Windhoek
Businesses that employ the best customer service practices in the country are set to know their ratings this week following a nationwide customer service survey and award ceremony that took place on Monday night.
The customer service awards are a Namibian initiative, under the auspices of the Customer Service Management Africa Awards and Conference, with the first conference held last year. The ceremony typically takes place at the end of a two-day conference on customer service management.
The awards are granted based on a national customer service survey to determine which companies and institutions excel in customer service. The sectors surveyed include supermarkets, banks, health services, municipal services, energy, telecommunications, home affairs, inland revenue, insurance services, post offices, the education sector, vehicle retail services, fast food outlets, restaurant chains and leisure resorts.
“We’re pleased by the responsiveness of the public sector this year. Their support is essential in creating a catalyst for change. There are several opportunities we need to recognise. Firstly, excellent customer service is a source of competitive advantage as companies seek to differentiate themselves, not only locally, but also internationally.
“Secondly, it’s a source of employment as it creates a whole new customer service industry. Thirdly, it’s a source of research innovation as Namibia becomes an African research centre and customer service hub,” said Prof Grafton Whyte of the Harold Pupkewitz Graduate School of Business, which organises the conference and awards.
Minister of Home Affairs and Immigration Minister Pendukeni Iivula-Ithana opened the conference on Monday and lauded the turnaround strategy at the home affairs ministry, as a recipe for success at any institution previously despised for bad service.
“The turnaround strategy is working and has indeed yielded tangible results across our offices countrywide. We can now say with confidence that the strategy has turned our operations into greater efficiency at every level, with faster turnaround times, more effective systems, shorter queues, efficient offices and improved customer service,” Iivula-Ithana said.
Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Training and Innovation Dr Becky Ndjoze-Ojo said the efficient and effective delivery of customer-focused services is one way of attaining Vision 2030, the country’s long-term national development plan.
“It is critical that we align our human resources output to our national plans and the needs of our economic sectors. This responsibility must lie with all stakeholders within the Namibian education sector,” Ndjoze-Ojo said.
This year the conference embraced a Pan-African perspective, with speakers and experts from various African countries, including social entrepreneurs and innovators, Julius James Shirima and Dr Moses Kizza Musaazi.
Shirima is the founder of Darecha, a Tanzanian micro-venture capital firm that seeks to explore ways that profitable small businesses owned by youth can raise venture capital.
Musaazi is the founder of Technology for Tomorrow, a company that specialises in what they call “appropriate technology”. His inventions and innovations involve sanitary towels, waste disposal, food and pasteurisation.
The conference ended yesterday at the campus of the Namibia Institute for Public Administration and Management in Olympia, Windhoek.