25 Jun 2007
Speech by Mr Lim Swee Say, NTUC Secretary-General Minister for Prime Minister’s Office, at the Launch of Customer-Centric Initiative CCI for Food Beverage sector at 9.30am on Monday, 25 June 2007, Suntec City Convention Exhibition Centre, Ballroom 3, Level 2
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen
Good Morning
1. I am very happy to join you this morning for the launch of Customer-Centric Initiative for the food & beverage sector. The CCI was launched in August 2005 with the retail sector. After one and a half years, the 20 pilot retailers have done well and another 17 retailers and 14 shopping malls have come onboard the CCI bandwagon. Mystery audits showed that service standards have improved. In tandem with better customer service, the companies have also reported increased sales. Some have even been able to give their workers higher bonuses.
2. For the 44 CCI pilot F&B companies gathered here today, we certainly hope to do as well if not better.
F&B sector and service excellence
3. Singapore has a thriving F&B sector with some 4,500 establishments that employ 68,000 staff. Our island is well known as a food paradise with its extensive range of food. We have Chinese food, English food, Italian food, French food, Turkish food, you name it we have it. Great food, beautiful ambience and affordable prices have enabled our F&B enterprises to capture a significant share of the customers' wallet - especially in the current economic boom.
4. But can our companies sustain their performance for the next two, five, 10 or 50 years? The lifecycle of an F&B outlet is getting shorter and shorter. Every few months, we come across F&B outlets that have changed hands, downsized or even closed. In the face of rising competition and more sophisticated and discerning customers, we need to ensure that our companies are in tune with customers' needs, and take active steps to continually delight customers and sustain customer loyalty. Hence, last year, I announced the inaugural Service Excellence (SE) Award by SPRING to recognise organisations which have developed outstanding management capabilities to drive and sustain service excellence. This will be conferred at the Business Excellence Award Dinner in October this year.
5. The launch of the CCI for F&B sector today aims to not just raise service standards. We believe that the improvement in service level will also bring about better performance for the companies and higher productivity and pay for the workforce.
Service standards for F&B sub-sectors
6. SPRING has also started work with the industry and the Restaurant Association of Singapore (RAS) to develop service standards for different F&B sub-sectors. Each set of service standards is customized for the respective F&B sub-sector. The service standards for casual dining (restaurant) sub-sector were launched last year. Today, I am happy to note that we are on the way to establishing a customised set of service standards for the pubs and clubs sub-sector. In fact, I am told that this is the first such standards in the world! This is definitely an achievement that we can be proud of. Currently under development are other sub-sector specific service standards such as food kiosks.
7. Companies can use these sub-sector service standards to measure and monitor the level of their service performance. More importantly, as the service standards are common to the companies in that sub-sector, enterprises can use the results to benchmark against their competitors and identify areas where they can do better. Thus, the sub-sector service standards also serve as a common reference point for our collective efforts to enhance service in the F&B sector. Companies can embark on service interventions and send their staff for targeted WSQ training to plug their service gaps.
8. For instance, three common service standards across F&B sector are
a) Handling customer enquiries,
b) Addressing customer's concerns and
c) Interacting with guests.
In the common service standard of "interacting with guests", the Jumbo Group of Restaurants, one of the first few CCI participant, found that there is room for improvement. They learnt that a waiter's good customer service goes beyond merely taking orders from customers. The waiter also has to be more proactive in trying to understand his customers so he can recommend dishes to enhance his customers' dining experience. Jumbo waiter, Mr Ng Tiong Huat, who has attended the WSQ training, stays observant so that he can anticipate what a customer would like, and suggests options that they may have overlooked, for example, recommending a dish that Jumbo is famous for, adding a side dish to complement the chilli crab that they have already ordered, or a beverage to go with the food. Not only has he received many compliments from customers, his bosses are pleased with him as his good service has improved the company's bottom line.
Efforts by F&B pilot companies
9. I am very happy and encouraged by your presence today - it reflects your commitment to establish and strengthen a sound service culture and system in your companies to raise your service level. You have each developed a service roadmap to further enhance the service standards. You have also identified specific actions at all levels - establishing service standards, improving customer feedback systems and supply chain management, investing in staff training and enhancing rewards for good service.
10. For instance, to enhance service delivery, Jollibean and Polar are participating in the development of service standards for the food kiosks sub-sector. McDonald's is adopting new technology today in their kitchens to provide hotter, fresher food prepared JUST-IN-TIME for greater customer satisfaction. To ensure consistent excellent delivery of good service level, Zouk has embraced WSQ as its in-house service and training benchmark. Under CCI initiatives, Zouk will be also looking to better performance by the company in customer satisfaction and revenues and last but not least, better pay for its well trained and loyal staff.
11. I do not have time to touch on every company, but I want to highlight that the participation of each and every one of you here in this CCI effort is critical.
Be Pro-Employer, Pro-employee, Pro-customer
12. Last month, I was at Metro's 50th anniversary celebrations. One key segment of the event was the presentation of staff awards to about 10 exemplary staff. What impressed me were the citations of the award winners. The award winners ranged from the long-serving employees (with more than 40 years) to young recruits with about one year of service. Yet, they all showed a common and dedicated commitment to their customers. Metro's leaders were able to articulate service quality as a key priority, establish service-oriented systems, train the staff and reward good service when it is delivered. Metro's pro-employer, pro-employee and pro-customer systems have given them 50 successful years. It is also not surprising that Metro is one of the 20 pilot CCI retailers. To sustain business in the long term, our CCI F&B operators also need to emulate Metro's efforts and be pro-employer, pro-employee and pro-customer.
Conclusion
13. The CCI for retail sector has led to greater service awareness among employers, employees and customers. After one and a half years, 22% of total retailers employing 32,000 staff - about 46% of total retail workers -have also come on board. I am even happier to note the significant participation rate of F&B companies at today's launch. I understand that the 44 companies have among them 1,200 F&B outlets or 27% of total F&B outlets in Singapore. Well done!
14. With your significant involvement, Singaporeans can all look forward to an enhanced dining, pubbing and clubbing experience in the coming months. Thank you.