Customer Service Strategy 2016-2020 - Microsoft. Introduction Doncaster Council’s last Customer Service Strategy – ‘Putting Our Customers First’ was agreed in September 2010

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Customer Service Strategy2016-2020

www.doncaster.gov.uk/customerservice

1. Introduction

Doncaster Council’s last Customer Service Strategy – ‘Putting Our Customers First’ was agreed in September 2010 and was the first ever real strategy on the subject for the whole organisation. It was developed to deal with the following key issues through the delivery of five significant programmes of work:

� Customers were continually being passed around; � Much customer contact was not recorded or performance managed; � Inconsistent procedures and availability of information; � Channels to access services were not fully developed; � The required technology was not in place; � Access points were not value for money; and � Many staff answered queries for their own service only.

This strategy documents how this work has progressed to build very positive customer service foundations including Service Mark accreditation and 90.8% customer satisfaction rating from the Institute of Customer Service and demonstrates how the quality of customer service delivered by Doncaster Council has improved significantly and therefore the experience of our customers. That said, as the Council continues to improve on its path from good to great, it also recognises there are still further improvements required including as some informed by our customers when consulted to provide the people of Doncaster with the excellent service they deserve from Doncaster Council. Also, not forgetting the whole of Team Doncaster made up of all the key public sector partners charged with serving Doncaster’s people and place who also contribute to many of the services delivered.

2. National & Local Context

In January 2015, the UK Customer Service Institute revealed a fourth national consecutive fall in customer satisfaction. Customers are now, on average, less satisfied with the service they receive than at any point since July 2010. This suggests that organisations in the UK are not keeping up with customers’ increasing expectations of service. Younger people are considerably less satisfied as customers, but where they are satisfied they are more likely to make a recommendation, underlining the importance of understanding the needs and satisfaction levels of different customer groups. These are our next generation of customers.

This downward trend in customer satisfaction is due to a combination of factors, shifts in customer expectations, preferences and behaviour – some organisations have not focused sufficiently on their customer service strategy and delivery. Customers’ expectations have evolved rapidly, leading to an ever-growing desire for convenience, speed and value. Moreover customers expect their service experience to be more personalised than before.

Customer relationships are obviously critical for our organisation because that is why we exist and as a local authority, we deliver a high level of diverse and complex services making improvement an even more challenging quest. However, organisations that put customer service at the heart of what they do and collaborate to deliver a united customer face and excellent beginning to end experience are the most successful and have the best reputation. The challenges Doncaster Council and the public sector face in particular in achieving this include:

� Rising customer expectations and demand; � Budget pressures; � Transforming traditional services into modern digital offers; � Maintaining some traditional methods as well as modern so no-one is

excluded; and � Changing the traditional local government culture of staff focused on

procedure to a more modern can-do quickly within boundaries culture. This Strategy interfaces with and should also be read in conjunction with Doncaster Council’s Digital Strategy ‘Don’t Wait in Line, Get On-Line’, Communication & Engagement Strategy, ICT Strategy and People Strategy. It is also a key deliverable to contribute to delivering the Borough Strategy and Council’s Corporate plan, in particular improving customer and business interaction to deliver value for money services. 3. Vision

A vision or purpose is only effective if the people working towards it are on board with it and it inspires them to achieve it. All Doncaster Council Customer Services staff were asked to propose a vision statement and the following was agreed which they own and work hard to achieve every day.

‘Customers are our business and define our success’.

That said, to predict how Doncaster Council’s customer service needs to look moving forward, we need to be clear about how we want it to look and feel like in the future. Therefore, for the purpose of this strategy, the following vision has been used.

� A high percentage of Doncaster’s residents will know about and access appropriate Council services and information on-line via one fully transactional Council website and apps where appropriate via smartphone, tablet, laptop, computer or smart TV.

� Less residents will use more traditional channels such as visiting a reception or phoning us but when they do, they will receive a high quality, value for money, personalised and proactive service.

� Our customers will only need to tell us something once and we will know more about what our customers need using the intelligence they have already provided to us.

� We will only send or request letters or paper documents unless absolutely necessary and phase out other channels that are not as effective and value for money.

� All Council staff will operate digitally using modern technology with efficient automated and streamlined business processes and information at their fingertips.

� All Councillors will have technology to enable them to deliver excellent customer service when approached with the ability to request services, check progress and be aware of what has been reported and resolved in their ward.

� Doncaster Council will present itself as one when offering services wherever possible and always aim to deliver what and when we promise.

4. Consultation

To ensure this strategy represents the views of the people of Doncaster and how they feel we need to improve, a survey was made available via the Council website, one-stop-shop, telephone and paper in libraries from 1st September, 2015 to 6th November 2015, a copy of which is included in Appendix 1. The main views sought were:

� How they access services from us now; � How they would prefer to access services; � A rating of the quality of customer service they experienced; � If they knew about the Council website and mobile app and currently use

them; � If they would access services on-line if they were all available; � If they would be willing to receive digital documents instead of paper; and � If they would use their own secure on-line account to access and manage

their services.

507 customers responded and the main views expressed in the survey to inform improvement and therefore incorporated within this strategy were:

� 42% of people did not know about the council website. � 58% of people did not know about the mobile app. � 62% would use on-line services if all available via the website. � 71% would use their own secure area to access personal information and

services; and � 71% would receive digital documents instead of paper.

In addition to this and to reinforce how we have improved significantly, the following:

� The standard of customer service manner, helpfulness, knowledge and professionalism – 48% excellent, 36% good, 11% average and 5% poor.

