Complaints Management

Complaints-Escalation

How PCM can work with your organisation

Proactive Complaints Management (PCM) is an independent proprietary limited company providing assistance to businesses, government departments and agencies in the management of complaints.

Complaints Management

• Do your staff ignore customer complaints?
• Are your staff at all levels of your organisation aware of their obligations in handling customer complaints?
• Are you concerned about the cost to your organisation in time, money and reputation if you don’t handle complaints effectively?

PCM has experienced facilitators and trainers who will assist your organisation to respond well to customer complaints and to avoid potentially costly and protracted negotiations with your customers.

PCM will assist your organisation in preventing disputes / complaints from escalating and poisoning your relationship with your customers and therefore having an impact on your bottom line.

What you can expect from PCM:

Early intervention once a complaint is identified and requires immediate management and actioning for resolution.

We will work collaboratively with your organisation in the complaints resolution process that meets your legislative obligations and yours and your valuable customers’ needs and expectations.
How PCM can assist your organisation:

1. Complaints response training for management and staff

Management Training:

• Assessing when senior management become involved in the resolution of complaints;
• Training on legislative responsibilities for responding to complaints;

Floor staff training:

• How to identify a complaint;
• Whose responsibility is to respond to a complaint?
• How to respond to a complaint;
• Asking appropriate questions in order to understand what a complainant expectations are for resolution of their complaint;

2. Facilitate negotiations between your organisation and your customers

• This step in the process would only be used for those complaints that have not been able to be resolved by floor staff;
• The aim of this step in the process would be to show the complainant that their concerns are being taken seriously;
• PCM will utilise an open, transparent and fair process for both your organisation and your customer to resolve complaints / issues.

3. Coaching in timely and sensitive responses to complaints by management and staff

• The aim of this process is to support the initial training of staff with follow-up input both face-to-face and phone and email contact with staff.
4. Case Management

• PCM will assist your organisation to manage those ongoing difficult customers that take up precious staff time and continually complain no matter what you offer to resolve their complaints.

5. Confidential hotline (whistleblower)

• This strategy facilitates free flow of confidential feedback to companies about the performance of their service and products. This strategy also offers confidence to employees that their input will be effective without having to go to external sources if they have concerns with their own organisation/company and do not wish to raise these directly with management.

6. Compliance

• Review of compliance with local and national legislation relevant to the product and industry sector you operate in.

7. Organisational review of internal complaints process

• Stage 1 – Assessment of complaint;
• Stage 2 – Actioning of complaint for resolution;
• Stage 3 – Follow up complaint with complaints re satisfaction of outcome achieved;
• Stage 4 – Monitoring of complaint and outcome.

All PCM’s complaints training and follow up services are follow the Principles and Guidelines as set out within the - Australian Standard for Complaints Handling AS 4269 – 1995 and ISO 10002 Quality management – Customer satisfaction – Guidelines for complaints handling in organisations.

If you would like further information about any of these items we would be more than happy to meet with you.

Please contact Steve Aivaliotis – Director/Mediator on 0418 313 303 or email steve@proactivecm.com.au or Website www.proactivecm.com.au

Pocket Guide To Complaints Handling

 

Here at Proactive Complaints Management (PCM), we are asked whether we have a quick guide to complaints handling.

Here you will find a Pocket Guide to Complaints Handling for ease of use.

The guide focuses on:

  • Negotiating a workable solution;
  • Suggestions for managing an angry complainant; and
  • Questions to ask a complainant;

To download guide click Pocket Guide to Handling Complaints (2)

Charter of Care Recipients Rights

 

Care Recipients in residential aged care have legislated rights under the Aged Care Act Principles - Charter of Care Recipients Rights.

These rights can be found in Schedule 1 of the Aged Care Act 1997.

To download the Charter of Care Recipients Rights click charter_of_care_recipients_rights_responsibilities_-_residential_care

New Australian and New Zealand Complaints Handling Standard

In this issue we look at the NEW  -

New Australia/New Zealand Standard

Guidelines for complaint management in organisations

AS/NZS 10002:2014

For those organisations seeking to undertake a review of your existing Complaints Policy this document is a must have.

