United Booksellers is the fifth-largest retailer of publications on the West Coast in the United States. It started 15 years ago as a family-owned bookstore in Seattle, Washington, and has grown to over 125 stores in seven states. The organization currently employs 3,000 employees, each of whom receives extensive customer service training before being allowed to interact with customers. Recent issues of Booksellers Journal and Publishers Select magazine have heralded the quality service and friendly atmosphere of the organization. United Booksellers has been praised for the appearance of the facilities, helpfulness and efficiency of employees, wide selection of publications, and intimate coffee shops where patrons can relax and read their purchases over a hot cup of fresh cappuccino.

Your Role:

As a new customer service professional with United Booksellers, you are excited about starting your job, which will require continual customer contact. As a child, you watched your siblings perform customer service functions at the local Burger Mania Restaurant and always thought you would like to follow their lead. Since you like people, enjoy a challenge, do not get stressed out easily, and have hopes of moving into management, you anticipate that this job should be just right for you. In this position, you will be expected to receive new publications from publishers, log in receipts, stock shelves, assist customers, and occasionally work as backup cashier.

 

Questions

1) Are there indicators of United Booksellers' service culture? If so, what are they?

2) If you were an employee, in what ways would you feel that you could contribute to the organizational culture?

3) If you were a customer, what kind of service would you expect to receive at United Booksellers? Why?