eBusiness Weekly
BH24 Reporter
HARARE – Regional-focused Chartered Institute of Customer Management (CICM) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Africa University, which will see the former becoming an associate institution of the renowned university.
The associate agreement will provide for joint administration of university-approved programmes of study leading to an Africa University certificate or diploma.
And the programmes to be offered in terms of this agreement shall be certificate programmes and diploma programmes.
Said CICM business development executive Mr Rinos Mautsa:
“CICM is pleased to be sharing our customer management technical expertise with Africa University to help accelerate positive change amongst key economic players, both here in Zimbabwe and within the region.
“We appreciate this opportunity to learn together how to best develop a curriculum that incorporates global private sector best practice.”
Commenting on the development, Africa University director for Information and Public Affairs Mrs Tsitsi Tsvakwi Kanonge said:
“Through this partnership we all endeavour to organise high quality and innovative learning opportunities at all levels through the educational programs that we will provide.
“The resultant programmes should help to develop much-needed knowledge, skills, and attitudes in respect of effective customer management.
“The Memorandum of Understanding, which we are honored to sign today with CICM will foster fruitful co-operation between us in supporting CICM to provide students and clients with appropriate training on effective customer management, enhancing their cognitive abilities as well as their ability to engage in dialogues.”
CICM offers certification programmes, and has students in 24 countries, mostly on the African continent. The institution also has a presence in the United States of America, the United Kingdom and India.
Through the MoU with Africa University, CICM will now offer university-approved programmes to its extensive clientele base across the Sub Saharan African region.
In this respect CICM can also tap into its vast pool of expertise in the region including customer service management gurus who sit on its board including Professor Estelle van Tonder, an Associate Professor (Marketing) in the School of Business Management at the North-West University in South Africa; Professor Moira Clark a Professor of Strategic Marketing at Henley Business School and director of The Henley Centre for Customer Management in United Kingdom.
Other board members include Ms Ricky Harris, who is also chief executive of CICM as well as founder of the Career Development College in South Africa, Mr Doug Leather, an author and international expert in customer management, and thought leader Dr Walter Donaldson.
Mr Mautsa added that the Africa University affiliate programmes that are set to be introduced will have broader positive impacts, especially for corporates.
“Offering customer service training to employees doesn’t just add-value for the customer; it can drive sales and give a company a strong competitive advantage.
“Customer service is what separates companies that thrive from those that fail. This is why it is imperative that businesses invest in quality customer service training programs.”
This is in addition to a number of initiatives that the institution has made over the past few years to improve customer management in the region.
Late last year, CICM launched Zimbabwe’s first of its kind Customer Satisfaction Index.
Prior to its introduction of the Zimbabwe Customer Satisfaction Index (ZimCSI), the country had no measure of quality from the perspective of the customer.
According to its developers, the index also assesses the quality of economic output as a complement to traditional measures of gross domestic product (GDP).
Meanwhile CICM is set to host its annual Fellow Awards in Johannesburg, South Africa this March.
