Gosnells City Council is committed to being at the leading edge of Local Government in Australia. Its recent restructure aims for a more commercial and results orientated organisation. “Serving one of the largest metropolitan areas in Perth, Council has recently completed a Customer Service Survey with the assistance of the respected Marketing Centre of Perth,” said Stuart Jardine, Director Strategic Planning.
Gosnells believes it is the first Council worldwide to employ this particular research technique. Used by large corporations, including Ford, Xerox, British Airways and General Electric, it is relatively new in the Asia Pacific region.
With 600 of Gosnell’s residents and business ratepayers sampled from a population of 80,000, the technique allows for a mere four percent error margin. That is, the results are 96 percent accurate in representing the views of the whole community.
“This research was undertaken as a communications exercise for us to identify what the community thinks of the City’s services,” said Simon Holtby, Chief Executive Officer. “We also wanted to understand people’s expectations, particularly their priorities when there are financial and other constraints.”
The research technique used by The Marketing Centre is called SIMALTO (Simultaneous Multi Attribute and Level Trade Off). Other Councils in Western Australia have already expressed a keen interest in the method. Despite scoring a credible six, on a rating scale of one (poor) to ten (excellent), Council acknowledges there is considerable room for improvement in all areas.
The information gathered provides a major input into Council’s Strategic Plan, its direction, determining priorities and resource allocation. Key areas pinpointed by ratepayers included recycling and improved safety.
Other findings of the survey were that people see Council substantially responsible for the ‘quality of life’ experienced by local people, and that Council needs to effectively communicate the direction that the City is taking, to help ratepayers feel proud and involved in this vision.
“Council intends to act on the findings as part of its drive and commitment to customer service,” said Mayor Norm Smith. “Our customers have given us a clear view of the direction and priorities they wish the City to follow.”
For further information contact Stuart Jardine, Director Strategic Planning, telephone (08) 9391 3202.