� In terms of when and how the service was delivered – 41% excellent, 36% good, 14% average and 9% poor.

The detail is included in Appendix 2.

5. Review Of Progress – ‘Putting Our Customers First’

The previous Customer Service Strategy proposed the delivery of five significant programmes of work, the following is a high level summary of what it was like before the last strategy was delivered and how it is now.

5.1 Fully Developed and Efficient Access Channels

Before Now There were numerous town centre receptions with different service offers – Council House had 3 – Social Care, Licensing and General. Danum House for planning and related services. Colonnades for council tax, benefits and related services. Mansion House for general issues. Copley House for elections and legal issues. Our customers were often confused about who they needed to contact or where they needed to visit. The Council was not using its resources efficiently trying to deliver services across so many points of access. When surveyed, our customers expressed poor satisfaction with the way in which they were responded to by the Council as a whole. Our access channels had grown organically over time rather than being fully developed authority wide. The Council’s main website was unstructured with little self-service functionality and there were about 28 websites in total. Contacting the Council by telephone was the preferred method of contact, however there were two pages of phone numbers advertised. Some enquiries were dealt with by a call centre whilst others were

The Institute of Customer Service independent customer satisfaction survey returned a Customer Satisfaction score of 90.8% which is rated excellent. Re-defined the way the organisation is structured by creating an integrated front office so the council is seen as one entity for many services. A new modern one-stop-shop offering the full portfolio of council services in one place with professional staff, improved processes and technology. A new main mobile friendly council website with enhanced 24/7 online access to services with increased self-service transactional ability enabling online reporting of faults, requesting services, applying for services, making payments and appointment booking. So far in 2015, 60% of website searches have come from a mobile device. Only a couple of separate websites for good reason. Only one telephone number advertised for general enquiries to Doncaster Council - 01302 736000 and an automated switchboard facility, enhancing our customers experience. An improved telephone call management solution which includes blended access channels to enable us to more

answered directly by service specialists. The main email address for the Council was [email protected] however there were numerous email addresses used across the Council, resulting in inconsistencies in response times and standards of responses. Face to face Council services were delivered at numerous reception points across the town centre and customers had to walk across town if they wanted to access more than one service. Other access channels were yet to be adopted by the Council such as the mobile app and social media.

proactively monitor, manage and report telephone calls and emails. Effectively managed peaks and troughs of customer contact across all access channels with customer service advisors moving between one-stop-shop, telephone contact centre, emails and social media according to demand. A Council text number - 71006 is now available. Customers can now use their iPhone or Android smartphone to use our MyDoncaster mobile phone App. The app lets customers report issues to us on a wide range of council services. They can take a photograph if they wish and mapping is used to accurately map the issue. Reports go directly to an officer via a mobile device without the need for an advisor to manually log the report.

A social media channel is now available allowing us to reach a wider audience, share and exchange information with a virtual customer community.

5.2 The Redesign of Business processes Around the Needs of our Customers Eliminating All Waste.

Before Now Most of the Council’s business processes had evolved over time principally informed by legislation, shaped to suit specific service areas and meet national and local targets with not enough thought of the experience of our customers. Many services were working in silos when planning how to deliver their services even when processes may only provide part of a service to be delivered to a customer. Retaining ownership of an enquiry across different services with comprehensive performance management was not

Many redesigned processes from beginning to end to:

� improve customer experience; � remove unnecessary tasks; � remove bureaucracy; � reduce the cost; and � speed up service delivery.

Introduction of many self-service processes for customers to use 24/7 on the new website and mobile app. Current total is approximately 160 and hundreds more to implement. Automated processes so self-service requests are routed and scheduled

always in place. Front line staff could only make promises to customers for delivery of some services. There was no guarantee or information for when others may be delivered or in lots of cases that a service had been delivered. Many inefficient manual processes with lots of checking.

straight to a council officer in the right area of the borough using a mobile device to deliver the service and update once completed. Some processes totally removed. Significant amount of budget saved due to lower resource requirements.. Residents Group who road-test the new processes.

5.3 Specification and Implementation of a Technical Infrastructure That Delivers the Capability Required.

Before Now The Council’s ability to resolve enquiries and transact services was extremely restricted due to the lack of investment in appropriate technology. Service areas were using many different systems with no over-arching customer database. Customer information was fragmented and not available in the one place impacting on our customers’ experience. Limited pilot implementation of a Customer Relationship Management System to record and monitor customer contact. Limited implementation of a telephone call management solution. A non-transactional website that was not easy to use, to find information and did not have the ability to transact. Limited use of electronic document management. No way of efficiently routing and scheduling work to council officers out in the borough delivering services.

A full Customer Relationship Management (CRM) System with the ability to record, route and track customer contact. A new fully transactional website integrated with the CRM system. A transactional mobile app integrated with the CRM system. A scheduling tool that schedules work in council officer appointment diaries routed from the CRM system. Mobile devices with software so officers can receive the scheduled work and update when completed. A more sophisticated call centre solution that manages phone calls and emails and calculates resources required in line with customer demand. The development of a single customer record that sits behind the scenes to ensure customers are who they say they are to keep everyone’s information secure and when accessing certain services.

Limited joining up of business systems to pass and share data.

Joined up systems and improved data.

5.4 Development and implementation of a Continuous Programme of Training and Development for the Front-Line of the Council

Before Now Many staff were not recruited with Customer Service skills. Lack of emphasis on the importance of Customer Service Skills. Customer Services dealt with a limited number of services, the majority of service areas served their own customers all separately. Services used higher paid service specialists to answer both general and specialist customer enquiries. Lack of structured customer feedback to improve customer service. No customer service standards followed by the whole organisation. Some customer service training available but not a high take-up.

