Metrics_ How to Improve Key Business Results - Martin Klubeck [92]
TechQual+ attempts to provide measures that can be understood and used by the organization's customers, provide a database for comparing results between institutions, and an easy to use survey tool for producing the data. One of the defining points of the project is that TechQual+ defines outcomes “from an end-user point of view.” Chester understands the need for more than a customer satisfaction survey and uses his tool to capture the customers' viewpoints on any and all facets of what the Answer Key identifies as Product/Service Health.
__________________
1 www.techqual.org
This project fits in well with what I've presented in this book. It is a great way to “ask the customers” for their input. It can provide a means for gathering not only the customer's evaluation of how well a service is provided but what the customers' expectations are. Where I have relied on the service provider to interpret the customers' expectations, the methods offered in TechQual+ can be used to build a range from customer responses. This is definitely a methodology worth looking into.
TechQual+'s approach is based on evaluating the following three measures:
The minimum acceptable level of service (Minimum Expectations)
The desired level of service (Desired Expectations)
How well the customer feels the service meets these expectations (Perceived Performance)
The results of these measures are used to develop a “Zone of Tolerance,” an “Adequacy Gap Score,” and a “Superiority Gap Score,” described as follows:
The Zone of Tolerance: The range between minimum and desired expectations (what the Report Card calls simply “Meets Expectations”).
The Adequacy Gap Score: The difference between the “perceived” performance and the minimum expectation.
The Superiority Gap Score: The difference between the desired and perceived performance.
You should see how these “scores” correlate to the Report Card's scores. If you look at the charts offered for each measure in the Report Card, you could determine the Zone of Tolerance (the range of Meets Expectations) and those values that represent a positive or negative Adequacy or Superiority gap score.
The beauty of the TechQual+ Project is that the results reflect not only the customers' expectations (gathered through a survey instrument) but also the perceived service health (also through a survey). It is an excellent feedback tool. I highly recommend that you look into using the tool (it's free) or implementing the concepts offered by it, in your survey instruments. When used in conjunction with your objective measures (Delivery and Usage) it gives a fuller picture of the health of your service. You can use the TechQual+ or other survey tool for the Customer Satisfaction part of the Report Card. While it is labeled “Customer Satisfaction,” you'll see that the questions you can ask in the survey are not restricted to this area. You can (and should) ask for feedback on the importance of the services you're measuring. It can be especially useful for getting input on the range of expectations.
Two major areas of difference between the Report Card and TechQual+ should be obvious. The Report Card attempts to use objective measures collected in other ways besides the survey method. Triangulation demands that you use different collection methods and different sources. The Report Card, while also using expectations, treats “Superior” (exceeding expectations) performance as an anomaly.
The conclusion? The TechQual+ Project (and other survey-based innovative tools) should be looked into—especially as a solution for the Customer Satisfaction part of the Report Card and for gathering information on the expectations for all of the measures.
Applying Expectations
You may have noticed that the charts offered throughout this chapter are “meaningful.” Part of this is the inclusion