The Importance of Meeting Customer Expectations

Why should the public sector place more importance to customer service? The simple answer is because it has to. The government is applying an increasing amount of pressure to provide services that are effective, efficient, excellent, equitable and empowering. The direction provided by the Cabinet Office is that ‘the citizen should be always and everywhere at the heart of public service provision’ (cse.cabinetoffice.gov.uk, 2010).The public sector now has little choice but to consider its customer satisfaction because it is taken into account for inspections and is a key plank of the government’s public sector reform strategy. The 1999 white paper Modernising Government pledged commitment to meet the “needs of citizens, not the convenience of service providers”. Improving customer service has become such an important part of the reform that in 2004, Clive Grace, the then director-general of the Audit Commission in Wales called CSE the ‘Holy Grail’ for local government (idea.gov.uk, 2010).Paul Cooper, Director of Communications at the Institute of Customer Service has said that “if you don’t treat the public who use council services as someone who can walk away and take their business elsewhere you are never going to provide a good service. And that is the way it should be. People have paid for these services through their taxes and can exercise their voice through voting. They are customers and should get satisfaction” (Idea.gov.uk, Aug 2005). Sir David Varney’s review in 2006 built on these aspirations by setting goals for improvements in public sector performance by 2010. The most recent Comprehensive Spending Review issued earlier this year has again emphasized the importance of creating internal CSE to achieve external CSE. There is a growing unwillingness from both the government and society to accept the continuation of poor public services simply because historically that has been the case. There is intense pressure for strategies to become customer-led rather than service led and a call for exceeding minimum standards to achieve high quality services for less (Speller and Ghobadian, 1993, pg. 30). It has become clear that expectations of public services are rising but reaching these expectations has become particularly important because of the current volatile environment. Information empowerment has allowed for greater transparency in what customers can expect to get and what they can do if standards are below acceptable levels (strong public sector trade union presence (internal) and bodies such as the Independent Complaints Advocacy Service for NHS services and The Independent Police Complaints Commission (external). There has also been evidence of an increase in ‘service-rage’ across both the public and private sectors where anger about poor standards is globally voiced via platforms such as social networking sites and blogs (see ‘Caerphilly Council is a disgrace’ group on Facebook) (Beevers, 2010, pg. 3).

The current volatile climate has also placed more emphasis on CSE because of its potential to create efficiency savings – unsatisfied customers lead to complaints/repeated requests for service, both of which are costly and time consuming (idea.gov.uk, 2010). It has become more common for external customers to take their custom elsewhere e.g. private trade refuse services, housing associations and healthcare. A prime example of this is public transport which has to compete with ‘the convenience and ‘love affair’ that most of us apparently have with our cars. Whether a citizen will give up his or her car and use public transportation will be highly correlated with his or her satisfaction with schedules, routes, numbers or transfers needed and timeliness or stops etc.’ (Kotler&Lee, 2006 pg. 170). For internal customers, poor CSE can lead to low staff morale (which affects productivity) and can result in employees leaving the organisation for better job satisfaction (leading to a shortage of knowledge/skills and potential recruitment difficulties). Good CSE is also important at departmental level because if a client department is unhappy with the service, it may decide to take on the work itself or outsource it to an external provider thus affecting future revenues and budget allowances. There is already mounting pressure on public organisations to move away from reliance on central budgets to generate income themselves across all areas and from a non-competitive culture to a competitive approach to service delivery (Speller and Ghobadian, 1993, pg. 30). CSE is particularly important for this because the public sector has mandatory services which are non-profit areas, so if revenues are lost from profitable areas resources will become stretched. An example of the role that CSE can play in these situations is education. During this period of budget cuts and service stripping, government subsidies and school closures will be based on enrolment figures, parent/student satisfaction and results – all of which are linked to good levels of customer service (Kotler andLee, 2006, pg. 171). Levels of competition are rising both internally and externally due to shrinking budgets and encouragement from the government to open up the right to deliver services. The public sector has not had to face this level of competition before and providers will be expected to provide capital and bear significantly more risk with payment being on the basis of standard tariffs and results rather than activity based contracts and government funding – behaviour previously associated with the private sector (kpmg.co.uk). Increased levels of competition can significantly impact on revenue, profitability, staff turnover, and the stability and security of a business and its workforce (Clarke 1990, pg. 14). Evidence in literature suggests that the gap between the public and private sector is already closing with private organisations being expected to take on more social responsibility and public organisations having to focus on its customers and justify its need for existence. If the gap continues to close and services are opened up for greater competition, the public sector will have no choice but to move more in line with private sector levels of customer service or face severe losses in revenue (Jarrarand Schiuma, 2007, pg. 4).

Resource : Laura Jones B.A. (Hons) Business Studies – Customer Service Excellence module, 2010, Level 6 The New Researcher 2010, Volume 4, 2011, pp. 16-21

BEEVERS, R. 2010.Customer Service Excellence in the Public Sectorhttp://www.customerplus.co.uk/downloads/service_excellence.pdf

CLARK, A. 1992.Public Awareness – Henley Management College, p. 373 – 378

JARRAR, Y and SCHIUMA, G. 2007. Measuring performance in the public sector: challenges and trends. Measuring Business Excellence, Volume 11, No 4, pages 4-8

KOTLER, P. and & LEE, N. 2006. Marketing in the Public Sector – A Roadmap for Improved Performance. Harlow, Essex: Pearson

