1 Complaints as opportunities Welcome to Complaint Management Excellence. In this first chapter I set out: 01 the social, technological, political and economic factors that are changing customer expectations of the service they experience; how this is impacting on customer satisfaction and the complaints customers make to organizations; why complaints are important to organizations, and the risks associated with handling complaints badly; why best-practice organizations view complaints as an opportunity for improvement. The chapter ends with some questions to help you assess how well your organization views complaints as an opportunity to improve the products and services it provides to customers. increasing customer expectations The number of complaints is on the rise across the globe as customers are no longer prepared to put up with poor service. Undoubtedly businesses in the 21st century are now more focused on the need to deliver an excellent customer experience, yet many do not welcome complaints or encourage their employees to see them as opportunities for improvement. They view complaints as an unnecessary evil rather than an incentive to learn and improve as a business.