The Leadership Lens: July 2026
When I begin to discuss the concept of customer service excellence in county government, invariably I initially get a few eye rolls and groans. You see, customer is a tough term for us government types. “We are not the private sector!” they scream. While that part is indeed true, we have customers. They are stakeholders, citizens, residents, taxpayers, clients - friends and foes alike!
Think about your county. What departments and divisions are built to serve other/fellow county departments and divisions?
Indeed, we in the public sector should have the market cornered on all things customer service, as service is in our name, and in our ethos and core, i.e., public service. However, sometimes we get mired in the stereotypical tropes of poor service and government inertia. The red tape. The bureaucracy. The slow systems. The lack of technology. The slowness to adopt digital accessibility. My advice to you is to defy the stereotypes.
An often-overlooked area of customer service is internal customer service. Thinking about your county - what county departments and divisions, as a main responsibility area, are built to serve other/fellow county departments and divisions? Usually, these are core administrative departments like management (CAO), legal, IT and so forth. Also, payroll, human resources, purchasing/procurement, and buildings and grounds (facilities). It is super important for these departments to maintain and sustain excellence in customer service for their fellow co-workers.
Internal service excellence enables, fosters, and incubates external service excellence. In other words, you cannot sustainably deliver great public service externally in your county, if internal systems are slow, unclear, or adversarial. As a County Administrator, you should strive to ensure that your internal customer service functions serve as shining examples of excellence, with staff consistently demonstrating a commitment to outstanding service.
In all the areas where one is apt to be engaged in a type of customer service (email, phone, in-person, and digitally) there are best practices with all areas, including:
Uniformity of Messaging
Cultural Buy-in
Tact (decorum, civility)
Timeliness (and responsiveness)
The, bad pun, external impacts of internal customer service improvements are aplenty. More compliance, trust-building with the public, reduction of hostile situations, faster resolutions, more access and transparency, and more efficient transactions.
Here are a few simple measures you can take to establish, or improve, a problem-solving mindset in your organization with a focus on internal customer service excellence:
❍ On boarding policy - ensure that every employee upon hire is made aware of your standards and expectations on customer service.
❍ Continued training - offer training on subjects like customer service and dealing with difficult people or handling tough conversations.
❍ Leading from the top - make sure the staff knows that Administration is indeed an internal services department to some extent and model the behaviors you hope to see throughout the county.
❍ Periodic spot checking / Secret shopper program - maybe you don’t go full “Undercover Boss” but there are ways to check performance standards.
❍ Survey usage - develop and issue a survey to staff on how they perceive the services of your internal service departments.
❍ Recognition programs - these can take various forms, such as a Customer Service Hero award, a “shout out” poster board to give praise to co-workers, kudos from the Board/Council, peer-to-peer nominations and awards and so forth.
❍ Emphasize in job description - along with “other duties as assigned” and the "distinguishing features of the class” add a point or two on customer service as part of the job specifications.
❍ Establish policies - there is no reason that you cannot have and maintain (and enforce) a customer service policy for your staff.
❍ Placement in organization’s strategic plan - if you have an overarching strategic plan, it likely has sections on administration or governance. Referencing customer service excellence and a focus on the problem-solving mindset would be appropriate to place here.
Championing customer service standards within your county government will invariably lead to improvements in efficiencies, morale, and overall culture. The result is a more engaged workforce, stronger organizational performance, and better outcomes for the residents you serve.
Dr. Ian Coyle, ICMA-CM is the President and CEO of Pracademic Partners. He is the former County Administrator for Livingston County, New York and has been a lecturer and instructor at the Northeastern University, North Carolina Central University, Northern Illinois University, California State University, the University of Virginia and several other universities throughout the U.S.
Thanks to Ian and Pracademic Partners for being a 2026 Friend of NACA!