2 - Client care Flashcards
Tell about why it is important to develop long-term client relationships.
- Trust
- Develop partnerships
- Improved confidence and communication
- Aligned ways of working
- Positive reputation and business opportunities
Tell me about the different stakeholders you have come across in your role:
Internal:
Client (management, employees, directors)
External:
Customers
Local authority
Contractors
Support workers
Consultants
Tell me about how you have tailored your client care to one of these stakeholders?
Internal clients e.g. business development team:
* well-mannered and respectful, as standard
* learn about their objectives for a project
* professional manner
* be transparent to what they can achieve, and at what cost
* Open and honet
* Involve them in decision making
* Allow more say in decisions that other clients, involve in SoW, final site visit, frequent virtual meetings (weekly/fortnightly) to update
Why is it important to you to set objectives?
- So I clearly know what the client expects so the project can be delivered to satisfaction
- Specific - ensures all parties are on the same page
- Give me something to work towards
- Increase chance of achieving specific outcome
**performance and quality
budget
time to completion **
Tell me about your duty of care to clients?
-To carry out those services at the standard of a reasonably competent surveyor
-skill, care and competence
How have you defined your scope of services within the limits of your competence and PI unsrance?
N/A but would outline in the consultant fee proposal my scope of service including terms of appt, insurances, exclusions, assumptions.
How do you set fees?
Not applicable but I would:
* understand client requirements including project scope, key project details, budget and scope of service
* Duration to complete activites identified in scope of service
* Consider seniority and number of people required to deliver the service
* Apply a daily or hourly rate against the activites
* Review total fee as a % against the project budget (sense check)
How have you used standard forms of appointment?
Prepared appointment letters for external consultants i.e. Architect, external surveying practices using client template.
Outlining fees, scope of service, term, PII
RICS Standard Form of Consultants Appointment - for complex, medium or large ‘normal’ type service project appointments.
What KPIs might you agree with a client to monitor performance?
Programme: Time in unit
Quality: Defects/snags on handover
Resident satisfaction
Financial management - cashflow versus actual
Health and safety performance
What insurance requirements are you aware of (both legal and RICS)?
Professional indemnity insurance - defends you against claims of negligence
Firm’s turnover in the preceding year Minimum limit of indemnity
* £100,000 or less - £250,000
* £100,001 to £200,000 - £500,000
* £200,001 and above - £1,000,000
Public liability - for physical damage and injuries caused by your business
Employers’ liability - legally required cover for employers
How are stakeholders identified?
Identify who would be affected by the project and create register with contact details of leads.
Can be identified during meetings or via staekholder analysis/mapping i.e. end users, professional team, contractor, neighbours
How do you establish stakeholder status within a project?
Assess influence and interest - high influence + high interest = high status
Agree suitable communication strategy with the others i.e. my client would be high status, in design meetings would determine level of responsibility/status/influence and record comms strategy
Explain formal communication systems with clients and stakeholders you are aware of?
Formal verbal i.e meetings, presentations, interviews, team meetings, project pre/progress meetings. Recorded or minuted so they can be referenced
Formal written - reports, minutes, specs. Anything planned to be produced & intended to be formal
How do you gather data during the inception stage of a project, including client briefings and site based information?
*Site surveys - site walkover, drone
* Site investigations i.e. asbestos, scratch test
* CAT testing for services
* Input from other SH’s
* Joint surveys or meetings from key SH’s - understand requirements, and restrictions, objectives and aims, SH mgt, comms strategy, site restrictions
* Review preconstruction info i.e. repair history, asbestos, FRA, EPC’s, old H&S files
Explain what BS EN ISO 9004 relates to
Designed to provide guidance to any organization on ways to make their quality management system more successful.
Guide to support the achievement of sustained success by a quality management approach
The standard can be used along with the ISO 9001 standard or as a standalone guide to help organizations achieve and maintain objectives in the long-term.
What is the definition of a key performance indicator (KPI)?
-A measure of identified objectives to determine performance for improvement
-Quantifiable measurements to gauge performance
-Measure sucess against a set of targets/objectvies
-Allows for informed strategic decisions
Tell me about an example of how you have provided good client care?
Regular communication
Project reviews
Garden Close for e.g.
* sought client feedback/lessons learned/project review
* Identified improvements to change control processes and SH mapping/mgt
* Acted on information rec’d
* Implemented project document to manage the above for future schemes
Tell me about an example of when you have provided a high standard of service to a client?
Margery Park Road
-PM for refurb works
* Studied LA accomodation standards
* Led client and LA joint visit to determine objectives, requirements, aims and manage expectations
* Produced outline SoW for client approval and feedback
* Ensured client input through design stage inc frequent virtual meetings, guiding them through options
* agreed methods of communication
* Supported them to appoint/procure consultant services and established appointment
* Regular update meetings
* Implemented LL from Garden Close project
How have you dealt with an unrealistic client deadline?
- Communicate situation clearly
- Transparency
- Help client understand - i.e. need for B.Control, planning, supply’s etc.
- Manage client expectations
- Realistic timescales
- Focus on key milestones to demonstrate progress
How have you dealt with unrealistic client expectations?
MPR - unrealistic project deadline:
* Communicate situation clearly
* Transparency
* Help client understand - i.e. need for B.Control, planning, supply’s etc.
* Manage client expectations
* Realistic timescales
* Focus on key milestones to demonstrate progress
Tell me about the approach you have taken when dealing with non-technical lay client
- Non-technical jargon, be simple and concise.
- Use photos & designs to illustrate if appropriate
- Explain in simple terms, help them understand consequences or benefits of decisions - help them understand the result
- Build trust to instil confidence in You
- Encourage questions
Tell me about the approach you have taken when dealing with a client with a high level of property knowledge?
- Welcome input, share ideas and feedback
- collaborative
- seek and listen to ideas
- Build mutual trust
Newham - how did collaboration help to agree the objectives?
- Enabled me to determine what the client and key stakeholders required, and to align objectives, aims, restrictions - ensure we’re all on the same page
- Able to talk through ideas and guide them through options
Newham - how did you produce the scope of works
- Reviewed the LA’s accomodation standards to understand requirements
- Followed by joint survey with client and LA
- Helped me to understand client/LA’s objectives and requirements, and align them with the accomodation standards.
- Walking through the property we was able to discuss requirements and use for each room enabling me to produce an outline scope of works for feedback/approval from the key stakeholders
- Followed up in a virtual meeting to discuss any changes, for amendment and agreement.
- Freeze outline SoW as a baseline document
