“We had set up our electronic plan submittal system and review, so we were on the cutting edge of technology. We were doing great,” Thoppel told an audience at the recent Digital Government Summit in Austin. The department hit the first milestone of 20 percent usage in the first year, and due to the implementation didn’t need to shut down all processes and regroup in 2020.
“We did make it to 20 percent the first year; COVID hit — that goal of 20 percent was out, and it was 100 percent of my customers using the electronic plan review,” she said. “We were there, and no, we had no day that we shut down. We were moving smoothly during that time.”
The closing session “Got Customer Service?” looked at what agencies can do to keep customer service levels high while taking more online solutions to the public.
Dustin Haisler, chief innovation officer of e.Republic*, moderated the panel, which included Thoppel; Amanda Crawford, CIO of the Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR); and Cory Wilburn, CIO of the Texas General Land Office (GLO).
Interdepartmental communication is key to keeping processes on target, the panel agreed.
“We’re really focused on trying to put ourselves in our customers’ shoes, and we start with our internal customer and make sure we have a real understanding of their business and their challenges,” Wilburn elaborated. “We make sure we understand how they want to deliver their service externally, how they want to be perceived externally, and then as we build out our different products.”
“I think it’s a constant struggle: You have to put focus on understanding your customer and your customer’s customer and their expectation, because it seems like so many of the expectations we have are moving everywhere all at once.”
Some takeaways, according to Haisler, were:
- Customer service expectations are higher than ever for employees, businesses and citizens, but they are constantly shifting.
- Reimagining customer service requires being in a state of continuous improvement.
- A healthy culture is the key ingredient to delivering exceptional customer service.
- Agencies need to focus on building new services around customer needs without leaving anyone behind.
Ultimately, each leader is serving a large population that is in turn served by their departments or agencies. DIR serves just under 30 customers across the state, and their contracted vendors saw some $2.7 billion in sales.
Crawford added that “the whole point going back to who our customers are is if we serve those who serve, and if the things that we’re providing are not what you need or are not what our customer agencies want, we’re not delivering them in the right way. That’s something we need to address. It may be that there’s a statutory reason why we can’t do it or that there are other reasons. We would have those conversations. That’s part of the process.”
“We have hundreds (of agencies) who have taken advantage at all levels of government in [shared services], so to me, that’s an indicator that we might be doing something well, but now the next step on that, too, is looking at how satisfied are they with those services,” Crawford said.
Along with customer satisfaction surveys and staff one-on-ones, each leader checks in on projects, expectations and progress. They agree that consistent communication with staff and surveying stakeholders is key to not becoming complacent.
“We need to keep checking on the pulse of where our customers are,” Thoppel said. “What are they looking for? Because the expectations change very quickly. We need to keep up with that.”
*e.Republic is Industry Insider — Texas’ parent company.
