People, Service and Trust- is there a Public Sector Service Value Chain? Ralph Heintzman and Brian Marson Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat EGPA Conference, Oeiras, September 2003

The Private Sector Service Profit Chain (James Heskett, Harvard University)

The Public Sector Is there a parallel chain in the public sector, and if so, what is its nature? Based on emerging research findings, we propose the possible existence of the following Service Value Chain in the Public Sector

Modeling the Service Value Chain Employee Satisfaction & Commitment Citizen/ Client Service Satisfaction Citizen Trust & Confidence In Public Institutions Studies: JamesHeskett Cdn. Conf. Board TelusCorp. SQM Group Studies: US ACSI Data UK MORI Study BouckaertStudy Govtof Canada Canadian CF3 Drivers Timeliness Competence Courtesy Fairness Outcome (From CF3 Study) Potential Drivers Social/cultural factors Macro- performance Micro- performance - Political - Administrative (CF 3 Study) - Service satisfaction - Service benefit - Service adequacy A Proposed Public Sector Service Value Chain ©Heintzmanand Marson 2003 Potential Drivers Career path Fair pay/benefits Value to citizens Work environment Perception of mgt. (Erins Peel Study) Other drivers to be discovered

The Two Key Links in the Chain: Emerging Research Evidence 1. Staff Satisfaction and Commitment impacts Client/Citizen Satisfaction, and vice versa; –e.g. Empirical findings of SQM Groups study of public sector call centres; –More research needed to verify this link. 2. Client Service Satisfaction impacts Trust and Confidence in Public Institutions –e.g. Citizens First-3 (2003) empirical findings and Communication Canada (2000) survey findings. –Also: MORI (2003); USA, ACSI (2002); Sweden (2003) and Leuvens Flanders study.

Identifying the Performance Drivers Along the Service Value Chain 1. Drivers of Staff Satisfaction and Commitment –First approximation through 2003 ERIN Research study –New inter-jurisdictional study underway in Canada 2. Drivers of Client Satisfaction –Five drivers clearly identified via the Canadian research 3. Drivers of Trust and Confidence –Identity and performance (Leuven survey) –Macro-performance and micro-performance, including service –Three service variables identified in Canadian Citizens First-3 research (2003): satisfaction, benefit, adequacy –Other non-service variables suggested in the MORI study (2003) and in Leuvens Flanders study

The Service Satisfaction Drivers (Canadian Data) These Fiver Drivers Account for 70% of Service Satisfaction Scores

The Service Satisfaction Drivers Dramatically Impact Citizens Service Quality ratings (Canadian Data)

Current National Scores on Individual Drivers: Timeliness, Competence and Extra Mile Need Improvement (Canadian Data) Outcome72 Courtesy71 Fairness69 Competence64 Extra Mile55 Timeliness51

Canadas Service Improvement Through the Application of Research Findings Canadas Improving Public Sector Service Quality Reputation (Citizens First 3, 2003)

Service Drivers Impact Citizen Trust and Confidence (Citizens First-3, 2003)

Next Steps in Research: Priorities 1. Verify the staff satisfaction/commitment link to client satisfaction though cross-analysis of staff satisfaction and client satisfaction data in a variety of public sector organizations; also, determine if the link also works in the opposite direction, as in the private sector; 2. Identify the drivers of staff satisfaction and commitment, and their relative strengths; 3. Identify the drivers of citizen trust and confidence at the individual agency, the public service, and the political institutions levels- via surveys, multivariate analysis and modeling.

Lessons for Public Managers 1. Public managers can contribute to citizen trust and confidence by focussing on drivers of employee engagement and citizen satisfaction. 2. Apply existing research findings on the five service satisfaction drivers to improve satisfaction with public services; 3. Collaborate with researchers to identify and subsequently apply the drivers of staff satisfaction. 4. Measure future performance against citizen satisfaction (external) and employee engagement (internal)

People, Service and Trust- is there a Public Sector Service Value Chain? To contact us: The Institute for Citizen Centred Service: