National Contact Management Principles and Guidance

Transcription

1

2 Introduction This document has been produced by the National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA) on behalf of the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO). The NPIA was established by the Police and Justice Act As part of it s remit the NPIA is required to develop policing doctrine, including guidance/practice advice, in consultation with ACPO, the Home Office and the Police Service. Guidance produced by the NPIA should be used by chief officers to shape the development of policy, thereby ensuring that the quality of service delivery meets the expectations of our customers and stakeholders. The implementation of all guidance/ practice advice will require operational choices to be made at local level in order to achieve the appropriate police response. All enquires relating to this guidance should be addressed to: The Contact Management Team and Neighbourhood Policing Programme National Policing Improvement Agency 3rd Floor, 10 Victoria Street London SW1H 0NN T: E: cfnpp@npia.pnn.police.uk Acknowledgements ACPO and the NPIA would like to express their thanks to all those involved in the drafting of this document and to those who gave their advice. All of the responses during the consultation phase of this project were appreciated and contributed to the final document. Particular appreciation is noted in respect of: Kay Southall (NPIA / Gwent Police) Mike Rawsthorn (NPIA / Metropolitan Police Service) Pauline Smith MBE (Nottinghamshire Police ACPO Advisor) Mike Horne (Abu Dhabi Police, formerly HMIC) ACPO (Association of Chief Police Officers) 2010 NPIA (National Policing Improvement Agency) 2010 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, modified, amended, stored in any retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the National Policing Improvement Agency and the Association of Chief Police Officers or their duly authorised representative. This document does not recommend or endorse any companies or products contained within. 2

3 Overview 4 Contact Management in Context 4 The Business Case for Change 5 Developing the National Contact Management Principles and Guidance 5 Moving Forward with Confidence 6 Supporting the National Strategy 7 Chapter One 9 Summary 10 Principle and Critical Success Factors 11 Creating a ed Approach 13 Accessibility and Inclusivity 14 Channel Strategy 16 Communication Media and Marketing Keeping People Informed 19 Quality of the Customer Experience 20 Complaints and Dissatisfaction 21 Diagnostic Indicators 22 Chapter Two 23 Summary 24 Principles and Critical Success Factors 25 Demand Forecasting and Resource Planning 27 Protective Services 30 Incident Management 31 National Contact Grades 33 Working with Partners 36 Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery 39 Diagnostic Indicators 40 Chapter Three Supporting 41 Summary 42 Principles and Critical Success Factors 43 Leadership and Culture 45 Our People 46 Employee Engagement 50 Investors in People 51 Wellbeing of Staff 52 Reward and Recognition 54 National Occupational Standards 56 Knowledge Management 57 Diagnostic Indicators 59 Chapter Four Delivering Value for Money 60 Summary 61 Principle and Critical Success Factors 63 HMIC Value for Money Profiles 64 Cabinet Office Service Transformation 65 Audit Commission Use of Resources Framework 66 Procurement Collaboration 68 Lean Systems Thinking 70 Commercial Cost Models 71 Diagnostic Indicator 73 Appendix A Cabinet Office Multi-Channel Strategy 74 Appendix B Matrix aligning NCMS Principles with Critical Success Factors from NCMPG 77 Appendix C Suite of Diagnostic Indicators for Contact Management 81 References 88 Useful Websites 89 Glossary 90 3

