Introduction
The total quality management system, which was designed to improve all aspects of any type of production, is made up of several comprehensive concepts, and Customer focus is one of them. Customer focus is a strategy-oriented on serving customer’s demands. This concept leads to the successful performance of any organization as the aim to satisfy clients motivates all its departments. Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA) is a famous company that puts customer’s needs first.
This organization has won the “Best Customer Focus awards at the UK’s Best Business Awards 2017” (DEWA awarded for Best Customer Focus and Innovation at Best Business Awards 2017 2017, para. 1). High standards aimed to enhance the quality of service and effective implementation of complex strategies were recognized internationally. Customer focus is a major concept that allows the company to provide world-class services.
Hence, it is necessary to analyze the techniques that this company applies to fully understand the benefits of such a concept. The key question of this research is how DEWA focuses on its customers. The main goal of this paper is to study methods DEWA uses to meet customer’s expectations and explain their effect on the overall performance of the company.
Theoretical Aspects
To be customer-focused, an organization should abide by certain principles. First, the more information about clients a company gets, the higher quality its services reaches (Lagrosen 2001). It is necessary to collect comprehensive data about each customer. It will gain an understanding of their needs and subsequently contribute to the development of new methods. Second, the relationship between a company and clients should be more profound (Lagrosen 2001).
The company’s strategies have to correlate with indicators of socio-economic positions. It is important to develop a long-term partnership. It will create mutual benefits. Third, a company has to expand a market and constantly look for new customers without compromising the needs of the old ones (Lagrosen 2001). Loyal clients make excellent advertisements through the grapevine. However, if a company loses customers, it might scare off potential clients. Finally, feedback is a prominent factor contributing to the effective progress of a business. Both positive and negative feedback is necessary to assess the advantages and drawbacks of the working process.
Methodology
This research is based on secondary data collection. The observational method was applied. This method is feasible for a case study as it allows collecting more coherent data that is necessary to examine the main object of this research. Most information was taken from the DEWA website. Also, some materials were found on other internet sources.
The DEWA Profile
DEWA was established 25 years ago under the supervision by the Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates. This organization teamed up with the Dubai Electricity Company and Dubai Water Department. DEWA is supported by the Dubai government and successfully carries out its duties, supplying citizens with electricity and water. DEWA has become one of the best companies in the industry and “provides services today to more than 780,000 customers with a happiness rate that reached 95% in 2016” (Our history 2017, para. 1). The company’s main principles are reliability, efficiency, and safety. DEWA is committed to the idea of creating a better world for future generations.
Analysis
To scrutinize measures taken by DEWA, it is necessary to determine more specific objectives of this research. The first important aspect is the way how the company understands the needs and expectations of customers. DEWA takes into account modern international programs that are focused on enhancing the quality of services. The company applies principles that satisfy the expectations of the global population.
For example, DEWA conducts surveys to evaluate the happiness index of the community (Our history 2017, para. 1). Such surveys assist in identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the company’s systems. Another significant aspect is how DEWA monitors customer satisfaction and acts on the result. The company assesses the effectiveness of its services via customer’s feedback by phone and improves problematic areas.
Specialists of the Customer Service Department analyze all collected data and look for specific trends that depend on a region or a type of service. They investigate suggestions made by customers and subsequently develop efficient solutions. Also, they use positive feedback to note processes that show better results to avoid changes in such areas. Therefore, DEWA uses methods of surveys and phone interviews to understand the growing demands of customers. The company focuses on the client’s satisfaction and dissatisfactions to address identified problems and maintain well-established systems.
The mentioned above techniques are widely used by the most successful companies. These are time-proven methods of work. Surveys provide a convenient way to gather the necessary information as they are easy to administer and might be created very fast. Also, data can be collected from a large number of respondents. Finally, surveys allow asking questions on many different subjects enhancing the extensiveness of data analysis.
Getting customer’s feedback is also a very important practice. Listening to the client’s responses guarantees the development of products or services that meet their expectations. Hence, this technique is relevant in the stage of design. Also, it is the best way to measure the satisfaction of a customer. Finally, it contributes to the client’s loyalty as a company can use negative feedback to respond promptly and suggest immediate solutions.
Conclusion
DEWA adopts these methods to address growing customer demands. The mentioned above figures prove the effectiveness of the customer focus concept. However, certain improvements in this area might be crucial. One of the important principles of the customer focus concept is to address clients directly as that enhances the collaboration between them and a company (Cornwall 2016, para. 1). It requires developing a customer-focused culture among employees. To accomplish that, it is necessary to establish a reward system that benefits workers for conducting a high-quality evaluation. Special training programs will also promote a customer-focused culture. Hence, complementary developments in this area might have a significant impact on the quality of services.
Reference List
Cornwall, J 2016, 7 Keys to building a customer-focused culture . Web.
DEWA awarded for Best Customer Focus and Innovation at Best Business Awards 2017 . 2017. Web.
Lagrosen, S 2001, ‘Strengthening the weakest link of TQM–from customer focus to customer understanding’, The TQM Magazine, vol. 13, no.5, pp.348-354.
Our history 2017. Web.