Customer Care and the Public Service Ethos

Abstract

The Labour governments that have been in power in the UK since 1997 have reconceptualized the public service ethos. In an apparent departure from their Conservative predecessors, Labour ministers have argued that the distinctive culture of public service can enhance rather than impede service quality and deliver high levels of customer care. This article utilizes interviews and content analysis data to explore the ethical dimension of public service, the significance of the language of customer in relation to ethos, and the implications for service delivery of a customer care focus. Case study findings show that a customer orientation is endorsed by politicians and bureaucrats in both central and local government, although there is a lack of clarity about the service manifestations of such a shift in emphasis. Respondents voiced concerns about the viability of customer care in the public sector as well as the sidelining of the political role of citizen.

Lietuvos valstybės tarnautojų administraciniai tapatumai: silpnos diskrecijos raiška aptarnaujant piliečius

“…C. Needham, kalbėdama apie penkias skirtingas klientų aptarnavimo koncepcijas viešojo sektoriaus organizacijose, išskyrė personalizavimą, t. y. paslaugų vartotojų individualizavimą, teigiant, kad svarbu "mąstyti apie klientą kaip individą paslaugos teikimo metu, o ne kaip apie vieną iš milijono" 436 . Kitaip tariant, siūloma galvoti, ko žmogui reikia, o ne tai, ką šiuo metu būtina atlikti (procedūros, standartai).…”

“Pembebasan” Etos Akuntabilitas Anggaran Daerah: Sebuah Analisis Kritis Habermasian Atas Kolonisasi Lifeworld

“…Nilai intrinsik yang termasuk di dalamnya ialah komitmen, integritas, imparsialitas, dan perilaku citizenship organisasional (Foster dan Wilding, 2000;Lawton, 1998;Needham, 2006). Reformasi dan perubahan kontekstual atas sektor publik di bawah kedok New Public Management (NPM) telah mengubah pola pelayanan publik (Ferlie et al, 1996;Lane, 2000;Lynn, 2006), serta mendorong adopsi nilai-nilai dan prinsip-prinsip manajemen sektor swasta (Maesschalck, 2004;Maesschalck et al, 2008;Pollitt dan Bouckaert, 2000).…”

“…Justifikasi efisiensi ekonomi digunakan untuk melakukan intervensi seperti privatisasi serta outsourcing, dan mengesampingkan partisipasi publik dengan alasan akan menghambat produktifitas. Klaim tersebut menyebabkan minat baru dalam akuntabilitas dan etos pelayanan publik (Clarke et al, 2000;Needham, 2006;Seddon, 1996) dan upaya untuk mempertajam fokusnya dalam menanggapi reformasi tersebut (Aldridge dan Stoker, 2002;Brereton dan Temple, 1999;Needham, 2006).…”

Governing customers? Integrating customer focus and compliance in the urban governance context

“…Some studies interpret these divergences to mean that customer focus is blocked from having any real influence on relations between public services and publics due to its incompatibility with the 'public service ethos': the commitment to collectivist objectives and principles that is believed to govern the behaviour public servants (Clifford, 2012;Needham, 2006). Other studies have found that, rather than being completely blocked, the customer focus is enacted in complex and contradictory ways by service providers (Fellesson, 2011;Howard, 2012;Rosenthal & Peccei, 2007).…”

“…Yet, as numerous studies have highlighted, the customer focus policies and practices enacted on the ground within actual public services invariably diverge from the NPM/private sector ideal (see, inter alia, Clifford, 2012;Fellesson, 2011;Needham, 2006;Rosenthal & Peccei, 2006. As I detail in Chapter Two (literature review), although the nature of these divergences varies significantly, the literature consistently attributes them to tensions between the conception of the customer as a 'sovereign consumer' and the traditional objectives, relationships and practices of public services.…”