Customer Service Handbook 1.6

T he little ebook of CUSTOMER SERVICEIMPROVING THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

INTRODUCTION As a public sector organisation, we have a special relationship with our customers. We are there at critical points in their lives. We have an opportunity to make a real difference and to change our city for the better. For us, customer service isn’t about making sure that our customers return; it’s about fulfilling our moral and social duty to provide the best service that we can, to treat our customers as individuals, in a way suitable to them, and to go above and beyond to make sure that Aberdeen and its people prosper. We strive to make our staff and customers proud of our city and the services that we provide. This ebook is about our service style and how we can all help to ensure our customers have the best possible experience of our organisation. Angela Scott Chief Executive2

WHAT IS THE LITTLE EBOOK OF CUSTOMER SERVICE?This ebook was designed by staff from acrossAberdeen City Council. While not all ofthe guidelines outlined in this ebookare applicable to everyone; it hasbeen designed to bring clarity andconsistency to areas we have incommon within the workplace.Those areas we have in commoncan range from how we manageour voicemail, to how we greetour customers and everythingin between. These guidelinesshould be applied across ourorganisation. Only by applyingthis best practice will we beable to ensure we’re deliveringand receiving excellent customerservice.Read on to discover the ways we cando this and use this ebook as a tool tohelp support you in your role.This document contains best practice information on customer service delivery across Aberdeen CityCouncil. Our aim is to achieve a consistency in our service delivery for all internal and external customersregardless of which service they access or when they access it. If you would like to suggest changes tothis document please contact a member of the Customer Service Development team. 3

CONTENTS AIM .................................................................................................... 5 WE ARE HERE.................................................................................. 6 HERE TO HELP YOU...................................................................... 8 HERE TO LISTEN TO YOU........................................................... 10 HERE TO ANSWER YOU............................................................... 12 HERE TO BE OPEN WITH YOU................................................... 14 EXAMPLES........................................................................................ 164

AIM Our aim is to provide a service that is always improving; where all staff are personally responsible for delivering an excellent customer experience.OUR PERFORMANCEAberdeen City Council is responsible for reviewing its overallperformance against the Customer Service Charter &Standards. This will show our customers how well we aredelivering customer service and where we may still need tomake improvements.We all have a part to play in understanding and committingdaily to our Customer Service Charter & Standards.OUR CUSTOMERSWe all have customers. If a person or an organisation uses your goods and services, then theyare your customer. We want to create a culture of ‘Positive Customer Interaction’. Staff (internal customers)should expect to be treated with the same respect as members of the public.OUR TRAININGWe can ensure we are able to deliver excellent customer service by committing to attending or completingonline, any mandatory or refresher training. Mandatory courses ensure we all have the same skills weneed to appropriately deliver our services and help us maintain consistency across the organisation.It may be part of your PR&D to explore personal and professional development opportunities that supportyou in delivering excellent customer service; these should be carried out wherever possible. REMEMBER: If you need to cancel attendance on any training you should do this in a timely manner. Your service can still incur a cost if you do not cancel in plenty of time. 5

WE ARE HERE We will make it easy for you to get in touch with us by offering a range of ways to do this. ACCESSIBILITY We all need to ensure that our buildings and services are easily accessible to our customers. You should meet and serve your customers promptly with an apology for any delay. You should consider the immediate needs of your customers and make adjustments wherever possible e.g. such as booking a meeting room if there is a need for privacy or arranging for documents to be translated if this is necessary. Take initiative and signpost our customers to any resources that may better suit their needs such as our digital resources or another Service. On The Zone - Read About: • Meeting Rooms • Health and Safety (Training: Introduction to Health & Safety O.I.L. module) • Visitor Information • Accessible Information Guidelines SMARTER WORKING Work Smart. Our smarter working policies are designed to make it easier for you to meet your customer’s needs. On The Zone - Read About: • Information/photograph is held and maintained on The Zone • Smarter Working Policies (See Flexible Working) • Data Protection • Introduction to Information Security6

