Customer Service Strategy. Adelaide City Council. Contents

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3 Contents Introduction...2 Our Vision...3 Strategy Structure...4 Principle One...6 Strategic Directions...7 Key Actions...7 Principle Two...8 Strategic Directions...8 Key Actions...9 Principle Three Strategic Directions Key Actions Principle Four Strategic Directions Key Actions Principle Five Strategic Directions Key Actions Measuring Progress Resources

4 INTRODUCTION The outlines the key strategies and actions the Corporation will take to help achieve the vision of The Corporation Plan , One City, One Team aspiration of becoming a Brilliant Service Provider. The Corporation Plan highlights becoming a Brilliant Service Provider as key in working with Council and Community to become One Team. Traditionally customer service in local government has principally been provided reactively. Customers of Local Government don t always have the choice in dealing with their Council and this increases the expectations they have. Adelaide City Council is leading a shift in the perception of the importance of customer. At Adelaide City Council we realise in order to create a great city, and a great Council, we need to work with our community and our customers. The creation of a is part of a wider ongoing program of projects to help reach our vision of being a Brilliant Service Provider. The key actions under each Customer Service principle will expand on some of these projects. The Strategy brings together these projects to create a comprehensive plan on how Adelaide City Council will improve our service to our customers. This Strategy has been created in consultation with our customers, our staff, our Executive Leadership group, and our Councillors through surveys (face-to-face and telephone), online feedback (Your Say website), and workshops. The consultation has been integral in determining what is important to our customers when it comes to customer service, and to our staff in being able to determine the current barriers to delivering brilliant customer service. The consultation has informed five guiding principles that will act as benchmarks for the Corporation in delivering service. The internal consultation was also helpful in understanding the barriers staff felt stopped them from delivering brilliant customer service. 2

5 CORPORATION PLAN VISION Council supports the community to come up with ideas, plans and solutions. The Corporation helps Council to make decisions and supports the community to get involved. Community is involved in decision-making and works in partnership with Council to take up new opportunities, taking the lead where it can. CORPORATION PLAN GUIDING PRINCIPLES Our Focus Our Service Our Openness Our Approach Our Stewardship Our Sustainability we develop place-based and community-specific plans, which mesh with city-wide policies and strategies. we listen to our community, understand its expectations and deliver services that respond to its needs. we value and facilitate community involvement in what we do, which includes making information about our policies, plans and decisions easy to access. we work with our community to build capacity, entrepreneurship and innovation to achieve positive outcomes for the community and the city as a whole. we ensure all expenditure and the management of assets provides value for money and grows community wealth now and into the future. we ensure our actions do not compromise the ability of future generations CUSTOMER SERVICE POLICY CUSTOMER SERVICE PRINCIPLES We deliver consistent customer service with integrity, accountability and common sense service our customers want to tell their friends and family about We go above and beyond for our customers by encouraging & empowering our staff to take ownership and deliver positive outcomes We provide up-to-date information and efficient processes, continually striving for improvement and innovative solutions We proactively engage our customers in developing services that respond to their needs, and seek feedback on our delivery of those services We provide quality choices that are inclusive for all members of the community, that offer easy access to our services and are explained in simple, easy to understand language 3

