Innovative complaint management is different in addressing a concrete problem in many organizations with a simple and easy to use method, which gives meaning to both the employees as well as the citizens. The ABC-model is easy to use and show respect for the citizen’s right to complain and open the organization in taking complaints seriously and seeing their potential as learning tools. The complaint journey gives new perspective to the service and how the citizens meet and experience the service. By using a simple method and a dedicated team to spread the innovation in the organization and having the top management engaged the innovation has shown results and helped change the culture and approach to complaints.

Innovative complaint management has been implemented in the municipality through 2017 and maintaining in 2018. In January 2017 the finance committee was presented the evaluation of the project and the board support the continual use of the ABC-method. Since the beginning of the project, the project manager has been in contact with different municipalities in Denmark as well as Sweden in order to share the project and also give knowledge in how to use the ABC-method.
During 2017 and currently we are still training new employees in using the ABC-model as a natural part of the service. In 2018 we are starting a new project concerning written communication in order to be more eye-to-eye with the citizens in letters, e-mails, website and brochures.
The project manager has participated in COI's spreading innovation guide and has been in contact with municipalities and other public sector organizations in spreading the innovation complaint management.

The project team contained of consultants from the different departments in the municipality, which gave the team cross border knowledge and collaboration across different administrations. Al though every department saw themselves as unique, the project team saw patterns in behaviour and approach to complaints, that made the innovation bring value to the organization. The board also gave space and opportunity to try different methods and trusted the team to fulfill the mission.

The citizens were involved during the project, since we invited them to see their complaint journey in order to give us feedback on the process and also an opportunity to test our method and how it affected the citizens involved in complaints.
In order to deal with the public sector employee resistance, we contacted an academic lecturer in rhetoric and researcher in public excuses, who taught and inspired us to handle the resistance by using the knowledge to have a qualified dialogue.

The innovative complaint management had four goals:

1. A decrease in the number of complaints,

2. A change in approach to complaints,

3. An increase of using the ABC-model and less time used on administration and

4. Survey of citizen’s satisfaction in complaint management.

In evaluation of the project the following results were submitted.

1. The number of complaints is almost the same in an overall look at the organization, but there has been a decrease in 10% in complaints concerning the job centre-department of the municipality.

2. The organization has changed its approach towards complaints and learns from the feedback from the citizens.

3. More complaints are being handled with the ABC-model and that means less time used on administration.

4. The citizens have been asked in a telephone survey and express their satisfaction with the openness from the municipality and the appreciative approach and dialogue.

Roskilde Municipality contains about 7000 employees, and we have meet challenges in changing the approach towards complaints. During the project we saw a need to work with our written letters to the citizens. They need to be changed into a more direct and easy to understand language, so we don't hide behind texts from laws and sentences impossible to understand for everyday people. With the project we have worked with open and appreciatively dialogue, and it has worked well. But there are still challenges to face in the written communication.

• First of all dedication from the managers.
• Access to design tools in order to make the method more visual.
• Time and support when meeting resistance.
• Trust and belief in the vision.

The ABC-model is easy to use and could be used in other types of organizations both in and outside the public sector. Most citizens find the public sector difficult to figure out or understand. Opening a dialogue with the citizens and meeting them with an appreciative approach gives meaning for both parties.

The most important experience is that you need to have the top management in front as well as the managers, when working with changing an entire organization and its culture. Also you need a concrete and easy tool, methods that give meaning to the employees, in order to create new learning in the organization and time to try and reflect on the learning, time to work and support, support and support. A good advice is to create a living example to tell the story and build capacity.

We have developed 2 small films on the two methods used in the project. The films explain the methods: ABC-model and Complaint Journey; and are available on our intranet and also on YouTube.
A good advice: Some organizations find it hard to begin a cultural change. But try to start with a small scale and then build the project and capacity to change with simple tools, reflection and learning by doing.