The New South Wales government agency which acts as a financial manager to some of the state’s most vulnerable people has received international recognition for its customer excellence program.
Announced on Tuesday, NSW Trustee & Guardian has received an Award of Excellence in the International Association of Business Communicators’ (IABC) Gold Quill Awards.
The agency said months of hard work went into conceptualising, developing, implementing and evaluating its customer excellence program, followed by a detailed submission to the IABC.
NSW Trustee & Guardian chief executive officer Adam Dent noted the award was testament to the organisation’s commitment to high quality customer service.
“The Customer Excellence Program is an innovative solution to a deep and complex challenge. NSW Trustee & Guardian is committed to delivering trusted and customer-centred services, and this program has played a significant role in increasing our customer service outcomes,” he said.
“From its inception through to delivery and implementation, the project was always customer-centred and is a shining example of what can be achieved when we work together, try something new and persevere.”
The agency sits within the state government’s Stronger Communities cluster, and supports individuals to plan for their future legal, health, and financial decisions. In September 2018, it rolled out activities across teams to raise awareness and understanding of its six Customer Excellence Principles.
The launch of the principles played a pivotal role in leading NSW Trustee & Guardian to fulfil its purpose “to protect, promote and support the rights, dignity, choices and wishes of its customers”, it said.
“By encouraging staff participation in team activities, the goal was to achieve a significant improvement in customer service outcomes by creating a shared language and framework for benchmarking customer service within NSW Trustee & Guardian,” the agency noted.
“As the events of this year show now more than ever, strong communication is fundamental to organisations.”
The Gold Quill Awards have recognised excellence in strategic communication across public and private sector organisations worldwide for more than 40 years, with the 2020 contest receiving 638 entries.
NSW Trustee & Guardian’s entry was one of only two Australian submissions to receive an Award of Excellence for the internal communications category.
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