S4 NewsDay Tuesday November 17 2015
CCAZ 2015 SERVICE EXCELLENCE AWARDS
Immigration Department success story T
he Department of Immigration is a department within the Ministry of Home Affairs and administers the Immigration Act Chapter 4:02 and Immigration Regulations S.I 195/98. Some of the functions of the Department of Immigration include: lThe smooth facilitation of travellers at the ports of entry and exit (airports and border posts) lThe after entry management of immigrants through the issuance of relevant permits (eg spousal, students, employment and investors permits) and removal of illegal immigrants. Our Vision To provide a world class immigration service Our Mission To provide an effective and efficient immigration service to all clients as guided by the Immigration Act Chapter 4:02 Our Values i.Integrity lProfessionalism lTransparency lDiligence lAccountability ii.Team work iii.Commitment To be where we are today, the Department’s management made tough decisions under difficult conditions due to economic hardships, which were characterised by shortage of adequate resources. However, due to team spirit and commitment by both staff and management and determination of achieving set goals, the Department’s effort has been recognised by our clients whom we serve. The Department of Immigration embarked on a restructuring exercise in 2009, through review of the work processes in a bid to improve service delivery. The programme involved appointment of supervisors and middle management officers to oversee the work processes. In 2010, the Department embarked on the computerisation of its major ports of entry and exit in order to reduce the waiting time by travellers. This culminated in reducing the clearing time from the previous seven minutes to three minutes per traveller for those travellers who do not require visas, but for travellers who require visas the waiting time has equally been reduced from 10 minutes to the current four minutes. The Department of Immigration introduced an E-visa platform in January 2014. E-visa is an online visa application platform, where nationalities who are in category C of the Zimbabwe Visa Regime who wish to visit Zimbabwe can apply for their visas. The online visa platform is accessible on www.evisa.gov.zw E-visa platform brought with it many benefits which include; lEnabling the Department to efficiently and effectively process all visa applications; lReduction of visa processing time from seven working days to four working days; lEnabling all clients to apply for their visas from anywhere in the world without necessarily going to the Zimbabwe embassies or the Immigration offices; and lMinimising corruption since there is no longer physical interaction between the officers and the clients. On the issuance of various permits, the Department has managed to reduce the waiting time from six weeks to less than one week on all short-term permits. However, all long-term permits have a waiting time of three weeks, because of the involvement of other stakeholders in the processing. In a bid to fight corruption the Department engaged Transparency International to facilitate on workshops to conscientise our members on the negative effects of corruption to the Department, the Ministry and the country at large. We went further to install CCTV on some major stations for surveillance and recording of activities. Of late, there are some unscrupulous members of the public (conmen) who are masquerading as senior government officials conning applicants that they can facilitate the issuance of permits. Many people have fallen prey to these conmen and have lost large sums of money. The Department of Immigration encourages all applicants to approach the Immigration offices and make sure they pay gazetted statutory fees and should always be issued with proper receipts. In order to spruce the image of the Department, the Department managed to procure uniforms for staff mem-
bers. All immigration officers on duty are identifiable by their uniform with a name tag. The Department has introduced an open-door policy where by members of the public have unlimited access to all members in order to improve the flow of communication. Suggestion boxes have been installed at all major stations for feedback, complaints, compliments and queries. The Department management has managed to build a motivated and dedicated Immigration team through the implementation of an inclusive and par-
ticipative approach in all strategic processes through holding workshops and trainings. The training is meant to equip staff and officers with the relevant skills necessary in service delivery. This culture has afforded the Department to live its values and “walk the talk”. In the 2014 Contact Centre Association of Zimbabwe’s Service Excellence Awards, the Department was rated third as the Most Customer focused Organisation in the Public Sector whereas the Principal l TO PAGE S5
Immigration Principal Director Clemence Masango
The Principal Director of Immigration Mr. C. Masango (centre) receiving the Most Improved Organisation of the year Award during the 2015 Contact Centre Association Service Excellence Awards ceremony, flanked by CCAZ Patron Mr. H. Nkala (extreme left), Senior Principal Director in the Office of the President and Cabinet Mr. O.E.M. Hove (second from left), daughter Miss. S. Masango (second from right) and Principal Immigration Officer P.M. Mafodya (extreme right)
The Board, Management and Staff at
CHINA JIANGSU INTERNATIONAL
would like to congratulate the Department of Immigration for being the winner in the most improved organization of the year 2015 category at the Zimbabwe Service Excellence Awards Ceremony held recently.
Congratulations!!