SERVICE OPEN & CLOSE TIMESBe aware of your service’s open and close times, make sure these are clearly visible to customers andupdated quickly with any changes. Operating times must be followed and customers advised in advance ifthese are going to be changed.DIGITALYou must be able to direct our customers to self-serve tools e.g. our website and inform them ofopportunities to transact online. You should also let them know about any self-serve options such askiosks and portals or any other options specific to your service.Instructions should be clear, accurate and available in a range of different formats if requested. Report anyinaccuracies you or our customers identify to your line-manager. If you’re the responsible person correctany inaccuracies as quickly as possible. REMEMBER: Think digital; encourage our customers to transact or communicate with us online, where appropriate. Alternatively, encourage use of our self-serve tools.SOCIAL MEDIAYou have the right to participate in the public life of your community using social media (Facebook, Twitteretc), but this does need to be balanced with your responsibilities to Aberdeen City Council, as youremployer. Please take the time to review our Social Media Guidance for Employees to make sure youunderstand what is considered acceptable and unacceptable use of social media.TRANSLATIONOur customers are entitled to request additional support from us if they need it that enables them tospeak with our services in a more meaningful way. This may be in the form of larger font documents or atranslation into braille or another language, for instance.If a customer requests documentation in Braille or another language, you should make a request as soonas possible to the Translation, Interpreting & Communication Support Service to support their individualneeds: • Telephone: 01224 523 542 • E-mail: mailto:[email protected] are also Accessible Information Guidelines available on The Zone which provide advice on writtencommunication and how to make sure we are meeting our customers accessibility needs. 7

HERE TO HELP YOU We will have friendly staff that are happy to help you and provide a comfortable environment when you visit us. BE WELCOMING We support a variety of customers. You should introduce yourself, be polite, welcoming and helpful to them. Regardless of the enquiry or reason for accessing a service, respect and privacy should be extended to each and every one. WHO ARE WE In order to give our customers the best possible experience, you should give your name and service when answering telephone calls or in any written/online communication. You must always wear your ID badge and make sure it is clearly visible. Where you have concerns about making your identity known to a customer, you should speak directly with your line-manager. This should be managed on an individual basis. We all have a responsibility to help maintain the security of all our offices and should confirm the identity of any person before access to a restricted service is provided. TAKE OWNERSHIP If a customer asks you a question treat it as an opportunity for you to take ownership. If you are unable to resolve the query take responsibility to make sure the appropriate people call back or paperwork is sent out. Provide the customer with your contact details so that they have a point of contact if their enquiry is not resolved. This is also an opportunity for you to get to know more about other services.8

SIGNPOSTINGAsk questions to gain a complete picture of your customer’s needs. If your service is not able to resolveeverything, there many be someone else in the organisation or our external partners that can.COMMUNICATION REMEMBER: Think digital; we must use electronic forms of communication where possible (email/text) rather than send letters.If you do need to send a letter always use a current council letter head. End your letters and emails withyour name and your service. This provides your customer with a point of contact and creates the feeling ofpersonal service.If you have promotional materials; can you send this electronically instead? On The Zone - Read About: • Accessible Information Guidelines • Accountability  9

HERE TO LISTEN TO YOU We will listen and respond to your needs; respecting your privacy as we do this. ENGAGEMENT We should engage proactively with our customers to find out the best ways to meet their needs, such as community events, consultations, focus groups, surveys or informal chats. These are activities that you can support, take part in and promote. Remember, your colleagues are also customers with needs we should strive to meet. Your line-manager may take part in ‘back to the floor’ or similar activities. This is their time to be visible, find out what you or the wider team does on a day to day basis. This can be informal. It should be an opportunity for you to engage and share openly the successes and challenges of delivering your service. CUSTOMER FEEDBACK All feedback provides an opportunity for learning and growth. • At every opportunity, request feedback from your customer and know how and where they can do this. • Know where to direct your customers to any ‘You Said, We Did’ activities for your service. • If in doubt, remind your customer that they can feedback online via our website. Here they can also find out about our complaints performance and ‘You Said, We Did’ activities’. Remember you are also a customer and we want your feedback too. Use the feedback tools we have available for our customers to do this. You can also feedback internally using the Ideas Hub and the Employee Opinion Survey.10

MEETING ROOMSAberdeen City Council has numerous meeting rooms available for both internaland external customers; however these are often in high demand. You canensure these resources are freely available as possible by: • Scheduling meetings for the appropriate length of time • Arriving and conclude meetings on time • Cancelling any meetings with plenty of notice • Booking a room for the appropriate number of peopleThese actions will help ensure that all of our customers are afforded a private space,maintaining their privacy and help employees to adhere to our Information Security policies. On The Zone - Read About: • Information Security Policies SEE: Example A: Marischal College Room Management System 11

