The document outlines the City of Concord's process to establish excellent customer service. It discusses establishing a shared purpose and leadership commitment. A customer service design team was created to get coworker input and make the teams feel like owners of the process. Principles of excellent service were established like concern for individuals, professionalism, and timely responses. Surveys were conducted to improve internal user-friendliness and paperwork. A "Journey Through Concord" program helps coworkers learn about other departments. Next steps involve surveying external customers and establishing evaluation and measurement of customer service.

1. W. Brian Hiatt
City Manager

2. Highlights – CARE Center

3. Highlights – Eyes/Ears Program

4. Steps in the process:
Establishing One Purpose
Vision & Plans Developed
Leadership Input & Commitment
Customer Input & Perspective

5. Steps in the process:
Becoming One Team
Co-worker Ownership
Design Improvement Process
Co-worker Awareness Training

6. Concord’s First Customer
Service Design Team

7. 7

8. Principles of Excellent Service
• Concern for the Individual
 Make people feel important and
welcome
• Professional Service
 Provide good service consistently
• Timeliness
 Handle customer requests/concerns in
a timely manner (the sundown rule)

9. Principles of Excellent Service
• Customer Focus
 Treat people like you would like to be
treated
• Effective Communications
 Keep people updated and informed
• Teamwork
 Provide seamless service between
departments

10. Principles of Excellent Service
• Fair & Equitable Service
 Treat every person with respect
• Taking Ownership
 Take personal accountability-
Don’t “Pass the buck”
• Great Service Recovery
 Make a special effort to resolve the
issue

11. Steps in the process:
Reinforcing One Culture
Establish Communications/
Reinforcement Process
Custom-Tailor Process to Depts.
Integrate Process Into
Culture

12. Examples of Design Team Activities
• Coworker Pledge Card
• Annual Co-worker Appreciation Picnic
• STAR Program
• Journey through Concord (Employee
Academy)

14. Journey Through Concord
 Design Team facilitates coworker
tours of City facilities to learn about
the work of other coworkers and
learn about other City facilities and
operations.
 Application to participate
 Evaluation by coworkers participating
 Certificate of Completion

15. City Council Goal
 “Continue to review operations and customer
requirements for user-friendliness, both internally
and externally, and seek customer feedback
through tools such as surveys, focus groups,
secret shoppers, etc.”

16. Focus on User Friendliness
Survey of Internal Service
Departments within the City
Co-workers randomly surveyed on
telephone and email response, as well
as user-friendliness of procedures and
paperwork
(CMO, Communications, Bldg/Grounds, Finance,
Budget, Purchasing, Call Center, Tax, Legal, HR,
Data Services, Engineering, Fleet, Risk Management)

18. Focus on User Friendliness

19. Focus on User Friendliness

20. Focus on User Friendliness
• All surveyed departments are in process of
sending out an email response to City co-
workers based on the feedback they
obtained during the survey.
 Provides accountability in how each department
is addressing identified issues.
• Currently working on internal review of
forms, procedures and policies City-wide to
revise, update, or eliminate unnecessary
steps and procedures.
 Will include focus groups with co-workers if
necessary

21. What’s Next
Focus on External Customers
• Bi-annual Customer Service Survey
• Secret Shopper
• Focus Group Feedback
• Customer Service Refresher Training
• Technology

22. What’s Next
Evaluation and Measurement
• Coworker Performance Evaluation
• Performance Measurement Standards

23. Questions?