Address: No. 5 West Beijing Road, Gulou District, Nanjing, China (HQ) 72 Queen Elizabeth Road, Greendale, Harare (Zim Office) Tel: 04-492 281 Email: zimjiangsu@zol.co.zw Website: www.zjgj.com
S5
NewsDay Tuesday November 17 2015
Service Excellence Awards
Immigration Department success story
Principal Director of Immigration Clemence Masango (centre) receiving the Most Improved Organisation of the year Award during the 2015 Contact Centre Association Service Excellence Awards ceremony, flanked by CCAZ Patron Herbert Nkala (left), Senior Principal Director in the Office of the President and Cabinet O.E.M. Hove (second left), S Masango (second right) and Principal Immigration Officer Patricia Mafodya (right) l FROM PAGE S4
Director, Clemence Masango was awarded the Most Consumer Focused Executive in the Public Sector Category. In 2015 during the same Awards Ceremony held at Cresta Lodge, Harare, the Department of Immigration was voted the winner in Most Improved Organisation Category. This achievement was a result of contin-
uous review of our work processes as well as establishment of an Immigration inspectorate team responsible for ensuring that all stations maintain an excellent work standard which culminates in improved service delivery. Every member of the Department is being congratulated for this achievement. Facilitating Movement and Business
Honouring our everyday heroes I
t has been four years since Contact Centre Association of Zimbabwe (CCAZ) first began recognising the commitment to service excellence of individuals and organisations. Speaking on behalf of CCAZ, Cynthia Tapera emphasised that the Service Excellence Awards have been developed as both an acknowledgement of progress made to date by some enterprises in relation to service excellence and as a benchmark for others to pursue. “With customer service expecta-
tions continually rising, the wider community is becoming aware of the value and role that customer service plays in achieving business success. This highly demanding area is arguably the critical success factor for many organisations. For this reason it is important that the customer service profession has its own national awards to recognise, promote and reward excellence, professionalism and outstanding achievement,” Tapera said. The Zimbabwe Service Excellence l TO PAGE S6
The Chairman of the Freda Rebecca Gold Mine board Dr A.P Danso, the Managing Director Mr Toindepi Muganyi, members of the Freda Rebecca Gold Mine Board and staff congratulate MR CLEMENCE MASANGO – THE PRINCIPAL DIRECTOR and the department of Immigration for winning the prestigious Excellence Awards as the Most Improved Organization 2015 Customer Service Excellence.
Congratulations, Makorokoto, Amhlope Freda Rebecca Gold Mine Sustainable Mining, Sustainable investments, Sustainable communities
S6
NewsDay Tuesday November 17 2015
Service Excellence Awards
Honouring our everyday heroes
Cynthia Tapera CCAZ Public Relations Executive Committee member FROM PAGE S5
Awards showcase the highest achievement in customer service. Reaching the finals and winning an award illustrates the high standards of management, training and commitment to excellence within those organisations. Researches have indicated that customer experience is the next competitive battleground. As a continent, we should not be left out, as this is the time to leverage on legendary customer service dictates so as to become competitive on a global landscape. The time has come to shift focus towards efficient service delivery. Those corporates which are still disregarding their customers’ power should start shifting focus towards service excellence, lest they be left lagging behind the conceptual shift and go under. As a company, you must choose whether to compete on the basis of price in a cutthroat commodity market, or on the basis of customer relationships created through a superior value proposition. “To the corporate business community, which measures its performance through the bottom line, let me stress that service excellence pays handsome dividends and it is, therefore, priceless,”Tapera advised. “2015 has been another successful year for CCAZ. There have been many successful events, World Class Contact Centre and
CRM Master Class, Customer Service Conference and the Brand Expo to mention a few. We owe our accomplishments and successes to the hard work and dedication of our members and partners without which CCAZ would not be where it is today, thank you for the ongoing contributions! “As CCAZ we are proud to acknowledge those members who have gone above and beyond their usual call of duty to contribute to the organisation’s success in hosting our annual Service Excellence Awards. We would like to extend our appreciation and gratitude to their continued dedication. It is because of these partners that CCAZ is a thriving and growing organisation,” added Tapera. “To all proud award winners, congratulations and to those who did not make it you are winners as well, because your participation in this cutthroat industry illustrates your strong will to persistently compete at the highest professional level. A special thank you to the Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality, the Consumer Council of Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority who have partnered the Contact Centre Association of Zimbabwe to make this noble innovation such a resounding success.” “In warm appreciation of our association during the past year, we extend our very best wishes for a happy festive season.”
CHROMEBASE MINING CO P/L
Congratulations
Chromebase Mining P/L would like to congratulate Zimbabwe Immigration Department for being the most improved Organisation of the Year 2015 at the Customer Service Excellence Award of Zimbabwe.
Makorokoto!! Amhlope!!