4 Overview Contact Management in Context Policing in England and Wales is underpinned by the ethos that it is undertaken with the consent and support of the public. Central to retaining public consent and support is maintaining the public s confidence that when they call for assistance the police will respond effectively and in a timely manner. This expectation goes right to the heart of effective contact management. It requires forces to be accessible and responsive, providing the right service, at the right time, to consistently high standards, removing variability and tailoring our service in such a way that our communities feel safe and have trust and confidence in what we do. The Home Office Policing Green Paper From the Neighbourhood to the National: Policing Our Communities Together (2008) sets out a new vision for policing and a single top down confidence target. The paper aims to drive provision of more consistent, visible and accessible service that is responsive and meets public needs and expectations. The target focuses on improving public confidence in whether crime and community safety priorities are being identified and addressed. Understanding and responding to the needs of the public are likely to play a central role in delivering improvements. The British Crime Survey found that people were more likely to be confident if they thought neighbourhood policing was effective, there are perceived low levels of antisocial behaviour and they believed crime locally was falling. The Survey also found that the quality of contact between the police and the public was crucial overall. Confidence was associated with public perceptions of the police treating people fairly and with respect. The analysis suggested that people who were satisfied with the police s response to their request for help were more likely to be confident than those who had no contact with the police. More importantly, the research revealed there was more scope for poor service to damage confidence than there was for satisfactory service to maintain confidence. Contact management is about how the public communicate with the police service and the subsequent provision of service. Whilst much of that contact is through the telephone, the scope is wider and also includes short message service (SMS), internet, mail or fax and direct forms of face-to-face contact, whether through front counters, neighbourhood teams or other specialist policing resources. In order to develop effective approaches to managing contact through these channels, it is essential that forces understand the needs of their communities and raise standards of service delivery across the whole of the organisation. Contact management represents a significant opportunity to influence public confidence. The service receives over 60 millions calls per year from the public and each one is an opportunity to make every contact count. High quality contact management, delivered across the organisation, provides a gateway to deliver enhanced customer satisfaction and improved public confidence. Most research on victim satisfaction has suggested that process factors (showing interest, providing reassurance and keeping people informed) are more important to overall satisfaction than outcomes (getting a result ). Satisfaction has also been shown to tail off after the initial response, suggesting that information and follow-up that meets the needs of individuals are likely to be important. A key strategic commitment impacting on contact management at the present time is the introduction of the National Policing Pledge (2008). The Pledge came into being following the Home Office Green Paper: from the Neighbourhood to the National: Policing Our Communities Together (2008). Where information or guidance within this document supports the Pledge delivery it is specifically referenced. This document also contains broader contact management activities that can assist in improving effective contact management delivery. A copy of the National Policing Pledge can be found by clicking here. 4

5 The Business Case for Change The National Contact Management Strategy (NCMS) vision is making every contact count: delivering services that meet individual needs, reassuring our communities and increasing public confidence in policing. The background and business case for change are outlined in more detail within the NCMS. Please click here to download the strategy. Developing the National Contact Management Principles and Guidance In order to deliver this new National Contact Management Principles and Guidance (NCMPG) document the NPIA has conducted a fundamental review of the National Call Handling Standards (NCHS) This has involved an independent review by Hyder Consultancy, extensive national consultation, a series of key practitioner seminars/workshops, an ACPO and senior stakeholder conference and an independently led National Police Contact Management Benchmarking Exercise. The review identified a number of key messages for the future development of NCMPG, including: Overwhelming support for an end-to-end view of the customer journey, which starts with contact management and continues across the organisation. Concern that many forces appear to see contact management as solely the preserve of the contact management centre and not the wider force environment. A greater emphasis on the qualitative understanding of service provision, promoting the right activities and behaviours. Measuring the key points across the customer journey to improve the customer experience. Clarity in terms of those things that are identified as a standard versus those things that are simply guidance. Strong strategic leadership and focus to realise potential business change opportunities and benefits. Supporting local delivery, the guidance should focus on the what to do rather than the how to do it, recognising that a one size fits all approach can be inflexible. The need to identify and disseminate good practice that supports effective local delivery of service. The benchmarking exercise identified areas where the Service was performing well and provided individual forces with insight on some areas for improvement. The review and consultation processes have involved every force in England and Wales and the key messages outlined in the review have been further used to design and develop the following contact management products: The National Contact Management Strategy outlining the services vision for contact management in the 21st century. This National Contact Management Principles and Guidance document providing underpinning tactical guidance to forces. The ACPO National Contact Grades providing a nationally agreed process by which contacts are risk assessed and prioritised to ensure fair access to service. A suite of diagnostic indicators for contact management ensuring the service focuses on measuring those things that matter. An updated National Contact Management Learning Package to support the broader contact management roles in the service. New methods to support dissemination of good practice, e.g., through the Police Knowledge Area (POLKA). 5

