Andrew
Sunday Mail Reporter
Local companies should adopt a culture of service excellence, which has become a critical success factor for many organisations globally, Minister of Industry and Commerce Dr Sekai Nzenza has said.
In a speech read on her behalf by the acting director of commerce and consumer affairs in the ministry, Mrs Petronela Masunda, to officially open the Customer Experience and Service Delivery Symposium in Harare recently, Minister Nzenza said service excellence should permeate all aspects of life, thereby contribute to wider economic development.
“Service excellence is a critical element of a performing economy.
“In many instances, we, as leaders and indeed policymakers, preoccupy ourselves with making money and growing our customer base, forgetting the customer management aspect of it, which includes a culture of serving. “These are the attitudes and mindsets that people need to have individually and collectively if our country is to realise its full potential,” she said.
“A culture of service excellence is now a must for any economy in the world and, as such, Zimbabwe should embrace it as well.”
She urged private sector firms to “seriously invest” in contact centres through business process outsourcing, which will help in job creation.
The country’s best performing companies in terms of service excellence were rewarded for their efforts.
The adjudication committee, led by chairperson, Mrs Victoria Ruzvidzo, said it had noted a significant improvement in service provision largely due to the adoption of new technologies.
“There was a significant growth in the use of digital platforms by both B-2-B (business-to-business) and B-2-C (business-to-consumer) for interaction and transactional purposes across all industry sectors,” said Mrs Ruzvidzo in a speech read on her behalf by adjudication committee member, Ms Odiline Kava.
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