City Of Oshawa Marketing Strategy

RBosch
Consulting
© 2005

Customer
Service
Strategy
May 2006

The City of Oshawa
Connecting Information and People

City of Oshawa

Customer Service Strategy

Table of Contents
Acknowledgement ......................................................................... 2
Introduction .................................................................................. 3
Approach ....................................................................................... 5
Project Objectives .......................................................................... 6
Situational Assessment .................................................................. 6
Guiding Principles ........................................................................12
In response to increasing customer expectations, the City of Oshawa developed the Commitment to
Progress initiative. The corporate qualities (core competencies) and the guiding principles (specific behaviours) that foster a quality service culture are incorporated into the 2006 Corporate Business
Plan. The framework creates a foundation of attitudes and behaviours that support the long-term success of the organization by committing to excellent customer service, positive/supportive working relationships, progressive leadership and continuous learning and improvements.
In February 2005, the City of Oshawa’s Community Strategic Plan ‘Creating Our Tomorrow’ was approved by Council, outlining the community vision, objectives and strategic direction for the next 15
- 20 years. The purpose for creating a Community Strategic Plan was to develop a common vision for the community, to establish a framework for other plans and partnerships, and to maximize resources in an effective manner. One of the goals for the City of Oshawa is to be a Caring and Responsive

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City of
To provide more effective service delivery, the customer-interface should occur at or near the ground level.
6. Currently, there is little integration of services between the City of Oshawa and other levels of government. For example, the City of Oshawa takes care of municipal roads and the
Region of Durham is responsible for regional roads. If a request arrives in the Public
Works area requesting a road occupancy permit for a regional road, the Customer Service
Clerk will provide the phone number/address for the Region of Durham.
7. Contacting local government still involves finding the right number among the Blue Pages.
Upon reviewing the Blue Pages there are approximately 55 contact points listed for City of
Oshawa services.

Inconsistent Service Standards - Current customer service delivery practices in the City, evolved based on organizational structures. The existing service practices are based on the individual branch’s understanding of various customers’ needs. As a result, the level and consistency of service standards varies within the organization.
The key findings are:
1. Every department has its own expectations of how to treat customers and there is