Customer service is the lifeblood of any good business, and certainly ours at the library. We're here for the customers; we want them to come back. If they don't, there's not much point in us being here. And we're always looking for ways to improve ourselves by taking cues from companies whose service records are impeccable.

One such company is Zingerman's Delicatessen in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Zingerman's is renowned for serving up "service" as good as the food, and stands as a lesson to us all. Co-founder Ari Weinzweig outlines the key to the deli's success in Zingerman's Guide to Giving Great Service: Treating Your Customers Like Royalty, found in the Business section of the library. Weinzweig covers a lot of ground, but let's focus on one topic for now: the need for breaking rules:

"Policies adhered to for the sake of rule-following frequently punish innocent customers who weren't up to speed on our systems. So while we certainly want our staff to adhere to our 'rules', we also want them to think for themselves... and to understand and act on the reality that sometimes we have to break the rules or ignore the systems in the interest of taking care of our customers." (Zingerman's Guide to Giving Great Service, p 83)

This is important but difficult wisdom. Some employees dislike ambiguity and take great security in rules. But while rules are important as general guidelines, they can also be stumbling blocks to "doing the right thing" for a troubled customer.

We try to be flexible here at the library, though I doubt we're as successful as Zingerman's in "just saying yes!" to customers (p 84). Some things are non-negotiable (if you don't live, work, own property, or attend school in Nashua, for example, you won't get a free library card). And if you exploit our flexibility too often (such as with overdue fines), chances are this will catch up to you. But we're not here to enforce rules just for rules' sake. We accommodate people when possible. And if you think a rule punishes you unreasonably or doesn't make sense, we'd like to hear why.

Zingerman's code of service stands opposite that of the legendary Soup Nazi (the Manhattan cook who rigorously enforced rules, yelled at customers who couldn't keep up with them -- sometimes even threw them out -- and inspired the famous Seinfeld episode). Come to think of it, one of my junior high school librarians was a lot like the Soup Nazi. But libraries don't need a militant stewardship. We're here to serve, not antagonize. We may not be as good as Zingerman's, but theirs is a commendable ideal to strive for.

The short of it is that while we don't break rules on a whim, we are reasonable and willing to work with customers for the sake of good will. That is, after all, what public service is about.