Towards service par excellence

THIS WEEK'S TOPIC: How can Singapore raise service standards and build a strong service culture?

Leon Perera Chief Executive Officer Spire Research & Consulting Group

BUILDING a strong service culture starts with building strong foundations at school. Our education system should use role-playing games and competitions to create opportunities for students to practise good service.

At least one internship stint should be in a customer-facing role. The goal should be to inculcate an ethic of humility, to cultivate pride in serving customers rather than viewing it as "humiliating".

This ethos needs to be continually reinforced in the workplace. Business leaders should set an example by setting aside some time each year to serve customers directly. They should also regularly observe frontline staff in their day-to-day work so as to draw learning points that can be institutionalised. There can be no strong…