We all know that change is difficult for any organisation. It’s even harder when it’s a monopoly that evolved after the municipal restructure of 1994 and now employs up to 850 people.

Let’s start with the question ‘Why?’

The saying “If it aint broke don’t fix it”, is very relevant. The initial batch of responses to the RoPP Council Customer Service Survey suggest that there are some parts of Council customer service that people are quite satisfied with, however there are also several areas that need urgent and profound change.

The other reason for change is ‘perception’. If residents don’t experience acceptable satisfaction in a timely manner when they interact with Council, they begin to build a negative perception about all aspects of Council services. They begin to question the ‘value for money’ that Council provides.

‘How?’ can we influence Council to change

The RoPP survey is focused on ‘customer service’, the ‘front of house’ of our Council where residents form their perceptions. To help Council understand the perceptions held by residents we are measuring two important components – performance and relationship. That is: how well does Council deliver customer service and how closely do Councillors and staff relate to the needs and expectations of residents.

Our intention is to provide both the Councillors and the Council management team with insights into the perceptions of residents with an expectation that they will work together in a constructive manner to address the areas that deserve attention.

‘What?’ needs to be done

The survey will reveal what residents think about Council. It will then be up to Council to embark upon the necessary changes. Below I have paraphrased some guidance from the book ‘Switch – How to Change Things when Change is Hard’ by Chip and Dan Heath.

• Small changes can have a big impact on a big problem.
• People tend to look for the bad, not the good. That leads to ‘problem focus’. We need to be ‘solution focused’.
• The most familiar path is always the status quo. Inertia and decision paralysis will conspire to keep people doing things the old way.
• Change begins at the level of individual decisions and behaviours. To change you have to change habits.
• You must marry your long-term goal with the short-term critical moves.
• Behavioural change happens mostly by speaking to people’s feelings.
• Don’t instinctively look for carrots and sticks.
• If you want to change the culture of an organisation you’ve got to get the reformers together.
• When you set small visible goals, and people achieve them, they start to get it into their heads that they can succeed.
• When change works, people have a clear direction, ample motivation and a supportive environment.

WE NEED YOU TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ROPP COUNCIL CUSTOMER SERVICE SURVEY

Go to https://ropp.org.au/