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September, 2010 |
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Market Update |
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Surveys & Special Issues |
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Best Brands |
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2009
December |
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The best in Oman across 15 categories |
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Best Brands |
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2008
December |
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A more comprehensive outlook on offer this year with six new categories added |
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Also From the Apex Stable |
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Leading by example |
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Joseph Benny, Feb 2010 |
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On two days in December, customers who drove into some of the Omanoil filling stations in Muscat were in for an unusual sight. Instead of the youngsters who usually attend to them, there was an elderly gentleman in khaki trousers and T-shirt doing the chore and even cleaning their cars.
He chatted with some customers as he went about his job and asked some others what they thought about Omanoil and its services. Those who cared to look closely were surprised to recognise the man – Eng Omar Ahmed Qatan, CEO of Oman Oil Marketing Company (Omanoil).
Ask him why he chose to work as a filling station assistant for two days, away from the comfort of his plush office, he says it was his way of reaching out to customers. But why did he opt for a petrol pump assistant’s job? Qatan has a clear answer. “Maintaining an international standard requires a company of this magnitude to not only maintain the best form of customer care, but also continually self-review and outperform itself.
The person who fills your cars is our first ambassador to our customers. He gets the feedback about what customers are looking for at any point of the day.
Because he is on the job in the morning, in the afternoon and in the night.” Elucidating further, he says the fillers are the ones on the frontline. They can make a difference and change the way the company conducts its business.
Qatan started his day as an Omanoil filler reporting to duty at 7am over two days, serving and interacting with customers at three different service stations in Muscat which included Qurm Height, Bausher and Ghubra.
His duties entailed housekeeping, attending to customers and traffic flow at the forecourts, book-keeping and working with managers to implement effective supervision guidelines. While there he talked to the staff about how to develop best practices and shared ideas on achieving targets, advancing performance and leadership and reiterated the significance of teamwork.
He says the experience endowed him with a refreshing perspective that is often difficult to obtain in the boardroom. This first-hand experience provided key insights into the policies that have proven successful in creating an efficient operational system, allowing him to identify and address various challenges at the grass-root level.
“Execution is the pillar of success,” says the CEO when asked about his two-day experience as a filling station assistant. This is not the first time Qatan is leading from the front to become a role model for his colleagues. At the beginning of his career as an officer with Royal Oman Police (ROP), he used to share the burden of the junior staff. Of course, as he says, he has learned this quality from his father, who was down to earth though he was a well-established businessman in Salalah. Qatan says Omanoil as a company pays a lot of attention to values and the company is eager to pass them on to its customers.
“As the CEO of Omanoil, I was at the filling station to deliver those values. Our customers are our assets and they are our success stories.”
Qatan wanted to know how much a filler can handle and what system the company has to follow to make the relationship between customers and the staff more fruitful.
Armed with this newfound knowledge, Qatan has chalked out an action plan to make filling stations more customer-centric. He points out that one weak link can break a strong chain. “Our customers have been loyal to us. So they deserve a lot. We are now planning many novel ways to serve them. That is our commitment to our customers.”
Qatan is planning to undertake another similar exercise in the future – but with a small difference. “The next time, I want to be away from the media glare. I may go to Duqm or the interiors to ensure that.”
Qatan’s leading by example has evoked positive reactions from the business community in Oman. He says several CEOs and managing directors got in touch with him to congratulate him and sought to know more about the experience when they came to know about this professional adventure.
He says such acts help unite all levels of the organisation to enhance excellence in customer experience. By taking up various roles from filler to station manager and retail business manager at service stations around Muscat, he has set an example.
In fact, Qatan’s idea of leading by example has already percolated down. Other senior management staff have decided to undertake similar exercises. Plans and timeframe for their turns have already been finalised and the process has started. So Omanoil customers can experience more surprises at the filling stations.
As far as his junior staff were concerned, they saw the CEO coming down the line to help them. He listened to them and suggested some ways of improvement. He has taken some of the recommendations from the employees to implement. According to him, Omanoil is known for the way it takes care of the staff.
The company has chalked out a strategy to attract the best talent locally. As experienced Omanis are always in demand in the job market, the company keeps them by proving a fair, friendly and transparent workplace where staff members are treated like family. Omanoil has achieved 88 per cent Omanisation.
Qatan says his family was not at all surprised by his decision to take up the job of a petrol pump assistant for two days. “They liked the idea and supported me. They know my style and are quite used to this.” Perhaps the biggest pat on the back came from the public. Many of them reacted to his goodwill gesture by saying, “You really care for your customers.” This can be the biggest compliment for a CEO whose company is into retailing.
Unforgettable experience
The initiative was not without some interesting incidents.
Narrating one them, he says, “When I tried to clean the window screen of a customer’s car, she refused. I tried to persuade her. But this well-mannered girl, who upholds the Omani values, did not want a person her father’s age to clean her car. I was pleasantly surprised by the values upheld by that young customer. Finally, our interaction ended in an exchange of gifts.”
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