Customer Retention Strategies : The Key to Success and Growth of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd.

Ajitharani Unnikrishnan* & B.Johnson**

Customer Retention Strategies : The Key to Success and Growth of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd.

The Indian telecommunication industry is fast transitioning from a growth phase to a maturity phase of the industry lifecycle and the competition is getting tougher for the players in the field. The industry has become fragmented and highly competitive over the past years. There are many players who strive to gain competitive edge in the market. Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd., (BSNL) is one of the largest telecommunication companies in the world. But its position has been endangered due to the entry of private companies in the sector. It has become inevitable for the company to acquire more customers and retain them for safeguarding its position in the industry. As there is a direct link between customer retention and profitability and growth over time, a good Customer Relationship Management (CRM) strategy is indispensable. A successful CRM strategy aims at understanding the needs of the customer and integrating them with the organizations strategy, people, technology and business process. The ultimate aim is to satisfy customers and retain them. Customer retention depends to a great extent on service quality and customer satisfaction as well as the ability of the company to encourage customers to complain and then recover when things go wrong. The main purpose of the paper is to highlight the most important customer retention strategy adopted by BSNL to satisfy and retain its customers, which is, the complaint management and service recovery mechanism. Keywords : Customer Relationship Management, Customer Retention, Adalats, BSNL.

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd., (BSNL) formed in October 2000 is one of the largest telecommunication company in the world. BSNL has the largest installed quality telecom network in the country with focus on improving it, expanding the network and introducing new telecom services. The company has vast experience in planning, installation, network integration and maintenance of switching and transmission networks and also has an in-house world

class ISO 9000 certified telecom training institute. Its mission is to provide world class state-of-art technology telecom services to its customers on demand at competitive prices and also to provide world class telecom
* Ajitharani Unnikrishnan, Research Scholar (JRF), Department of Commerce, F.M.N. College, Kollam, Kerala. ** Dr.B.Johnson, Associate Professor, Department of Commerce & Management Studies, University of Calicut, Kerala. 33

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infrastructure in its area of operation and to contribute to the growth of the countrys economy. BSNL serves its customers as a one stop solution to all telecommunication needs with possibly the largest bouquet of telecom services : Wireline, CDMA mobile, GSM Mobile, Internet, Broadband, carrier service, MPLSVPN, VSAT, VoIP services, IN Services etc. The company offers a wide range and transparent tariff schemes designed to suit every customer. BSNL is committed to provide quality telecom services at affordable price to the citizens of the remotest part of the country. BSNL is making all efforts to ensure that the main objectives of the new Telecom Policy, (1999) are achieved.

referrals. Too many companies suffer from customer churn i.e., high customer defection. It is like adding water to a leaking bucket. Various strategies such as measuring customer life time value, efficient complaint management system and service recovery strategies can be really helpful in retaining customers. In the case of BSNL, a customerfocused approach is adopted. In this era of intense competition, it is very important for the company to understand that merely acquiring customers is not sufficient because there is a direct link between customer retention over time and profitability and growth. Customer retention to a great extent depends on service quality and customer satisfaction. It also depends on the ability of the organization to encourage customers to complain and then recover when things go wrong. Complaints are a natural part of any service activity as mistakes are an unavoidable feature of all human endeavour and thus also of service recovery. Service recovery is the process of putting things right after something goes wrong in the service delivery. BSNL has adopted a number of customer strategies to meet these challenges.

Statement of the Problem

Todays customers are considered as kings and it is becoming harder to please them. They are smarter, more price conscious, more demanding, less forgiving and they are approached by many more competitors with equal or better offers. The challenge today is not to produce satisfied customers; as several competitors can do this. The challenge is to produce delighted and loyal customers. If these customers are retained with the organization, they become really profitable by way of increase in purchasing, reduced operating costs, price premiums and through
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Objectives
1. To examine the strategies adopted by BSNL to retain its customers;

Customer Retention Strategies : The Key to Success and Growth of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd.

2. To observe the service benchmarks adopted by BSNL; 3. To discuss the compliant redressal mechanism adopted by the company and also the measures adopted for its publicity; and 4. To identify the procedures for grievance redressal adopted by BSNL.

telecom services. Several steps have been taken at BSNL to augment the quality of customer care to international standards.

