Recently, one of my colleagues was telling me about a client satisfaction survey she  spearheaded for a professional services firm with a well-heeled reputation and strong management team.  The assignment used traditional outreach methods, focusing on the development of an incisive questionnaire and conducting confidential in-depth interviews of new and long-standing clients.  

Turns out, the survey proved exceptionally valuable gleaning several insights that came as a total surprise to the firm’s managers!!  It confirmed the firm’s considerable strengths but also identified several unexpected capabilities weaknesses and personnel problems that presented potential hits to both short- and long-term revenues. 

For example, while the capabilities issues did not harm current assignments, they did prevent the firm from expanding those engagements or getting hired for additional projects.  On the contrary, the personnel problems were of great immediacy, posing a threat to current mandates.  As a result, the firm needed to engage HR on the employee matters and looked to recruit additional talent or make an acquisition to shore up needed skills.

It’s easy to extrapolate why the survey was so eye-opening for the powers-that-be.  All of us can get myopic, particularly when we produce good work and offer considerable market expertise.  We also tend to believe that the soundness of a client relationship will translate into open dialogue, when in fact, it often does not.  The reality is that few people like to be confrontational and while email and social media sites offer forums for negative commentary, that’s a business no-no in a litigious world.

The bigger lesson here is that client satisfaction can never be taken for granted.  Even well-managed firms have something to learn regardless of their firm or industry type.  And while online and social media tools are increasingly important in capturing market “buzz”, the use of a confidential client satisfaction survey conducted by a third-party remains an ideal solution.

For starters, it provides an opportunity for a client to offer uncensored commentary without upsetting an important relationship.  And for the firm sponsoring the survey, it takes the sting out of hearing about weaknesses and problems.  The information reported becomes more objectified and can mitigate negative reactions. 

The keys to assessing client satisfaction should include: well-crafted surveys, targeted questions, and probing interviews.  It is in “between the lines” of questions and answers where real truths are discovered, and recommendations for business improvement typically gestate.  At the end of the day, there is nothing better than a great conversation between two people.