Customer Service Advisors recruited to work across the one-stop-shop, contact centre, email and social media with excellent customer service as their skill to work across many services. All Customer Service Advisors are continuously provided with the relevant training and development to continuously deliver excellent customer service and are monitored for quality. The Institute of Customer Service independent customer and staff satisfaction surveys for the Customer Services team returned a Customer Satisfaction score of 90.8% and Staff Satisfaction score of 78.85%. The Institute of Customer Service is the independent, professional body for customer service. Customer Services has achieved The Institute of Customer Services ServiceMark Accreditation. This is a national standard which recognises and organisations commitment to achieve in customer service. The Institute of Customer Service qualification programme is being rolled out across Customer Services to further improve the quality of service.

5.5 Implementation of the One Stop Shop within the Civic and Cultural Quarter.

Before Now The Council had a number of receptions spread across the town centre each dealing with different specialist areas. Customers had to walk across town to access different services. Visitors to

In 2013, we opened the Civic Building One Stop Shop where customers can access the full portfolio of council services in the one place. The One Stop Shop is the shop window for Doncaster

buildings had to queue at the receptions with customers often making them late for meetings. The numerous town centre receptions with different service offers were – Council House had 3 – Social Care, Licensing and General. Danum House for planning and related services. Colonnades for council tax, benefits and related services. Mansion House for general issues. Copley House for elections and legal issues. The processes used had no consistency and often did not deliver the whole service. There was a lack of appropriate technology. The staff did not all have the same level of expertise or deliver the same quality of service.

Council and approximately 200,000 customers and visitors walked through the door last year. Customers are greeted by floor walkers who guide customers either to the self-service area to access services on-line, customer services or for more complex enquires to a service specialist. Visitors to the building are served at a separate business reception. Within the One Stop Shop we, have created a self-service area where customers are actively encouraged to access council services on-line. Initially we had 8 computers available, this has now increased to 20 as we implement more services to be available on-line and demand increases. Consistent processes with scripting are used and the staff work across the one-stop-shop and contact centre with the same training, performance management and quality monitoring model. New technology records and monitors all contact including a queuing system, the CRM system and joined up systems. A kiosk is used to collect customer feedback and excellent is always the highest scoring outcome. Other authorities visit the one-stop-shop to learn from it. The one-stop-shop also played a big part in Customer Services achieving the Service Mark accreditation and a high customer satisfaction rating.

6. What We Need to Achieve Next

The Council needs to build on the excellent progress made over the last five years. Informed by the views of our customers, the following eight key objectives are proposed.

6.1 Increase the amount of services available on-line further enabling 24/7 access to services.

The Council has now developed a new website with fully transactional capability and continues to redesign services and develop an on-line capability with a process that delivers in the most effective way behind the scenes. The Council has also developed and agreed a Digital Strategy ‘Don’t Wait in Line, Get On-Line’. The use of social media is increasing and has now become a customer service channel. Work is continuing via the Digital Council Programme until all services are on-line and will continually improve and evolve and be maintained into the future. A mobile app also provides a more interactive experience for customers out and about enabling them to photograph as well as report and this will also continually evolve and improve. Another key deliverable informed by the consultation for this strategy is that many of Doncaster’s population do not know the website or mobile app exists. Therefore, we will deliver the following:

� All appropriate council services will be on-line utilising the website and mobile app where relevant;

� We will continually improve, evolve and maintain those services so always accurate and timely;

� We will have a digital marketing plan to ensure we keep customers informed of what is on-line and what is changing;

� We will provide customers with their own secure area on the website to manage services personal to them;

� We will provide the ability to track the progress of your requests on-line; � We will ensure information is confidential, safe and secure at all times; � We will ensure customers are aware of where they can access technology

and learn to use it; and � We will utilise social media more and improve our response time.

Drivers For Change Improvements For Residents The world has changed and is continually changing due to the tech revolution. Many of our current customers want to access council services on-line 24/7. They do not want time restrictions, to have to phone someone or visit an office, this takes time out of their busy daily lives. This is backed up by the outcome of the survey. Monday to Friday 8.30am until 5pm just isn’t acceptable any more. Our next generation of customers have different expectations of customer services and we need to complete our transformation to ensure that our service

Less residents will have to contact the Council at all because they will have more ability to access services themselves or find out information they require. Residents will not have to contact the Council for a progress request in most cases. For those who wish to, customers will be able to access most council services when and where they choose 24/7, 365 days a year. More customers will receive a better

delivery is future proof to accommodate these customers’ needs and expectations. The percentage of our customers who want on-line services will only increase, not reduce. The current generation will not want to operate in any other way and even this may be dated by 2020. We are fast becoming an “always-on” world ruled by the mobile experience. If we’re not engaging with our customers on the go, in the context of their daily lives then essentially we’re neglecting them and or at the very least missing an opportunity to nurture our relationship through honest and open interactions with them. Many customers’ especially active on-line users expect a more personalised service, services that anticipate their needs based on insight about preferences.

By providing services online our customers decide if and when to communicate, our job is simply to give them the tools that make the interaction and communication easy and natural. If we present our customers with intuitive tools for communicating with us, they will.