6 There is a significant difference between the NCHS and the new NCMPG document. The NCHS was developed around a specific set of performance standards which set out a prescriptive approach to forces, at a time when Her Majesty s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) Baseline Assessment had identified serious variations in service quality and delivery across England and Wales. The NCMPG document, which now supersedes NCHS, is designed on principles that all forces can adopt regardless of their stage of development and focuses clearly on delivering public confidence. This document does not focus specifically on technology although references are made where applicable. Moving Forward with Confidence The NCMPG document has been created to underpin the NCMS. It provides detailed guidance and advice, intended to expand understanding of the principles set out in the national strategy, namely: Principle 1: Customer: designing and delivering contact management on the basis of citizen and business needs to increase customer satisfaction and public confidence Principle 2: Leadership: delivering effective leadership at all levels to promote and enhance citizen focused contact management. Principle 3: People: investing in people and involving them in shaping contact management. Principle 4: Finance: providing value for money by ensuring the optimum balance is achieved between the cost of service and delivering an excellent customer experience. Principle 5: Knowledge: exploiting the value of citizen and business knowledge to understand performance and improve local accountability. Principle 6: Demand: understanding the demand profile and workflow across the organisation, in order to optimise service delivery. Principle 7: Resources: satisfying demand for contact through the most efficient and effective use of resources, to deliver responsive local policing Principle 8: Partners: optimising resilience through effective planning and collaboration with partners, to enhance contact management capability. The NCMPG document is a tactical document intended for contact management practitioners at all levels. It aims to: i. Achieve citizen focused improvement in service delivery with customers needs at the heart of force culture and business change processes. ii. Focus the service on improving the quality of the customer experience and achieving the overarching confidence target for policing. iii. Encourage a move away from minor bureaucracy supporting officers and staff to act with discretion to deliver the best possible customer experience. iv. Make the complex simple and add real value to the design and delivery of contact management services. HMIC has been consulted in the development of the NCMPG document and supports the clear linkages between underlying principles, critical success factors and diagnostic indicators. The APA has produced a guidance document for Police Authorities, which supports the NCMS and NCMPG document and their statutory role to ensure the efficient and effective delivery of local contact management services. A copy of this document is available from the APA. Please apa.info@lga.gov.uk 6

7 Supporting the National Strategy The NCMPG document supports and assists in delivering the new NCMS, which sets out a citizen focused vision for the service that puts customers and communities at the heart of strategic contact management service delivery. It seeks to: Maximise public satisfaction and confidence outcomes for the Service. Improve the efficiency, productivity and performance of service delivery. To achieve this vision, it is important to understand the customers contact journey experience and how this links to delivering service across the whole of the organisation. To achieve this understanding, forces need be able to answer the following questions: Do we offer the service(s) the public want? Why do the public contact us? How do they find out about available channels of contact? What channel do they use and why? What type of response do we provide and why? Are any partners or stakeholders involved in the response activity? Do we meet customer needs/expectations if not, at what part of the experience and why? How does that experience influence their confidence in the service? How do we track/measure the stages of the contact journey? How do we use the knowledge gleaned to improve and design future customers experience and confidence in the service? The resulting customer journey information is a crucial first step in terms of understanding those aspects of contact management service delivery that cause customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction and how they negatively or positively impact public confidence. In short, it provides citizen focused knowledge about customers and their needs, expectations and experience of contact management services. Figure A, page 8, overleaf provides a visual means of understanding how the NCMPG document is constructed around the customer journey experience. It breaks the customer journey down into a series of steps, which relate to chapters within this document. Chapter One: Obtaining customer insight and experience knowledge to design and deliver service. Chapter Two: Our service delivery uses the customer information to configure systems and processes and align resources. Chapter Three: This supports our service delivery and involves well-equipped, empowered and trained staff doing the right things to deliver key contact management and service outcomes. Chapter Four: Delivering value for money outcomes requires having an approach that takes into account both functionality and the requirement to deliver the best possible customer experience at optimal price. The four chapters have been constructed to reflect the customer journey approach as outlined above. Each chapter links back to NCMS through the outlined principles and goes on to provide further information or guidance around critical activities or behaviours, referred to as CSFs, which provide the advice and guidance that will support forces seeking to improve the delivery of contact management services. 7

8 Figure A: Structure of the National Contact Management Principles and Guidance (NCMPG) Hallmarks Hallmarks How to Use this Document The NCMPG document seeks to provide guidance that forces should use to formulate an action plan for the delivery and development of a professional contact management service that meets the needs of the public they service and also the requirements of their Police Authority and government initiatives. 8

