guidelines on quality counter/customer services

Guidelines

on

Quality Counter / Customer Services

A customer is the most important visitor on our premises.

He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an

interruption of our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an

outsider to our business. He is a part of it. We are not doing him a

favour by serving him. He is doing us a favour by giving us an

opportunity to do so.

Mahatma Gandhi

C o n t e n t s

Page No

Importance of Counter / Customer Services 5

In Front of Counter 7

- Easy accessibility- Directional Signs- Waiting Area- Notice Boards / Magazines Racks- Queuing System- Calling System

At the Counter 10

- Pre-Counter Activities- Good Habits/Bad Habits

Behind the Counter 13

- Management Role- Establishing a Customer Driver Strategy- Setting of Performance Standards- Manpower Management- Systems and Work Procedures- Role of Support Staff

Are You Delivering a Quality Service? 18

1. I M P O RTANCE OF COUNTER / CUSTOMER SERV I C E S

Good public service delivery leads to satisfied

customers, job satisfaction for public officers

and promotes a positive image of public

organizations. Ministries / Departments need

to improve their service delivery provided to

citizens and businesses in terms of quality, timeliness and

courtesy. It is therefore imperative to renew efforts to sustain

quality Counter/Customer Services so as to meet the growing

expectations of citizens and businesses.

These guidelines aim at assisting public sector organizations to

constantly improve their Counter/Customer Services.

A Counter/Customer Service is a front-line service where

customers deal with public officers and are provided with

various types of services such as issue of licenses, permits

passports, identity cards, and civil status certificates.

The impression one gets from a Counter/Customer Service is

thus of crucial importance as it reflects the efficiency and

effectiveness of the organisation which are perceived through

the attitude of front-line officers, the response time and the

services delivered.

Customer services

Ministry of Civil Service and Administrative Reforms 5

To offer quality Counter/Customer Services, an integratedapproach needs to be adopted as follows:

● in front of the Counter - where customers waitfor services

● at the counter - where services are delivered

● behind the counter - where support services areprovided.

“I don’t want to stand in endless queues, filling out

incomprehensible forms and coming back after lunch! You see my

needs are simple. All I want is RESULTS. Give me results and I

am a happy tax-paying citizen”.

Views of a Citizen

Administrative Reforms Division6


Customer services

2 IN FRONT OF THE COUNTER

Members of the public should be providedwith appropriate and adequate facilities thatlead them to the Counter such as:

■ Easy Accessibility

As far as possible, Counter/Customer Services should becentrally located.

■ Directional Signs

Clear Directional Signs should be visible andgive directions regarding location and type ofservices offered.

■ Waiting Area

The waiting area should be kept clean,we l l - ventilated and equipped withcomfortable visitor’s chairs.

■ Notice Boards / Magazines Racks

Whenever possible light reading materials should be provided.Information regarding the various types of services offered and

requirements to benefit from the services should beclearly stated in the Citizen’s/Customer Charters andNotice Boards.

■ Queuing System

Queues should be streamlined to avoid discomfort anddissatisfaction of customers. The queuing system adoptedshould take into account the arrival rate of customers, waitingfacilities, area available and crowd management techniques.

Depending on the type of services offered, the mosta p p ropriate queuing system can be adopted from thefollowing :

● one queue for one service counter

● one queue for multiple counters offering a similarservice

● multiple queues for multiple counters imparting similarservices

● multiple queues for multiple counters providing variousservices

■ Calling System

To reduce long queues at the counter and ensure a fairtreatment to all customers, one can have recourse to aCalling System whereby customers remain seated afterthey have been allocated a number. These numbers canbe issued through electronic machines or from acounter at the entrance.

Guideslines on Quality Counter


If the Calling System is adopted, it is important that seats beinstalled as appropriate in waiting areas to enable customers tosee clearly the numbers displayed at the Counter or to hear thenumbers being called by the counter staff.

“Quality in a service or product is not what you put into it.

It is what the client or customer gets out of it.”