Today our customers want more than just availability of services they want an emotional connection. By delivering services online it allows us to reach a wider audience. On-line services cost much less than other channels and enable a faster response to more people. Over 2 million a year has already been saved and there is much more potential.

more immediate personalised service. Residents will be able to communicate with us when and if they want to. The Council will be able to communicate more effectively. Customers will have choices they simply didn’t have before because they often did not get to know about them. More services will be streamlined with customer requests going directly to a worker with a mobile device, improving service delivery on the ground and delivering value for money for our customers. The full portfolio of services, advice, information, guidance and eligibility will be visible in one place. Residents will not have to travel to Council offices. Residents will not have to make the time or spend effort calling the Council. The Council will operate cheaper therefore saving council tax payers money.

6.2 Use digital methods to contact customers first and foremost unless the

customer needs a more traditional form of contact.

Many organisations provided the choice of digital vs paper long ago always encouraging digital first and foremost but Doncaster Council has not done this yet. If a customer contacts us digitally, we tend to continue using the same channel, however this is not consistent and many services still continue to be paper heavy. This can be for a multitude of reasons such as a document has not been developed on-line, we do not have a record of email addresses for all households and residents or the service is still operating in a more dated way yet to be transformed. As a deliverable of this strategy, we will:

� Identify all out-going post and develop on-line where appropriate starting with the top 10;

� Identify all in-coming post not as a result of the out-going and introduce digital channels where possible;

� Introduce web chat so if customers require assistance online, someone is available immediately to help them;

� Introduce more outbound texting to remind residents of appointments, pay their bill etc.

� Write to all our residents about our intentions to become digital and encourage for their own on-line account or at least provide their email address for communication if they have one;

� From 2018, work to reduce unstructured digital requests for services such as email and text which can often lead to a number of communications to gain the right information; and

� Ensure that any residents who still require use of the post channel because they are not on-line are known to us and always receive correspondence in that way.

Drivers For Change Improvements For Residents In our customer consultation to inform this survey, customers have expressed they would be willing to have their own secure area on the website via a confidential pin to access and manage their services. In the same consultation, our customers have also stated they would agree to receive digital correspondence, forms etc. instead of letters, just like most utility companies now do and have for many years. As an authority we need to reduce the amount of paper documents and records we create and store. It is a dated way of working and imposes a significant risk attached to managing

Residents will be able to access services, retrieve and update information immediately and more easily and will enable them to carry out their business with us effortlessly at a time that suits them with a quicker outcome. Information will be communicated and received in a more secure, timely and cost effective way. There will be a secure history of information submitted and received between residents and the Council. Digital interaction will be cheaper for our residents. Assistance via web chat will increase

and storing confidential records in line with the Data Protection Act 1989. It is also a significant cost to the authority with some documents required by law to be kept for up to a hundred years. As an authority, we currently have two post rooms receiving incoming post, sending out post and scanning lots of documents to make them digital. The cost of these, postal costs and scanning storage costs could be extensively reduced. Customers want to receive information and interact in a more immediate and responsive way that a posted letter or document does not allow. It is now an out-dated mode of communication that no longer meets most people’s needs unless they have do not have access to anything else. Post is not the most secure method of communicating confidential information.

the confidence of residents not used to operating on-line or need help. Traditional ways of contacting the council will still be available for those that need them such as face to face and by telephone, but these will also be much more efficient and responsive to customer need due to reduced demand. The council will be more efficient and save council tax payers money.

6.3 Aim to provide and communicate a timescale for delivery of all services

and do everything possible to ensure we meet our promise.

This is a deliverable that the Council continually strives for on a daily basis and does not occur for all services. The Council should have the ability to provide a timescale for delivery of all relevant services at least those without potential unknown complexity and to provide the ability for residents to track progress with the Council monitoring the timescales and deliverable behind the scenes. That said, local authorities deliver many more diverse and complex services than the private sector for example and achieving this is notoriously difficult. Doncaster Council is well on the way but still many challenges to overcome. This strategy will progress and assist further by:

� Starting with the agreed Council Service Standards, ensure there is an agreement between Customer Services and each service of what the agreed timescale is to be communicated via each access channel and ensure this is implemented – website, app, social media, Customer Service Advisor in Contact Centre or One-Stop-Shop;

� Ensuring the technology is in place to provide customers with the ability to track their own requests, applications etc.; and

� Ensuring the relevant reports are produced and discussed between Customer Services and services to ensure the delivery of services is

effectively performance managed with good and bad performance praised and challenged.

Drivers For Change Improvements For Residents The Council is here to serve its residents and should have the ability to promise timescales for the majority of services and aim to deliver as promised with a high percentage of success. Customers should only have to contact us once to report an issue, they should not have to re-contact with progress chasing enquiries. All our services should be performance managed.

Residents will receive a timescale when requesting a service wherever possible. The resident will know the council is always aiming to deliver the service in the promised timescale. Residents will not have to contact again to chase up and will also have the ability to track on-line. Improved confidence and trust in the Council.

6.4 Introduce revised and new customer service standards.

The current set of customer service standards for Doncaster Council is out-dated with some timescales that are no longer relevant and some channels missing such a social media. They are also often seen as standards for only the Customer Services team to adhere to. Hence when a customer telephones the Customer Services Contact Centre, the advisors always attempt to answer within 20 seconds, however when the customer calls elsewhere they cannot guarantee a response or can be sat in a queue for some time. Or when a letter is sent to Customer Services, it is responded to within 10 working days or at least a holding response is issued if more complex, however others may not respond or it can take weeks to respond. These are worst case scenarios but they do still exist. This affects the Council’s reputation and not fair to those services who pull out all the stops every day to deliver a quality service, therefore this strategy will deliver the following:

� Introduce the new set of Customer Service Standards included at Appendix 3 and embed them across the organisation;

� Continue to move all customer contact via the various channels into Customer Services so we present one consistent, effective and efficient face and response to the residents we serve focusing on a quality customer experience; and

� Measure and monitor council wide performance across those standards instead of just the services currently in or transferring too Customer Services.

