how cabarrus county's modernized lobby improved... everything [original slides]

teamnorthwoods.comRevolutionizing the Delivery of Human Services®

How Cabarrus County’s Modernized Lobby Improved… Everything

teamnorthwoods.comCopyright © 2016 Northwoods Consulting Partners, Inc. All rights reserved. 2

Presenters

Greg TippingChief Services Officer & Vice President of

State Operations

Diane GridleyEconomic Services

Program Administrator

Tamela CrockettIncome Maintenance

Supervisor

Natalia YoungIncome Maintenance

Caseworker II


5 Key Areas

Health Check

Improving Client Services

Improving Worker Morale

Improving Communication

Improving Visibility into Operations


What is a Health Check?

Northwoods evaluates how well software and business processes

are working to meet business needs.


Health Check Key Findings/Challenges

Regression

Inefficient Processes

Communication Issues

Poor Customer Service

?


Recommendations

Upgrade Compass Appointments to mitigate regression

Modernize business processes by eliminating manual processes

Improve communication with a cross-functional change

Improve customer service with redesigned lobby and greeter to check-in clients


Improving Client Service

To improve customer service, CabarrusCounty DHS redesigned the confusing and

inefficient lobby flow to decrease wait times and reduce client frustration.



Before

Take a Ticket

Window

Express Center



After

Caseworker: Applyfor services

Window: Recertifications,basic information changes

Express Center: Scan & dropoff documents, pick up mail


After:

Ease Client Frustration


After:


Caseworkers not spending appointment time diffusing frustration


After:


Caseworkers not spending appointment time diffusing frustration

Caseworkers saving 10-20 minutes per client


Greeter Benefits

“Someone this morning said ‘I’m so glad to see somebody instead of a machine, to see a person.’ People like to see

a smiling face when they walk in.”

Vessie TenorioIncome Maintenance Caseworker I


Improving Worker Morale

Another goal for Cabarrus County DHS was to reduce stress and improve

morale for caseworkers.


Why Were Workers Stressed?

1. Manual processes didn’t ensure cases were distributed evenly – weren’t using Compass Appointments round robin

2. Caseworkers took the brunt of clients’ frustrations


Assigning one clerical worker to manually distribute clients to caseworkers introduced several issues:

No Tracking

Risk of Human Error

Stress of Managing Frustrated Clients

Limited Client Information

Lost Productivity!


To boost worker morale and help caseworkers process applications more efficiently, Cabarrus County DHS took two critical steps:

1. Upgrade Compass Appointments to take advantage of automated features

2. Revamp business processes so the right workers are working on the right tasks


Benefits:

Automated Distribution


Benefits:


Reporting


Benefits:


Reporting

Improved Productivity


Benefits:


Reporting


Understand Client Needs


Benefits:


Reporting


Understand Client Needs

Less Client Frustration



Cabarrus County also worked to

resolve communication issues

that hampered efficiency.


Communication Challenges

Inconsistent Processes

Poor Communication Methods

Technology Mismatched to Business Needs



Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)




Improved Communication Methods




Business Analyst

Improved Communication Methods


Improving Visibility into Operations

Cabarrus County didn’t have visibility into its operations in the lobby or throughout the agency because of

all the manual processes.


Lack of Visibility Challenges

Not Understanding Clients Needs?



Not Understanding Clients Needs

Can’t Adjust in Real Time

?



Not Understanding Clients Needs

Can’t Adjust in Real Time

Lack Data to Justify Resources

?


Visibility Improvements

Understand Client’s Needs




Real Time Staffing Adjustments




Real Time Staffing Adjustments

Reliable Data to Justify Resources


Project Outcomes

• Reduced client and caseworker frustration

• Improved lobby flow and reduced lobby wait time

• Helped manage ACA, NC FAST

• Sped up timely application processing

• Provided leadership visibility into operations

• Saved caseworkers 1-2 hours per day

• Repurposed 1 FTE, saving 40 hours per week


Learn more

Download the case study or watch the video series at teamnorthwoods.com


Questions?

Greg TippingChief Services Officer & Vice President of

State Operations

Diane GridleyEconomic Services

Program Administrator

Tamela CrockettIncome Maintenance

Supervisor

Natalia YoungIncome Maintenance

Caseworker II

Email: [email protected]

Website: teamnorthwoods.com

how cabarrus county's modernized lobby improved... everything [original slides]

Government & Nonprofit