Episode #147: Why We Mess Up Customer Service

Poor customer service doesn’t just annoy customers—it makes them feel betrayed. In today’s fast-paced, always-online world, people expect smooth, immediate help as part of what they paid for. When service is slow, rigid, or indifferent, frustration rises fast. This is especially true in the “Age of Distraction,” where attention is scarce and patience even scarcer.

So what really causes customer dissatisfaction, and how can organizations—especially in Japan—fix it at the root?

Below are five common drivers of customer unhappiness and what leaders can do to prevent them.

Because processes often serve the organization more than the customer.
Every company needs procedures to run daily operations. But in the pursuit of efficiency, processes tend to become internally focused—optimized for staff convenience, not customer outcomes.

In Japan, this risk is amplified by strict manual-based operations. Staff may feel unable to act outside the rulebook (マニュアル manyuaru — “manual”). When a customer’s request doesn’t fit the manual, service freezes.

What to do about it

• Review your procedures and find where flexibility is possible.

• Empower staff to use judgment when solving real customer problems.

• Regularly “scrape off barnacles” from outdated rules that no longer help the customer.

Mini-summary: Processes should guide service, not trap it. When rules become more important than outcomes, dissatisfaction is inevitable.

2. How do unclear or narrow roles damage customer service?

Because customers don’t care who is “responsible”—they just want help.
Roles and accountabilities matter. But when they’re too narrowly defined, service breaks down the moment the “right person” is absent.

In many Japanese workplaces, staff prefer very precise and limited responsibility. This can come from fear of mistakes and blame. The result is a culture where tasks stop if the assigned person is away.

Customers don’t accept that. They assume everyone represents the firm.

What to do about it

• Build a culture where colleagues willingly “pick up the fallen sword” to help customers.

• Train temporary staff (派遣社員 haken shain — “temporary/dispatch employees”) to handle issues flexibly, not just pass them along.

• Cross-train teams so absences don’t stall service.

Mini-summary: Customers experience the company as one unit. If roles become silos, service collapses during routine disruptions.

3. How do interpersonal issues inside the company show up as poor service?

Because internal friction leaks into customer interactions.
Customer service quality depends heavily on how teams work together. When internal relationships are strained—between sales and back office, or across departments—customers feel it.

A classic trigger is sales overpromising. Back-office teams then face impossible timelines, resentment builds, communication drops, and service tone deteriorates.

What to do about it

• Establish clear protocols for handling conflicts between departments.

• Ensure everyone knows and follows these protocols.

• Reinforce teamwork, trust, and shared ownership of customer outcomes.

Mini-summary: Customers hear the tension you don’t resolve. Fix internal collaboration to protect external satisfaction.

4. Why does weak direction make service inconsistent?

Because people can’t improvise well without a shared compass.
Vision, mission, and values aren’t fluffy slogans—they’re operational glue. When things go off-script, staff need a clear sense of “what matters most.”

If employees understand the company’s guiding principles, they can act independently and still serve the customer correctly.

What to do about it

• Communicate mission and values clearly and repeatedly.

• Train staff to translate those principles into customer decisions.

• Reward actions that align with direction, not just rule-following.

Mini-summary: Strong direction enables intelligent flexibility. Without it, people freeze or improvise poorly.

5. How do external pressures choke good customer service?

Because frontline teams can’t solve problems without time, budget, or authority.
Even the best-trained employees fail if they lack resources. During downturns, many organizations tighten control, remove discretion, and add rules. Often they never loosen those controls later.

This creates slow, rigid service—and customers notice.

What to do about it

• Review how much authority frontline staff have to fix issues on the spot.

• Reduce unnecessary rules that limit customer solutions.

• Rebalance control vs. empowerment as conditions improve.

Mini-summary: Resources and autonomy are service fuel. Without them, flexibility dies and frustration grows.

• Customer dissatisfaction grows fastest where rigidity, delay, and silos exist.

• The five drivers are: Process, Roles, Interpersonal Issues, Direction, External Pressures.

• Regularly remove outdated “barnacles” from procedures and culture.

• Empower people to solve problems in real time—customers reward speed and ownership.