Squamish Wins National Municipal Award for Professional Development

Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators Recognizes District’s New Customer Service Program

Niagara Falls,ON (May 28, 2014) – The District of Squamish, BC has received national recognition for its recently launched Customer Service Program from the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA).  The District was presented with the 2014 CAMA Award for Professional Development, in the under 20,000 population category, during the association’s national conference in Niagara Falls, ON.  Ravenhill Group Inc. is the presenting sponsor for CAMA’s Awards of Excellence.

“CAMA is pleased to recognize the administrative excellence demonstrated by Squamish with its ‘Delivering Outstanding Service’ customer service program,” said Jean Savard, president of the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators and Director of Special Projects in the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer for Quebec, QC.

Faced with inconsistent customer service, limited resources and a desire to deliver outstanding customer service, the District of Squamish, BC formed a project team to create an innovative Customer Service program.  With the goal of “Delivering Outstanding Service,” the team developed a customer service philosophy, policy, guidelines, an employee training program, and an employee recognition program.

The project started with a planning process that determined the need to increase employee awareness around customer service.  This lead to the creation of a Customer Service policy that defined what customers could expect, as well as service guidelines for employees.  When it came time to roll out the guidelines and policy, all members of the Customer Service team participated in training their fellow employees.

Now when customers come to District of Squamish offices, they will find posters in all departments describing what Delivering Outstanding Service looks like, a Wall of Fame where employees are recognized by their colleagues for delivering on the District’s service promise, and a group of employees that have customer service front of mind. This has laid the groundwork for creating a strong culture of Service at the District of Squamish.

This grassroots project did not involve recommendations from a consultant, a large budget, or hiring of outside facilitators.  Instead, employees committed to a process that created a difference in how customers are treated.

“The awards committee was impressed by all the submissions received this year,” said Glen Davies, Chair of CAMA’s Awards Committee, CAMA Representative for Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Nunavut, as well as City Manager for the City of Regina, SK.  “We had 47 entries, so picking just eight winners was a challenge.  Congratulations to the winners and thanks to all those who took the time and effort to write their submissions.”

“The new Delivering Outstanding Service Program has created a strong framework for exceptional customer service and is already changing how our customers feel about the service we provide,” said Corien Speaker, Chief Administrative Officer for the District of Squamish.  “I’m very pleased to see District staff be recognized for this program as it helps to bring even greater focus to the end goal of creating a service-driven culture here at the District.”

CAMA’s Professional Development Award recognizes a community that has developed a unique and innovative program for their staff and can be replicated in other communities.  Because Canada has a unique mixture of small and large communities, awards are granted according to population – for municipalities under 20,000, for those between 20,001 and 100,000 and for those over 100,000.  Certificates of Merit may also be awarded.

About CAMA:

A Canada-wide network and the national voice of senior municipal administrators, the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA) strives to nurture and build municipal administrative excellence by providing its more than 500 members with knowledge sharing and learning opportunities, access to best practices, and valued input into policies and programs aimed at ensuring healthy and thriving communities across Canada.  www.camacam.ca

May 28, 2014