Access of round the clock help with several toll free numbers. All BSNL Customer Service Centers (CSCs) remain open on all seven days from 8.00 a.m. to 8.00 p.m. without any break. Cheque deposit machines have been installed in many cities, so that customers can make payments 24X7 at their convenience. Customers are provided with the facility to make payments by cheque/demand draft to BSNL franchisees all over the country. With a view to simplify and offer customer friendly services, more than one Bfone connections are allowed to be applied on a single application form. Accordingly, a single demand note would be issued to the customer in respect of all the connections applied for. Shifting charges for local as well as all India shifting of fixed telephone (bfone) has been abolished. Majority of the local network is built up on jelly filled and OFC for trouble-free service.
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Methodology and Database

The present paper is descriptive in nature. The data required for the study has been collected from various secondary sources such as journals, official website, books and other literature related to the topic. The paper has been prepared from the details of meetings of higher officials and office records. Data has been collected from different sources and presented in the table for an easy review. Systematic efforts have been made to coordinate several factors and display it under respective heads for the readers to get a quick view of the different retention strategies adopted by BSNL. These strategies are divided into the heads like customer care, service benchmarks, complaint redressal mechanism, publicity of customer redressal mechanism and rights of the customer.

Strategies of BSNL
1. Customer Care BSNL strives to provide uninterrupted

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Internal distribution points are provided in the customer premises to eliminate the faults arising out of overhead wires. Extensive use of Digital Loop Carrier (DLC)/Wireless in Local Loop (WLL) system for improving reliability of external plant. Remote Line Units (RLUs), Remote Subscriber Units (RSUs) being provided extensively to reduce the long lengths of copper cables. Call centers have been established across the nation to provide single window solutions and convenience to customers. Countrywide network management and surveillance system to ensure uninterrupted and efficient flow of telecom traffic has been set up. Procedure for restoration of telephones disconnected due to nonpayment has been simplified and powers delegated to Secondary Switching Area (SSA) heads. Payment of telephone bills being received on Saturday and Sunday through cheques in City Telecom Offices (CTOs). Various application forms and procedures have been simplified for new telephone connections, shifting and third party transfer.

In addition to the above, BSNL has an extensive infrastructure to attend any service-related problem on 198 service whereby the subscriber has only to call local number 198 for booking and no delay rectification of fault. However, toll free numbers are also available for booking the customer problems at the call centers set up for basic telephone, mobile services, broadband and other data services. For further help the contact details such as names and designations of nodal officers of the SSA/circle along with their e-mail, contact telephone numbers, facsimile numbers and address of the nodal officers and the Appellate Authority are also made available. 2. Service Benchmarks BSNL is committed to provide stateof-the-art uninterrupted telecom services to its customers and comply with the quality benchmarks as prescribed by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) or set forth by itself from time to time. Failing these benchmarks, provision exists for rebates as prescribed for various services as following. 2.1 Quality of service benchmarks (including provisions relating to rebate) as admissible to consumers for basic services (wired line) : basic service (wireless) and cellular mobile telephone service, the following benchmarks are prescribed.

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Customer Retention Strategies : The Key to Success and Growth of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd.

2.2 The benchmarks (including provisions relating to rebate) as admissible to consumers for broadband service. The following benchmarks are prescribed :

3. Complaint Redressal Mechanism BSNL ensures prompt rectification of any fault or complaint booked through its extensive grass-root level online Fault

Table-1 : Quality Service Benchmarks of BSNL for Wired Line, Wireless and Cellular Mobile Telephone Services
SI. No. (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) Service Parameter Provision of telephone Fault repair Shift of telephone Closures Percentage of billing complaints resolved within four weeks Time Limit for Service Request or Redressal of Complaint All cases within seven days (subject to technical feasibility) Within three days Within three days Within twenty-four hours All billing complaints to be resolved within four weeks.

Time taken for refund of deposits All cases of refund of deposits to be made within after closure sixty days after closure.

