The management and staff of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) have been told to hold electricity customers in high esteem as customer management will produce success.
Editor of the Guardian Newspapers, Martins Oloja, gave this advice during the quarterly Distinguished Visitor Lecture series, an initiative of the NERC, which took place on the 12th of June, 2014, at the Commission’s headquarters.
The public commentator spoke on the power of customer advocacy and the need to manage those who consume electricity effectively.
According to him, Nigerians are generally complainant, which makes it imperative to manage them better. “Customers can become advocates if they are treated better and if the product is of good quality”, he said.
He was also keen to assert that the customer needs to be educated. This education provides them with the knowledge that they will use to advocate on behalf of the Commission with a clear understanding of its policies and achievements. This education can only be achieved by effective engagement with the customers.
Mr. Oloja said that success comes when customer’s expectations are exceeded and when stakeholders get involved in dealing with customers and maintained that good relationships build referrals.
The Chairman/CEO of the Commission, Dr. Sam Amadi, in his contribution noted that the regulator should learn invest in understanding the customer.
He stated that, “If we aren’t learning fast on what the customer expects of us, we can’t be a good regulator”.
Dr. Amadi tasked every stakeholder in the electricity market to become an advocate, noting that every encounter can change the dynamics of how customers perceive the regulatory body.
He encouraged his staff to begin this advocacy in their daily interactions, stating that, “word of mouth is not notional, it is real. Focusing on the customer is really the key”.