To read further click the following page Issue 10 29 October 2015

Proactive Complaints Management - 6 Guiding Principles for Complaints Handling

The following slides explain the 6 guiding principles for complaints handling that we use here at Proactive Complaints Management for managing complaints PCM 6 Guiding Principles

For further information please email steve@proactivecm.com.au or call +61 418313303

STOP - THINK - DO

There are times during any interactions that we either feel slighted, angry or confronted by an angry customer.

It during this time that we can either win the customer over or lose their trust in a way that may have huge consequences for us personally and our business.

The majority of customers (and staff) do not want to sour a relationship and therefore looking at the issue from the customers perspective becomes vitally important.

These easy to follow steps will enable both our customers and ourselves to maintain positive relationships.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact steve@proactivecm.com.au

stop-think-do

Complaints Handlers Checklist

As an individual who is tasked with handling customer complaints you are required to have the ability to constantly think on your feet. The checklist below will provide you with a guide for suggested prompts that have helped our staff focus their minds and the customers mind on their concerns.

If you have have questions please feel free to contact steve@proactivecm.com.au or call +61 418 313 303

complaint-handlers-checklist

Consult, Consult, Consult

Complaints relating to care recipients care have two common themes:

  • Family involvement in the delivery of care and services; and
  • A change in the care recipient’s care needs.

Most organisations struggle with the issue of family involvement in the delivery of care and services for various reasons.

Some organisations have policies in place which state that all care will be delivered by the staff employed by the organisation.

What is important to keep in mind is that many of the families that want to be involved in the delivery of care to their loved ones are also the same individuals who may have cared for their family members prior to entering the facility.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact steve@proactivecm.com.au or call Steve +61 418 313 303

consult-consult-consult

Unreasonable Complainants

We often hear individuals stating that a complainant is "unreasonable", this article defines  how an unreasonable behaves.

Unreasonable Complainant

Responding to unreasonable complainant conduct

When confronted with an unreasonable complainant we may feel threatened, angry, aggrieved and in most instances we just want nothing to do with them, this is a natural human response.

No one goes to work expecting to be threatened or demeaned nor should they therefore what strategies can we employ to deal with such an event?

The following strategies may provide some assistance if there comes a time (we hope there won’t!), that you may need to deal with an unreasonable complainant.

Responding to unreasonable complainant conduct

Pocket Guide to Complaints Handling

Sometimes we search for a quick response to respond to a complaint some quick tips if you will.
The following Pocket Guide may provide some suggestions and insights

Objective of a Complaints Management System

The main objectives of a complaints handling system for any organisation should be to:
• Provide a complainant with access to an open and responsive complaints handling process;
• Enhance the ability of the organisation to resolve complaints in a consistent, systematic and responsive manner to the satisfaction of the complainant and the organisation;
• Enable an organisation to identify trends and attempt to eliminate causes of complaints and improve the organisation’s operations;
• Assist an organisation to create a customer focused approach to resolving complaints; and
• Provide a basis for continual review and analysis of the complaints handling process and the resolution of complaints;

Objective of a Complaints Management System

Communicating Assertively

Assertive individuals maintain their values, needs and rights and are very rarely dominated by others nor do they dominate or violate other individual’s needs.

While freely expressing their own ideas and opinions to others, they also listen intently and reflect on other individuals ideas and opinions.

For further information please read the following article

Communicating Assertively

Proactive Complaints Management Common Complaint Themes

  1. Expectations are not being met
  2. Collaboration in delivery of care and services versus duty of care
  3. How are you going to handle my complaint i.e. fairly, without bias etc.?
  4. How would a “reasonable person” view the current situation?