9 CHAPTER 1 9

10 Summary This chapter focuses on ensuring that the service has a broad and informed view of the people it serves and that customer insight knowledge is used to designed and deliver contact management services that meet the needs of individuals and communities. Creating a ed Approach should not be a bolt-on to existing ways of doing business, it requires cultural and operational change at all levels. Historically, there has been a tendency for different processes or areas of the service to be considered separately rather than as part of a joined-up approach which focuses on the key business outcomes of improved service delivery, customer satisfaction and public confidence. The ACPO/NPIA Policing Hallmarks (2008) were introduced as a toolkit to enable forces to understand the characteristics of using this knowledge to design and deliver ways of working that are truly customer (or citizen) focused, as opposed to driven by the needs of the organisation. Accessibility and Inclusivity In order to provide comprehensive access to police services, consideration should be given to the diverse make up of the communities served and including them when designing access to service. In doing so, forces should consider providing a choice of access points and design channels to ensure the approach is around the customer, not the transaction. A channel strategy is a directive and differentiated approach that clearly guides customers to the most appropriate channel that meets both the needs of the customer and the organisation. Marketing and media plans should be aligned to the channel strategy; promote choice; and designed with accessibility in mind. In order to support reduced avoidable contact, the plans should clearly outline the channels available to the public. The Customer Experience The single confidence target is concerned with public confidence that the police and local council are dealing with crime and anti-social behaviour issues that matter locally. The tripartite and NPIA have developed a public confidence route map to help forces and partners identify where additional activity would be beneficial. Public satisfaction and confidence are sometimes measured as one entity, even though they are quite different concepts. Satisfaction can be defined as a direct measure (or reflection) of the quality of service delivered by an organisation. Confidence on the other hand is largely an emotional response; it is highly subjective and it is not always based upon a direct contact experience. Customer insight is rapidly gaining ground as an approach to gaining knowledge about service users their needs, desires, preferences, perceptions, experiences and behaviours. Critically, customer insight seeks to provide a depth of analysis which is deeper than that provided by simple analysis of customer satisfaction. One of the key influences on satisfaction and confidence is the provision of information to the public on the progress of their investigation be it crime, anti-social behaviour or public safety issues. However, information should be tailored to meet individual needs and should provide customers with a sense of closure. Another way to gain customer insight is through root cause analysis of complaints and dissatisfaction. Forces can use reports of complaints and dissatisfaction as an opportunity to learn the lessons, which can have a positive impact on trust and confidence. 10

11 Principle and Critical Success Factors The main principle discussed within this chapter is customer. This chapter also provides CSFs around key business areas that will support forces in driving and delivering change and performance. Principle 1: Customer Designing and delivering contact management on the basis of citizen and business needs to increase customer satisfaction and public confidence. Accessibility and Inclusivity: Critical Success Factors/Guidance Demonstrating understanding of customers and their needs and designing access to service that provides choice. Channel Strategy: Critical Success Factors/Guidance Download the Critical Success Factors Having a force channel strategy that promotes choice and outlines contact methods which support the needs of local communities. Approach: Critical Success Factors/Guidance Using the Policing Hallmarks as an integral part of understanding business planning and delivering change. Using staff knowledge around citizen interactions to develop a culture that is truly citizen focused. Having a force-wide policy for managing secondary contact which sets out standards of customer service, including voic policy and an effective quality assurance process. Having established processes for non-emergency and secondary SMS access for the hearing and speech impaired. Providing customers with a clear point-of access through a single non-emergency number. Having evidence to demonstrate that access to our service supports our non-english-speaking communities. Developing a single view of how customers interact, across all contact channels. Continually exploring opportunities to improve access channels. Having an Information Technology strategy that is service orientated and is designed around the customer and end users. 11

12 Communication Marketing and Media: Critical Success Factors/Guidance Keeping People Informed: Critical Success Factors/Guidance Dealing with Complaints and Dissatisfaction: Critical Success Factors/Guidance Having a citizen focus communication strategy for contact management which includes partners and core messages. Being able to demonstrate how service users will be kept informed on progress and outcomes relating to them. Having a robust process for reporting, monitoring and tracking trends of complaints and dissatisfaction. Ensuring that force contact details are regularly reviewed and kept up to date and publicised to meet the needs of different communities. Having marketing and media plans in place to regularly inform and update the public of access channels and current and future activity. : Critical Success Factors/Guidance Having a strategy for engaging, consulting and involving the customer in designing our service delivery. Reviewing the strategy to ensure methods are effective and provide reliable representative results. Exploiting technology to increase the choice of channels available to keep people informed on progress and outcomes relating to them. Quality of Customer Experience: Critical Success Factors/Guidance Having a non-bureaucratic quality management process that focuses on delivering customer satisfaction and public confidence. Using a variety of methods to capture and understand the quality of the customer experience, in order to design and deliver service. Ensuring that where shared services are provided, processes exist to fully understand the quality of the customer experience. Providing clear information to the public on how to make a complaint and report dissatisfaction. Ensuring that procedures for dealing with complaints and dissatisfaction are embedded into contact management learning programmes. Acknowledging and resolving complaints and dissatisfaction in a timely fashion and in a way that leaves the customer with a sense of closure. Undertaking root cause analysis of complaints and dissatisfaction to understand trends and learning the lessons in order to improve service design and delivery. Using customer journey mapping to provide insight into communities needs and expectations and to shape, design and deliver services. 12

