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Benchmarking shows Councils are on the right track

First impressions can be hard to budge and the first impression many residents and ratepayers have of their Council is formed when they telephone for information or to lodge a complaint. How that call is handled can have long term implications for customer relations. Melbourne City Council for one, is determined to find out just how well its Call Centre is performing.

From the beginning of the year it has been benchmarking its Call Centre performance against other Councils and private industry. Manager Customer Relations Mark Drew said benchmarking is aimed at establishing 'best in class' practice at Melbourne.

He said Customer Service Benchmarking Australia Pty Ltd provides Council with quarterly reports on Call Centre operations based on 'mystery caller' information. Over 40 calls, using common Council inquiry scenarios, are monitored and rated against a range of indicators to form the basis of the report.

Mark Drew said it is a highly valuable tool that not only allows Council to measure its performance but gives it the means to improve that performance. "By detailing particular areas of customer service we can see where we are doing well and where we need to improve," he said. "Importantly, we are able to get feedback on individual calls which can then be used as a coaching tool."

Mark said Melbourne City Council, along with Local Government in general, does very well in comparison to other industries in such matters as 'response time'. This is crucial for an organisation which deals with approximately 900 calls per day.

He said liaison between Council and Customer Service Benchmarking Australia Pty Ltd allows tailoring of the performance criteria to Councils' requirements.

For further information contact Mark Drew, telephone (03) 9658 9856 or Noel Armstrong at Customer Service Benchmarking Australia Pty Ltd, telephone 1800 358 081.

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