Unit 1: Organisations and their Customers
- Identify different types of domestic and global business formations and organisations
- Identify different types of customers e.g. internal/external, corporate/individual
- Identify the needs of each of these customer types
- Distinguish between Product (tangible) and Service (intangible) oriented businesses/organisations
- Outline the role of customer service in tangible and intangible businesses/organisations
- Construct an organisational chart for the creche
- Identify players/roles in the creche with responsibility for customer service
Unit 2: Targeting the Customer
- define market research in relation to the creche
- distinguish between primary and secondary data
- identify two primary market research data collection methods suitable for the creche sector
- define market segmentation/submarkets
- identify methods of segmenting the creche market
- observe and record customer behaviour e.g. customers reactions, body language, interactions
Unit 3: Principles of Customer Service
- outline the underlying principles of a customer oriented creche
- explore how these principles affect strategic planning e.g. in the mission statement, policy formation, standard operational procedures
- identify customer oriented strategies at operational level within the creche
Unit 4: Customer Contact Skills
- identify communication skills essential for person to person interface
- evaluate the benefits of listening to customers
- identify different levels of listening
- identify listening methods
- identify operational strategies for handling complaints, awkward customers, time wasters
- evaluate the benefits of team-working within the creche
- identify barriers to effective customer communication and develop measures to remove them identify relevant communication skills required to meet different needs, e.g. customers with disabilities, the elderly etc
Unit 5: Setting and Monitoring Customer Service Standards
- define the following terms in relation to customer service and the creche:
- codes of practice
- standards of excellence
- quality service
- customer loyalty
- identify methods of building customer loyalty
- identify the skills required to deliver quality service
- identify the role of teamwork in the provision of quality service
- identify the criteria for measuring quality service within the creche
- design and implement a tool to measure customer satisfaction e.g. comment form, survey, questionnaire
- evaluate the importance of organisations exceeding rather than meeting customer expectations
Unit 6: Consumer Protection
- outline the main provisions of the Sale of Goods Act 1983 and the Sale of Goods and Supply of Service Act 1980
- outline the main provisions of consumer protection legislation
- evaluate the role of the Advertising Standards Authority
- evaluate the legal protection available to customers in the event of disputes
- outline the procedures in making a complain to a Small Claims Court
- evaluate the role of the Director of Consumer Affairs
- outline the functions of the Consumers Association of Ireland
- investigate the existence of comparable legislation or regulations in at least one other country
Unit 7 Specialist Option
- identify customer needs within the creche sector
- develop strategies that can be used to satisfy these needs
- measure the success or failure of these strategies
Unit 8: Developing a Customer Service Programme for Staff
- design a customer service programme for staff
- identify relevant presentation aids that could be used in delivering the programme
- deliver a short customer service session (e.g. oral presentation) based on the customer service programme developed
- demonstrate appropriate presentation skills e.g. voice projection, contact with audience, pacing, tone, delivery
- select appropriate methods of delivery e.g. role play, group work, interacting with audience