13 Creating a ed Approach Hallmarks The ACPO/NPIA Policing Hallmarks (2008) were introduced as a toolkit to enable forces to understand the characteristics of. The first two Hallmarks are: i. Understanding People ii. Understanding Services Understanding the profile of local communities, what the different priorities are within them and what people need and expect in terms of standards of service and outcomes is the basis of. It is vital that those who deliver services understand the vision and values of the organisation. The involvement of staff in shaping and implementing change that improves service delivery is an effective means of promoting ownership and is likely to result in sustainable service improvement. Understanding the customer journey is also important because it provides opportunity to identify inefficient and/or bureaucratic working practices that fail to deliver value for money service outcomes. This knowledge provides forces with the opportunity to refresh or re-design services to ensure that they satisfy public demand and deliver efficiency and productivity benefits. Again, there is a clear read across to the Hallmarks, which conclude with: iii. Designing Services iv. Delivering Services The Policing Hallmarks (2008) are available for download here. Tripartite Public Confidence Route Map The Public Confidence Route Map (2010), was developed by considering evidence of what activities are likely to improve confidence. It is intended to help deliver against the Public Service Agreement (PSA) public confidence target, whilst also keeping a broader strategic view of confidence. The route map builds on the Hallmarks. It draws on activities within the self assessment tool and shows how enablers of excellence: leadership, people, processes, partnerships and communications can all be focused on providing a better service for the public by supporting the activities that evidence shows work. There is a need to get the fundamentals right, ensuring that they are embedded, consistently delivered and sustained. Practically the route map can be used to help forces and their partners identify where additional activity would be beneficial. The Public Confidence Route Map is available to download here. Safe and Confident Neighbourhoods Strategy The Safe and Confident Neighbourhoods Strategy, 2010 focuses on three key strands as set out in the Policing White Paper Protecting the Public: supporting the police to succeed : 1. Sustain neighbourhood policing teams and improve what we know works to drive confidence. 2. Embed them in a whole force approach to neighbourhoods, and 3. Develop neighbourhood partnerships. The contact management function plays a pivotal part in supporting the force approach to neighbourhoods. An effective approach starts at the first point of contact and continues through incident management and joined up service delivery between partners, at a neighbourhood level. In order for the public to have confidence that the issues which matter most to them are being prioritised, contact management staff need to understand what these priorities are, in order to provide the right response. Cultural change is a vital part of successful and sustainable service transformation. A culture of getting it right first time and focusing our people on tailoring service delivery to meet individual need, and not just the task at hand, is crucial to providing citizen focused services. To achieve this cultural change and deliver the right outcomes our people need to be empowered to use professional judgement and discretion. 13

14 Accessibility and Inclusivity CHAPTER 1 Accessibility is a term used to describe the degree to which a service is accessible to as many people as possible in policing terms, all sections of the public and its partners. Inclusivity can be defined as an intention or policy of including people who might otherwise be excluded or marginalised from accessing services. The National Policing Pledge (2008) states We will always treat you fairly with dignity and respect ensuring that you have fair access to our services at a time that is reasonable and suitable for you. In order to provide comprehensive access to police services, consideration should be given to the diverse make up of the communities served and including them when designing access to service. In doing so, forces should consider providing a choice of access points and design channels to ensure the approach is around the customer, not the transaction. The availability of a Single Non-Emergency Number (SNEN) is important, as it provides customers with a clear point of access, in non-urgent circumstances. 101 is a 24-hour number which gives the public direct access to advice, information and effective action on community safety issues, including certain nonemergency crime, policing and anti-social behaviour. This number was collaboratively adopted by some police forces/local authorities and piloted in five areas across England and Wales. A SNEN approach is clearly of benefit to the service and the public and currently options by which a national 101 service might be delivered are being considered. Some regions have looked at the possibility of a regional SNEN, for example the All Wales Region recently introduced 101 as the SNEN for Wales. The funding for this approach was achieved through collaboration between the four forces with a small contribution towards set up costs from the Welsh Assembly Government. The majority of forces have already adopted a SNEN approach using either 08XX or 03XX numbers. Currently, ten forces have implemented a 03XX number and two key success factors have been that the numbers are easy to remember and that effective marketing promotes use of the number. Future developments that could identify improvements in accessibility resulting from SNEN approaches still remain to be identified by forces. To deliver a consistently professional service to the public, forces need to have a smart approach to managing voic and secondary contact management that will support reduction in repeat calls and potential causes of dissatisfaction. The approach should set out clear policies, guidelines and management information for all departments and individual users to ensure a quality of service that can be measured and managed. The Cabinet Office has produced a Clarification Statement on Telephone Number Ranges (2009) which details the cost of each range. This document will support forces to provide inclusive and cost effective access for all communities. This document is available to download here. 14

