Becoming customer-focused

With electronic service delivery high on the agenda, local government in the UK is rapidly cultivating a customer-focused ethos. Supported by customer relationship management (CRM) systems, one-stop shops and citizen contact centres (providing information and access to services) are prime examples of the modernizing initiatives now gaining momentum. However, simply implementing a call centre and CRM system is not the solution to the delivery of integrated, joined-up services to the citizen and will not enable the public sector to meet the modernizing government agenda. Simply automating existing processes results only in small, short-term efficiency gains. A significant step-change in the approach to service delivery is needed. By taking a strategic view of the way in which citizens are dealt with at the point of contact - using knowledge and systems to deliver as much service as possible at the point of contact, and learning about customer needs and service effectiveness (rather than just providing a single contact for registering service demands) - the public sector can use CRM as a driving force for improvements and changes to services in line with evolving citizen needs.

The public sector does not manage its citizens well as customers (although the perception of individual delivered services can often be high). However, customer service was at the top of the political agenda during the mid-1990s, as the previous long-term focus on improving efficiency through cost cutting gave way to a new approach to delivering the right citizen services.

Forward thinking local authorities in the mid-1990s initially embraced this 'customer focused' approach, although they adopted different methods. One authority introduced customer service 'advocate' personnel who took on the citizen's issue - be it housing, social services or benefits - and then followed up that issue on behalf of the citizen, with the appropriate department. Others began to explore the concept of improved interagency and cross-departmental communication to create a coherent approach to service delivery. This increased efficiency by reducing the duplication of processes. This approach to service delivery received a boost with the arrival of the new government in 1997. It was at this point that 'joined-up government' and citizen-focused delivery mechanisms achieved centre stage. Now, government funding is dedicated towards projects that deliver the modernizing government agenda. Indeed, the Labour Party's election manifesto implied that those organizations not delivering 'customer focus' would be most under threat.

The result of citizen-focused initiatives has been huge growth in one-stop shops and citizen contact centres. These have clear customer service goals and attendant benefits in smooth service delivery. In addition to addressing improved customer demands, one-stop access points provide an opportunity for a step-change in customer service and critically, an opportunity to re-engineer and change accepted ways of working.

With an increasing emphasis on joined-up government, the focus for the delivery of citizen services is on partnership - interdepartmental, cross-agency and with the private sector - aimed at delivering the right services at the right time. There are huge opportunities for providing a coherent citizen service that not only ensures the right service is delivered at the right time to the right person but also, by enabling tight cooperation between relevant agencies, results in reduced duplication and improved cost control.

A fundamental element of the customer services programme is to provide multichannel access to these services, with Internet kiosks and interactive digital television expected to play a future role in ensuring inclusive access across society. Indeed, the explosion in technological functionality that has occurred over the past five years has been recognized by the government as providing a significant opportunity for changing the way in which it interacts with the citizen.