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CONTACT CENTER NG BAYAN 2015 Year-end Report

Public Assistance and Information Office Civil Service Commission

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CONTACT CENTER NG BAYAN 2015 Year-end Report

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Institutionalized as the public feedback mechanism of the Philippine Government

anchored on the Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007 and CSC Resolution No. 1400995, the

Contact Center ng Bayan (CCB) aims to promote accountability among government

agencies by providing citizens with tools to report feedback on government frontline

services. Citizens can access the CCB through Short Messaging Service (SMS)

09088816565, hotline 1-6565, email address email@contactcenterngbayan.gov.ph,

Facebook account “contactcenterngbayan”, and CCB Website

www.contactcenterngbayan.gov.ph.

From the time it was launched in 2012 with six participating agencies (Civil Service

Commission, Information and Communications Technology Office, Bureau of Internal

Revenue, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, Department of Health, and

Department of Trade and Industry), CCB has expanded from contracting a private call

center company during its initial run to finally setting-up its own main hub in 2015.

CCB’s operations since 2012 have generated a rich source of data on client feedback.

As of December 2015, SMS is still the top choice of citizens in providing their feedback

to CCB. September and October are CCB’s peak months, attributed to the promotion

of Philippine Civil Service Anniversary and the Civil Service Examinations when clients

are not only sending complaints but also appreciation and commendations on

government services as well. This year-end report will also show data on the Top 10

Agencies with most number of ARTA-related concerns reported to the CCB.

2015 was a big year for CCB since it went through a major transition, conducted

several benchmarking activities and promotional showcases, and received an award.

The CCB on-premise facility became fully operational at the CSC Central Office in

April 1, 2015 with its own agents serving as both Generalist and Special Action Team.

CCB also engaged with various government agencies to educate and aid them on how

to better cater to contact center clients. CSC also received the Philippine Quill Award

of Merit by the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) for CCB’s

excellent communication strategies. All these remarkable events prove that CCB is

continuously gaining the public’s attention and support toward its goal of improving the

quality of government frontline services in the Philippines.

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CONTACT CENTER NG BAYAN 2015 Year-end Report

I. THE CONTACT CENTER NG BAYAN The establishment of the Contact Center ng Bayan (CCB) is in compliance with the provisions of Republic Act No. 9485, better known as the Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007 (ARTA Law). The Civil Service Commission promulgated the Implementing Rules and Regulations of the Act trough CSC Resolution No. 081471 approved on July 24, 2008. Rule VI [Accessing Frontline Services], Section 5 of the IRR states that, xxx“The office or agency shall institute hotline numbers, short message service, information communication technology, or other mechanisms by which the clients may adequately express their complaints, comments and suggestions. xxx” . In support of the ARTA implementation, the CSC and the Information and Communications Technology Office (ICTO) of the Department of Science and Technology, signed Joint Resolution No. 2010-01 on August 15, 2010 to adopt and promulgate guidelines pertaining to the delivery of frontline services to the public through citizen’s helplines, government contact/call centers and future interconnection of the same. This collaboration paved the way for the establishment of the CCB Project. A. The CCB Pilot Run The CCB was launched on September 27, 2012 with six (6) participating agencies, namely: CSC, ICTO, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, Department of Health, and Department of Trade and Industry. Since its pilot run, the CCB databank has become a rich source of information for the ARTA program initiatives of the CSC, such that targets for the 2014 Report Card Survey and ARTA Watch were based on the agencies with most number of ARTA-related feedback received through the CCB. The CSC also engaged the agencies with the most number of ARTA-related complaints to further improve frontline service delivery. B. Institutionalization of the Contact Center ng Bayan Through CSC Resolution No. 1400995, promulgated on July 10, 2014, the CSC institutionalized the Contact Center ng Bayan as the public feedback mechanism of the government. Anchored on the Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007, it aims to enhance procedures and encourage commitment and accountability of government agencies towards prompt resolution of the public’s concerns on frontline service delivery. The CSC also envisions to expand the use of the CCB by increasing the number of participating agencies and forging partnerships with government offices which intend to use the CCB as a feedback tool, all aiming for one goal – to provide excellent public service.

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C. CCB TIMELINE The following shows the highlights of the CCB implementation from its launch in September 2012.