NewsDay Tuesday November 17 2015 S7
Service Excellence Awards
Call centres: Missing link to excellent service delivery By Rinos Mautsa
T
he last decade has witnessed a substantial shift in emphasis on the part of many firms, from focus on the products they produce to a concentration on their customers and the value that their customers derive from ownership and use of these products/services. This “customer-centric” perspective is correlated with the blurring of the line between products and services, globalisation and growing usage of social networking platforms. A closer look into the cutthroat competition in the Zimbabwean consumer-facing industry, one would clearly note that customer service excellence is the next competitive battleground for winning corporates. The recent global marketing trends have witnessed a shift in core product competitive strategy towards providing customer-centric technology solutions, of which, call centres is a very significant ingredient for customer experience management. In fact, future prospects of most firms would be built on significant growth in the proportion of revenue derived from customer experience management. Excellent service delivery in Zimbabwe in both private and public sectors is far beyond reach, with consumers paying a big price in quest to get a mere service leaving one to wonder if the adage that “customer is the king” still applies. While organisations have spent millions on advertisement campaigns, corporate social responsibility (CSR) and customer relationship management (CRM) programmes to provide better service and build stronger connections with customers. Achievement of CRM objectives for most organisations in the consumer facing industry remains an elusive goal without efficient and effective contact center operations management. Organisations invest millions in technology and expansion but ironically, after all the investment, only efficiencies improve, not performance or customer experience. The way to a customer’s heart lies not in software, systems and processes only, but in service convenience and quality service delivery. Consumers are now well-informed and educated, thus need for those in the service industry to shift approach in a more radical way in order to survive. A company or organisation making radical changes in its business model can capitalise on a call centre as part of its 2014 CRM strategy. A switch from providing customer support only during business hours to providing 24/7 services can be a big leap for many companies. Globally, most local authorities, insurance companies, telecom companies, medical associations, financial institutions and fast food operators all have in-house contact centres which is the opposite in Zimbabwe. Contact centre, also known as customer interaction centre, is a central point of any organisation from which all customer contacts are managed. In this technology era, Zimbabwean customers are now contacting companies by calling, emailing, chatting online, visiting websites, faxing, and even instant messaging, therefore, it becomes handy for all organisations to set up in-house call centres. Most banks in Zimbabwe are now offering mobile banking and e-banking service, ironically they don’t have supporting call centres services to allow 24/7 support to their customers leaving one to wonder if customer experience management and excellent service delivery is on top priority. The country’s power utility, revenue authority and local authorities can also take a leaf from our neighbouring countries like South Africa, Zambia and Botswana who have set up supporting call centres to ensure efficient service delivery for all the public institutions. Our government can also take a leading role through the ministry of ICT and Tourism by setting up a national call centre which can service all national enquiries, tourism marketing, emergency services, act as information hub for investors and citizens among others key roles. While the cost of setting up a call centre can seem to be enormous, however, the benefits far outstrips the cost. The main alternative to setting up of an inhouse call centre will be outsourcing to a third party provider. Currently, in Zimbabwe, there are now over three companies which are offering call centre outsourcing solutions. A recent public sector survey conducted by Forbes in different countries revealed that the average customer contact costs is higher for face to face, followed by postal enquiries, then phone enquiries and the lowest being for online services. It is, therefore, vital to note that online services and call centres are not only instrumental in building loyalty and customer experience, but are a cheap way to conduct business. Call centres can keep organisations in touch with their clients 24 hours a
Call centres are a building block for all customer relationship management and marketing programmes in customer-oriented companies day, seven days a week, that’s an advantage that translates into customer loyalty. Most global leading corporates and
customer-oriented companies have noted this and now use call centres as a building block for all CRM and marketing pro-
grammes. This shift towards a service-centric strategy represents an important aspect of firms’ efforts towards enhancing overall revenue and profit, customer acquisition and retention, and competitive differentiation. Delivering exceptional customer service should be the central aim of any organisation in Zimbabwe. Everyone involved in the business, from top management to agents, needs to be aware of its importance and what they need to do to make this happen. CRM objectives depend on a customer centric culture and enterprise-wide strategy, with particular emphasis on building buy-in and shared objectives among employees. While enthusiasm and participation at the top levels of an organisation are necessary, they will be far from sufficient without call centres especially for companies in the service industry. This is now the high time for all players in the service industry or those directly affected by service delivery to consider call centre setup or efficiency for those with call centers when crafting CRM strategies.
