At the 2003 Local Government Managers Australia National Congress in Adelaide, FOCUS invited delegates to nominate an individual and team from their Council who are excelling in their field and promoting the organisation’s corporate goals. In this edition we showcase the first two of our competition winners.
Individual Winner – Zoe Williams, Environmental Health Officer at Peak Downs Shire Council, Queensland
Located in Queensland’s Central highlands, 320 kilometres west of Mackay, Peak Downs Shire Council, like many other remote communities, has encountered some difficulty in retaining specialist staff. Servicing a rural community of 4,000, Peak Down Shire has a staff of 80 people.
Just three months into her first career position since obtaining a degree Environmental Science at Central Queensland University, Zoe Williams has settled into her role so well that Council’s Chief Executive Officer, Peter Hackshaw, had no hesitation in nominating her in our competition. Responsible for health, environmental management and workplace health and safety, Zoe is very much on her own in fulfilling these tasks. However, she sees this position as a great opportunity to develop her skills across a wide range of hands on areas that would not be possible if she was working in a large Council.
“She has adapted quickly in her new role,” Peter Hackshaw said. “With great enthusiasm, she has hit the ground running, taking a proactive approach rather than waiting for things to happen. In a short period of time, she has gained everyone’s confidence due to her professionalism and clear ability to handle pressure and responsibility.”
Peter Hackshaw said that in the area of workplace health and safety, Zoe is very familiar with the legislative requirements and has also been quick to identify hazards. She is also Council’s Workplace Rehabilitation Coordinator.
“I have really enjoyed joining Council,” Zoe Williams said. “With the variety of things to do there is never a dull day. Even complaints about dogs have their moments. It is a very good team here at Peak Downs, and I have also been supported by other Environmental Health Officers in the region.”
She said that since joining Council, she has undertaken a number of specialist courses and attended various seminars to enhance her skills. She is also gaining strategic planning skills through her involvement with a number of environmental planning bodies, such as the catchment group for Natural Resource Management Planning and the regional Waste Management group. This has enabled her to network with various other professionals who have a vast range of skills and expertise from which to tap.
“I have also recently started talking to school groups about recycling,” Zoe Williams said. “I have enjoyed this immensely and I am looking forward to further visits and working with students to develop various recycling programs.
“Local Government is a very interesting place to work because it is grassroots, you are really at the coalface, dealing directly with people. It was a good decision to enter Local Government. I have found it both challenging and rewarding
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“Peak Downs is a great area. The Shire centre, Capella, is a small town but it has an amazing amount of facilities and very active community groups. Country life suits me.
I love the job and the outdoors and plan to be here for quite some time.”
Team Winner – Customer Service Unit at Mornington Peninsula Shire Council, Victoria
Mornington Peninsula’s Customer Service Unit is the creator of first impressions for people seeking assistance from the Shire, according to the Shire’s Manager Governance and Corporate Support, Noel Buck. Mornington Peninsula Shire – ‘Melbourne’s playground’ – is located one hour south east of the city. Covering an area of 720 square kilometres, with 190 kilometres of coastline and 41 distinctive townships, the municipality is home to more than 130,000 residents. With the population peaking at 230,000 during the busy summer season, it is easy to see why customer service is such a priority at Mornington Peninsula.
Noel Buck together with the Team Leaders Greg Brough and Helen Harris are responsible for overseeing the Shire’s 30 Customer Service staff. These dedicated Council officers handle over 1,000 telephone and 300 walk in enquiries, and process 500 cashiering transactions each day.
“Most ‘first time’ contact with the Shire is with a Customer Service team member, so it is vital our staff are informed, courteous and professional, and that our customers have a satisfying experience in their dealings with us,” Noel Buck said.
The Shire is committed to providing quality customer service to its ratepayers and citizens through a front of house unit. As Local Government is an extremely diverse and specialised industry, Customer Service team members respond to the ‘simple and routine’ enquiries. Those enquiries needing technical assistance or specialised advice are referred to the relevant ’back of house‘ specialists.
The Customer Service team sets performance targets that are monitored on a monthly basis. These targets are reported to both the Council and community through the Shire’s comprehensive monthly report. The important aspect of key performance is that ‘what is measured is managed’. Performance indicators used include the following.
- The time taken to answer telephones (target of 80 per cent within 20 seconds).
- Benchmarking cashiering error rates against all industry and financial institutions.
- Ensuring that telephones are staffed and resourced at the appropriate levels for the appropriate times.
Customer Service team members rotate through each of the four Shire offices, providing a multi-skilled approach by undertaking all duties including telephone answering and responding, cashiering and counter duties.
“In keeping with our customer focused approach, people rather than machines are used to answer telephones, reversing the trend of ringing government or large institutions and being provided with lengthy delays and confusing and frustrating options available from machines,” Noel Buck said. “This personal approach to dealing with customers is a fundamental aspect of all our dealings with customers.”
Staff in the Customer Service Unit have a very strong team ethos and collectively share a diverse and comprehensive range of skills enabling a very mature approach to conducting the business of the Unit.
“There is a considerable emphasis on individual contribution of members to the team’s collective output, together with an appreciation of varying personal attributes,” said Customer Service Team Leader Staffing, Helen Harris. “The Customer Service team comprises a mix of full time and part time staff to ensure flexible resourcing to meet performance targets. The Unit is privileged to include three valuable members who have quite profound physical disabilities, but whose team contributions are in keeping with all other members.”
Team Leader Systems, Greg Brough, said that with the size and complexity of the Shire it was no use relying on the memories of Shire Officers.
“We needed a Customer Service system to manage our customers’ service requests and also to store our reference materials and procedures,” he said. “Instead of referring to a dozen different versions of our information, we had just one. Instead of hoping that an officer would remember to call a customer we made it a task in the system. At a glance, we can see what is happening to a customer’s concern without the need to track down the officer concerned. Customers are impressed and Customer Service officers are no longer feeling stressed and frustrated. Once a request is created in the system then we move on to the next with confidence. Consistency and accuracy out the front became our catch cry. In Customer Service, we have learnt that we must press ahead and invest in our systems. Little things are very important and people remember them. Above all you have to be receptive to feedback, adaptive to change and steer those changes in a productive way.”