6 Strategy Structure Customer service principle Customer Service Principle We deliver consistent customer service with integrity, accountability and common sense - service that our customers want to tell their friends and family about We go above and beyond for our customers by encouraging & empowering our staff to take ownership and deliver positive outcomes Strategic Directions Strategies Key Actions Provide consistent customer service across all of the Corporation Treat each customer as an individual Promote the values and ethics inherent to the culture of the Corporation Use every customer service opportunity to create positive customer experiences our customers will remember and tell others about Provide customer service training to all Corporation staff Encourage staff to take a flexible approach to solving customer issues Recognise customers as individuals with individual circumstances Provide platforms to enable customers to tell others about experiences with ACC Support the management team to promote and support staff to uphold accountability and integrity as values integral to providing brilliant customer service Help our customers understand the service they can expect from the ACC and what options they have if they feel we have not met these expectations Training across ACC in our Customer Service Ethos Training across ACC in Customer Service skills Social Media for Customer Service Customer Charter Our staff have the right tools and resources to do their jobs We provide our staff with the right decision making tools We encourage our staff to spend time with our customers More regular feedback from staff to determine whether they feel supported and aptly skilled to service our customers Use historical data and information to ensure we are adequately resourced to service our customers Regularly check the levels of delegation afforded to staff through policies and procedures enable them to provide positive customer experiences Monitor the quality of customer interactions and coach staff to improve service. Focus on the quality of the customer service the Corporation provides Provide standards for each service provided and implement business analytics to assist in measuring and monitoring performance against those standards. Measure annually on how we perform against those standards Manage customer expectations by providing timeframes to our customers per interaction based on the prescribed standards Your Voice survey Resourcing software project Policy reviews Quality Assurance Program Customer Service Delivery standards Timeframes Management Support 4

7 We provide up-to-date information and efficient processes, continually striving for improvement and innovative solutions We proactively engage our customers in developing services that respond to their needs, and seek feedback on our delivery of those services We provide quality choices that are inclusive for all members of the community, that offer easy access to our services and are explained in simple, easy to understand language We aim to be best practice in customer service We identify opportunities to improve processes and information and we act on them We are innovative in our approach to customer service We ask our customers what services they want We include our customers in building services We ask out customers how we are performing We are proactive in finding opportunities for improvement We take a multi-channel approach to customer service We ensure the choices and services we provide are of high quality Our services are inclusive to all sectors of the community We value exceptional communication skills Update the external websites regularly to ensure the most recent information is available Update internal websites to ensure staff have access to the most recent information Ensure our processes and procedures are built with customer at front of mind Take every customer experience as an opportunity to improve services and processes Regularly seek feedback from our customers across the whole corporation on our customer service performance Create action plans based on feedback received Consult with our customers about our services and processes Take every customer experience as an opportunity to ask customers how we can improve services and processes Publish a yearly report card against our performance based on customer feedback Offer quality and convenient choices to our customers that are tailored to their level of service Proactively ensure all sectors of our community can interact with us regardless of age, gender, cultural background, or ability Ensure exceptional communication skills are promoted across the organisation Internal staff tools External website Customer checklists Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system Online services Customer Journey Mapping Customer Satisfaction Monitoring Complaint valuing Reporting our performance Publish documentation in other languages Use internal resources Multi-channel project Accessible facilities and services Cultural and ability awareness training Communication training Communication standards 5

8 Our response Principle one We deliver consistent customer service with integrity, accountability and common sense service that our customers want to tell their friends and family about Customers have told us customer service with accountability and integrity is important to them. They want to feel like a valued member of the community and they want us to deal with them openly and honestly, and with transparency. Being open with our customers and community is a key aim outlined in the Corporation Plans Guiding Principle, and is fundamental to building trusted relationships with our customers. Flexibility, tailored service, fairness, and advocacy are some of the words customers used when we asked them what is important to them. Customers are asking us to take each situation as different and individual, and to treat them as individuals. This means taking a common sense approach to each customer situation to get the customer the right outcome without compromising our stewardship of Council s policies, vision or purpose. We want to create services our customers will tell others about. We want to build relationships with our customers; strong relationships where our customers talk to us and we work together to reach outcomes if problems arise. We want these relationships to be long lasting and beneficial to both parties. We want these relationships to help us build a great city. 6

