Social Science & Water Utilities Adding the Human Dimension to Performance Reporting
Jul 13, 2015
Social Science & Water Utilities
Adding the Human Dimension to Performance Reporting
Yeah, I agree, the social sciences are largely hokum.
Balinese Water Management
● Subaks (irrigation district)
● Water managed through engineering combined with religious practices
● Supported by economic theory
What is Social Science?
● Positivist– Physical sciences
methodology
– Objective?
● Interpretive– Humanities
methodology
– Subjective?Source: missfree.weebly.com
Water Utility Marketing
“Marketing is Customer Satisfaction Engineering”
Performance Monitoring
“What you measure is what you get”
Performance Monitoring
“Too often we measure everything and
understand nothing”
Performance Indicators
Any effectively generated system capable of measuring service quality cannot be both complete and consistent
KPI dashboards hide as much as they reveal.
What is Quality?
● Subjectivist– Eye of the beholder
● Objectivist– Independent of
experience
● Widgets
What is Quality?
● Interactionist– Value created in
interaction between object and subject
– Moment of Truth
Water utilities don't sell water, they sell experiences.
Safe Water & Good Water
Safe Water & Good Water
(Bio)chemistry
Physical
Explaining
Widgets
Intrinsic
Predictable
Intangible
Social Science
Experience
Understanding
Moment of Truth
Extrinsic
Unpredictable
Tangible
Service Quality Model
SCADALaboratory
SurveysComplaints
Taste Testing
Grade of ServiceFirst-Call
ResolutionTransfer Rate
SurveysComplaints
Mystery Shopping
Intrinsic Quality Extrinsic Quality
Co
re S
ervi
ceS
up
ple
men
tary
Ser
vice
External Influences on Quality
Human Dimension in Performance Measurement
Safe water is a necessary condition for good service quality, but not a sufficient condition