Source : Compiled by the researchers from various publications and the website of BSNL

Table-2 : Quality Services of BSNL for Broadband Services

SI.No. (i) (ii) (iii) Service Parameter Service provisioning/ Activation time Fault repair/Restoration time Billing performance (a) Percentage of billing complaints resolved. (b) Time taken for refund of deposits after closure (a) All billing complaints to be resolved within four weeks. (b) All cases of refund of deposits to be made within sixty days after closure. Time Limit for Service Request or Redressal of Complaint All cases within fifteen days (subject to technical feasibility). Within three days

Source : Compiled by the researchers from various publications and the website of BSNL

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Restoration System (FRS). However, in case the customers problem remains unsolved timely, BSNL has implemented a three-tier consumer grievance redressal mechanism comprising of call centers for various services, nodal officers at SSA and circle level and an Appellate Authority for deciding cases that the consumers may wish to appeal against. This system is in conformance with compliant to telecom consumers Protection and Regulation of Grievances Regulation 2007(3 of 2007). Open house session and telephone adalats are also made available. 3.1 Consumer Grievances Redressal Mechanism (Public Grievances Redressal Mechanism) BSNL has a well-structured and multilayered public grievances redressal mechanism including dispute resolution mechanism. The public redressal set up in BSNL has been introduced right from the corporate office to SSA levels. Subscribers having complaints or grievances are able to interact with the organization for public grievance/ dispute settlements. i) Complaints are booked on 198. This toll free service of booking complaints is available in every telephone system. Grievances are booked on 12727(for Circle Office) or 1095 (for District Office). This
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special toll free service has been introduced by BSNL for booking public grievances; ii) In every office visiting hours are prescribed where the subscribers having complaints or grievances are able to approach the officers of BSNL at various levels; iii) Public grievance officers are available right from Corporate Office to SSA level. The complainant is provided with the opportunity to approach these officers in person or through written complaints or communicate through e-mail or contact on telephones; iv) Special attention is given for holding meetings with consumer organizations; v) Telephones Advisory Committees have been constituted; and vi) Senior Officers are available for public without prior appointment during specified hours on working days. 3.2 Open House Session Complaints/suggestions of general nature as regard to improving the telecom services in the area are discussed in the open house sessions. The basic idea of conducting such open house sessions is to establish direct channels of communications with the customers and also

Customer Retention Strategies : The Key to Success and Growth of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd.

to enable the telecom staff to appreciate and evaluate the customers difficulties and complaints from their point of view. A press notification is issued in leading newspapers to hold the open house session for inviting customers to attend and submit their suggestions/ grievances. Subscribers are invited to a public hall. The session is presided over by senior officers i.e., Area GM/Area Manager. Customers are requested to place general grievances which are recorded. Replies are given on the spot. In few cases, which cannot be settled on the spot a timeframe is given. Efforts are made to settle the case within the given timeframe. Written reply is sent to the customers. 3.3 Telephone Adalats Subscribers whose grievances remained unsettled are invited to make petitions for redressal of their grievances in Telephone adalats. SSA level telephone adalats are conducted on bi-monthly periodicity and circle level telephone adalats are conducted once in three months. Customers are asked to give their grievances in writing with all supporting documents within stipulated period to District Complaint Officer (DCO). The concerned office to which the case relates examines the case received by DCO and settles the case. A speaking order settling the case is communicated

to the customers. For unsettled cases, a date is fixed for holding the telephone adalat. The customers are invited to attend the telephone adalat. The adalat is presided over by the general manager of the area. The concerned officers of the department are also called to be present in the adalat. The full details of the case are presented to the presiding officer. The order of the presiding officer is communicated in the adalat after hearing the arguments from both the parties.