9 Strategic Directions Provide consistent customer service across the entire Corporation Treat each customer as an individual Promote the values and ethics inherent to the culture of the Corporation Use every customer service opportunity to create positive customer experiences our customers will remember and tell others about Strategies Contribution of Strategy to the Strategic Direction Provide consistent customer service across all of the Corporation Treat each customer as an individual Promote the values and ethics inherent to the culture of the Corporation Use every customer service opportunity to create positive customer experiences that our customers will remember and tell others about Provide customer service training to all Corporation staff Encourage staff to take a flexible approach to solving customer issues Recognise customers as individuals with individual circumstances Provide platforms to enable customers to tell others about experiences with ACC Support the management team to promote and support staff to uphold accountability and integrity as values integral to providing brilliant customer service Help our customers understand the service they can expect from the ACC and what options they have if they feel we have not met these expectations Key Actions Training across ACC in our customer service ethos We will work to ensure all staff across the Corporation understand what being a Brilliant Service Provider means to us, and what it means to them in their everyday working lives Training across ACC in customer service skills We will work with the People and Culture Program to ensure all ACC staff receive training focusing on best practice customer service skills Social media for Customer Service Led by our Marketing and Creative Services team, we will develop a comprehensive Social Media strategy that will help us be best practice in Customer Service in the Social Media realm Customer Charter We will develop a Customer Charter that will outline our customer service ethos for our customers, and will explain in plain language what our customers can expect from us, and what options are available to them if they feel those expectations haven t been met 7

10 Our response Principle TWO We go above and beyond for our customers by encouraging and empowering our staff to take ownership and deliver positive outcomes Resolution is important to our customers and our staff. Customers have told us they want to speak to the right person the first time to get their outcome. They want us to take ownership of their issues, or enquiries, and work together to reach an outcome. Staff have told us they want to ensure they have the right training, resources, and time to get the best outcome for our customers. Staff have highlighted the importance of going above and beyond to get customer resolutions. This means making sure our people have the right authority, and the right tools, to make decisions on the front line. Research suggests staff who are more satisfied in their jobs give superior customer service we aim for staff satisfaction by ensuring they have the right skills and tools to perform their jobs, the right support from management to do their jobs to the highest possible level. We want to check in with our staff regularly to ensure they have what they need to provide brilliant customer service. Strategic Directions Our staff have the right tools and resources to do their jobs We provide our staff with the right decision making tools We encourage our staff to spend time with our customers 8

11 Strategies Contribution of Strategy to the Strategic Direction More regular feedback from staff to determine whether they feel supported and aptly skilled to service our customers Use historical data and information to ensure we are adequately resourced to service our customers Regularly check the levels of delegation afforded to staff through policies and procedures enable them to provide positive customer experiences Monitor the quality of customer interactions and coach staff to improve service. Focus on the quality of the customer service the Corporation provides Provide standards for each service provided and implement business analytics to assist in measuring and monitoring performance against those standards. Measure annually on how we perform against those standards Manage customer expectations by providing timeframes to our customers per interaction based on the prescribed standards Our staff have the right tools and resources to do their jobs We provide our staff with the right decision making tools We encourage our staff to spend time with our customers Key Actions Your Voice survey We will ensure our annual Your Voice staff survey provides the opportunity for staff to tell us if they are feeling supported to deliver Brilliant Service. Resource planning We will develop a resource planning program to support the Corporation to ensure we are using best practice to resource our staff, whilst still providing the best possible service. Policy reviews We will review policies to ensure delegations within are still appropriate, and aimed at giving our customers the best experience we can give. Quality Assurance Program We will develop a Quality program for implementation across the Corporation to ensure customer service in all areas is being monitored and improved. Customer Service Delivery standards We will determine all of our customer service delivery standards and capture them in one place. We will report on our performance against these delivery standards and make that information available to the general public. Timeframes We will provide our customers with realistic timeframes when they ask us to do something. We will have a common understanding of what realistic means. Management support We will ensure our management team is best positioned to be able to support their staff in delivering Brilliant Service, whether through training, resourcing support, or quality tools. Managers will have accountability via specific outcome based key performance indicators. 9

