Annual Report 2009/10 - Housing New Zealand

outcome one continuedImproving the management of tenant debtThe Corporation administers the Income-RelatedRent subsidy (IRR), which is provided to vulnerablepeople and families with high and complex needswho require state housing and support. For the yearending 30 June 2010, 92.58 percent of state housetenants (61,623 households) were receiving theIRR at a cost of $529.632 million. The remaining8 percent of tenants are paying market rents.During 2009/10, the Corporation has achieved asignificant reduction in the percentage of rentaldebt to rental income – 3.8 percent compared with5.1 percent for 2008/09 and the 2009/10 standardof less than 8 percent. For example, the Wellington/Hutt Valley region achieved a noticeable reductionin tenant debt and Tenancy Tribunal applications,following a project with the Department of Buildingand Housing and Work and Income to providesupport for customers at risk with large debt.For 2010/11, the Corporation has work underway toredesign and centralise income-related rent debtand management processes to improve efficiencyand release staff to provide high-value customerservices.Improving how we deliver servicesDuring the first half of the year, we re-introduced a24 hour, seven-day-a-week service directly from theNational Call Centre in Porirua. The call centre alsoexpanded its service offering to include WelcomeHome Loan and Welcome Home First Steps enquiries,Tenant Home Ownership, Options and Advice Servicesupport, KiwiSaver, Kāinga Whenua and CommunityGroup Housing information. These changes not onlyincreased the quality of service experience ourcustomers receive but also created some financialsavings for them. Over 2009/10, the Call Centrereceived more than 816,000 calls – an increase ofmore than 15 percent or 100,000 calls on 2008/09.Putting the customer firstIn December 2009, the Corporation launched a newCustomer Services Strategy – Customer First – toimprove the service we provide for our customers.The Corporation’s customer satisfaction surveyswere upgraded to employ the core questions fromthe State Services Commission’s CommonMeasurement Tool and provide better reporting onfindings, as well as giving more customers theopportunity to voice their opinions.The customer satisfaction rating for our coretenancy management services was 70 percent in2009/10 (2008/09: 69 percent). We also introduceda series of new customer satisfaction surveys, whichhave been progressively rolled out during the year.For our tenancy allocation process, the initial resultsshowed 51 percent satisfaction (see Part Four). Thislower response is not surprising since a number ofthose surveyed will have been advised that they areunlikely to get a state house, and more appropriatestandards have been identified for 2010/11.A new Customer Feedback and Service Recoveryframework was also introduced that allowscustomers to provide feedback directly. In May 2010,the Corporation started training in ServiceExcellence and this will be an ongoing focus. It isabout setting clear expectations for the way staffwork and communicating that to customers so theyknow both what we do and how we will do it.The Corporation is looking to reconfigure the servicedelivery model to match changing demand profileand location, including exploring co-locationinitiatives with other agencies. Positive feedback hasalready been received from customers and staffabout the Community Link office in Napier. Withapproximately 25 agencies represented on site, thenew service aims to help customers take charge oftheir own circumstances and to make theexperience of asking for help a positive one.24housing new zealand corporation | annual report 2009/10