Anaheim, CA Improves Response Times with Citizen Relationship Management and 311

City becomes more responsive and accountable to resident needs

MAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE A TOP PRIORITY

Former Anaheim Mayor Curt Pringle declared in an annual address that customer service was his top priority for the City. Laying out a bold agenda, he conceived of a new program whereby the municipal government would be more responsive and accountable to resident needs.

HOW ACCELA EMPOWERS ANAHEIM

Accela Citizen Relationship Management eliminates the typical boundaries of local government contact. At the heart of the City’s customer service initiative is the solution’s central tracking and monitoring of requests. Regardless of how the resident contacts the City, all calls, questions and requests are logged into the solution for tracking and resolution.

The solution has allowed the City to dramatically improve customer service and communications by ensuring:

• Requests are never lost and are completed in a timely manner
• Standard responses are provided for common questions
• Staff are able to collaborate to resolve requests
• Management can monitor service levels and necessary resources
• A complete history of activity allows for long-term analysis and improvement

Accela Citizen Relationship Management keeps residents informed while saving staff time. Employees simply provide status updates within the system and the resident is automatically updated via email. Additionally, residents can log into the City’s website to check the status of their requests or use the automated telephone system.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Response times have improved dramatically since the implementation of Accela Citizen Relationship Management. The solution automatically routes requests to the correct staff and provides periodic reminders, and employees are now able to resolve most requests within 24 hours. Over the course of a year, most departments are achieving their defined service level standards more than 90% of the time and several are at 99% or better.

In addition, the web and mobile solution has helped Anaheim track and abate more than 17,000 reports of graffiti in just the past 12 months. Reports of graffiti are now automatically assigned to the City’s graffiti abatement contractor, who is responsible for removing it within 24 hours.