Drivers For Change Improvements For Residents Since we produced our previous Fast, efficient 24/7 services available on-

Customer Service Standards, the way in which our customers access services and their expectations have changed considerably. Customers expect much faster responses to their enquiries and responses to be received outside traditional office hours. To respond to emails within 3 working days is viewed as an excessive amount of time nowadays. Social media wasn’t even a consideration in the last standards. Our next generation of customers will have different expectations of how they should access Council Services. Standards in this form should not be required because all will expect a good fast 24/7 on-line experience. That said, we must always be aware that some may always require more traditional access channels until the tech revolution provides a solution for that also.

line as the primary access channel offered. To know the Council will aim to respond to emails, social media and texts within 1 working day. To know the Council will aim to answer telephone calls within 20 seconds or 5 rings. To know the Council will aim to serve customers face to face within 10 minutes for general enquiries. We will ensure our website is easy to use, information will be clear and easy to find. We will define how our staff will be expected to behave.

6.5 Improve our complaints procedure and the use of your feedback to improve.

The current general complaints procedure works well and is monitored by one central Complaints Officer to ensure it is followed and timescales are met. However, the procedure around social care is different and did operate separately until recently but we now have the opportunity to put these functions together and review their effectiveness and the experience of our customers when they have made a complaint. It is also felt that more could be done to immediately resolve a complaint in some cases stopping it becoming a complaint and that not enough is done to identify what could be done to stop another similar complaint and ensuring it is implemented. Further to this, the collection of customer feedback/insight is not collated or analysed in the way that it should be to inform decision making and service improvement. This has long been an aspiration and is now more achievable with functions sitting together. Therefore this strategy will deliver:

� A new complaints procedure focused on early resolution where possible and consistency no matter which service it involves; and

� A structured approach to gathering customer insight to feed into intelligence, decision making and service improvement.

Drivers For Change Improvements For Residents We currently have different procedures for social care. The experience of our customers when they have made a complaint varies across the organisation and with our key partners. Complaints are free customer feedback we should proactively use to improve our services and therefore customer satisfaction. This is not currently recorded or measured. Complaints are only one source of customer feedback which is valuable intelligence that we should be feeding into the organisation to inform and improve.

A modern complaints procedure that fits better with how residents wish to be responded to when making a complaint. All complaints will be dealt with in a more effective and timely manner. Residents will have a better experience at a time when they are aggrieved. Customers will feel more engaged, consulted with and listened to when services are adapted or improved based on their feedback.

6.6 Introduce the ability for you to only have to tell us something once instead of contacting different services.

This is an aspiration that Doncaster Council has had for some time and has previously implemented an interim solution called ‘Tell Us Once’ to fulfil part of it in our Registrars service in partnership with the Department of Work and Pensions when someone’s death is reported and proceeds to inform various departments instead of the relative having to contact up to ten different council services in some cases. However, this is obviously not delivering the full aspiration which includes any change in circumstances communicated being applied to all relevant services across the Council immediately by entering that information into one system. However, the challenges of delivering a solution such as this meaning the Council maintains one single customer record that updates all others are immense and shouldn’t be underestimated. Doncaster Council is a large authority delivering many services that has accumulated a plethora of systems and databases and to produce one single accurate database requires a strong commitment from across the organisation and that of our partners to ensure data quality, the right business processes and many systems integrating with each other. In short, implementing a single customer record with this ability is a journey with many different phases as different datasets are added, not a one-off project. Some authorities have managed to form a single customer view but hardly any have achieved a fully interactive record that can be updated from many different services mostly due to the many conflicting pieces of information that can be provided depending on what is asked. That said, the Council has already started this journey and intends to continue whilst also rationalising the number of systems and datasets that exist. Therefore this strategy will deliver:

� An accurate single customer record for all residents that sits behind the scenes collecting information and passing to other systems implemented in phases using key datasets;

� The ability for residents once their identification has been verified to tell the Council once of a change in circumstances and have all relevant services updated;

� The relevant data quality measures that will need to be in place across the organisation; and

� A Data Protection Act 1989 compliant solution that keeps personal data safe and secure at all times.

Drivers For Change Improvements For Residents Customers already expect the Council to have a complete view of their details and contact across the authority, customers want to be treated as individuals and not as a series of disconnected events. As an authority we have so many touch points with our customers that it is impossible to have a holistic view across all of our customers contact, this makes it difficult to identify gaps in services and service delivery. A single customer record will enable us to identify who our customers’ are, what, how and why they are contacting us and what they need. Having accurate customer information stored in the one system will inform how and where we need to deliver our services not only to meet individual customers’ needs and expectations, but also communities needs and requirements as these can differ greatly across the borough.

Residents will be able to tell us something once such as a change of address, change of marital status, name, birth or death and will have everything actioned or responded to without taking further action. Residents will be able to access and manage their own record in a secure area of the website. The Council will be able to proactively inform residents of services they are entitled to or could utilise. The Council will have the information to accurately target residents with information and services they need instead of only reacting when a resident makes contact. The Council will have the ability to tailor information such as bin collection days instead of providing all information to everybody making it difficult to understand.

6.7 Further improve the quality of customer service right across the

organisation.