SPELLER, S. and GOHABIAN, A. 1993.Change for public sector. Managing service quality July, p. 29 – 32

http://www.idea.gov.uk/idk/core/page.do?pageId=959275

http://www.idea.gov.uk/idk/core/page.do?pageId=13407190

Customer Service Exellent bagi Karyawan, Dosen dan Pejabat Stikes

Dalam upaya meningkatkan pelayanan terhadap customer atau konsumen dan implementasi menuju Visi Stikes Muhammadiyah Gombong yaitu  Menjadi Lembaga Pendidikan Kesehatan yang Unggul Modern dan Islami (UMI),  STIKes Muhammadiyah Gombong menyelenggarakan Pelatihan Customer Service dengan Tema Membangun Budaya Kerja di Institusi Pendidikan. Pelaksanaan pelatihan dilaksanakan 2 tahap, tahap pertama pada hari ini Jumat, tanggal 07 Desember 2012 dan Sabtu, tanggal 15 Desember 2012 untuk tahap II, dengan pembicara Staff Ahli Penjamin Mutu STIKes Muhammadiyah Gombong H. Basirun Al Ummah, S.Pd. M.Kes . Kegiatan pelatihan ini diikuti oleh pegawai STIKes Muhammadiyah Gombong, dosen serta jajaran Pimpinan yang ada.  

Pelatihan ini diharapkan mampu memberikan kontribusi terhadap sistem pelayanan di STIKes Muhammadiyah Gombong yang nantinya bisa menghasilkan output yang maksimal terhadap kepuasan customer. Ketua STIKes Muhammadiyah Gombong H. Giyatmo, S.Kep.Ns dalam sambutan beliau menyampaikan betapa pentingnya sebuah pelayanan yang maksimal dari pegawainya terhadap customer, ataupun pelayanan terhadap atasan dilingkungan kantor hal ini erat kaitannya dengan budaya kerja yang kerap diterapkan oleh masing-masing individu dalam suatu perusahaan. Budaya kerja tidak begitu saja terbentuk namun perlu adannya arahan, bimbingan dan standar aturan yang berlaku sehingga lebih tersistem dan terarah, maka pelatihan ini sangatlah penting untuk diikuti oleh setiap pegawai STIKes Muhammadiyah Gombong dengan serius, dan penuh antusias tandas Beliau.

Basic Management

What is management? What do managers do? How do I manage? These are standard questions that most of us in the management profession have been asked more than once. And questions we asked once in our careers too. Here, then, is a basic look at management, a primer, Management 101 from my perspective. Art and Science Management is both art and science. It is the art of making people more effective than they would have been without you. The science is in how you do that. There are four basic pillars: plan, organize, direct, and monitor Make Them More Effective Four workers can make 6 units in an eight-hour shift without a manager. If I hire you to manage them and they still make 6 units a day, what is the benefit to my business of having hired you? On the other hand, if they now make 8 units per day, you, the manager, have value. The same analogy applies to service, or retail, or teaching, or any other kind of work. Can your group handle more customer calls with you than without? Sell higher value merchandise? Impart knowledge more effectively? etc. That is the value of management - making a group of individual more effective. Basic Management Skill #1: Plan Management starts with planning. Good management starts with good planning. And proper prior planning prevents… well, you know the rest of that one. Without a plan you will never succeed. If you happen to make it to the goal, it will have been by luck or chance and is not repeatable. You may make it as a flash-in-the-pan, an overnight sensation, but you will never have the track record of accomplishments of which success is made. Figure out what your goal is (or listen when your boss tells you). Then figure out the best way to get there. What resources do you have? What can you get? Compare strengths and weaknesses of individuals and other resources. Will putting four workers on a task that takes 14 hours cost less than renting a machine that can do the same task with one worker in 6 hours? If you change the first shift from an 8 AM start to a 10 AM start, can they handle the early evening rush so you don't have to hire an extra person for the second shift? Look at all the probable scenarios. Plan for them. Figure out the worst possible scenario and plan for that too. Evaluate your different plans and develop what, in your best judgement, will work the best and what you will do if it doesn't. TIP: One of the most often overlooked management planning tools is the most effective. Ask the people doing the work for their input. Basic Management Skill #2: Organize Now that you have a plan, you have to make it happen. Is everything ready ahead of your group so the right stuff will get to your group at the right time? Is your group prepared to do its part of the plan? Is the downstream organization ready for what your group will deliver and when it will arrive? Are the workers trained? Are they motivated? Do they have the equipment they need? Are there spare parts available for the equipment? Has purchasing ordered the material? Is it the right stuff? Will it get here on the appropriate schedule? Do the legwork to make sure everything needed to execute the plan is ready to go, or will be when it is needed. Check back to make sure that everyone understands their role and the importance of their role to the overall success. Basic Management Skill #3: Direct Now flip the "ON" switch. Tell people what they need to do. I like to think of this part like conducting an orchestra. Everyone in the orchestra has the music in front of them. They know which section is playing which piece and when. They know when to come in, what to play, and when to stop again. The conductor cues each section to make the music happen. That's your job here. You've given all your musicians (workers) the sheet music (the plan). You have the right number of musicians (workers) in each section (department), and you've arranged the sections on stage so the music will sound best (you have organized the work). Now you need only to tap the podium lightly with your baton to get their attention and give the downbeat. Basic Management Skill #4: Monitor Now that you have everything moving, you have to keep an eye on things. Make sure everything is going according to the plan. When it isn't going according to plan, you need to step in and adjust the plan, just as the orchestra conductor will adjust the tempo. Problems will come up. Someone will get sick. A part won't be delivered on time. A key customer will go bankrupt. That is why you developed a contingency plan in the first place. You, as the manager, have to be always aware of what's going on so you can make the adjustments required. This is an iterative process. When something is out of sync, you need to Plan a fix, Organize the resources to make it work, Direct the people who will make it happen, and continue to Monitor the effect of the change. Is It Worth It Managing people is not easy. However, it can be done successfully. And it can be a very rewarding experience. Remember that management, like any other skill, is something that you can improve at with study and practice source: http://management.about.com/cs/generalmanagement/a/Management101.htm