Comment - Managing customer relationships and expectations

Only by understanding what customers want can service providers start to deliver something that meets their expectations. It’s obvious. Like all good communication, researching customer expectations is an interactive process. Customers need to know what they can expect, and at the same time the provider of the service needs to let customers know what they expect from them. And it is just this kind of approach, two-way communication and setting expectations, that has resulted in a positive change for both passengers and front-line staff within some of the train operating companies in Britain. The results of which are reported in Trust and Respect, one of the outputs of the Facilitating shared expectations between passengers and front-line staff research project.

These same principles apply for the RSSB research programme. Within the context of the research that we manage on behalf of the GB rail industry, we need to ask our audiences whether we are delivering the right information in the right way. We would like to change the way we deliver information; to divide it into smaller, more easily accessible topics that address specific questions to which you need answers. This is where our two-way communication starts. We know we need to adapt how and what information we deliver. We know that there may be more appropriate formats in which we can deliver information to particular audiences. That is why we are asking you to let us know such things as how, when, where and why you read the information that we publish. Within any one document, how much of the information is relevant to you? How much do you really not need? Would it be better to provide some types of information on web pages, or would some audiences find this more suitable to their working environment? Internet access isn't readily available for drivers and signallers, but if you are office-based, would referring to a web page be more helpful than looking at a paper document (which could quickly become out-of-date).

If you can tell us what you what information is useful, and how best to deliver it, we can better meet your expectations and help you be more effective in your work. Please send your thoughts, by email, to research@rssb.co.uk.

Guy Woodroffe
Head of Research and Development
Community Safety – Trust and Respect

Trust and Respect are fundamental principles that Network Rail and train operating companies want passengers and front-line staff to demonstrate to each other. It is also the title of a booklet distributed at the Railway Community Safety Forum, organised by RSSB, that took place at the National Motorcycle Museum near Birmingham, earlier this month. Developed specifically for community safety professionals, it is one of a suite of documents being produced as part of RSSB project T703 Facilitating shared expectations between passengers and front-line staff.

Trust and Respect includes three case studies which outline the activities and outcomes of campaigns which each aimed to enhance relationships between front-line railway staff and the travelling public. The case studies are:

* The Super Safety campaign, by Arriva Trains Wales
* The Railway Safety Accreditation Scheme, by Southeastern
* Byelaw enforcement, by Merseyrail