Our workforce is reducing in numbers and therefore it is even more essential that our workforce has the skills to effectively carry out their role and always puts our customers first. Customers are everyone’s business, not just Customer Services, everybody is serving a customer, whether externally or internally within the organisation. Customer Service skills have not traditionally been a priority for our

organisation when recruiting new staff or ensuring staff receive the right training to serve customers effectively. We need to ensure that Customer Service training is a priority and the quality of customer service skills are measured, monitored and performance managed as an integral part of Performance Development Reviews and one-to-ones. As part of this strategy, we will implement:

� Mandatory e-Learning Customer Service modules; � Customer Service qualifications where relevant; � PDR’s and one-to-ones to include performance management on the quality of

customer service that staff deliver; and � All job descriptions to include an essential criteria for customer service skills.

Drivers For Change Improvements For Residents We are here to serve our customers and must put them at the centre of everything we do – this is a value in our Staff Charter. It’s not just about service delivery, it’s about how we make our customers feel that they remember and what determines their opinions and behaviour towards our organisation. Employee behaviour and attitude has a significant impact on customer satisfaction. One bad experience can be a perception for life. Our staff are the first point of interaction with our customers That first impression matters: a negative, confusing, or even mediocre first encounter can make or break our relationship with a customer.

Customers will receive a higher quality customer experience however they choose to contact us, across all service areas. Customers will be served by highly trained customer focussed staff, who will have received the correct training to empower them to confidently find the right solution to their enquiries. Customers will have an improved more personalised relationship with us, they will feel more inclined to naturally engage with us. When customers have a choice about where they purchase services from, they can be confident in considering Doncaster Council.

6.8 Provide Elected Members with the tools and information they require to better serve their customers.

Our elected members play an essential part in our relationship with our customers. It is imperative that they have the tools to enable them to effectively interact with the residents that elected them and have access to the information they need at their fingertips. For example:

� What service problems have been reported in their area eg. dumped rubbish, faulty street lights etc.;

� What progress has been made in resolving the problems; � The ability to immediately report issues; and

� The ability to identify any trends that may inform their decision making. Therefore, this strategy will deliver:

� An Elected Members phone app to enable them to report and track residents’ issues; and

� Regular reports of what has been reported and resolved in their area.

Drivers For Change Improvements For Residents Elected members should also be able to report problems on behalf of residents and check progress. Elected members should also have intelligence relating to the areas they serve such as what has been reported, what has been resolved.

Residents will get an improved response from elected members who will have access to intelligence about issues reported and when they will be resolved.

Residents will get an improved and even an immediate response from elected members for some issues if chasing progress.

Elected members will have the ability to report issues and seek a response whilst engaged with residents.

Elected Members will be aware of issues in their ward and have access to accurate data so they are more informed when decision making.

7. Timescales & Milestones

The table below shows very high level milestones and timescales for the delivery of this Strategy. These all depend on the business requirements.

Action Dates 1 All Appropriate Council Services Online Through to

March 2017 2 Continued Implementation of The integrated Front Office Through to

March 2017 3 Digital Marketing Plan Ongoing

throughout 2016 - 2020

4 Single Customer Record 4.1 An accurate single customer record that sits behind the

scenes collecting information and passing to other systems implemented in phases using key data sets

From December 2015 to March 2017

4.2 The ability for residents to tell the council once of a change of circumstances and all relevant services updated

A phased approach through to March 2017

4.3 Ensure the relevant data quality measures are in place across the organisation

Ongoing throughout 2016 - 2020

4.4 A Data Protection Act 1989 compliant solution that keeps personal data safe and secure at all times

Now and always.

5 Ability for residents to track requests on-line Phased approach through to March 2017

6 Improved utilisation of Social Media and response times. Immediately 7 Reduction in Post as an Access Channel 7.1 Identify all out going post Oct 2016 7.2 Identify all independent incoming post Oct 2016 7.3 Develop alternative online processes where appropriate By March

2016 7.4 Identify residents that still require post as an access channel From Jan

2016 8 Introduction of Web Chat July 2016 9 Introduction of Outbound Text Facility July 2016 10 Reduction in Unstructured Digital Requests From 2018

onwards 11 Implementation of End to End Service Delivery Across

the Authority

11.1 Customer Services and service areas to agree service delivery timescales across each service and access channel.

By March 2016

11.2 Produce accurate reporting by service area, processes, timescales and location

By June 2016

12 New Customer Service Standards 12.1 Introduce new customer service standards across the

authority. Jan 2016

12.2 Ensure the customer service standards are effectively embedded and embraced authority wide.

July 2016

12.3 Ensure effective model for measuring and monitoring is in place across all council services.

July 2016

13 Introduction of new complaints procedure March 2016 14 Customer Insight 14.1 Introduction of a structured approach to gathering customer

insight council wide. Oct 2016

14.2 Customer insight to be used intelligently to inform decision making and service improvement.

March 2017

15 Embed the Significance of Customer Service Skills Across the Council

15.1 Introduction of mandatory e-Learning Customer Service modules

March 2016

15.2 Customer Service qualifications for relevant staff Sept 2016

onwards 15.3 PDR’s and one to ones to include performance management

on the quality of all staffs customer service April 2016

15.4 Introduction in all job descriptions an essential criteria for customer service skills

2016 - 2020

16 Improved Accessibility to Intelligence for Elected Members

16.1 Introduction of an Elected Members mobile phone app Jan 2016 16.2 Ability for Elected Members to be able get an improved

response on residents reports/issues March 2016

16.3 Produce intelligence at ward level to enable Elected Members to make informed decisions on behalf of their residents

June 2016

8. Estimated Costs

For many of the projects in this strategy, work is required to determine the business requirements so estimating the costs required is difficult. Therefore the costs below are estimated and will need further updating and refining as these requirements become clearer.