15 Ofcom has designated the 0300 range of telephone numbers in the National Telephone Numbering Plan for allocation to communications providers on the basis that those numbers are used by public sector bodies and not-for-profit bodies such as registered charities. Further information can be obtained by clicking here. A national 999-text service has been developed to provide improved access to the emergency services. This is an example of essential service design to meet the needs of a specific group and is likely to improve confidence in service provision. It is becoming increasingly important for forces to have established processes to support non-emergency and secondary SMS contact. Further information on BT First Contact is available for download here. Equally as important is the face-to-face contact that the public have with officers and staff in their local neighbourhoods and through front counters. Opening times of police stations and having the right number of neighbourhood officers on at the right time is key to improving accessibility to our services and providing a quality response. This type of organisational change is not easy to achieve and it is recognised that a phased and wellplanned approach may be the most cost effective way to deliver the necessary improvements. Further information on this service is available by clicking here. Language Line is recognised nationally as a system to enable forces to communicate with non-englishspeaking members of their communities. Some forces are using emerging systems and technology to support multi-lingual contact, for example BT First Contact. This solution combines technology and human skill, allowing non-english-speakers to access public services in over 200 languages. It works by using an electronic phrase book to offer a series of multilingual scripts that map the process for a citizen service. 15

16 Channel Strategy CHAPTER 1 The Multi-Channel Transformation in the Public Sector (2009) 1 document defines the two key elements of any strategy as channels and services. It defines channels as: Outbound and inbound means for organisations to deliver services to, and receive input from, external citizen and business customers through a variety of direct communication and delivery methods (post, telephone, face-to-face, online, mobile, digital TV, fax, kiosk) or indirectly through intermediaries such as voluntary organisations Services are defined as the full range of interactions that take place between service provider and user via a designed business processes. Services represent the benefit an organisation delivers to its customers and range from enquiries, requests for information and initial service requests to final service fulfilment and any subsequent follow-up and after-care. The Cabinet Office produced the Channel Strategy Guidance document (2009) to support development of channel strategies and current thinking on channel strategies in the public sector. This document outlines three key stages to developing a channel strategy which can be found at Appendix A. The Cabinet Office Channel Strategy Guidance document (2009) is available to download here. HMIC thematic report First Contact (2005) recommended that all forces be able to support the following access channels: Telephone Internet Language Line SMS text Mini-com/Type talk (or equivalent) One of the main reasons multi-channel approach has not taken off in some organisations is that it has been designed around transactions as opposed to customer need or experience. Having a single view of the customer and a clear understanding of how they currently interact / wish to interact through the various channels is crucial to designing an integrated customer experience. The Cabinet Office document Multi-channel Transformation in the Public Sector: Principles and an Emerging Framework for Practical Use (2009) provide a toolkit for how to actually go about implementing a channel strategy, with methodologies that have been tried out. The document is available to download here. For the first time, social networking, which is illustrated by services such as Twitter and Facebook, allows organisations to talk to customers on their terms, in a less formal manner. The fact that customers are in their own chosen environment may lead to more relaxed and honest relationships, which can improve the customer experience. Over time, availability of increased channels will have ever growing importance in how we communicate and improve access to the Service. Forces will need to consider an Information technology strategy that is service orientated and is designed and structured around the customer and the end users. 16

17 Communication Media and Marketing CHAPTER 1 Increasingly, the reputation of individuals, basic command units, forces and the service as a whole can be enhanced or damaged by the media. It is therefore important that forces have effective internal and external communication strategies to proactively influence what appears across the broad media range. Public perceptions are heavily influenced by what we say, what we write and what we offer the public to view on our websites. New media demands an increasingly diverse approach to how we communicate information, key messages, reassurance and appeals to the public. A strategy for managing communication is crucial to delivering citizen focused policing and will usually be cognisant of: Internal communication External communication Keeping people informed Methods/channels of communications Delivering core messages Marketing and media opportunities Business processes Partner and stakeholder needs It is important that force contact details are kept up to date and publicised to meet the needs of different communities. Additionally, forces will need to regularly update the public on how to access services and on current and future activity. Effective use of marketing and media plans will enhance opportunities to influence a reduction in avoidable contact and reduce and control demand, for example, people inappropriately using 999 to make contact for non-urgent matters. As generations change and technology advances, forces are responding by utilising new media approaches to service delivery. Podcasts are being used to support crime reduction initiatives and update the public on major events and local schemes. Some forces are using social networking sites, e.g., Twitter and Facebook and video sharing websites such as YouTube to support appeals for information and provide road awareness messages. These emerging initiatives are showing early signs of success. 17

