Getting to the heart of the matter

Despite our best efforts and our good use of customer service techniques, our attempts can seem to be for nothing. Behaviors we thought we had influenced positively (or corrected altogether) can regress.

For example, your manager might have spoken with an employee (not you, of course!) about some below-par behavior: perhaps they are always late for work, despite the fact that they are supposed to be answering phones and greeting visitors promptly at 9:00 a.m. The manager has spoken with the employee, and although this will lead to improved behavior for a few days, he always slips back to being late.