12 Our response Principle Three We provide up-to-date information and efficient processes, continually striving for improvement and innovative solutions Customers have told us we need to evolve to be the best. Customers have told us we need to be proactive - making sure our processes are easy to navigate, our information is correct and up-to-date, and we are easy to interact with. We will be dedicated to continually reviewing and improving our services. This means making a dedicated effort to ensure we are current, we are convenient, and we are accessible as an organisation. We will take an innovative approach to our customer service. Customers have told us they want us to use technology to make our services more accessible and convenient to them. Customers want to be able to access our services on their own terms; they don t want to be limited to one service option. Customers have told us they want to have a choice in how they interact with us and we have found that customers have different preferences and ideas on what is convenient and accessible some customers prefer to call and speak with us, whilst other customers prefer to interact with us online. We want to be the best when it comes to customer service. Whilst this is about improving services and ensuring our staff are supported to give their best, it is also about keeping up-to-date with new customer service platforms. It is important to us that our customers have a choice with how they interact with us. This means keeping up to date with what is best practice in customer service what are other organisations doing not only in Local Government, but all leading customer service organisations. We want to benchmark ourselves against the best locally, nationally and internationally. 10

13 Strategic Directions We aim to be best practice in customer service We identify opportunities to improve processes and information and we act on them We are innovative in our approach to customer service Strategies Contribution of Strategy to the Strategic Direction We aim to be best practice in customer service We identify opportunities to improve processes and information and we act on them We are innovative in our approach to customer service Update the external websites regularly to ensure the most recent information is available Update internal websites to ensure staff have access to the most recent information Ensure our processes and procedures are built with customer at front of mind Take every customer experience as an opportunity to improve services and processes Key Actions Internal staff tools We will work on making our internal staff tools relevant and efficient. External website We will support our Marketing and Creative Services program to ensure our website is user friendly and up-to-date. Customer checklists We will create customer checklists to help guide all staff when developing or reviewing policies, guidelines, processes or procedures. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system We will partner with our ICT program to deliver a CRM System that will change the way we deliver service. We will use the CRM System to proactively service our customers. Online services We will partner with our ICT program to ensure the services we deliver to customers online are services they want. We will move more services online. 11

14 Our Response Principle Four We proactively engage our customers in developing services that respond to their needs, and seek feedback on our delivery of those services Customers have told us they want us to be focused on them. Customers want tailored service. They want a say in how we perform our current services and how we build our future services. Feedback is an important part of service provision to both our customers and our staff. We will ensure customers are given a voice, an opportunity to give feedback across all areas. Customers should find it easy to provide feedback of any kind to us. It is important we review, improve and build services with customers input. Not only does it create valued relationships with our customers, it helps us be efficient and deliver value for money if we can get things right for our customers the first time, it gives us more time and resources to dedicate to finding new value for customers. Talking to our customers is the best way we can truly find out whether the service we provide is meeting expectations. We will be proactive in providing brilliant service. 12

15 Strategic Directions Provide consistent customer service across the entire Corporation Treat each customer as an individual Promote the values and ethics inherent to the culture of the Corporation Use every customer service opportunity to create positive customer experiences our customers will remember and tell others about Strategies Contribution of Strategy to the Strategic Direction We ask our customers what services they want We include our customers in building services We ask our customers how we are performing We are proactive in finding opportunities for improvement Regularly seek feedback from our customers across the whole corporation on our customer service performance Create action plans based on feedback received Consult with our customers about our services and processes Take every customer experience as an opportunity to ask customers how we can improve services and processes Publish a yearly report card against our performance based on customer feedback Key Actions Customer Journey Mapping We will continue to use Customer Journey Mapping to gain feedback from our customers on how we can improve current services. Customer Satisfaction Monitoring We will continue to use Customer Satisfaction Monitoring. We will enhance our current program to ensure it is being used across the Corporation, and ensure we are using the results to make real change for our customers. Complaint valuing We will continue to value the complaints we receive from our customers as important feedback on our performance. We will use complaint reporting across the organisation to guide us to identify the best areas we can make improvements for our customers. Reporting our performance We will report our performance in the Annual Report and include our customer service monitoring results, the number and type of complaints we received, and our performance against our established Customer service delivery standards. 13

