Moments of truth: humanising expectation management
This week, we have been making our way around the country for our first Professional Development Day series of 2025.
As we look to explore GREAT Expectation Management, our guest facilitator Jacqui Perkins made the following comment:
Before we were customers, we were human beings.
For me, this was one of those ‘ah ha’ moments that make these events so powerful. This simple idea underpins what it means to create positive moments of truth in business- or our case, in a retirement village. Every interaction shapes how residents feel about their home, their community, their Village Manager, and the operator they’ve entrusted with their ‘final move’.
A.G. Lafley, former CEO of Procter & Gamble, defined moments of truth as those critical touchpoints where customers form lasting impressions.
In the retirement village sector, these moments of truth are also about building trust, belonging, and emotional security for residents.
Lafley would go on to say there were two Moments of Truth, and then later added a third:
- The first Moment of Truth is when the customer is looking at a product. This can be browsing a website to assess an operator or a specific village, or attending site for a first inspection.
- The second Moment of Truth is when the customer actually purchases the product and, in our case, begins their journey of becoming a retirement village resident.
- The third Moment of Truth that he added is when customers provide feedback about the product. They share it with the company as well as their friends, colleagues, family members, etc. Today we call this advocacy, and measure it through the widely used Net Promoter Score.
The Power of Human Connection
Research consistently shows that people don’t remember what you said or what you did as much as they remember how you made them feel (Maya Angelou).
In joining us around the country, Jacqui has been sharing an important message at DCM Institute’s professional development days: great service starts with the internal customer being aligned to better serve the external customer.
When staff respect and support each other (internal customer), it directly impacts how residents experience their community (external customer).
A culture of internal service excellence translates into warm, genuine, and personalised experiences for residents.
Moments That Matter
To create meaningful moments of truth, operators must move beyond seeing residents as numbers or contract holders. Instead, they should ask:
- How does this moment make the resident feel?
- Are we treating them as a valued individual or just processing another task?
- Are we making their journey—whether it’s moving in, requesting maintenance, or attending an event—easy, enjoyable, and human-centered?
Over the course of the event, we are reminded that operators can identify opportunities to infuse warmth, empathy, and care into every touchpoint. Moments of truth aren’t just about customer service, they are about human connection and understanding.
Expectation management isn’t simply about great service, and it certainly isn’t a transaction, it’s a relationship built on these moment of truth.
Expectation management isn’t simply about great service, and it certainly isn’t a transaction, it’s a relationship built on these moment of truth. Something to consider, and for us to continue to discuss around the country as we make our way to Brisbane and Melbourne next week, before finishing in Sydney on two dates – the 5th and 6th March.
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