Peter Drucker

Customer services


3. AT THE COUNTER

At the Counter, quality services should be delivered ina professional manner. Enquiry Counters should beeasily accessible and be equipped with appropriateforms, guidelines and pamphlets regarding servicesprovided.

Officers posted at the Counters should be knowledgeableabout the activities of the organization and be in a position top roperly channel and advise members of the publicaccordingly.

■ Pre-Counter Activities

Prior to the opening of the Counter, it is essential to ensure thatthe following pre-counter activities be carried out before the startof each day for the smooth delive ry of serv i c e s :

● The availability at the Counter of documents such asapplication forms, explanatory notes, information sheets,b ro c h u res, etc. in adequate quantity

● That all equipment and date stamps are in good work i n go rd e r

● The working environment of the Counter is clean and alllights are switched on

● That the waiting area and queuing area are clean

● That the Counter is opened at specific times. The officer atthe Counter should be present at least ten minutes beforethe Counter is opened. He / She should be smartly dre s s e dand wear nametags for easy identification by customers.



Customer services

Mi n i s t ry of Civil Se rvice and Ad m i n i s t ra t i ve Re f o rm s 11

GOOD HABITS

■ Be punctual

■ Ha ve someone re p l a c eoneself at the Counter incase of lateness

■ Maintain a smart and neatappearance

■ Re c e i ve customers pleasantly

■ Smile and make customersfeel at ease

■ Offer a seat whenappropriate

■ Be polite and courteous atall times

■ Always be ready to help andassist

■ Maintain the same positiveattitude with each and everycustomer

■ If the service is notd e l i ve red at the Counter,re d i rect customers to therespective schedule officers

■ Listen with empathy andpay attention

BAD HABITS

■ Arriving late behind theCounter or making peoplewait before opening theCounter

■ Dress inappropriately whenon duty at the Counter

■ Not greeting members ofthe public

■ Being rude to customers(for e.g. an unkind remarkor a nasty look)

■ Di scr imina te amongs tcustomers

■ Challenge, argue, scold orill-treat customers even ifthey do not fill in formsa p p ropriately or forgetimportant documents

■ G i ve i n c o r r e c t a n dinaccurate information

■ Read, eat, drink, speak andlaugh loudly



■ Refrain from interruptingcustomers

■ Gi ve customers re l e va n t ,sufficient and re l i a b l einformation

■ Look at customers whenspeaking

■ Always say please andthank you

■ Be patient as well as opento suggestions andcomments

■ Guide customers in fillingforms

■ Inform customers politelyif they fill formsincorrectly or fail to bringthe necessary documents

■ Open additional Countersor extend Counter Servicetime, if required

■ Keep a professional andhigh standard work i n gatmosphere

■ Always say goodbye andensure that customers aresatisfied when they leave.

■ Make customers wait atthe Counter by conversingor talking for a long timeover the telephone whiledealing with customers

■ A l l ow cus t ome r s t owait too long withoutacceptable reasons

■ Mi s d i recting customersto other sections ormisunderstanding people’sspecific requirements.

“It takes only one negative attitude on the team to alienate acustomer, and we cannot afford that.”

Good habits - cont ’d Bad habits - cont’d

4. BEHIND THE COUNTER

■ Management Role

Management should ensure the development of humanresources so as to enable front-line officers to deliver anexcellent Counter Service.

The adoption of the following four principles help to achieve aquality Counter/ Customer Service:

● Establishing a Customer Driven Strategy

● Setting of Performance Standards

● Manpower Management

● Improving Systems and Work Procedures.

■ Establishing a Customer - Driven Strategy

This principle takes into account the specific needs ofcustomers in designing an efficient and effective service.

Some examples of customer-driven strategies are:

One Stop Counters

One Stop Counters centralize all Counter/CustomerServices provided by several Ministries/Departments atone place. This enables members of the public andbusinesses to obtain various services provided byMinistries/Departments at these Counters and savesthem from going from place to place.

Customer services


Decentralisation of Services

As far as possible, Counter/Customer Services should bedecentralized and located at branch or mobile offices soas to be close to customers, easily accessible and moreconvenient.