1.All Appropriate Council Services Online

This work is progressing as part of the Digital Council Programme and budget has already been identified and provided within this programme of work. As we move forward with the delivery of this strategy further costs may be identified but as yet are an unknown.

2. Continued Implementation of The Integrated Front Office 3.Digital Marketing Plan 4.Single Customer Record 5. Ability for residents to Track Requests Online 6. Improved Utilisation of social media and response times.

Between our Communication and Customer Service Team, social media is being used more effectively to engage with and respond to our customers, the cost of this is minimal as it’s much easier to reach a wider audience through these access channels. However as customers expect a more immediate response to this type of contact, consideration to resourcing this access channel will have to be given as the use by customers is constantly increasing and will continue to do so. This also applies to the quicker response time for emails and texts.

7.Reduction in Post as an Access Channel

No cost, will generate savings already assigned to the Digital Council Programme.

8.Introduction of Web Chat 60k Capital fungding has already been

identified and allocated for Automated Agents & Web Chat. Web Chat independently costs approx. 15K through the current call management solution provider. There may be more cost effective solutions available on the market, this analysis would have to be carried out to identify a the most cost effective solution.

9.Introduction of Outbound Text Facility

This facility is already available through our existing call management solution and is currently being developed. No additional costs will be incurred for the implementation though consideration for the cost of the outbound texts will have to be given. Though this method has been proved extremely cost effective especially around appointment reminders.

10. Reduction in Unstructured Digital Requests

No cost, this will generate savings due to reducing the workload of Customer Services having to contact customers again to gain more detail. These savings will contribute to the Digital Council Programme.

11.Implementation of End to End Service Delivery Across the Authority

No cost would be accredited to this, work would be absorbed within Customer Services operational day to day workload.

12.New Customer Service Standards No cost would be accredited to this, work would be absorbed within customer services operational day to day workload and working across the authority.

13 .Introduction of improved complaints procedure

No cost would be accredited to this, work would be absorbed within customer services operational day to day workload and working across the authority.

14.Customer Insight No cost would be accredited to this, work would be absorbed within customer services operational day to day workload and working across the authority.

15.Embed the Significance of Customer Service Skills Across the Council

Customer Service e-Learning modules – no extra cost. Customer Service Qualification - £70 per qualification per person, time of coaching both of coach and trainee, covered by Customer Services & ICT training budget.

16. Improved Accessibility to Intelligence for Elected Members

Cost of implementation of phone app will be covered by Digital Council Programme – will be another version of the current app. No costs for reporting.

9. Conclusion

This Strategy builds on and continues the previous Customer Service Strategy which was designed to put the fundamental foundations in place to ensure Doncaster Council puts its customers at the heart of everything it does. It also aligns itself with other key strategies and programmes of work that all contribute to transforming the organisation into a Council of the future that is modern and forward thinking but not forgetting all its people no matter what challenges are faced.

Appendix 1 Doncaster Council Customer Consultation Survey We would like to ask you as a resident of Doncaster how you access Council services, the standard of the services provided and how you would like services delivered in the future.

1. Please Provide Your Postcode

2. When you contact Doncaster Council, which of the following methods do you use, please tick which are applicable?

Visit The Civic Building’s One Stop Shop

By Telephone: 01302 736000

By Telephone: direct to the service

Website: www.doncaster.gov.uk

My Doncaster Mobile Phone App

Email: [email protected]

Other (please specify)

3. Which do you prefer to use?

Visiting The Civic Building’s One Stop Shop

Telephoning: 01302 736000

Telephoning direct to the service area

Website: www.doncaster.gov.uk

My Doncaster Mobile Phone App

Emailing: [email protected]

Other (please specify)

4. Did you know Doncaster Council has a new website?

Yes

No

5. If yes, have you used it?

Yes

No

6. Did you know Doncaster Council has a MyDoncaster Phone App for customers to use to report issues and request services?

Yes

No

7. If yes, do you use it?

Yes

No

8. Most companies now offer all their services on-line, if Doncaster Council did would you use them?

Yes

No

if no why not

9. If you could access council services and your own personal information using a secure account number (similar to banking) would you use this?

Yes

No

if no why not

10. Many companies now send information to their customers electronically, rather than posting out paper copies. If Doncaster Council offered this service would you choose to receive information in this way?

Yes

No

if no why not

11. If you have spoken to a member of staff, how would you rate their customer service skills, giving consideration to their manner, helpfulness, knowledge and professionalism?

Excellent

Good

Average

Poor

12. How would you rate how the service was delivered, was it delivered when promised and to a high standard?

Excellent

Good

Average

Poor

13. If there are any further comments that you would like to make about how we can improve our services, please enter them below.

14. Please Provide your age

18-24

25-34

35-44

45-54

55-64

65-74

75 and over

Prefer not to say

Appendix 2

Appendix 3

Appendix 4

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council Due Regard Statement – Customer Service Strategy 2016-20

1 N

ame of the ‘policy’ and

briefly describe the activity being considered including aim

s and expected outcom

es. This w

ill help to determine

how relevant the ‘policy’

is to equality.

