Background

311 and other centralized customer service approaches are used by countless cities to provide more cost-effective in-person, phone, and virtual customer service. In the 2017-2018 Fiscal Year Budget, Portland’s City Council approved a decision package for “3-1-1 project management and implementation planning” and directed the Office of Management and Finance to oversee the planning effort.

Purpose

OMF led a multi-Bureau 311/Customer Service Improvement Project to:

1. Create a long-term vision and a short-term plan for integrated front-end customer service;
2. Identify necessary physical, staff, technology, and procedural supports; and
3. Recommend next steps for implementation.
   

The goal of the project was to identify ways to improve Portlanders' access to City information and services. The project led to the development of a 311 Implementation Plan, which was presented to City Council on November 27, 2018.

Previous Studies

This effort builds on the following previous reports and studies:

• 311/Customer Relationship Management (CRM) - Laying the Foundation to Launch a Major Customer Service Initiative, prepared by Stern Consulting, LLC for the Bureau of Emergency Communications in 2014
• External Customer Intake Improvement Project, prepared by Carmichael Consulting for the Bureau of Transportation in 2015
• Potential Paths to 311/CRM for the City of Portland, prepared by Lisa Turley for the Office of Management and Finance in 2017