Training and development model for municipal frontline staff

Abstract

The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa states that public servants must deliver services to improve the general welfare of the citizens. The public servants therefore have a duty to the citizens to deliver effective and efficient public services that will be to the satisfaction of the citizens to improve their well-being. However, this is not the case since service delivery protests have become the norm, with citizens regularly protesting about the services received from the various municipalities. Citizens are not happy about the level of service delivery received and therefore take to the streets to render their unhappiness. The City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality is no exception, as service delivery protests have also plagued the municipality and during 2016, the media referred to the protests as Tshwane burning. The municipal frontline staff are at the coalface of service delivery and are often the only public servants that the citizens come into contact with. The municipal frontline staff deliver services to the public on a daily basis and should possess the necessary knowledge, skills, behaviours, attitudes and competencies to deliver professional services. This article will describe what the Customer Care Consultants think should be included in the design of an essential model for training and development for Customer Care Consultants at the City of Tshwane, as they are at the forefront of service delivery. It does so by drawing on an extensive case study using a qualitative questionnaire toexplore the views and perceptions of the municipal frontline staff. The article seeks to add to the body of knowledge by critically analysing the views provided by the Customer Care Consultants on the content for a training and development modelfor Customer Care Consultants at the City of Tshwane. This study reports on research undertaken for the author’s doctoral research conducted during 2018 and culminates in a training and development model for municipal frontline staff.