Who's issue is this?

One of the things I try to challenge my teams with is following through on issues and user inquiries. There are many times when issues come our way, just to find out that it's really within the scope of another team to correct or address it. This can happen for several reasons. For example, from experience, a business user has determined that your team provides the best turnaround time on issues. It could also be that the documentation on whom to contact might be unclear and the business users goes knocking on the first door she finds.

In many cases, I see teams simply forward the e-mail or ticket along to another group. A lot of times, the e-mail or ticket won't have full documentation on timeline, impact, history, etc. The team receiving the e-mail or ticket might not react with the right level of urgency. In fact, I've seen issues go on for days like this; being passed from one team to another. In the meantime the business user just waits in frustration.

A better approach to prevent long running e-mail threads that lead nowhere, is for the receiving team to follow through on the issue, as if it were their own. In my opinion, if the business user sends an issue your way, you should own it to completion. Instead of forwarding the e-mail or ticket, get the right team(s) on a call, and ask the right questions. Communicate the right level of urgency on that call as well. Just choosing the right forum (phone call versus e-mail) can help significantly cut down on the turnaround time.

Once you have an answer, personally deliver it to the business user. Don't expect other teams to do it. They might not have the same finesse and level of service that you have. Remember, you always want to keep those business users delighted.

Many teams will complain that they don't have enough staffing to personally handle each of these types of issues or inquiries. I would challenge that assumption. Many times, we spent more time fighting fires and explaining bad results than it would have taken to just manage the issue to completion. Guess who the business user will complain about if the issue doesn't get addressed on time?

So skip that coffee or tea break if you have to. Challenge yourself to provide your users the best service possible. They'll thank you for it and your organizational growth will, indeed, reflect it (so will your bottom line).