Telecom Consumers Protection and Regulation of Grievances [TRAI Regulation, 2007 (3 of 2007)]
BSNL ensures prompt rectification of any fault or complaint booked through its extensive grass-root level online FRS. However, in case the problem remains unsolved timely, BSNL has implemented a three tier consumer grievance redressal mechanism comprising of call centers for various services, nodal officers at SSA and circle level and an Appellate Authority for deciding cases that the consumers may wish to appeal against. At first call centre on toll free helpline numbers help the customers. 1. Procedure for Handling Grievances by Call Centers The call center, immediately on receipt of a complaint :
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a) Registers the complaint by allotting a unique identification number called the docket number; b) Communicates, at the time of lodging the complaint, the docket number, date and time of registration of the complaint, to the complainant; c) Records details in respect of such complaint; d) Intimates the complainant; i) through telephone or other electronic means or any other means; and ii) within the time limit specified, if the action is taken on complaint; and e) Provides the contact details of the nodal officer (including his name, telephone number and address) in case the complainant is not satisfied with the redressal of the grievance or when requested by him. 2. Redressal of Consumer Grievances by Nodal Officers The complainant may approach, by a letter in writing or through telephone or web-based online filing of complaints or through Short Message Service (SMS) or through other electronic means and any other means, the nodal officer of the concerned SSA of the circle/district for redressal of his grievance. In emergency situation, one can
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approach at the first instance itself a Nodal Officer instead of a call centre and the Nodal Officer shall redress the grievance. Handling of Grievances of Consumers by Nodal Officers The nodal officer shall be accessible to the consumers at the address made available by the public notice and telephone bills. With reference to register the complaint every complainant should be :

Communicated, within three days from the date of the receipt of the complaint, the unique complaint number; After taking the remedial measure for redressal of the grievance or decision thereon, should be intimated, within the time limit specified.

3. Appeal to Appellate Authority for Redressal of Consumer Grievances

In case a consumer is not satisfied with the redressal of his grievance by the nodal officer, or his complaint remains to be redressed or no reply is received within the period of ten days of the registration of the complaint by the nodal officer or three days of the registration of complaint by the nodal officer relating to fault or disruption of service or

Customer Retention Strategies : The Key to Success and Growth of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd.

disconnection such consumer may, in writing, make an appeal to the Appellate Authority of the concerned circle.

(a) At its every office and sales outlets and at every office of the Nodal Officer and the Appellate Authority; (b) At its website for download by consumers. IV. Publicity of the Redressal Mechanism The redressal Mechanism of BSNL has been popularized by : i) Printing the address and telephone numbers of officers in the information pages of the telephone directory as well as by displaying it on the notice boards in customer service centers and exchange buildings. ii) The date of holding of adalats is notified through local newspapers and electronic media. V. Right to Information Customers of BSNL are also provided the Right to Information in pursuance of provisions contained in Section 5(1) and (2) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 and for this the competent authority of BSNL has appointed Central Public Information Officers (CPIOs), Assistant Public Information Officers (APIOs) and Appellate Authority in BSNL corporate office, territorial circles and other functional field units.
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Every appeal to the Appellate Authority under sub-para (1) shall be made in duplicate. Every appeal under sub-para (1) shall be filed within three months after the expiry of the time limit specified i.e., within the period of ten days of the registration of the complaint by the nodal officer or three days of the registration of complaint by the nodal officer relating to fault or disruption of service or disconnection :

Provided that the Appellate Authority may entertain any appeal after the expiry of the said period of three months but before one year from the time limit of ten days of the registration of the complaint by the nodal officer or three days of the registration of complaint by the nodal officer relating to fault or disruption of service or disconnection if it is satisfied that there was sufficient cause for not filing it within that period.

Every telecom circle/telephone district shall make available to the consumer the form of appeal free of charge.

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BSNL has its own mechanism of customer retention and redressal for satisfying all the requirements of its customers very effectively and efficiently. This has to a great extent helped to retain the customers positively in the telecom industry. BSNL has adopted such strategies due to the prominent changes that took place in the recent past. The shift in the attitude and approach of BSNL was partially due to Liberalization, Privatization and Globalization (LPG). The LPG paved a way to the entry of private companies in the field. Technology upgradation and good customer retention strategies turned to be inevitable for existence. BSNL has advanced by attaining higher levels of technical know-how and improved its services to maintain its competitive edge. BSNL has become the numero uno operator of India in all services in its license area. The company offers wide range and most transparent tariff schemes

designed to suit every customer. BSNL cellular service, CellOne, has more than 17.8 million cellular customers, garnering 24 per cent of all mobile users as its subscribers. That means that almost every fourth mobile user in the country has a BSNL connection. In basic services, BSNL is miles ahead of its rivals, with 35.1 million basic phone subscribers i.e., 85 per cent share of the subscriber base and 92 per cent share in revenue terms. It is found that many of the customers switch over from various private telecom companies to BSNL. The company has become successful to serve its customers with its wide bouquet of telecom services, customer care and complaint management system.

