Public sector beating private sector at CX

Australian government agencies are providing a superior customer experience to the private sector in the eyes of the consumer, new research indicates.

A survey conducted by Ovum on behalf of Pegasystems found that over 60% of respondents in Australia and New Zealand rate their experience in dealing with government better than their experience with businesses in sectors including banking, retail and telecommunications.

In the public sector, 82% of respondents stated that they typically find a resolution within one to three interactions with a government department.

Respondents believe that government has made significant service improvements over the last two years, including by improving access to information and introducing new digital service technologies.

But the report also finds that security and privacy concerns are limiting the potential effectiveness of government customer experience initiatives, with only 33% of respondents in the APAC region supporting information sharing between departments to improve services.

Four in five (81%) respondents to the survey meanwhile look to government websites to find information and contact businesses before contacting live personnel, highlighting the importance of providing real-time access to accurate information.

“Government agencies juggle a number of competing pressures when it comes to service delivery,” Ovum Principal Analyst Al Blake said.

“They are simultaneously expected to raise citizen satisfaction by using modern technology and improve efficiency while dealing with shrinking budgets. While it is true to an extent that best practice citizen experience has been set by the private sector, it is by no means ubiquitous when dealing with commercial entities.”

Pegasystems Managing Director for ANZ Scott Leader added that digital services are becoming an extremely effective tool for solving complex user problems.

“Real-time, digital first engagement strategies that are citizen-centric, rather than program-centric, are the way forward for government services. Private businesses could learn from these results and re-examine if their customer service approach truly puts customers first and meets their unique wants and needs.”

Image courtesy of One Way Stock under CC