Life Coach - Step 46 of 100 - What is a service?

Has anyone ever given a thought to why we call it army, navy and airforce - defence services? Okay defence is a service that we provide as an output of our activities. It is not a product because it is intangible. Similarly we have judicial services, adminstrative services, etc?

So what does the word service mean? The concept of service is amazing. If one looks at it in detail especially what goes in to create a service, one would realize the nuances involved. And maybe one would change the way one thinks.

Recently I attended an IT Service Management training programme. And the whole point of the course was viewing a service as a service.

Let us say that you are setting up a party to welcome a VIP at your mess. The typical action is that one starts deciding the menu - looks at likes and dislikes of the VIP. Then one will consider the guests to be invited and maybe get into more details - we do most of them subconsciously due to force of habit.

But what if you start looking at the setting up of the party as a service and now get into details. Let me give some pointers. The service aspect would look at

• Time management - who will come at what time and what route.
  
• Security management - how will security at gate be informed, how will security at the party be maintained
• Guest management - who all are invited
• Access management - who has access to the VIP and who stays back
• Menu management - where does the food come from, how much does it cost, who will procure it, who will check the quality, what starters do you need, in what quantity, what are the special starters for the VIP and coterie only
  
• Servers management - how many servers do you need, which server is focussed on the VIP
• Food service management - what time does the soup get served - so when do you heat it, what time does the food get served, when do you start serving desert - do you wait for everyone to finish their meals
• Table management - how many tables do you need, how many warmers do you need, how many people per table, how many dishes, spoons, etc
• Reception management - who will receive the VIP, who will see them off
• Waste management - what happens to the balance of the uneaten food
• Environment management - what temperature is to be maintained, do we need coolers, fans, ACs, do we need music - what kind, where should the speakers be positioned, who will swap the tapes / CDs / DVDs
• Drinks management - which drinks, who will maintain the count

These are just a few of the total activities that make the service. Now if we are able to use the same logic to our command - just imagine the processes that we develop the first time and then improve upon them.

Let us consider building the PMP bridge - there are 25 odd teams doing numerous tasks and each bridging company would have innovated new processes / re-engineered existing processes. As a CO you are responsible for standardization of the bridging process across the regiment - thus you should capture the best of each company and have a best practice process. If you apply the service logic you would not only standardize but also innovate many more.