Good customer service means exceeding the customer’s expectations, and Tacoma Community College is providing something extra.

On July 12, TCC’s Customer Service Academy will offer Managing Organizational Change and Ethics and Values as part of a continuing series of modules at the Downtown Center for Business and Professional Development.

Managing Organizational Change will be offered from 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. That afternoon, Ethics and Values will be offered from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. The cost for each module is $59.

Managing Organizational Change is designed to provide the participant with an understanding of change and the influence it has on an organization and the individuals in that organization. Topics include understanding organizational change, stages of change and how to manage organizational change.

Ethics and Values aims to establish the importance of ethics and values in the workplace. Participants will discuss how values influence actions, developing a personal ethical philosophy and learning to help others do the right thing.

Statistics show that 96 percent of unhappy customers leave without saying anything; unhappy customers tell an average of 13 people; and it costs five times more to gain a new customer than to keep an existing one.

The Customer Service Academy provides training in key areas of service and equips participants with skills that can be applied immediately in the workplace. This series of modules provides the necessary soft skills required for excellent internal and external customer service. Upon completion of all nine modules, participants will receive four continuing education units and a certificate of completion from TCC.

“The Customer Service Academy offers skills and competencies that cut across industries,” said Wayne Williams, associate vice president for enterprise and workforce development. “Almost all of us are in the business of providing customer service and satisfying customers, and therefore this program is beneficial at all levels of responsibility and for employees of any business or organization.”

Williams points out that while customer service courses are often offered individually, the way they are packaged in the Customer Service Academy is unique. “They are application based and the learning process is interactive. There is an interrelationship between topics and an opportunity to transfer skills from one training module to the next. It is the application of knowledge that ultimately brings about behavioral change.”

TCC’s Downtown Center for Business and Professional Development is located at 1501 Pacific Ave., Tacoma. To register or for more information, contact Linda Washburn at (253) 566-5374.