What are some of the key aspects of client care?
What is a client?
A person who purchases professional services from a business.
Includes any stakeholders in a project with who the business must engage with.
Usually repeated business or long term /whereas a customer usually refers to someone making a one-off purchase of goods.
What is client care?
Providing an appropriate level of service that satisfies the client’s needs and achieves Value for Money.
Client care can be provided through:
– Professionalism.
– Competence.
– Punctuality.
– Trust.
– Reliability.
– Presentation.
– Regular communication.
– Review of services provided and standard.
– KPIs to monitor client satisfaction.
– Client Performance Feedback.
Why is Client Care important for surveying firms?
– Repeat business.
– Reduces the potential for negligence claims to arise.
– Acting in accordance with Rule 3 (to provide a good quality and diligent service).
Dissatisfied Clients can be damaging as negative feedback and experiences can spread quickly.
What is ISO 9001 accreditation?
ISO 9001 sets out the criteria for quality management systems.
This is a management tool used for:
– Planning ahead – ensuring we have resources and knowledge.
– Identify client needs and future requirements.
– Measure client satisfaction.
How does your firm ensure quality is maintained?
By operating a quality assurance procedure before any documents are issued to the client.
Obtaining regular client feedback.
What’s included within a Terms of appointment?
– Scope of service
– Payment terms
– Disbursements
– Complaints Handling Procedure
– Insurances and limit on liability
– Dispute resolution – ombudsmen.
– Limitations
What are the main elements included within a fee proposal?
– Terms and conditions.
– Scope of services.
– Exclusions.
– Assumptions.
How would you calculate a fee proposal?
– Scope of service
– Level of surveyor /anticipated hours to undertake the service under their charge outrate.
– Additional charges (travel /roof boom).
– Statutory approvals.
Any other ways to calculate fees?
– Framework agreement (pre-agree rates)
– Project value (12%)
What is CPF?
Client Performance Feedback - the process of gathering and acting on feedback from the client. This comprises:
– Gathering feedback during and after project completion.
– This is usually carried out by an independent person.
– The feedback sets the standards for the company and identifies areas for improvement.
– It encourages open discussions with the client to ensure satisfactory service is delivered and that goals are achieved.
– It also provides an opportunity to gain future work for the company.
– CPF is usually carried out at regular intervals (3-6 months) to ensure any problems can be identified and rectified as early as possible.
How would you identify the needs of a client?
Holding discussions regarding project key deliverables & the scope of services required.
Reviewing past Client Performance Feedback & identifying key areas for improvement.
What is a Client Brief?
The purpose of the client brief is to provide a firm foundation for the initiation of the project.
It is a formal statement of the objectives and functional and operational requirements of the finished project.
It should be in sufficient detail to enable the integrated project team to execute the specification and detailed design of the work and is therefore an essential reference for the team.
Please provide an example of your client care & empathy skills?
Through organisation I complete work to the agreed deadlines.
I always sure to deliver work to a high standard.
I keep regular communication with my clients.
When should you decline an instruction of new work from a client?
– If the work was unlawful.
– Conflict of Interest.
– If the project was outside of my level of competence.
– Internal resource isn’t available to achieve client deadlines.
How would you limit the risk of working with a client who may be financially unstable?
I would use a screening process to check the client’s finances, this could include:
– A company search using the Companies House website to obtain their account information.
– A Dun & Bradstreet or credit safe credit check.
– An Internet search using their website for additional information and to make a judgement on their reliability.
If your client asked you to lower your fees because of their limited funding, what would you do?
The client would have to pay the required price for the level of service required or reduce the scope of works involved.
What is your company’s procedure for client’s feed-back?
– We undertake formal project reviews with the client every month.
– I obtain regular informal feed-back throughout the project from verbal and email communication.
– We undertake a satisfaction survey questionnaire at the end of each project.
What is a complaint?
A complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction.
What’s included in your firms complaints handling procedure?
– Information about the appointed person in the firm who deals with complaints.
– A request that complaints are made in writing.
– The stages of the Complaints Handling Procedure.
What stages are in your complaints handling procedure?
The firm keeps a log to track complaints. This assists the firm in its management of complaints and in improving procedures based on the complaints pattern identified.
What are the key points of the RICS guidance note on Complaints?
– CHP must be approved by RICS.
– Notify PII insurers if there is a complaint that could give rise to a claim.
– CHP should be issued at the same time as Terms of Business.
Firm must include an RICS Alternative Dispute mechanism e.g. Property Ombudsman
Explain in more detail Stage 1 of the complaints handling procedure?
Explain in more detail Stage 2 of the complaints handling procedure?