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Measuring the true impact of your complaints handling process
REGULATION
Catherine Little
Director, Campbell Tickell
Francesca Stanyer
Consultant, Campbell Tickell
Issue 76 | February 2025
In the words of Richard Blakeway, Housing Ombudsman “Good complaint handling is not just about ticking a box or meeting statutory obligations. Whilst essential this is done, landlords must adopt an ethical complaint handling stance, which looks at the person behind the complaint and understands the impact the situation can have when services fall short.”
The Housing Ombudsman suggests housing associations ensure the correct systems and processes are in place for effective complaint handling, and that they have a positive culture when it comes to complaints. But what is a positive complaints culture and how do you know if your organisation has this?
Positive complaints culture
A positive complaints culture goes beyond simply resolving issues and avoiding complaints. It is about creating an environment where residents feel heard, valued and respected. It's about using complaints as an opportunity to learn, grow and build relationships with residents based on trust. It's also one where employees feel supported and empowered to resolve issues effectively and a sense of alignment throughout the organisation.
We see that many organisations, not just housing associations, assess their complaint handling through a set of quantifiable metrics, such as:
1. Complaint volume – how many complaints have we received?
2. Resolution times – how quickly are we responding and resolving complaints?
3. Customer Satisfaction Scores (CSAT) – how satisfied are our customers with our handling and resolution?
1. Complaint volume – how many complaints have we received?
2. Resolution times – how quickly are we responding and resolving complaints?
3. Customer Satisfaction Scores (CSAT) – how satisfied are our customers with our handling and resolution?
Now, these metrics do of course provide valuable insights and can act as good indicators to measure change or invite further investigation when looking at trends. However, they offer a limited view of the true impact on what your complaints handling is like and fail to capture the more nuanced factors of a positive complaints culture. For example, a high complaint volume may not be indicative of a poor complaints culture, but rather a proactive and transparent organisation that promotes resident feedback.
Additionally, these metrics can have a negative impact on how you handle complaints. For instance, a focus on resolution times could potentially prioritise speed over substance and risk missing the thorough investigation that might be needed to address the root cause of an issue. Additionally, CSAT can be impacted by a wide range of factors and relies on the resident to take part in transactional or perception surveys, which have their own limitations.
Underlying cultural factors
One way to counter these limitations of course, is to consider qualitative data as well – this includes comments in surveys, interviews and focus groups. But do also consider the feedback you receive when interacting with residents day-to-day and also what your employees think.
However, organisations should also be understanding other indicators of their complaints handling process, assessing the underlying cultural factors that can influence this. We argue that this includes considering:
1. Employee empowerment – do your employees feel empowered to effectively address resident concerns and make decisions for the benefit of both the resident and the organisation?
2. Transparency and accountability – does your organisation have open communication and accountability across teams and seniority? Does it focus on acknowledging mistakes and using them as opportunities to learn and improve?
3. Resident focus – is there a genuine focus on understanding the resident’s perspective and prioritising their needs throughout the complaint handling process?
4. Policy and values in practice – are your policies effectively translated into daily practice and your values demonstrated?
1. Employee empowerment – do your employees feel empowered to effectively address resident concerns and make decisions for the benefit of both the resident and the organisation?
2. Transparency and accountability – does your organisation have open communication and accountability across teams and seniority? Does it focus on acknowledging mistakes and using them as opportunities to learn and improve?
3. Resident focus – is there a genuine focus on understanding the resident’s perspective and prioritising their needs throughout the complaint handling process?
4. Policy and values in practice – are your policies effectively translated into daily practice and your values demonstrated?
Effectively measuring your complaints handling requires a shift in perspective, considering the cultural factors that impact it and understanding the reasons behind your performance.
Campbell Tickell has been developing a new tool, based on its organisational CultureScan, that seeks to provide insight into an organisation’s complaint handling culture. This provides an organisation with an assessment and key insights for improvement and change, beyond meeting statutory obligations.