Diagram 1. Highlights of CCB Implementation

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II. CONTACT CENTER NG BAYAN OPERATIONS A. The People Behind the Contact Center When the Contact Center ng Bayan (CCB) was launched on September 27, 2012, there were six (6) member agencies which implemented the program. These were the Civil Service Commission, National Computer Center, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Department of Health, Department of Trade and Industry, and Philippine Health Insurance Corporation. The CCB contact center facility was hosted by a private company, Pilipinas Teleserv Inc., until March 31, 2014. Partner agencies were interconnected through a customer relationship management system (CRM) where the host escalates concerns specific to the agencies, except ARTA-related concerns. ARTA-related concerns were directly escalated to the Special Action Team (SAT) of the CSC for action and monitoring.

Diagram 2. CCB Organizational Structure until March 31, 2015

When the contract with Pilipinas Teleserv ended in March 31, 2014, the CSC and ICTO were assisted by the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) through its business process outsourcing facility. PUP served as back-up facility and provided generalist functions or first point of contact of clients to the CCB for one year - from April 1, 2014 to March 31, 2015. Simultaneously, the CSC set up an on-premise contact center facility with twelve (12) agents composed of one (1) Team Leader, two (2) Assistant Team Leaders, and nine (9) agents. The on-premise facility was already fully operational when the services of PUP expired. The on-premise Contact Center team then assumed both the Generalist and Special Action functions.

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Diagram 3: CCB Organizational Structure effective April 1, 2015

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B. Operations The CCB attends to calls during its business hours from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Mondays to Fridays. While client concerns coming from SMS and email are received 24/7, these concerns are processed during business hours. 1. Software

CCB is powered through a private-cloud-based system where a private network seamlessly connects all CCB member agencies for easy escalation and resolution of clients’ concerns. The technical software used to power the CCB are the following:

CosmoCall - CosmoCall Universe is a network-based service provider solution that integrates live multimedia communication - telephone, text chat, video and messaging - into a network application, allowing a customer to receive live personal contact from a help desk or sales representative through his or her computer. ProInsight - ProInsight is a dynamic, web-based service desk application that provides users a secure, redundant and cost-effective way to manage and resolve issues that affect an organization’s operations. Incidents, problems and work orders can be managed throughout their life cycles in the customer service process. Data Management System - the DMS systems content storehouse is known as a Repository. A repository is a library or digital file system for content and it is comprised of nodes that give access to the repository’s content and functions.

2. Feedback Process

These are the different modes where the Contact Center ng Bayan receives client feedback:

Short Messaging Service (SMS) 09088816565

Call 16565

Email email@contactcenterngbayan.gov.ph

Facebook account contactcenterngbayan

CCB Website www.contactcenterngbayan.gov.ph The chart below shows the number of client feedback received per access mode from January to December 2015.

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Chart 1. Total Transactions Per Access Modes

from January to December 2015

The CCB handled the following types of concerns from its clients:

1. Commendation – Appreciation for quality service that the client received from the agency and its employees;

2. Complaint – Client requested a particular service/benefit but was not satisfied;

3. Feedback/Suggestion – Client’s observation on how a particular service could

be given or improved;

4. Query – Clients forward a question or inquiry about a process or service; and

5. Request for assistance – In most cases, clients call/send SMS or email as they need help with their concerns with the agency

The following data indicates the type of concerns that CCB handled from January to December 2015. Majority of the transactions were clients’ queries and complaints. Commendations consist 3% of the transactions, which was indeed a positive indication that the public was also gradually engaging in reporting notable actions and behavior of government frontliners. Seventy-seven (77) commendations were received in 2014; 415 in 2015.

Chart 2. Types of Concerns lodged by the Public

22,787

1,2393,047

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

SMS 22,787 Email 1,239 Call 3,047

Usage of CCB per Access Mode

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from January to December 2015

Clients’ concerns lodged through CCB access channels are received by the generalist agents. Tickets with reference numbers are created for concerns with sufficient details. Simple queries on government procedure and policies, such as requirements for civil service exam applications, grant of special eligibilities, which are in the knowledge database and Citizen’s Charter posted in government agencies’ websites, are immediately acted upon by the generalists. Tickets are then closed after providing the client with the needed information. Complex concerns requiring a decision and/or appropriate action from specific government agencies are escalated to the CCB specialist agents for proper referral to the heads of agencies and monitoring of the tickets. Regular follow-ups are done by the specialists to ensure that receiving agencies act on the referral. Each government agency has a “Bilis Aksyon Partner” who helps the CCB elevate and monitor action on the referral within the agency concerned. The concerns are considered resolved when the agency has replied and feedback is provided to the clients. The CCB process flow is elaborated in the following diagrams:

