Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Upon successful completion, students should be able to:

• Follow the parameters of quality customer service that include the attitudes, knowledge, and skills needed to create and maintain a quality customer service organization and assess emergency services personnel in relationship to those parameters.
• Create ways to improve customer satisfaction through measurement, training, and orientation in fire and emergency services.
• Use various management tools and surveys utilized in the public sector to collect customer data and information concerning service in fire and emergency services.
• Communicate effectively the importance of customer service training and various training methods utilized in the customer service organizations to fire and emergency services personnel.
• Apply customer service skills in the fire and emergency services based on recognized quality service organizations from the private and public sector.
• Apply recognition and reward programs that enhance quality customer service to the fire and emergency services

The material in this course will be presented in a lecture, demonstration, role playing, and discussion format. Other instructional methods may include guest
speakers, research papers, book and journal article reviews, written and oral reports and presentations, classroom simulations, and video presentations.

The methods of assessment may include one or more of the following:

• Various individual and/or group skill building activities such as roleplaying, scenario based problem solving activities, case studies, or other exercises geared toward critical analysis of course concepts.
• Written assignments or oral reports designed to integrate course material into personal experience or experiences of others.
• Quizzes and exam composed of objective questions and concepts.
• Individual and/or team project/s which requires integration, application, and critical examination of course concepts, issues, and themes.

I. Organizational Culture and Customer Service in Fire and Emergency Services

     A. Establishment of a team to establish customer service guidelines
        1. Long?term
        2. Cross?section of organization
        3. Organizational support
     B. Action to change service delivery
     C. Importance of mission
     D. Strategic Plan
     E. Financial support
II. Customer Service Attitude in Fire and Emergency Services
     A. Hiring the right people
     B. Customer service attitude
     C. How does the organization perceive itself currently and in the future
     D. Emphasis on customer service in the public arena
     E. The cost of poor customer service to an organization
III. Data Collection in Fire and Emergency Services
     A. Population being served
        1. Internal customers
        2. External customers
     B. Customer needs
     C. Data collection
     D. Who collects and analyzes data
     E. How is the data dispersed in the organization
     F. Response to customer concerns and issues
IV. Training and Aptitude in Fire and Emergency Services
     A. Teach it until it becomes internalized
     B. Development of training
     C. Ways to introduce and train organization about customer service
     D. Training for levels in the organization
     E. On?going training
V. The Customer?Oriented Employee in Fire and Emergency Services
     A. Attitude
        1. Toward self
        2. Toward co?workers
        3. Toward organization
        4. Toward the public (customer)
     B. Customer service basics
        1. Projecting a positive attitude and professional image
        2. Beliefs and attitudes
        3. Appearance
        4. Communication skills
VI. Recognizing and Rewarding Quality Customer Service in Fire and Emergency Services
     A. Existing recognition systems
     B. Organizational attitude
     C. Different recognition systems
     D. Cost of recognition and reward systems
VII. Quality Service Organizations in Fire and Emergency Services

     A. Private
     B. Public