Delivery of The C

ustomer S

ervice Strategy w

ill improve how

we deliver

services to all our residents. The strategy w

ill deliver; x

Improved access to services for all our custom

ers, whatever access

channel they choose to use. x

More services available on-line, enabling custom

ers to access services 24/7 from

any location. x

Improved delivery of the m

ore traditional access channels, such as The O

ne Stop Shop.

x E

nhanced customer service skills across the organisation.

x Im

proved end to end service delivery and performance m

anagement of

the service we deliver.

x Increased usage of digital m

ethods to interact with our custom

ers and identification of our custom

ers who require m

ore traditional methods of

contact. x

New

Custom

er Service S

tandards and a revised complaints procedure.

x A

more structured approach to gathering custom

er insight to feed into intelligence, decision m

aking and service improvem

ent. x

Ability for custom

ers to ‘tell us once’ of a change of circumstances and

have all relevant services updated. x

Provide our E

lected Mem

bers with the tools and inform

ation they require to better serve their custom

ers. D

elivery of this Strategy w

ill improve our residents’ ability to access services

as they will be clear, sim

ple and effective. It will em

bed the principles of delivering excellent custom

er experiences with all staff w

ho work for the

authority and make custom

er service everyone’s responsibility. Custom

er S

ervices staff were asked to propose a vision statem

ent and the following

was agreed, they ow

n this statement and w

ork hard to achieve it every day. “C

ustomers are our business and define our success”

The implem

entation of The Custom

er Service S

trategy will determ

ine how

future services are delivered to our customers. The proposed consultation

has identified a lack of awareness of how

to access council services. That said it has also highlighted a distinct appetite from

customers to have just the

one secure council account, ability to access services and report issues on-line or via the m

obile phone app and to have information sent to them

digitally instead of by paper. In addition the consultation has reinforced how

far we have com

e already as an A

uthority in the standard of customer service w

e deliver. This strategy will

continue this work by further instilling the im

portance of our customers

experience at every touch point across the whole A

uthority and with each

individual mem

ber of staff.

2 Service area responsible for com

pleting this statem

ent.

Custom

er Services &

ICT, Finance &

Corporate S

ervices

3 Sum

mary of the

information considered

across the protected groups.

Age - The priorities in this Strategy and the consultation have been open and

accessible to all age demographics. For those not w

ishing to access services online, the traditional access points such as face to face and telephone contact w

ill be clearly marketed.

Disability – The priorities in this Strategy and the consultation have been open and accessible to those w

ith disabilities and available for completion in

multiple w

ays. For those customers not w

ishing to access services online, it w

ill be clearly marketed that both face to face and telephone contact points

are available. Race - This S

trategy will have no negative im

pact on this protected group. G

ender – This Strategy will have no negative im

pact on this protected group. Sexual O

rientation – This Strategy will have no negative im

pact on this protected group. Religion and Belief – The priorities in this Strategy and the consultation have been open and accessible to all religious dem

ographics. For those custom

ers not wishing to access services online, it w

ill be clearly marketed

that both face to face and telephone contact points are available. M

aternity and Pregnancy - This Strategy will have no negative im

pact on this protected group. G

ender Reassignment - This S

trategy will have no negative im

pact on this protected group. M

arriage and Civil Partnership - This Strategy w

ill have no negative impact

on this protected group.

4 Sum

mary of the

consultation/engagement

activities.

Throughout the development of The C

ustomer S

ervice Strategy, a public

consultation has been undertaken to ensure due regard has been paid to residents needs and requirem

ents. The responses from the consultation

have driven the priorities detailed in The Custom

er Service S

trategy. The consultation took place:

x O

nline, available on Doncaster C

ouncil’s website and circulated via

social media ( predom

inantly Twitter and Facebook)

x C

ustomers’ asked to com

plete a consultation following contact to

Doncaster C

ouncil’s Custom

er Contact C

entre (01302 736000) x

Custom

ers asked to complete a consultation follow

ing contact to C

ustomer S

ervices by email.

x C

ustomers asked to com

plete a consultation in the Council’s O

ne Stop

Shop.

Ongoing engagem

ent with residents w

ill take place through the Digital Focus

Group, advertised in local press for residents of all ages, abilities and from

all locations to engage and help shape future services.

5 Real Consideration:

The results of the consultation, local and national data have clearly identified the follow

ing barriers that this Strategy will address:

x H

ow our custom

ers access council services. x

Services w

ill be more stream

lined and simpler for custom

ers to access. x

Custom

er feedback will be collected and analysed in a m

ore structured m

anner and this information w

ill be used to shape future services. x

Quality of the services w

e provide.

The evidence and data collected has been used to formulate the priorities

and deliverables of The Custom

er Service S

trategy.

6 Decision M

aking Follow

ing the consultation period, this Due R

egard Statem

ent will form

part of the S

trategy development and w

ill be annexed for consideration at the strategic review

stage. This statement and Strategy w

ill be reviewed w

ith request for approval by:

x M

ayor and Cabinet

x C

hief Executive &

Directors

7

Monitoring and Review

Follow

ing implem

entation and during implem

entation of this strategy a num

ber of reviews w

ill be on-going to ensure due regard is being considered across the B

orough. The following m

onitoring and reviews w

ill take place: x

Continued review

of local and national data. x

Engagem

ent with C

omm

unity Organisations across the B

orough. x

Monthly engagem

ent with The D

igital Focus Group.

x S

tructured capturing and analysis of customer feed back

x D

igital Council P

rogramm

e Board.

x Trend analysis of custom

er complaints.

8

Sign off and approval for publication.

Sim

on Wiles, D

irector of Finance & C

orporate Services