Gold-level customer empowerment

To enhance customer service and embrace the era of digital services, Tamkeen took the bold step of creating a dedicated team within its Centers Department, tasked with closely monitoring and enhancing customer services, both internally between departments and externally with other entities. The goal is to meet the assessment criteria for delivering services seamlessly across digital platforms.

Motivations: fostering the ‘Team Bahrain’ spirit

The driving force behind this initiative is a commitment to maintain the highest standards of customer service. Rooted in the ethos of operating under the ‘Team Bahrain’ banner, it aims to contribute to the organization's broader goals. Importantly, it seeks to cultivate a corporate culture where individuals are inspired to continually contribute towards achieving customer satisfaction and overall success. The initiative also encourages customers to engage through digital channels.

Pre-implementation hurdles

Before implementation, Tamkeen identified critical challenges and proactively addressed them to ensure a solid foundation for the rollout. Challenges included building on past achievements and sustaining performance levels, emphasizing the importance of evaluation within internal departments, and gaining continuous support to meet the set standards. It was crucial to ensure that all departments perceived themselves as integral to the accomplishment, emphasizing that it wasn't just a triumph for the service centers. Efforts were also made to educate customers on using digital channels and motivate employees to uphold high service standards.

Guidelines for implementation

Key guidelines were established to steer the implementation and monitoring process. This involved setting up a task force to meet the rigorous requirements and standards of the Government Centers Evaluation Committee (Taqyeem), which aimed for the coveted annual Gold Level. The focus also extended to transitioning towards digital channels seamlessly. Additionally, the initiative prioritized the motivation of customer service employees, with daily tracking and reviews of service channel performance, weekly customer satisfaction reports, and vigilant monitoring of feedback from all stakeholders for in-depth analysis.

Application and focus on customer experience

The implemented practice took place at the customer service centers in Seef Mall in Manama, the customer service center at Bait Al Tijjar, and the virtual service center. The evaluation phase involved measuring and monitoring a range of indicators, and capturing data daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly. Monthly self-assessments, with each center's supervisor taking responsibility, were also adopted. The assessment criteria ensured compliance with ongoing monitoring for unmet standards involving relevant specialists. Emphasis was placed on measuring the customer experience, gauging customer satisfaction through regular follow-ups, surveys, and feedback requests. Supervisors received this information through weekly reports.

Measurement methodology and employee empowerment

The methodology involved daily and monthly reports offering a comprehensive view of the provided service levels. This approach aimed to analyze data for gap identification. A methodology to measure the practice's impact involved monthly self-evaluation against criteria. This was based on another benchmark, achieving the Gold Level in the actual evaluation. The quantitative aspect involved counting the number of met and unmet criteria, which supervisors reviewed daily. This encompassed employee performance, center performance, customer opinions, and customer satisfaction measurements. The qualitative aspect focused on identifying unmet criteria, studying the reasons behind it, and working towards fulfillment in the next self-assessment. Regular analysis of customer feedback was conducted, implementing necessary actions based on valid customer opinions. Recognizing and honoring employees for their continued achievements was also crucial.

Positive impact of the practice

The practice had a positive impact in identifying deficiencies and addressing them effectively. Some criteria required time to fulfill, such as purchases, budget allocations, or obtaining external approvals to facilitate operational processes for customer service. It also positively influenced the design of training plans for employees to enhance their efficiency. The practice provided insights into customer movement and impressions, and measured the impact of initiatives, encouraging increased usage of virtual channels. Daily and monthly reviews of performance metrics contributed to boosting team morale and encouraging perseverance and continuous improvement.

Success indicators demonstrating excellence

Success indicators were divided into quantitative indicators, confirming the fulfillment of requirements to achieve the Gold Level. This also revealed an increase in customer satisfaction, a rise in their inclination to use digital channels, and the maintenance of high performance indicators. Qualitative indicators witnessed an increase in appreciative messages and thanks received from customers through the customer satisfaction measurement system. There was an uptick in employee morale and performance at service centers, along with the team receiving appreciation from the CEO for their efforts.

Success makers: collaboration and integration

Executive management's interest and support contributed to this achievement. The success makers demonstrated that collaborative and fruitful teamwork was the foundation of excellence. Internal departments within Tamkeen and external departments all played an important and exemplary role in this collaborative effort.

Lessons learned

Tamkeen documented the lessons learned from implementing the practice. It emphasized the importance of promptly reviewing all reports, focusing on employee care and motivation for maintaining high performance, listening to customer suggestions for improvement, conducting regular self-assessments of services, and the continued use of electronic and virtual technologies for customer service.

Recommendations: Sharing successful experiences

Tamkeen recommended sharing this practice with other entities. Establishing a government team, comprised of supervisors from various centers, to disseminate and generalize the practice and experiences was also deemed important. Conducting visits to other entities for learning and experience acquisition, self-assessment of the entity on behalf of the team, regular meetings with service center supervisors for opinion exchange and experience enhancement, and workshops with supervisors to develop government work were also recommended. In evaluations, commitment to activating monthly self-evaluations and continuous follow-up with relevant departments to fulfill missing criteria were advised. Using reports to support decision-making, along with encouraging customers to turn to virtual platforms for service requests, was emphasized.