Leaflet Ordering within the Workplace - Essay Example

KNOWSLEY HOUSING TRUST: LEAFLET ORDERING WITHIN THE WORKPLACE INTRODUCTION Knowsley Housing Trust (KHT) is an independent Housing Association, run on not-for-profit principles. KHT is based at Knowsley, “a vibrant and dynamic urban area of Merseyside” (Knowsley Housing Trust, 2005). The Trust manages over 13,000 high quality homes provided to tenants at affordable rents. KHT is a limited company registered in England and Wales, and registered with the Housing Corporation. It is also a charity organization registered with the Charity Commission. The Trust’s Registered Office is at Prescot, Merseyside, and there are six offices across the borough, all of which display KHT leaflets. These provide customers with comprehensive information regarding tenancy, ownership, entitlements, neighbourhood plans, safety, security and all supportive systems forming part of the housing scheme. Thesis Statement: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the process and effectiveness of changes implemented in the ordering and display of customer information leaflets at KHT’s six offices across the borough. DISCUSSION When undertaking changes in any part of an organization’s functioning, the individual, team and organizational levels need to be taken into account. Effectively addressing the issues that require change through relevant management processes, leads to the required results. It is essential to consider beneficial outcomes for customers, cost-effectiveness for the organization, have both vision and pragmatism, “pay attention to global and local issues, and encourage individual accountability at the same time as enabling team work” (Cameron and Green 2004, p.3). Effective management of change provides competitive advantage, improves enterprise and helps to consistently meet organizational goals. Managing change is a “complex, dynamic and challenging process” (Paton and McCalman 2000, p.2) involving assessment of the situation, planning tactical, strategic processes, and implementing operational changes. The Requirement for Change in the Ordering and Display of KHT Leaflets The work profile includes travelling to each of the Knowsley Housing Trust (KHT) offices on a weekly basis, to check whether all leaflets pertaining to KHT and its various benefit schemes, support and services are displayed correctly. A short notice inspection revealed that some of the leaflets displayed were out of date. Secondly, it was found that staff members were not willing to take responsibility towards stock taking and ordering fresh stocks according to the requirement. This resulted in the ordering of excessive numbers of the information leaflets, causing expensive wastage. A new system of leaflet ordering was required to ensure the provision of current and up-to-date information to Customers. Further, in view of the need for cost-cutting during the current recession, it was considered essential to order all leaflets at one time, specifying accurately the total number of each type of leaflet required by all the offices. Additionally, an effective review process was required to ensure that the information conveyed to customers through the leaflets remained correct. According to Paton and McCalman (2000), besides external factors such as changes in legislation, improved technology, and competition, the need for change in an organizational system may arise from internal triggers. Examples of internal triggers are new organizational structures, changes in job responsibilities, new marketing strategy, etc. In the case of leaflet ordering and distribution at KHT, a need for improved functioning to cut expenses caused by wastage and duplication of leaflet orders, and to meet the crucial need for providing up-to-date information to the customers. Importance of Accurate and Complete Information Easily Available to Customers Effective communication is crucial for the Knowsley Housing Trust to function optimally for customers’ benefit. This is done through the leaflets which are well-designed brochures conveying all the vital information pertaining to the various services and privileges provided by the housing scheme to fulfill the needs of the customers. Information regarding the services available, how they can be accessed, and awareness of consumer rights and responsibilities form the essential information conveyed through the printed leaflets. Often, complex information has to be conveyed in a concise and accessible form which is also complete and accurate (NAO 2006). Encouraging customers to claim benefits they may be entitled to, is another important aspect. Hence, the provision of up-to-date and accurate information is crucial to help customers avail of relevant schemes and provisions. However, accuracy has to be balanced with the use of simplified language that is not overly technical or legalistic. Some design changes to make leaflets easier to understand include sign-posting by means of a contents page and the use of clear headings. Moreover, the needs of an increasingly diverse population have to be taken into account (NAO 2006). Established means of communication through leaflets and letters continue to play an important part, in spite of increasing role of new technology. This is because of the requirement for detailed written information as confirmation of a discussion, or as a document that is useful for reference. Moreover, all the customers may not use the internet for obtaining the required information. Though new technology may be more cost-saving, its effectiveness is dependent on particular characteristics such as customers’ age, income and location (NAO 2006). Hence, though relatively expensive, making leaflets available is vital, in providing customers with all the information. Knowsley Housing Trust has to make a range of information available to the public, for optimal communication to customers. Besides