Diagram 4.a. Creation of Tickets for Simple Transactions

COMMENDATION3%

COMPLAINT34%

FEEDBACK21%

QUERY33%

REQUEST FOR ASSISTANCE

8%

SUGGESTION1%

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Diagram 4.b. Creation of Tickets for Complex Transactions

Diagram 5. Escalation of Tickets for Complex Transactions

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Diagram 6. Reply/Action from Agency

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Diagram 7. Follow-ups on Active Referrals

The CCB team also ensures that transactions are resolved as quickly as possible. Even as most of clients’ reports are complaints, which are considered complex transactions, 86.78% of the total number of simple and complex transactions have resolved by the end of December 2015. Part of the remaining 13.22% were transactions lodged in the final days of December 2015 which the CCB team aims to resolve within January 2016. C. Data Collection CCB has been operating since September 2012. Peak months or periods where transactions are usually higher are in September and October. This could be attributed to various activities and promotions for the Philippine Civil Service Anniversary (PCSA) celebration in September, and increased number of queries on the Civil Service examinations in October. This client behavior was observed since 2013 and has been a basis for continuous improvement on faster handling of transactions.

Chart 3. CCB Transactions from 2012-2015

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The CCB has a special action team specifically handling and monitoring alleged ARTA violations. ARTA concerns focus on agencies’ compliance with the law by instituting measures to improve frontline service delivery. Agencies with the most number of ARTA-related complaints received through the CCB in 2013 were subjected to the ARTA Report Card Survey (ARTA RCS) in 2014 and 2015. During the ARTA RCS, trained enumerators visit to the service offices and conduct a two-pronged activity. The first one involves inspection of the compliance with ARTA provisions on the displayed Citizen’s Charter, “No Noon Break” and anti-fixer campaign and CCB posters, Public Assistance and Complaints Desk with knowledgeable action officer, wearing of easy-to-read identification cards, among others. The second involves interviews of actual clients transacting with the service office. Results of the ARTA RCS are published in newspaper and CSC website. Agencies with failed rating in the survey are subjected to a CSC intervention called “Service Delivery Excellence Program” (SDEP). The CSC also conducts ARTA Watch, a spot-check of service offices’ compliance with ARTA provision. Based on the three-year data of the CCB, top complaints by the public were: (1) slow process of transactions; (2) discourtesy of frontliners; (3) non-observance of the “No Noon Break” policy; (4) failure of frontliners to attend to clients during office hours; and (5) presence of fixers. The following table shows the tally of ARTA-related complaints lodged by the public:

Chart 4. ARTA-related Complaints, 2013-2015

Nature of Complaint

Year Total

2013 2014 2015

Absence of easy to read identification of frontliner 6 10 16

Bribery and extortion 13 80 93

Discourtesy 241 261 502 1004

Failure to act on request 54 95 117 266

Failure to attend to clients during office hours 141 131 379 651

Fixing activities 138 142 276 556

Imposition of additional cost 63 64 113 240

Imposition of additional requirements 14 10 24

No citizen's charter 10 55 65

Non-observance of noon break rule 249 217 513 979

No PACD 16 33 49

No special lane for senior citizens, pregnant women and PWDs

46 32 87 165

Non-issuance of official receipt 28 64 92

Non-observance of queuing system 31 108 139

Poor facility 37 155 192

Slow process 789 554 1086 2429

Unattended hotline number 41 30 56 127

Unclear procedure/s 56 64 105 225

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In terms of agencies, the following table lists the Top 10 government agencies with most number of ARTA-related concerns reported by the public:

Chart 5. Agencies with Most Number of ARTA-related Complaints, 2013-2015

RANK 2013 2014 2015

1 Land Transportation Office

Land Transportation Office

Land Transportation Office

2 Social Security System Social Security System Social Security System

3 Government Service Insurance System

Land Registration Authority

Bureau of Internal Revenue

4 Bureau of Internal Office Bureau of Internal Office Land Registration Authority

5 Professional Regulation Commission

Home Development Mutual Fund

Home Development Mutual Fund

6 Land Registration Authority

National Bureau of Investigation

Philippine Health Insurance Corporation

7 Home Development Mutual Fund

Department of Health (Hospitals)

