Customer and Stakeholder Surveys
This step in the demand planning process is focused on assessing the levels of service required by customers. The analysis considers three class of user:
Each of these will have varying and often conflicting requirements.
The asset manager should:
- Validate all needs against organizational objectives
- Offer the best balance available.
Consulting external customers
To determine customer and stakeholder needs:
Review of existing service provision
To a certain extent, the very existence of a service generates demand for that service.
Organizations must therefore ensure regular reviews are conducted of their services to:
- Confirm the demand for the service
- Justify action taken to discontinue outdated services.
Market segmentation
The concept of market segmentation recognizes that not all members of the community have identical needs.
The development of user profiles can be of indispensable value in the application of this technique.
The user profiles might typically include information such as:
- Geographic location
- Demographic data
- Psychographic (psychological and sociological) data
- User characteristics.
The needs of clients in different areas can be identified and targeted (rather than the market as a whole).
The organization should undertake the necessary research to secure accurate data on which to segment the market.
Consultation approaches
Public consultation varies in form and content and is influenced by the type of service being provided and its significance to the community.
Consultation should be viewed as a tool, complementing existing management and decision-making practices.
At one end of the consultation spectrum are advisory processes that involve one-way information exercises; while at the other there may be a community-wide approach.
It is important for an appropriate consultation plan to be formulated in the service planning stage.
There are two key objectives for public consultation:
- The consultation process is ethical: those whose livelihoods and environments are affected by a decision should be involved in the decision-making process and the development of strategies concerning the service outcome
- The consultation process is pragmatic: Success of processes and policies often depends on people's willingness to be involved in the process.
The approach can be a simple questionnaire on a limited range of areas or a complex questionnaire and customer focus groups.
In deciding the approach, consider:
- The level of resources available
- The quality of the information available on users' expectations and preferences
- Planning options and associated costs
- The level of sophistication of strategic planning
- Legal obligations to consult.
Some examples of consultation methods are:
CONSULTATION | DESCRIPTION |
| Public Information programs | Media releases, articles, use of radio and television, newsletters, brochures, displays, exhibits, videos, legal notices and paid advertisements and responses to enquiries from the public. |
| Information Centres | Places where people can call in to see displays, get information and ask questions on a particular project, program or service. |
| Site Office | A temporary, staffed office where the community has both access and the opportunity to talk to qualified officers. |
| Telecentres | Telecommunication technologies to gain access to information. |
| Hotlines/Information lines | Used to record and distribute information via tape recorded messages; respond to straight forward inquiries about a plan, project or services available. |
| Information meetings | To provide an open forum to exchange and present information. |
| Public meetings | There are two forms of public meetings: meetings where an invitation to attend is extended to all members of the public; and meetings restricted to members of identified interest groups and professional bodies. |
| Search conference | Staged discussion aimed at identifying a broad cross section of views; lasting a day, weekend or longer. Usually 20-30 participants, selected to be heterogeneous but sharing identifiable interests. |
| Workshops | Workshops are structured sessions lasting ½ day, one or two days aimed at producing plans or program recommendations. |
| Focus Groups | Small discussion groups that provide insight into the extent of and intensity of opinions and the extent of resistance to change. |
| Design-in | Committee members meet to work on maps, scale representations and photographs to gain a better idea of the effect on their community proposals or options. Depending on the level of professional advice used and sophistication of materials, an expert presence may be required. |
| Charrettes | The charrette is a problem solving process. The various interested parties develop a full-scale plan through a series of intensive interactive meetings depending on the complexity of the problem. |
| Advisory Committees | Committees vary in size but usually involve no more than eight to 12 people; they may be appointed or elected at a public meeting to provide on going advice and to monitor community views on a specialist topic. |
| Panel | A panel of four to six people with special knowledge on an issue or problem give a presentation; generally used with other techniques such as a seminar, forum or public meeting. |
| Community Meetings | Community meetings tend to be sponsored and organized by a community group or organization to focus on a particular issue. |
| Neighborhood meetings | Neighborhood meetings are semi-informal meetings usually hosted by neighbors or 'local' residents. |
| Submissions | The submission, usually in written form, is a widely used method of obtaining feedback from the public on various forms of plans, papers and reports in draft or near final forms. |
| Surveys | Surveys are a useful and relatively inexpensive means of collecting information, attitudes and opinions from a large number of people. They involve structured questioning of a community either using a written form that people complete themselves, or interviews conducted face to face or over the telephone. These methods can collect a large amount of information. |
Surveys and focus groups
The length and detail of surveys depends on the consultation approach chosen.
If a focus group is used, prepare information sheets to help the participants understand the planning issues.
Focus groups generally involve 7- 8 people specifically selected to ensure different views are represented. An experienced facilitator should lead them.
Focus group discussions can:
- Find out what level of knowledge asset users have
- Understand the users' way of thinking about strategic planning
- Determine what level of planning users sees as acceptable and affordable.
As a follow-up, more specific 'what-if' scenarios may be evaluated using face-to-face interviews.
Assessment and review process
This determines whether the initial objectives of the consultation have been fulfilled. An assessment of the process is required to:
- Measure its degree of success
- Address the shortcomings of the survey.
The outcomes of the consultation program need to be distributed to the participants and the stakeholders as soon as possible after completion of the consultation. Without a prompt follow up, community cynicism may erode the benefits of the consultation activities and outcomes.
Methods of informing the public of the outcomes of the consultation program include:
- Follow up public meetings
- A report summarizing outcomes and findings
- Displays in public places such as libraries, Council Chambers, shopping mall
- Press releases and news reports.
Internal customer considerations
Internal customers are often overlooked in the demand planning process - their needs are often assumed or ill defined.
Organizational objectives may be compromised if the needs of this group are not considered.
For example, if service shortfalls are left to be dealt with internally, alternative, more expensive, sources of supply may are required.
Demand from internal groups should be assessed using the same process as external customers. Surveys may need to be modified to reflect any differences.
Government and other stakeholders
Often restraints will be forced on an organization in deciding the level of service.
Government and governing bodies will often set minimum standards, or restrictions on factors that control the delivery of services, eg plant operating hours or quantity of waste produced.
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