026-2008 Customer Service InitiativesR~~'~=~`~1~1~
2008 SEP 15 PH 3~ 10
i,1TY CLErr{'~°~ 0~ i- ICE
MEMORANDUM
n0.026-2008
FROM: Jorge M. Gonzalez, City Manager
DATE: September 15, 2008
SUBJECT: Customer Service Initiatives
The purpose of this memorandum is to respond to your request for staff to evaluate the
Customer Bill of Rights initiative in the City of North Port, Florida, which received the Florida
League of Cities City Innovations Showcase Award.
The City of North Port's Customer Bill of Rights (attached) initiative came as a result of efforts
from a committee established to address customer service complaints. This initiative calls for
the "customer bill of rights" to be posted in a hanging frame behind each customer-service
counter in every City department. The City of North Port is also in the process of developing a
training program for all employees.
Our City's efforts to improve the level of customer service contain similar components but go
beyond those of the City of North Port. Similar components include quality service, prompt
attention, remaining courteous, providing accurate information, providing and receiving
feedback, accessibility, and accountability. In addition, our City's customer service standards
(attached} define for our customers exactly what to expect from our team members. From the
quality of the greeting to offering further assistance after each customer request, our team
members consistently serve our public with dignity and respect. As stated in our mission, we are
committed to providing excellent public service, and, improving customer service and public
perception of City government is an important part of this mission.
As such, a series of initiatives have been implemented in the past few years to support a
philosophy of service excellence within our City government, including: refining and deploying
our customer service standards; developing a core on-going customer service training program,
which is required for all employees at least once every 3 years; and re-introducing our `Service
Shopper' program on an on-going basis.
The Customer Service Standards established have been incorporated into the evaluation tools
used by Service Shoppers and have been introduced to staff through interdepartmental
workshops on Customer Service. In addition, these standards are posted throughout the City,
including City Hall office receptions, park facilities and the Police and Fire departments.
To support our customer service enhancement initiative, I have created a Customer Service
Enhancement Team, which includes representatives from my office, the Office of Budget and
Performance Improvement (OBPI), Police Department, Parks and Recreation, Human
Resources, and Communications. The team is tasked with working directly with departments
who need additional customer service training and/or request additional support to improve their
level of service. This team meets to discuss and brainstorm ideas on how to further deploy and
integrate our customer service philosophy into departmental initiatives and activities throughout
the year.
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The Service Shopper Program has been in place since 2005. This program was designed to
evaluate service delivery to our public at the point of service. By measuring how well we are
meeting our standards, we can more readily make improvements that meet the public's needs
and expectations. The Service Shopper Program uses three evaluation methods: in-person
shoppers; exit interviews; and, telephone requests. Our best source of service shoppers are our
City employees and residents. Participants attend a training session covering program
guidelines, procedures, and customer service evaluation techniques. Participants receive
additional customer service training, learn about various City operations, and become a part of
this innovative program to improve service delivery.
The program has already showed significant improvement in the level of customer service the
City provides. The latest Service Shopper scores show a 30.5 percent improvement from
2005/06, and the 2007 Community Survey results shows that 62 percent of the residents and
65.7 percent of the businesses surveyed agree or strongly agree to being satisfied with their
most recent contact with City Hall, which is a 12 percent improvement for businesses from the
2005 survey results.
In addition, frontline employees and those in direct contact with the community are required to
participate in our Employee Academy. This academy is a 9 week program offered twice a year
to provide information to employees about the City's departments, their functions and services.
The academy also encourages better interaction among employees and communicates
departmental expectations and philosophies.
The deployment of the "Essential Piece" cards to all city employees reinforces our commitment
to our strategic plan and how each individual in this organization contributes to who we are and
what we do. At the forefront of this is our ability to serve the public in a manner that supports our
mission, vision and values.
Each year, we, as an organization, celebrate Customer Service Week. This is an opportunity to
recognize those employees who have participated in one of our service excellence programs, or
have exemplified outstanding customer service throughout the year. In addition, during our
annual Employee Rally, I personally take the time to recognize employees who have received
outstanding customer service score through the Service Shopper program, as well as reinforce
the importance of their role in our organization's success.
My administration will continue to pursue innovative ways to encourage and promote
improvements in customer service citywide, as well as continue with the efforts already deployed
and in place in our organization.
If you have any questions or need any additional information, please feel free to contact me.
C: Mayor and City Commission
Kathie G. Brooks, OBPI Director
Dolores Mejia, Special Projects Administrator
Leslie Rosenfeld, Organizational Development
JMG/DM/LDR
F:\obpil$ORG DEV & PERF IMP\Organizational DevelopmentlJorge memorandumlSTEINBERG- Customer Service Bill of Rights
(2).doc
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