Conclusion and Suggestion

Telecom business like other service sector businesses now profess that though they are in business for creating wealth

Table-3 : Competent Authorities at Different Levels

Level Corporate Office Territorial Circles Other Functional Field Units Telecom Districts (SSAs) APIO AGM (RTI) DGM (Admn) DE (Admn) AGM (Admn) CPIO DGM (MIS) GM (Admn) DGM (Admn) DGM (Admn)/ AGM(Admn) Appellate Authority GM (Coordination) CGM concerned CGM concerned in respect of that functional unit GM of the concerned SSA

Source : Compiled by the researchers from various publications and the website of BSNL

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Customer Retention Strategies : The Key to Success and Growth of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd.

through new technology and new business models, they do so through customer satisfaction, customer welfare led customer advocacy. It is understood that BSNL has succeeded to achieve its mission through its various customer retention strategies. When service providers continuously strive to develop error-free processes, customer satisfaction is sure to follow. BSNL one of the biggest telecommunication networks in the world has developed the largest redressal telecommunication mechanism in the world. BSNL has a customer care center to cater the needs of its customers round the clock. There are certain quality service benchmarks to assure customer satisfaction. It ensures prompt rectification of any fault or complaint through its efficient complaint redressal mechanism. Customer grievances are tried to be resolved with simple and quick access procedures. It is a noteworthy fact that BSNL also provides publicity about its customer redressal mechanism. Customers are also made aware of the rights available to them in the Act. Although BSNL is providing a wide range of services to its customers it is found that it needs to be more proactive in identifying the extent of satisfaction of the customers. It should reach out to its customers to enquire whether the complaints have been

resolved. Such customer satisfaction exercises should be repeatedly conducted by specialized agencies outside BSNL. Further many of the customer-related initiatives undertaken by BSNL sometimes do not reach out to customers. This often fails the very purpose of the design of such initiatives. Proper and timely communication of the offers and facilities to the customer may lead to greater customer satisfaction and retention. It is also understood that retention strategies are to be implemented as a regular and continuous process. So it should be available on continuous and relevant basis. It is also suggested that BSNL should look forward for error free services with customer participation. The positive attitude of the employees also has a far reaching effect on customer retention. Further customer communication, customer education and human empathy may be preferred than just customer acquisition. Customer education as a marketing promotion strategy should be thought about. References
Alok Kumar Rai, (2008) Customer Relationship Management : Concepts and Cases, New Delhi : PHI Learning Pvt Ltd. Atul Parvatiyar, & Jagdish N. Sheth, (2001) Customer Relationship Management : Emerging Practice, Process and Discipline, Journal of Economics and Social Research 3(2) 2001, 2002 Preliminary issue, 1-34. 43

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Carman, J. (1990) Consumer Perceptions of Service Quality : An Assessment of the SERVQUAL Dimensions, Journal of Retailing, 66(1), 33-55. Debbie Vermilion, (2002) Improving Customer Satisfaction in the Service Industry using Failure Mode and Effects Analysis Submitted to Prof. Tom Foster on November 18, for OPERMGT 345, 001. Jagdish Sheth, Atul Parvatiyar, & Shainesh, G. (2001) Customer Relationship Management : Emerging Concepts, Tools and Applications, Tata McGraw-Hill Publication : New Delhi.

Mohammed Upal, (2008) Telecommunication Service Gap : Call Center Service Quality Perception and Satisfaction, Communications of the IBIMA, Vol. 3, 18. Rajshekhar (Raj) G. Javalgi, Charles L. Martin, & Robert B. Young, (2006) Marketing Research, Market Orientation and Customer Relationship Management : A Framework and Implications for Service Providers, Journal of Services Marketing, Vol. 20, No. 1, pp. 12-23, India. www.bsnl.ac.in www.trai.gov.in

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