Eskom’s efficiency is important to South Africa’s economic
prosperity, transformation and sustainable development. By
monitoring customer satisfaction, we can plan pro-actively to
ensure that we deliver the required quality of service at the
appropriate time and price. We use a range of statistical perception
surveys, conducted by an independent research organisation, to
measure customers’ satisfaction with the service delivered.
Customer service index
The customer service index combines the results of two
customer service perception surveys (Enhanced MaxiCare and
CustomerCare) and four internal customer service measures.
The index score on 31 March 2008 was 82,11% (2007: 87,09%)
against a target of 84,37%.
The weights and scales applied within the index categories are
reviewed annually and, where required, aligned to emphasise
management priorities and decisions aimed at maintaining or
improving customer satisfaction.
Customer service index
| |
Target
2008
% |
Actual
2008
% |
Actual
2007
% |
| External customer perception surveys: |
|
|
|
| – Enhanced MaxiCare |
≥89,6 |
89,15 |
93,85 |
| – CustomerCare |
≥79,50 |
82,53 |
83,47 |
| Internal performance measures: |
|
|
|
| – Restoration time |
≥80,00 |
75,96 |
80,65 |
| – Minor projects quotations |
≥89,00 |
82,00 |
88,00 |
| – Minor projects connections |
≥89,00 |
83,00 |
91,00 |
| – Contact centre service level |
≥80,00 |
75,00 |
82,00 |
| Weighted customer service index |
≥84,37 |
82,11 |
87,09 |
Enhanced MaxiCare1 – total quality index
The total quality index summarises the Enhanced
MaxiCare results and gives a broad indication of the
quality of service delivered (sampled from all customers).
The importance and perceived performance of individual
service aspects measured are taken into account.
CustomerCare1
The CustomerCare survey measures the satisfaction of
customers who phoned the contact centre per week on a scale
of one to 10, where 10 is excellent and one is very poor. The
customer relationship management system tracks and escalates
customer queries for resolution. Key improvements were also
achieved as a result of management focus and the training and
motivation of front-line staff.
Call volumes answered by contact centres during the 12-month
window, increased to 3,66 million (2007: 3,21 million). Call
volumes prior to load shedding were on average 16 500 calls
per day. During load shedding this peaked to an average of
48 000 calls per day.
CustomerCare performance is summarised below:
| |
Target
2008
% |
Actual
2008
% |
Actual
2007
% |
| Contact centre service delivery |
≥80,00 |
85,50 |
86,50 |
| Follow-up service delivery |
≥79,00 |
75,60 |
76,80 |
| Overall service delivery |
≥79,50 |
86,50 |
87,10 |
| CustomerCare |
≥79,50 |
82,53 |
83,47 |
Restoration time
Restoration time is the percentage of customer outages that were
restored within 7,5 hours of being reported. This is measured
from the time the power outage is logged on the system until
power is restored.
Unplanned outage restoration times influence the customer’s
perception of Eskom’s technical response. This indicator is a
good measure of the commitment to customer service from the
technical side of the business.
Minor project quotation and connection times
“Minor” describes the process followed by the project and does
not reflect the amounts spent or the business impact. Under
this process, Eskom connects about 35 000 billed and prepaid
customers a year (excluding electrification projects and major
customer projects).
The quotation indicator measures the percentage of quotations
received by customers less than 30 days from the time the
request was received. The connection indicator measures the
percentage of connections made less than 90 days from the time
the quote was accepted.
Minor project quotations and connections are key areas, as they
are often the first impression the customer has of Eskom.
Contact centre service level
This is the percentage of calls answered (by an agent) within
30 seconds. The world benchmark for the first quartile2 is in the
range of 78% to 90% (previously: 80%).
| 1 |
Monthly survey where customers who have phoned the Eskom contact centre are asked to rate the various aspects of their experience on a scale of 1 to 10. |
| 2 |
- The first quartile is a measure that represents the12-month moving average for customer sevice-level performance of comparable top-performing international
utilities.
|
Load shedding
Eskom anticipated achieving the current-year targets prior to
the occurrence of load shedding events. Customer service index
results were, therefore, impacted negatively by the capacity
constraints, coupled with the following:
- load shedding
- pressure on customers to reduce demand
- the implications of proposed higher tariffs
- possible delays in processing applications
- negative publicity portrayed via external media
These consequences, which cannot be ring-fenced separately
from normal operations, have severely impacted customer
perception measures in Enhanced MaxiCare. CustomerCare
measures have not been affected since these measure customer
perceptions related to specific service interventions, which may
not be related to, or affected by, load shedding.
A customer service index turnaround strategy has been
implemented to address the issues impacting the component
measures of the customer service index. The expectations
for the next financial year are also under review in order to
accommodate the impact of the capacity constraints.
The following business initiatives and strategies will manage and
assist customer service:
- demand-side management initiatives
- website development and upgrade
- enhanced load shedding schedules and refined principles
- review of load reduction allocations on fair and equitable
basis nationally
- interface with redistributors to combine load shedding
schedules
- contact centre capacity with additional resources
- improved communication and media briefings
- arrangements with specific larger customers to reduce load
demand
- considering customer and public recommendations via
website
- dedicated recovery team to provide dedicated support to
the business
- focus on communication and predictability of load shedding
process
 |
|
Click here for more information about the measuring of customer satisfaction. |
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