18 Customer insight is rapidly gaining ground as an approach to gaining knowledge about service users their needs, desires, preferences, perceptions, experiences and behaviours. Customer insight is about asking the right questions, in the right way, to gain this understanding and using the resulting information to design and deliver services and to shape improved communication with customers. Critically, customer insight seeks to provide a depth of analysis which is deeper than that provided by simple analysis of customer satisfaction. The British Crime Survey enables confidence to be measured at a force level but may not be broken down to illustrate how confident the public feel at a more local level. Consequently, the Home Office has set out a requirement for all police forces and authorities to conduct Local Confidence Surveys, to enable confidence levels at Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP)/Community Safety Partnership (CSP) level or below to be monitored. These surveys will provide valuable data for the police and their partners about a wide range of public attitudes. Further information on CDRPs and CSPs can be found on the Home Office Crime reduction website by clicking here. The NPIA has produced various guidance documents to support forces understanding of Local Confidence Surveying. At time of writing it is anticipated that these documents will be merged to produce one overarching document. If you are interested in finding out more about the relationship between the provision of information and public confidence, Local Confidence Surveys or the Policing Pledge please click here or go to the following website: Additionally, the APA has produced a document called Public Confidence in the Police: Guidance for Police Authorities and Police Forces (2009). It provides practical, accessible and easy to understand advice on aspects of policing practice which can influence levels of satisfaction. The document is available from the APA. apa.info@lga.gov.uk A number of forces are looking at customer journey mapping, for example, Cambridgeshire Police are mapping front counters, Cheshire Constabulary have mapped the journey of victims of stalking and harassment and Greater Manchester Police have mapped the journey of victims of burglary. Further information on customer journey mapping is contained within the NPIA Guidance document (2010). This document will be available to download from the NPIA website early in There are many ways that customer insight and experience information and data can be sourced, some of which are outlined in the HM Government Guide to Segmentation Toolkit. This toolkit is available to download here. 18

19 Keeping People Informed CHAPTER 1 One of the key influences on satisfaction and confidence is the provision of information to the public on the progress of their investigation be it crime, anti-social behaviour or public safety issues. However, information should be tailored to meet individual needs and should provide customers with a sense of closure. When designing services for keeping people informed, forces will need to consider customer choice, i.e., asking if they wish to be kept informed and if so how and capture this information at the first point of contact. It is also important for forces to have agreement on who will take responsibility for updating customers. This should take into account the requirements of: The Code of Practice for Victims of Crime (2005), further details are available by clicking here. The Victim s Charter (2006), further details are available by clicking here. The Witness Charter (2008), further details are available by clicking here. Many forces are beginning to use technology to keep customers informed and are developing existing command and control and crime systems to support this process. The service should continue to develop and exploit technology to ensure that customers are kept informed of the progress of crimes or incidents, as this has been shown to have a positive impact upon customer satisfaction. 19

20 Quality of the Customer Experience The quality of the customer service experience came into focus with the introduction of the Home Office Quality of Service Commitment (QoSC) in It made a number of national service commitments in respect of the quality of service provision. It focused on six key areas of service delivery: 1. Making it easy to contact us 2. Providing a professional and high quality service 3. Dealing with your initial contact 4. Keeping you informed 5. Ensuring your voice counts 6. Dealing with victims of crime service These core service commitments have been further developed with the introduction of the Victim s Charter (2006), the Witness Charter (2008) and the National Policing Pledge (2008) and together they ensure that the Service understands the way people experience policing and community safety services on the ground, by focusing on the needs and experiences of the individuals and communities that receive and use police services. Further information regarding the QoSC is available to download here. The culture of an organisation is central to supporting continuous improvement. Creating a joined-up approach to quality across the whole organisation including all functions, people, departments and activities is crucial to success. Forces are already using a number of companies, including Mary Gober, Future Vision and Procter Training, to provide learning packages to support and develop customer focused cultures. These approaches aim to empower employees, change behaviour and produce positive outcomes for customers. Whilst quality assurance can support the development of staff, over monitoring and repetitive processes can drive the wrong behaviours, resulting in resistance from staff and high attrition. Staff who are demotivated are often less capable of sensitive and responsive interactions with the customer. Intense surveillance 2 can be counterproductive and costly in terms of workforce motivation and commitment. However, abandonment of surveillance and monitoring mechanisms can never be an option as these are integral to the operation of the call centre. Surveillance and compulsion alone cannot guarantee productive performance. The quality of contact should be understood from the customer s perspective. Quality management processes should be designed around the critical contact management functions, for example, contact handling; crime recording; telephone investigation; front counters and response; and deliver the right outcomes. Some forces are developing shared services and it will be increasingly important for forces in this position to establish effective quality management processes across the service from a customer point of view and in order to determine the quality of the customer experience. 20