Department of Foreign Affairs

8 National Statistics Office (PSA)

Government Service Insurance System

National Bureau of Investigation

9 Philippine Health Insurance Corporation

Philippine Statistics Authority

Philippine Statistics Authority

10 Department of Foreign Affairs

Professional Regulation Board

Land Bank of the Philippines

Aside from the daily processing of transactions, the CCB also monitors partner agencies on their monthly performance in terms of feedback from their respective service offices. Even government agencies that are not CCB partner agencies constantly coordinate with the CCB about their performance. CCB always reports the top agencies with most number of complaints. The data above shows improvement in a number of agencies, like GSIS. In 2012 and 2013, GSIS ranked 2nd and 3rd, respectively, in terms of having the most number of complaints. In the latter part of 2013, GSIS constantly coordinated with both the ARTA Program Management Team and the CCB to draw up ways to reduce complaints. In 2014, GSIS ranked the 8th on the list of most complained of agencies. It was no longer in the list in 2015. Because of GSIS’ good performance in resolving client complaints received by the CCB and its excellent rating in the ARTA Report Card Survey, the agency’s various service offices received the Seal of Excellence awards in 2015. D. Special Activities in 2015

1. Fully-operational CCB on-premise facility

2015 saw the major transition for CCB from outsourcing a private call center company serving as the citizens’ contact helpdesk in 2012 to 2013, to having a back-up facility at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, until putting-up the main hub of the contact center at the CSC Central Office with ICTO providing technical support throughout the process. CSC contracted ePLDT Inc. to set-up the contact center facility using various software.

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Photo: CCB Facility

2. The Quill Award

2015 was a momentous year for CSC as it gained recognition from the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) for its communication campaign to promote CCB as the government-wide feedback mechanism through which citizens can request for information and assistance on government frontline service procedures, as well as report commendation, complaints, and feedback.

IABC awarded CSC last March 9, 2015 with the Philippine Quill Award of Merit under Division 2: Communication Management – Category 15: Customer Relations.

Photo: Former Chair Francisco Duque III, Commissioner Robert Martinez and

CCB Program Manager Maria Luisa Salonga-Agamata receiving the award

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3. Promotion and Showcase of the CCB Facility

Appreciation from clients and improvement/corrective measures of government agencies made on clients’ reports are featured in the CSC’s radio program “Serbisyong Todo-todo” aired live every Wednesday from 11:00 am to 12:00 noon via DZRB Radyo ng Bayan 738khz on AM band with simulcast airing via Philippine Broadcasting Service’s 34 radio stations nationwide.

Appreciation and commendation from the public are also reported to the concerned government agencies to further inspire and motivate the employees in providing excellent public service. Another channel utilized to promote the CCB and announce positive feedback from the clients is the CCB Facebook page. The page already has 2,291 likes.

4. Other agency-initiated collaboration and benchmarking:

The CCB on-premise facility featured in the Lupang Hinirang music video produced by the Philippine Commission on Women

CCB program, systems and operations presented to the USAID Integrity for Investments Initiative (I3) project representatives

CCB program, systems and operations, including shadowing/hands-on workshop provided to 15 staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

Briefing on the CCB program, systems and operations given to the Department of Social Welfare and Development – Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) Program staff

E. Future Plans

1. CCB Promotion

With the facility and procedure already in place, the CCB will focus on promotion of the facility to be able to reach wider base of clientele. In the results of the 2014/2015 Surveys on Enterprises on Corruption commissioned by USAID I3, awareness on CCB was low but the intention to report red tape experienced was high (77% in enterprises and 59% in general public). Clearly, the public must be informed that there are public feedback mechanisms available to them. The public has to be aware of the existence of the CCB as the government’s central helpline against red tape where they may air out their concerns relative to the quality of frontline service delivery by government and any other violations of ARTA provisions, for resolution. With the CCB, the citizens can now voice their feedback regarding government service anytime, anywhere.

2. CCB Phase III

In collaboration with the ICTO, the CSC will embark on the preparation for the Phase III component of the CCB, which is the establishment of an infrastructure

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that will unify all CRMs of government agencies that can service both the query requirements of CCB and in-house contact center of agencies.

The partnership will pave the way for system development and networking capability to set up the integration platform/environment for the full blown implementation and maintenance of the unified CCB in the entire Philippine Government.