S8
NewsDay Tuesday November 17 2015
Service Excellence Awards
What is Service Excellence Awards T
HE Service Excellence Awards are the premier continental customer service awards, which are conferred to organisations who are doing so well in championing and promoting service excellence. The awards are offered at country and continental level. Winning organisations from each country will participate at continental level. Who is the organiser of the event? Service Excellence Awards are organised and managed by CICM Global, however, at country level the event is co-ordinated by CICM channel partners. Customer expectations are continually rising, the wider community is becoming aware of the value and role that customer service plays in achieving business success. This highly demanding area is arguably the critical success factor for many organisations and the country at large. For this reason, CICM is introducing the Service Excellence Awards to recognise, promote and reward excellence, professionalism and outstanding achievement in all sectors of the country. Reasons to participate Fair and unbiased: We don't invite consult-
ants, sponsors or vendors to help judge — the awards are judged by the local and international industry professionals and academics. Premier: The ultimate in awards programmes anywhere in the world and they are endorsed by more local and international industry associations than any other award programme in the country Every awards entrant who participates in the SEA receives benchmarking data from the entire group Entering helps you streamline your strategy and focus on what you do best, as well as learn what you can improve Awards for individuals within your organisation and the organisation as a whole mean you have opportunities to recognise every aspect of your operation All entrants will be ranked and receive an official ranking showing their relative position in the industry. Service Excellence Awards benefits Recognition of participating organisation’s achievements in customer service, increasing and
enhancing its credibility and image in the market place Free publicity, International exposure, Increased customer perception and confidence in dealing with the organisation, Continuous improvement opportunities and benchmarking of the organisation’s Customer Service efforts through SEA’s comprehensive CRM Benchmarking programme Greater focus on Customer Service throughout the entire organisation Increased morale at all levels of the organisation Awards categories All organisations and individuals actively in the consumer facing industry involved in the delivery of customer service are entitled to enter the Awards, provided that all Award conditions are satisfied. 1st Category: Service Excellence Awards – Best in each sector Hospitality sector; ICT and Telecoms; Banking & Financial Services; Government Departments; Lo-
cal Authorities & Utilities; Healthcare & Pharmaceutical; Transport sector (air, rail, road); Retail and fast foods; Education sector; Health Insurance; Funeral Insurance; Financial Insurance; Automobile industry (Vehicle Servicing, Assembling, Sales); Security; Courier services; Restaurants 2nd Category: Special Awards Best Call Centre Companies which have made the best use of technologies as a core strategy of their commitment to elevate the overall system efficiency, resources management and customer service quality will be awarded recognition. In addition, connectivity and harmonisation of these technologies will also be taken into consideration. Most Improved Call Centre Companies which have improved in the best use of technologies as a core strategy of their commitment to elevate the overall system efficiency, resources management and customer service quality will be awarded recognition. In addition, connectivity and harmonisation of these technologies will also be taken into consideration. Excellence in Corporate Social Responsibility Award This award recognises the work being carried out by organisations to improve the lives of their employees, customers, community and to enhance the civic environment in which they operate. This is a unique award that encourages the business community to pay back customers through improving the livelihoods of the community and the environment. Service Quality Award This award is primarily intended for, but not limited to the manufacturing sector and is given in recognition of outstanding service in the area of Service Quality and adherence to quality standards for the benefit of the consumers. The Service Quality Award is given in recognition of consistent and reliable quality assurance where the provision of goods in is concerned. Best Call Centre and CRM Vendor Supplier Companies who have supplied the best call centre and CRM technologies to all upcoming and upgrading call centres/organisations. Such systems should have demonstrated commitment to elevate the overall system efficiency, resources management and customer service quality. The level of integration within the organisation’s technological framework in order to instil a level of customer service appreciation in all departments using the systems provided will be taken into consideration. 3rd Category: Individual Awards Five Customer Service Executives of the Year (individuals awards for the private and public sectors) The nominee must have demonstrated vision and leadership in building the organisation with strong customer viewpoint from the top to the bottom, superior brand and strong financial performance with customer centric culture. This includes on-going strategies and continuous initiatives/improvement where the nominee’s visions, business insights, leadership to communicate and inspire have guided his or her organisation to a new level of growth, service quality, internal and external customer satisfaction and public recognition. Industry Champion Award – (Call Centre/Customer Service/Social Responsibility/Standards) The nominees will have distinguished themselves and made outstanding contributions in one or more of the following areas: original research; policy initiatives and advocacy which increase consumer welfare; customer experience, scholarly research, sustainable corporate social responsibility, academic contribution in the field of customer service, call centre industry development and other related, CRM technological innovation which benefit customers and improve welfare of the consumers. The nominees will have additional activities that have clearly advanced service delivery, consumer welfare and economic development and other contributions that the 2015 Service Excellence Award adjudication committee may deem to be appropriate. Award Submission Guidelines: Organisations The following criteria highlight a number of key elements which should be present in each awards submission. Whilst the judges will expect some information from each subject heading, this criteria is provided as a guide only. Submissions should be no longer than 2 500 words. Information provided by applicant will also be verified by independent auditors. Applicants are required to provide one hard copy of their submission and one electronic copy. Adjudicators These are the moderators of the awards research results. They are experts from the industry especially from organisations who are not participants of the awards. The Judging Committee consists of captains of industry, academics, and professional’s actively involved in industry and commerce. They analyse: Results from voting Results from mystery shopping Then they weigh in their expert opinion to consider if the winning organisation/ individual really deserve it.