes of Communicating
Do Not share the rules with anyone
Pair up, preferably with people you don’t know A’s and B’s C’s and D’s
Find out 2 new things about your partner
Multiple Modes Debriefing
Read group instruction aloud How did you interpret the behavior
of your partner during the exercise?
Do the characteristics of each group remind you of a specific ethnic group?
Exercise #7
ACT:Observer Feedback
Exercise #8
Action Plan
An Effective Multi-Ethnic Customer Service Person:
Explores customer cultural backgrounds Modifies language for non-native
listeners Tries to look at situations from
other cultural perspectives Monitors own assumptions &
stereotypes Show’s respect for other’s culture
Evaluation Form