providing information about the Trust’s purpose and activities, using separate leaflets information is provided on various topics at all the six offices of the KHT. The Support for You leaflet gives all the details regarding facilities and services provided, in addition to the help and support leaflet, adaptations leaflet, responsive repairs leaflet, service standards leaflet, gas and electricity safety checks leaflet, the standards you can expect leaflet and the handy person scheme leaflet. The safety and security leaflet, data protection leaflet, dealing with anti-social behaviour leaflet, equality and diversity leaflet, domestic violence leaflet and hate crimes leaflet collectively help to ensure increased security in the housing scheme (NAO 2006). Further, information on eligibilty for claims such as rights to compensation leaflet, rights regarding tenancy/ ownership such as the starter tenancy leaflet, joint tenancies leaflet, your rent account leaflet, passing on your tenancy leaflet, living in flats leaflet, purchasing your home leaflet, moving home leaflet, neighbourhood plans leaflet, regeneration customer charter leaflet, and sheltered housing leaflet. Moreover, the customers’ point of view and responses are sought out, encouraging two-way dialogue through complaints and compliments leaflet, customer consultation leaflet, and the let us know leaflet (NAO 2006). Effective and efficient contact with customers has to be ensured at all the offices of KHT. The risks of poorly designed leaflets, with language too technical and incomprehensible to many customers, irrelevance due to being out of date, non-availability of current information, over-stocking and wastage, poor display and distribution. These risks inherent in the leaflet life cycle, from conception to use by the customers, have to be monitored and mitigated, for achieving optimal outcomes. The Changes Implemented in the Ordering and Display of KHT Leaflets All the out-of-date leaflets displayed at the six offices of KHT in the borough, were removed and destroyed. Setting up a spreadsheet, ordering of all types of leaflets for all the branch offices of KHT is done on the same sheet. The required numbers of leaflets and any ammendments to be implemented in any of them, are conveyed to a colleague working in the continous improvement department in charge of ordering leaflets. Earlier, the leaflets for distribution were stored in a narrow space which was not conducive to work efficiency. To store the leaflets ordered and received, a large space within the maintenance department has been allocated by the health and safety department. From this central point, the leaflets will be distributed to each office weekly. To improve the reliability and accuracy of the information, regular and consistent reviews of the content of the leaflets are carried out. The reviews are well documented, as specified by NAO (2006), to ensure that it is possible to identify the source of changes, and whether key information holders have been consulted. Reviews also help to ensure the consistency of the key messages across all the leaflets, rather than focusing solely on individual topics. Additionally, consistently reviewing the continued need for specific leaflets is important to maintain their usefulness. In order to determine the opinion of the Staff regarding the new system, and whether there was any room for further improvement, a survey was completed. The evidence clearly indicated that all the staff were satisfied with the new system, since they could focus on their daily work, with the procurement of leaflets being done efficiently according to requirement. Similarly, a customer survey is planned, with questionnaires sent to all the KHT offices. Customers’ opinion will be obtained regarding the efficiency of the new system, accessibility of leaflets and any issues that needed to be addressed. According to NAO (2006), customers prefer leaflets that have a consistent design showing the leaflets as part of a series, the front page clearly displays what the leaflet is about, there is a contents page, the use of large plain text with important information in bold, information is concise and given in the form of questions and answers, images used are appropriate, and a glossary of terms is included. CONCLUSION The new system has brought about a reduction in the use of KHT staff resource regarding stock taking, ordering, distribution and display of leaflets. This has helped to save staff time, besides cutting expense and wastage of unused or outdated leaflets. Being the sole person responsible for the collective ordering of required number of leaflets at all the six offices results in centralized responsibility and consequent clarity about the availability and effective distribution of the leaflets. A consistent, strong review process to ensure the content of leaflets is up-to-date and reliable, and the use of simple language which is easily understood have also contributed to improving the system. Additionally, a simplified supply arrangement from a core point where all the leaflets ordered are stored and distributed to the six offices, has proved to be beneficial. REFERENCES Cameron, E. and Green, M. (2004). Making sense of change management: A complete guide to the models, tools and techniques of organizational change. London: Kogan Publishers. Knowsley Housing Trust. (2005). Knowsley Housing Trust: Home Page. Retrieved on 1st February, 2010 from: http://www.k-h-t.org/ NAO (National Audit Office). (2006). Using leaflets to communicate with the public about services and entitlements. Department for Work and Pensions. London: The Stationary Office. Retrieved on 2nd February, 2010 from: http://www.nao.org.uk/publications/0506/dwp_using_leaflets_to_communi.aspx Paton, R.A. and McCalman, J. (2000). Change management: A guide to effective implementation. The United Kingdom: Sage Publications. Read More