The Ministry of Education and Youth has officially launched its Customer Service Branch.
It was formed in October 2023 under the Government’s Service Excellence Programme, which aims to create a culture of service throughout the public sector.
The branch currently operates with a director, six customer service assistants, a monitoring officer and a customer service officer.
Portfolio Minister, Hon. Fayval Williams, underscored that it is critical to elevate the quality of customer service provided by the Ministry.
“There is no other entity in Jamaica that touches as many lives as the Ministry of Education and Youth. We have many touch points and so we have to excel at what we do. Today’s launch signals our firm commitment to ensuring that the Ministry is not only a centre of administrative efficiency, but also a beacon of responsiveness and care for the public and the citizens we serve,” she said.
Mrs. Williams was addressing the Ministry’s Service Excellence Programme and Customer Service Branch launch, held at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston, on Tuesday (October 8).
She further noted that education is the cornerstone of development, and as such, the Ministry is charged with the responsibility to ensure that communication with all stakeholders reflects the highest standards of professionalism and respect.
“This initiative is designed to not only improve how we serve but also to enhance the overall experience for those who engage with us, whether it is someone seeking information, processing important documents or simply needing guidance. We must ensure that their journey through our Ministry is marked by efficiency, but more importantly, empathy,” the Minister said.
For her part, Director of Customer Service in the Ministry, Anita Sutherland, said the branch has had several achievements in its first year of operation.
She shared that the Ministry has created a Service Excellence Credo, which is their belief statement regarding the Service Excellence Programme.
“We’ve also developed a post-transactional survey that is dispatched on a weekly basis to capture responses in relation to following KPIs [Key Performance Indicators]. We have the Net Promoter Score (NPS) and this is pretty much asking on a scale of zero to 10, how likely are you to recommend the Ministry of Education and Youth to a friend or family, based on how it is that we serve,” she said.
Among the other KPIs are Customer Effort Score (CES), Strategic Partnership Index (SPI), Team Member Service Delivery Index (TMSDI) and Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT).
In May, the branch launched the ‘Answer the Call Campaign’ to assist with improving the internal call answer rate across the Ministry.
The branch also replaced the manual client logging processes with electronic documentation and retrofitted the lobby seating areas at the Ministry’s Heroes Circle location with modern and comfortable lounge seating.
Mrs. Sutherland noted that they have also commenced serving hot beverages to staff and visitors to the Ministry.
The Service Excellence Policy envisions a public sector in which the needs of customers are satisfied through the delivery of integrated, responsive, and accessible services by capable, respect-worthy, and accountable professionals.