16 Our response Principle Five We provide quality choices that are inclusive for all members of the community, that offer easy access to our services and are explained in simple, easy to understand language One of the most common themes to come out of our consultation with our customers was that our service needs to be available, accessible and convenient. Customers want choice in how they deal with us. It is important that the choices we provide are of high quality, add value, and make it easier for our customers to interact with us. Customers want us to find new ways to deliver service to keep up with their busy lives. We value their time and want to help them make the most of it. Providing convenient and accessible service is also about ensuring we are inclusive to the whole community. We are proud our community is made up of such a diverse range of people from different backgrounds, with different life experiences. We want to ensure all of our community knows how to contact us, and what to expect when they do. We want to ensure we are spending time with the people in our community who need a bit of extra help, and recognise sometimes our processes and services don t suit everyone. Customers have told us they don t always understand decisions we make, or policies and processes we enact. We believe it s vital we communicate effectively with our customers. Sometimes we have to make decisions based on legislation or policy and we want to be able to explain to our customers, in plain English, the reasons behind those decisions. We want good communication to form the foundation of our brilliant service we want to have conversations with our customers. 14

17 Strategic Directions We take a multi-channel approach to customer service We ensure the choices and services we provide are of high quality Our services are inclusive to all sectors of our community We value exceptional communication skills Strategies Contribution of Strategy to the Strategic Direction We take a multichannel approach to customer service We ensure the choices and services we provide are of high quality Our services are inclusive to all sectors of our community We value exceptional communication skills Offer quality and convenient choices to our customers that are tailored to their level of service Proactively ensure all sectors of our community can interact with us regardless of age, gender, cultural background, or ability Ensure exceptional communication skills are promoted across the organisation Key Actions Publish documentation in other languages We will ensure our publications (in particular our Customer Charter), are available to customers in other languages. Use internal resources We will ensure we have a register of staff who can communicate with our customers in their native language to make it easier for them to communicate with us. Multi-Channel project We will continue with our Multi-Channel project to ensure customers can contact us using their preferred method. We will ensure our various channels are of the highest quality and are helping customers receive the service they need. Facilities and Services access We will work with the City Community Program to ensure our facilities and our services are accessible to the community. Cultural and Ability awareness training We will work with the People and Culture Program, and the City Community Program to ensure our staff are in the best position to provide Brilliant Service to all sectors of our community. Training on communication We will ensure staff receive regular training to ensure their communication skills continue to be exceptional. Standards on communication We will develop standards for communicating with ACC and ensure we hold ourselves accountable to those standards. 15

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19 Measuring progress Principle Key Performance Indicators We deliver consistent customer service with integrity, accountability and common sense service that our customers want to tell their friends and family about We go above and beyond for our customers by encouraging and empowering our staff to take ownership and deliver positive outcomes We provide up-to-date information and efficient processes, continually striving for improvement and innovative solutions We proactively engage our customers in developing services that respond to their needs, and seek feedback on our delivery of those services We provide quality choices and easy access to our services, explained in simple, easy to understand language Our Customer Service Metrics benchmark favourably against other organisations Our Customer Charter is readily available in hard and soft copy to our customers Customer Service training is delivered to every ACC staff member, volunteer and Councillor Staff indicate through our annual staff survey that they feel empowered First Contact Resolution Service Level Attainment Lead indicator developed to measure first customer contact Resourcing planning project completed and resourcing rules applied across the Corporation Website satisfaction score increases Quality Assurance Program established and implemented across the Corporation to ensure consistency Customer Relationship Management project completed and customer information held in one system Customer Satisfaction monitoring is established across the organisation Customer Satisfaction Monitoring scores are measured and monitored Complaint Handling reporting has visibility at Executive Leadership Group and is made available to wider public Internal and external communication standards developed Disability/cultural awareness training developed for ACC staff New customer service channels are implemented Customer Charter developed in languages other than English Ease of Doing Business score improves 17

20 RESOURCES The was developed in conjunction with customer consultation, and staff, Councillor and Executive Leadership Group workshops. The references the Customer Service Policy, which is a legislative requirement under the Local Government Act 1999, Section

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