Customer Strategy 2023 to 2028 (Plain Text Version)

The strategy has four outcomes, that we will work to advance in the next five years.

The Council will monitor our success in the outcomes with appropriate performance indicators and targets set to encourage performance improvement.

Outcome 1

A culture that prioritises the customer

The council has a unique place in the lives of anyone who lives, works and learns in West Lothian.

The council will continue to put the customer at the centre of decision-making and prioritise the delivery of a positive customer experience by designing services with the customer in mind and put in place the culture and conditions that will support our staff to deliver positive outcomes for customers.

It is intended that this culture not only results in more satisfied customers and better outcomes for West Lothian but also, that our staff feel they are part of a purpose-driven organisation that is dedicated to improving lives.

In support of developing a positive culture that priorities the customer, the council will:

• Work with our customers: the council will continue to invest in building a strong, collaborative relationship with our customers that is based on trust and understanding. The council will communicate more effectively our purpose, strategic priorities and ambitions (see Action 1) and will also continue to involve customers in the development of strategy and priority setting.
• Know our customers: we will improve our understanding of customer needs, utilising customer insights and research on trends, innovations and customer behaviours to inform decision making and change processes.
• Match our culture to the strategy: we will promote the values, behaviours and a WLC Way of Working that will support outstanding customer service. Through our People Strategy, the council will adapt our management and staff development approaches to prioritise customer orientation, with support and training resources that will improve skills and knowledge and result in improved levels of customer service.
• Invest in customers: we will prioritise our investment of council resources in the issues that matter most to customers, including staff, time and financial resources. This will support the council to find ways to protect and enhance services that are most impactful and important to the community.
• Prioritise customer experience in our transformation approach: we will co-create new services and service changes with our customers, using their input to review and improve the customer experience (see Action 2).
• Measure success: we will continue to make customer-centric results key metrics for assessing the performance and success of the council (see Action 3).

Performance will be monitored in this outcome through:

* The data for this indicator is collected at functional (WLAM) unit level

Outcome 2

Services are designed to meet customer needs

The period of this strategy will be one of substantial change in the council, as we work to reduce the cost of delivering services, whilst retaining the same council-wide focus on high quality service provision and innovation.

To ensure that we continue to address needs, the council will have to examine the value and impact of key council services from the perspective of the customer, which will require review of the different touchpoints and channels that customers will experience.

We will also consider the views and inputs of staff, partners and suppliers in order to create a holistic and seamless design.

In order to ensure that our services are designed to meet the needs of customers, the council will:

• Seamless customer service: processes should be as simple as possible, with a focus on reducing steps and having clear ownership and accountability at every stage. The council will review key processes to remove barriers, reduce unnecessary steps and deliver seamless progression across different stages, from request through to fulfilment (see Action 4).
• Retain local connection: the council recognises that some of our customers prefer or need more traditional channels, such as face to face contact and telephone. The council will continue to provide choice to customers in the way that they access services, wherever possible.
• Personalisation: council services, such as schools, social care, housing and financial advice and support, are person-centred and tailored to meet individual needs. Personalisation recognises individuals will have different needs and preferences and it often empowers customers to make choices about the way that they receive services. In addition, the council extends choice and personalisation to other areas of provision, such as offering different access channels and communication methods.
• Autonomy: our staff will be supported and empowered to make appropriate decisions that will help them timeously resolve requests and enquiries to customers' satisfaction and remove barriers to access.
• Anticipate needs and respond quickly to change: the council will scan the external environment, identifying societal trends and innovations that may directly influence service user needs and expectations and identify how to respond to new opportunities. This will be led by a corporate board.

Performance will be monitored in this outcome through:

* The data for this indicator is collected at functional (WLAM) unit level

Outcome 3

Enhancing our digital offer

The council will continue to maintain local connections and access to council services via more traditional methods, where it is required.

Much of council provision is delivered in a community setting and the council will continue to look for ways to strengthen our provision through the use of technology, where it can improve the service or increase our efficiency.

A key part of the council's approach to transformation is the expansion of digital innovation in our ways of working. As well as increasing flexibility and choice to customers, extending our use of technology and automation will help to make services more sustainable.

The council will investigate opportunities that will allow the organisation to harness the potential of technologies and improve customer experiences, including:

• Digitising transactions and automation: digital services can harness the power and convenience of the web to make interactions quicker, simpler and more secure for customers. The council will continue to identify processes that can be partly or wholly automated in order to increase flexibility and reduce costs (see Action 5).
• Increasing customer empowerment through self-service and process automation: the council will utilise technologies that allow customers the option to self-serve, via portals and webforms, as this is often a more convenient option for the service user. Customers can use self-service options to submit queries, request services or make payments without the time and cost of visiting an office or calling a contact centre.
• Channel digitisation: the council will consider its use of social media platforms during the period of this strategy (see Action 6), exploring opportunities to extend use in line with customer demand in order to increase our reach and improve the customer experience.
• Developing digital skills and knowledge: the council will identify skills gaps in respect to digital and technical skills and will build our capacity and knowledge in key areas of automation and service design.
• Supporting customers to make the transition to digital services: we will ensure our web services are easy to use in order to support those who want to transact this way to shift to online services.

Performance will be monitored in this outcome through:

* New Indicator

Outcome 4

Improving the customer experience

Good customer experience requires understanding of what people need and value and requires the council to think about service provision from the customers' perspective.

This means every stage, from how the customer accesses a service to make a request, to how the service communicates with the customer and through to delivery of the request.

At each stage the customer should feel like their request is being handled with care and professionalism and importantly, that they are being listened to by the council.

There are many touch points in the council, where a customer can interact with different services across different channels. The council must identify the ways it can track that experience and how it can collect, analyse and share customer insights for action.

In order to improve the customer experience across all services, the council will:

• Improve engagement and consultation: the council will review our approach to consultation and engagement, ensuring that we focus on collecting data that offers better customer insight for target groups (see Action 7). This will include reviewing our utilisation of the Citizens Panel and how we can maximise participation.
• Promoting the Voice of the Customer / Customer Experience: we will use the learning from customers to inform investment decisions and improve internal systems of communication, staff development (see Action 3).
• Increasing learning and knowledge: we will analyse customer feedback, user behaviours, access data, undertake research and benchmarking and monitor trends and other datasets to identify potential improvements and innovations.
• Customer participation in review: we will review services and processes with the involvement of customers, using their views to improve services and performance (see Action 2).

Performance will be monitored in this outcome through:

* The data for this indicator is collected at functional (WLAM) unit level

** this indicator has been suggested by the Customer Champions - not currently measured by services