Managing Director of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Mr Oluwaseun Faleye, has charged staff of the Fund to sustain a culture of empathy, collaboration and excellent service delivery, saying going the extra mile would give the organisation an extra edge in public perception.
Faleye gave the charge on Tuesday in Abuja while flagging off the 2026 Customer Service Week celebration at the Fund’s headquarters.
According to him, the theme of this year’s celebration, “Go The Extra Mile,” should not be regarded as a one-week slogan but as a permanent work ethic for all departments of the Fund.
“As the theme says, we go the extra mile. I urge us this week, this month and of course going forward to go the extra mile for not only ourselves internally as we collaborate to make our service to our customers out there exemplary, but also to the outside world to leave a great perception of the Fund,” the MD said.
He noted that sustained excellent service will shape how Nigerians perceive and experience the NSITF, while also giving staff personal satisfaction from doing their best for the public.
“Going the extra mile will give us the extra edge. The extra edge in terms of how people perceive us, the extra edge in terms of how people experience NSITF and of course the extra edge in terms of personal satisfaction knowing that you are doing your best for people,” Faleye stated.
The NSITF boss described the Fund’s mandate as sensitive and paternal in nature, stressing that it demands empathy and understanding when dealing with injured workers, employers and dependants.
“You know, the sort of service that we deliver is very important and sometimes quite paternal in nature. And it means that we must show empathy, we must show sensitivity and understanding when we deal with people,” he said.
He further cautioned staff against treating Customer Service Week as a ceremonial event, urging them to use it as a period of reflection on how little habits and efforts can galvanise collective success.
“I don’t want us to just use the moment, the week, the month as a customer service oriented period and afterwards go back to our usual status. I want us to keep that momentum, sustain that momentum going forward because it is through a sustained and enhanced customer service delivery that we can be better,” he stressed.
Faleye emphasized internal collaboration as the foundation for external service excellence, noting that every department is a customer to the other.
“I don’t want you to see this customer service as an external facing matter. Inspection and audit, compliance, claims departments, we are all customers to each other in providing service to the ultimate customer out there.
“So how you treat your colleague from another department that has come to ask for something that will impact how the customer out there sees us,” he explained.
While acknowledging that many staff deliver their best under difficult circumstances, the Managing Director assured that management will continue to provide a conducive environment and necessary tools for more efficient service delivery.
“We will continue to evolve. We will continue to provide the necessary tools for you to do those things in a much more efficient manner,” he assured.
Faleye expressed satisfaction that public perception of the NSITF has improved in the last one to two years, adding that with consistent extra-mile service, the Fund will achieve more.
“I am glad to say that in the last couple of months, in the last year or two, we’ve seen an increase in the better perception of what we can do, how we can do better and we will do better. So with an extra mile, we will get there,” he added.
He thanked staff for their dedication and wished them a resounding Customer Service Week, Month and Year.
As part of the celebrations to mark the 2026 Customer Service Week, NSITF has schedules a cultural day on Wednesday October 14th, 2026 as well as the the MD Football Cup match on Thursday 15th October.
Customer Service Week is a global event celebrated in the first full week of October annually to raise awareness of customer service and recognize the vital role of customer service professionals.
In 1992, the United States Congress, through a joint resolution, proclaimed Customer Service Week a national event. Since then, it has been adopted in over 60 countries, including Nigeria, with businesses and public sector organisations using it to appreciate frontline staff, reaffirm service commitments and deepen customer loyalty.
This year’s global theme, “The Extra Mile – Going Above and Beyond,” encourages organizations to exceed expectations and deliver proactive, personalized service.
For the NSITF, the week is more than ceremonial. Established by law to manage the Employees’ Compensation Scheme, ECS, under the Employees’ Compensation Act, 2010. The Fund is Nigeria’s apex social insurance institution providing comprehensive compensation to employees who suffer work-related injuries, diseases, disabilities or death in the course of employment.
Its customers range from Nigerian workers and employers in both public and private sectors, to labour unions, dependents of deceased workers, and other stakeholders in the occupational safety and health ecosystem.