21 Complaints and Dissatisfaction CHAPTER 1 Police complaints and reports of dissatisfaction are one indicator of the level of public satisfaction with policing. Understanding complaints and reports of dissatisfaction, identifying trends and acting where necessary, is crucial to public confidence. These reports may increase for a number of reasons, including where a police force has promoted access to the complaints system and demonstrated that it acts effectively in responding to them. or dissatisfaction with the service. This document provides the public with a clear and simple escalation process for dealing with dissatisfaction or complaints, thereby ensuring that forces are focusing on both local service recovery and the handling of formal complaints. It is suggested that this guidance is available on all force websites. Further information is available to download here. The bulletins can be accessed by clicking here. Pledge point 10 states that forces will Acknowledge any dissatisfaction with the service you have received within 24 hours of reporting to us. To help us fully resolve the matter, discuss with you how it will be handled, give you an opportunity to talk in person to someone about your concerns and agree with you what will be done about them and how quickly. The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has a duty under the Police Reform Act to increase access to the complaints system and expects the police service to develop a range of ways for people to access the complaints system, which address the specific needs of complainants. Further information on the IPCC statutory guidance is available by clicking here. Knowing how to make a complaint or report dissatisfaction and understanding what will happen as a result, are essential to public confidence. ACPO has written to all forces on the importance of this issue, providing them with a public facing document on how the public can express either satisfaction Customer Service Excellence: The Government Standard (2009) suggests that if organisations use reports of dissatisfaction/complaints as an opportunity to learn the lessons, this can have a positive impact on trust and confidence. This document is available to download here. A Learning the Lessons Committee has been established to disseminate and promote learning across the police service and it produces a bulletin with lessons from investigations. It is a multi-agency committee, made up of key stakeholders that have a role to play in enhancing the service provided by the police namely: Association of Police Officers (ACPO), Association of Police Authorities (APA), Home Office, IPCC, HMIC and the NPIA. Whilst it is important to provide a prompt acknowledgement (within 24 hours), it is also essential that reports are resolved in a timely fashion and in a way that leaves the customer with a sense of closure. It is also important to note that complaints should be used to highlight and manage vulnerability and risk for the organisation. Root cause analysis of complaints is key to achieving this. The majority of reports are made through the contact management function, i.e., contact management centre and front office. As a result, it is crucial that contact management staff have the requisite knowledge and understanding to deal with them during initial contact. This should be included in induction/learning and development packages for contact management. 21

22 Diagnostic Indicators CHAPTER The diagnostic indicators are part of an overall Suite of Diagnostic Indicators for Contact Management that can be found in Appendix C. It is not the intention for the diagnostics to be used in isolation where the focus might be on quantity at the expense of quality, more used together to gain a fuller understanding of the customer experience. These indicators are not exhaustive and do not preclude forces from using additional appropriate diagnostics that meet local needs. Key Outcome Performance Indicators Description Improved Public Confidence Improved Public Satisfaction Dissatisfaction Indicator and Brief Narrative Force confidence target Ease of emergency contact Ease of non-emergency contact Volume of reports of dissatisfaction and % responded to in 24 hours 1 Emergency Contact Performance Indicators Description Indicator and Brief Narrative 999 Calls Answered in 10 Seconds Volume and % of 999 calls answered in 10 seconds Abandoned 999 Calls Volume and % of abandoned 999 calls Target: Less than 2% abandoned 999 calls 999 Average Time to Answer (ATA) Average time to answer an emergency call / contact 999 Calls Over 2 Minutes Volume and % of calls / contacts answered after 2 minutes Non-Emergency Contact Performance Indicators Description Indicator and Brief Narrative Non-Emergency Contact Service Level Volume and % of non-emergency calls answered within locally derived time Abandoned Non-emergency Calls Volume and % of abandoned non-emergency calls Target: Less than 5% abandoned non-emergency calls Average Time to Answer (ATA) Non-Emergency Average time to answer a non-emergency call / contact 22