Extending of service time at counters

Efforts should be made for Counters to be open when alarge number of customers are expected to be free, that isbefore the actual opening time of most offices and afteroffice hours, during lunch time and on Saturdays.

One Stop Bill Payment Centre

T h rough these One Stop Bill Payment Centre s ,customers are able to pay various types of bills at oneplace and do not need to go to several places to settletheir bills. They thus save on time, cost and effort.

Enquiry Services through telephone/Internet

Phone enquiries and queries through e-mails should betreated with due diligence and answered efficiently in atimely manner. Queries can be efficiently handledthrough computer databases where updated records canbe easily accessed to provide accurate informationwhenever required.

■ Setting of Performance Standards

Performance standards should be set by management andmonitored to ensure that services delivered are according toexpected standards.



The publication of organization’s Citizen’s/Customer Charterwill keep customers informed of services provided, standardsexpected and what is expected from the organization fromthem.

The use of an effective Feedback and ComplaintsMechanism will enable citizens to evaluate the performance ofthe services provided and express their complaints, suggestionsand expectation.

Feedback can be obtained through:

● Suggestion Box/emails

● Customer Feedback Form

● Customer Surveys

■ Manpower Management

In order to achieve a quality Counter/Customer Service, it isimportant that counter staff be properly selected, trained andretrained. They should have a pleasant personality and beemotionally stable when dealing with all types ofcustomers. An adequate number of staff shouldbe provided in relation to the workload.

Their knowledge and skills should beenhanced through focussed training inCustomer Care and they should be providedwith adequate guidelines to assist them indealing with problems or make use of their betterjudgement when required.

Customer services


Human Resource Development should be carried out through:

● training programs aimed at producing quality personnelprior to their placement

● in-house training

● conducting of motivational programs for staff, forexample by establishing communication betwe e ncounter staff and management to discuss problems facedand devise ways to resolve these immediately

● establishing of a job rotation system so as to expose staffto various areas to improve their skills and knowledge.

■ Systems and Work Procedures

Im p rovements in systems and work pro c e d u re scontribute tow a rds the upgrading of the quality of

Counter/Customer Services. Short procedures, easydirectives, updated and simple forms that do notconfuse customers are called for logical workprocesses and a conducive work environment assistin the smooth delivery of customer-friendly and

timely services.

Improvements related to systems and procedures may include:

● forms which are well designed, easy to fill, andaccompanied by clear guidelines

● Collection, storage, analysis and distribution ofinformation through an efficient Ma n a g e m e n tInformation Systems



● guidelines on procedures, work directivesand check list of duties to be readily available

● Optimal use of office equipment andf u r n i t u re to maintain the quality ofdaily work.

■ Role of Support Staff

Support from staff is very important to ensure the success ofthe provision of Quality Counter / Customer Services.

In order to upgrade and maintain the quality of such services,support staff behind the counter should:

● Strive to improve their skills and knowledge in carryingout their daily responsibilities

● Live up to the performance standards expected to ensurethat service provided is always up to the standard

● abide to the directives and guidelines which have beenprepared by the management

● practise an excellent work culture

● submit views and proposals to improvework environment especially where theyare directly involved.

Customer services


“Every process in the organization has a customer, and

without a customer, a process has no purpose.”

5. Are you delivering a Quality Service?

Surveys have shown that customers determine service qualitybased on the following five major elements:

Elements Survey measure

Timeliness “Were you satisfied with the time it took toget the service?”

Knowledge, “Staff were knowledgeable and competent.”competence

Courtesy, “Staff were courteous and made me feel comfort comfortable.”

Fair treatment “I was treated fairly.”

Outcome “In the end, did you get what you needed?”

End note to Remember:

For a citizen, the public officer behind a counter is the organisation.The way the citizen is treated when applying for a service is the way he/sheperceives public service delivery.

Many improvements that the public would like to see often require noadditional resources and can sometimes even reduce costs. For instance, acourteous and respectful greeting requires no financial investment.

Improving Public Service Delivery is not a one-off exercise. It is anongoing and dynamic process, because as standards are met, they must beprogressively raised.



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