HERE TO ANSWER YOU We will give you an accurate response to your enquiry and tell you how and when we will respond. RESPONSE TIMES All employees should be aware of their service’s ‘Response Times’. You should ensure that timescales for responding to written/verbal/electronic correspondence and/or reaching a decision are clear to your customer; that the timescales are adhered to and where this is not possible your customer is provided with prompt updates. CHANGE NOTICES We should communicate in a timely manner to our customers any changes that will affect them in the delivery or receipt of a service. These changes must be conveyed clearly and accurately. Change should be circulated in a range of methods to ensure as many customers can be notified as soon as possible. You should hold yourself accountable for staying informed of any changes that affect service delivery and be able to communicate these changes to customers wherever required. TELEPHONE Begin by telling the customer your name and the name of your service. Never leave a phone to ring; regardless of whether or not the owner is part of your immediate team. Take ownership of the call, even if you are only taking the customer’s information so that someone can call them back. Avoid sending any calls back/to the switchboard. No one likes to be left on hold so, before doing this, explain the reason to your customer. Before you end a call take a moment to ask if there is anything else you can help with. If you plan to be away from your desk for a considerable time, and there is no other member of your team available, it is acceptable to divert your phone to voicemail temporarily. Check your voicemail and respond to any customers promptly on your return. SEE: Example B: Voicemail Recording Should a member of your team have a longer absence from work then it is acceptable to divert their calls to another member of the team.12

EMAIL SIGNATUREYou must ensure you have an email signature set up within any Aberdeen City Council email account youhave in place. More than one email signature can be set up, with different ones for internal and externalcustomers, if necessary. SEE: Example C: SignatureOUT OF OFFICEWhile on leave or not having access to your emails you should set up an Out of Office message. It shouldbe delivered to all internal and external customers. A different message can be set up for internal andexternal customers , if appropriate. SEE: Example D: Out of OfficeEmails should be checked promptly on return and any customers responded to as soon as possible. On The Zone - Read About: • Engagement • Smarter/Flexible Working 13

HERE TO BE OPEN WITH YOU We will be honest and clear about how well we are doing as an organisation. ACCOUNTABILITY Accountability is about recognising our wider role within the organisation; how this can affect both our internal and external customers and the impact this can have on the overall performance of the organisation. Where we may have failed to provide excellent customer service it is important to understand our role in this. You should feel empowered to challenge behaviours or practices that prevent your delivery of excellent customer service. You should behave in a way that clearly shows alignment with our Core and Digital Behaviours. You should receive regular 1-2-1 meetings to review your performance as well as an annual PR&D meeting. Take ownership and refresh your knowledge of relevant policies and procedures that relate to you and how you do your job. Similarly, familiarise yourself with internal resources such as The Zone; where to find relevant policies and procedures on The Zone, conferences, briefings and other opportunities to learn more about our organisation and any changes in delivery and environment. ZERO TOLERANCE Aberdeen City Council exercises a Zero Tolerance approach to any verbal and physical abuse of its employees. Notices should be visible to customers and highlighted when appropriate in a calm but firm manner. Incidents of verbal and/or physical abuse should be immediately reported to your line manager, team leader or appropriate Officer on Duty. Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need it.14

CUSTOMER RESPONSIBILITIESYou are not alone in the delivery of excellent customer service. Customers must be held accountablefor their actions too and provide us with the information we need to provide a quality service. You areencouraged and empowered to highlight these responsibilities to your customers.In support of this, you should; • Advise your customers of the process to resolving their enquiry; highlighting to them where an action or information is needed to progress their enquiry • Where a customer has not undertaken an action or provided information to you that they are reminded of this responsibility at the earliest opportunity enabling for a speedy resolutionIt is important to remember that respect and professionalism must be maintained at all times. On The Zone - Read About: • Unacceptable Actions Policy • Our Performance • Customer Feedback 15

EXAMPLES EXAMPLE A: MARISCHAL COLLEGE ROOM MANAGEMENT SYSTEM Marischal College - A new Room Management System (display panel) for the use of our large and small meeting rooms has been implemented. This new system aims to increase meeting room availability, increase visibility of room use and decrease the amount of booked rooms left empty. Employees should be able to use this system to: • Confirm arrival for a meeting (Rooms which have not been ‘confirmed’ within 10 minutes of their scheduled start time on the display panel are forfeited and the booking cancelled) • Extend and shorten meeting times as appropriate • Book a meeting These examples show, as a minimum, the information you must provide to customers. EXAMPLE B: VOICEMAIL RECORDING Example: You are through to John Smith, Human Resources. I am currently on annual leave from Monday 1 January to Friday 5 January. My expected return to work date is Monday 8 January. I will respond to your voicemail from Monday 8 January, alternatively you can contact my colleague Jane Smyth on 01224 XXXXXX. EXAMPLE C: SIGNATURE Example: John Smith HR Advisor Human Resources Corporate Governance Marischal College, Broad Street, Aberdeen, AB10 1AB Direct Dial: 01224 XXXXXX/Switchboard: 0300 XXX XX [email protected] EXAMPLE D: OUT OF OFFICE Thank you for your email. I am out of the office from Monday 1 January to Friday 5 January. My expected return to work date is Monday 8 January. I will respond to your email from Monday 8 January, alternatively you can telephone my colleague John Smith on 01224 XXXXXX or email him at [email protected]@aberdeencity.gov.uk16 DSC0518/CH