 

Proactive Complaints Management Common Complaint Themes

The basics of complaints handling

The main objectives of a complaints handling system for any organisation should be to:

  • Provide a complainant with access to an open and responsive complaints handling process;
  • Enhance the ability of the organisation to resolve complaints in a consistent, systematic and responsive manner to the satisfaction of the complainant and the organisation;
  • Enable an organisation to identify trends and eliminate causes of complaints and improve the organisations operations;
  • Basics of complaints handling

Key Success Factors for Complaints Handling

  • Widely accessible information on the complaints process;
  • Accurate and complete documentation;
  • Listening, asking questions and responding;
  • Building trust and establishing positive interpersonal relationships;
  • Clarifying expectations:
  • What outcomes the complainant is hoping to achieve;
  • What outcomes the home can provide?
  • Acting on the complaint;

Key success factors

Stage 2 of Complaints Handling

In this newsletter we look at how to win back our customers and ensure that we build trust and maintain realistic expectations

Stage 2 - The Basics of Complaints Handling

Complaints Reporting

An effective complaints handling system is essential for all aged care services as a means of obtaining care recipients / representative feedback and as a source of valuable information for service delivery.

Each aged care service will need to consider how the following important elements are incorporated into its complaints system:

Complaints Reporting

Some Destructive Comments in Complaints Handling

It is interesting to note how often a misplaced word or comment can have devastating effects on a relationship.

On some occasions the comment or comments are thought through prior to being made and at other times it is a slip of the tongue i.e. the person was thinking about the comment and it “just slipped out”!!

Irrespective of intent, a misplaced comment can have a devastating effect on the recipient or the person making the comment.

Some Destructive Comments in Complaints Handling

Responding to unreasonable complainant conduct

When confronted with an unreasonable complainant we may feel threatened, angry, aggrieved and in most instances we just want nothing to do with them, this is a natural human response.

No one goes to work expecting to be threatened or demeaned nor should they therefore what strategies can we employ to deal with such an event?

Responding to unreasonable complainant conduct

When I am speaking are you REALLY LISTENING?

Active listening is a communication technique used in counselling, training, and conflict resolution. It requires that the listener fully concentrate, understand, respond and then remember what is being said

How often have you spoken to someone where you really haven’t been listening to them and instead you were thinking of your reply to their comments?

Active listening especially in time of conflict is difficult to achieve as we are in the middle of the conflict and what “our say” and “an opportunity to be heard”.

Active Listening

How does conflict occur?

 Conflict will occur when an individuals values, needs and / or identity are challenged or undermined

 Have you ever entered a meeting to discuss and resolve a complaint only to find yourself in conflict with the other party?

Have you thought to yourself how did we get from a state of speaking calmly to a state of anger and hostility?

This article looks at the emotions and psychology of how we go from a state of calmness to a state of conflict in a short space of time.

Our individual Values, Needs and Identity are our underlying traits that define us as individuals. If these traits are challenged or questioned we will react in a way that seeks to realign our equilibrium and who we are as individuals.

How does conflict occur

Proactive Complaints Management Common Complaint Themes

  1. Expectations are not being met
  2. Collaboration in delivery of care and services versus duty of care
  3. How are you going to handle my complaint i.e. fairly, without bias etc.?
  4. How would a “reasonable person” view the current situation?

Proactive Complaints Management Common Complaint Themes

How to effectively decrease a complainant’s anger – the CARP method

We all like to be in control of our destiny and the way we are perceived.

During times of conflict sometimes even the most rational of individuals may lose sight of how to behave or act appropriately.

During these interactions we need someone to take charge and have a plan of action on how to resolve any disputes and at least hear our concerns.

The strategy below will assist us in this process.

How to effectively decrease a complainants anger the CARP method

Powerful Actions in Complaints Management

Building rapport, friendly professional relationships, work satisfaction, meaningful interactions, and celebrating successful outcomes – these are some of the reasons why we enjoy going to work.

There are however times when we are involved or need to deal with conflict, how successful we are in dealing with these interactions will also depend on how willing we and the other party are to reach a workable resolution.

Below are some suggestions to consider.

What are the 5 Most Powerful Actions that you can take to?

  • Enhance the customer experience
  • Improve the customer experience
  • Make a difference in someone’s life
  • Improve staff morale

 

Powerful Actions in Complaints Management

Active Listening -How hard could it be?

Active listening is a communication technique used in counselling, training, and conflict resolution. It requires that the listener fully concentrate, understand, respond and then remember what is being said

How often have you spoken to someone and (be honest!), you really haven’t been listening to them and instead you were thinking of your reply to their comments?

Active Listening - How hard could it be!!