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/ Canadian Government Executive
// October 2016
Business First
Taking It Online
Taking Care
of Business 5:
MICHAL
DZIONG
F
or the first time, the online chan-
nel emerges as both the main and
the preferred way for businesses
to access government services.
In fact, the use of the internet for govern-
ment service transactions has tripled since
2010. At the same time, while service ex-
perience ratings are steadily increasing,
governments still have some way to go to
meet the ever increasing service expecta-
tions. Getting more clients to go online to
access government services offers a way
to better meet those expectations and en-
hance the overall service experience for
Canadian businesses.
Taking Care of Business 5
(TCOB5) is the
fifth study in the series launched back in
2004. Delivered by the Institute for Citi-
zen-Centred Service (ICCS) in collabora-
tion with Ipsos Public Affairs, it maintains
focus of the previous surveys on examin-
ing the experience and expectations that
Canadian businesses have when they ac-
cess government services. Following in the
footsteps of the latest iteration of Citizens
First, the companion study focusing on in-
dividual client service experience, it also
takes a closer look at channel usage and, in
particular, the issue of getting more busi-
nesses to access services using the online
channel. In addition, it examines ques-
tions relating specifically to the business
community, asking respondents about
their views on regulatory requirements
and the idea of having a common business
identity number for accessing services at
all levels of government. One of the main
goals of the study was to identify service
improvement priorities and provide other
actionable insights that would enable ser-
vice executives and managers to enhance
the service experience of their clients.
While the study builds on the strong
foundation of the previous waves of the
research, it has introduced a number of
important changes designed to enhance
the quality and actionability of the re-
sults. One of the key enhancements is the
streamlining of the main customer experi-
ence measure to a three-item Client Satis-
faction Index (CSI). The CSI is a composite
score that takes into account satisfaction
as well as a comparative evaluation and a
measure of performance against expecta-
tions.
Seven jurisdictions (six provincial/ ter-
ritorial and one regional) participated in
the study, and data was collected through
both telephone and online channels. In to-
tal, 2,832 interviews with business respon-
dents across Canada were conducted from
January to May, 2016.
I mostly have problems
with the websites.
I personally find it
very tedious to find
information. I know
the information is
there. It is never short
on the quantity of
information; it is just
that to find it you
almost have to go
through this circular
search of pages to
get to it.
—A Taking Care of Business 5 Respondent