Paying attention and adapting service
Over the last few years a number of our clients have engaged in market research, one of several auxiliary services offered by AAI. Among them are schools working to improve their image and/or increase their enrollment; retirement centers considering a new approach to long-term care; and a church conference wanting to better support its pastors. In each case, these organizations were motivated by a genuine desire to provide their constituency with service that was more accessible, more comprehensive and more relevant. All concluded that conducting market research would be an important step to this end.
On the occasion of revising its marketing plan, Adriel Inc., West Liberty, Ohio, contracted with AAI to learn more about its own image and its relations with constituents.
Adriel Inc., established in 1896, is a nonprofit, faith-based organization that provides high quality care and treatment of children and their families experiencing a range of adjustment, learning, emotional and behavioral problems.
Rich Gerig, AAI principal, called upon AAI Associate Mike Wiese to head the research for Adriel. Mike is professor of marketing at Anderson University. His starting point was a question: “What are your questions?”
The Adriel staff, led at that point by Marty Lehman, executive director, asked, “What are the primary professional trends and the best practices in our field of service?”
AAI reviewed the literature of child and family services, then spoke with six regional or national leaders. AAI assembled a list of key concepts driving current up-to-date professional child care: continuum of care, systems of care, wrap-around services, cluster planning of treatment strategies, outcomes management, step-down strategies, multiple-system care, the bundling of billing and variable-source funding.
According to Mike, “Entities that understand these concepts and the changes they are bringing to child care, and alter their services to meet children’s needs – these entities will capitalize on growth.”
The second question had to do with the needs and expectations of the courts and child and family social services when needing to refer a child to a care agency. AAI interviewed 14 professionals in child care referral, each from a different county of Ohio.
The research team reported seven critical imperatives for child care agencies as reported by the respondents:
- Expand the array of services offered.
- Step kids down to less restrictive and less costly services as soon as possible.
- Provide more individualized rather than cookie-cutter services.
- Track outcomes and use them for managing and improving programs.
- Create a culture that embraces this population, along with a commitment to do whatever it takes to serve them.
- Nurture a customer focused attitude.
- Respond to new opportunities and changing ways of doing business.
AAI summarized these imperatives by saying that the courts and social services place high value on program and cost effectiveness in emancipating a child from “the system” – that is, reuniting the child with the birth family, establishing effective foster care and developing life and coping skills. Gone are the days when “the system” allows for long-term institutionalization of a child.
A third question had to do with Adriel’s reputation among its constituents. “How well are we doing? How might we improve?” AAI was able, on the basis of its extensive research, to create a kind of balance sheet that showed what respondents named as Adriel’s assets and its deficits.
Respondents valued Adriel’s Christian values, its professional competence, its accessibility and friendliness. The researchers heard comments about Adriel’s “can-do” attitude even in dealing with unusual cases.
The interviews revealed that Adriel needed to establish ongoing relationships with people working in the courts and social services, and needed to continue to develop the quality of its foster care program. Adriel also needed to learn how to work effectively in what is called cluster care, with financial, medical and counseling assistance coming from various and sometimes competing sources.
Karla Gingerich, senior vice president at Adriel, cites the research project as a turning point in recent Adriel history and mentions three big changes that it has inspired. In the first place, program directors make regular calls to courts and children’s services in Ohio. Second, Adriel does a far better job in tracking outcomes, documenting the average length of stay and citing the percentages of children who can be moved to less restrictive services. And third, “all of us are aware of good customer service. Every personal contact, every phone call is a part of marketing.”
The research findings helped Adriel to set an agenda for building upon its strengths and addressing what were perceived to be weaknesses. At the time of research Adriel’s census was down. Today the residential program is one shy of the full capacity – 38. In foster homes are 187 children, the highest in Adriel’s history.
Mike, in a workshop with staff members, discussed what he thought to be next steps in its marketing program.
- Write a comprehensive organizational strategic plan and marketing plan based upon what you now know and what you must now decide.
- Help all program personnel to understand the importance of customer service.
- Define and develop a clear advantage for Adriel and promote it.
- Document specific outcomes to demonstrate superior results.
- Set up and maintain face-to-face contacts with court officials and social service offices.
- Continue to make careful selection of foster parents. Carry out excellent and continuing training programs for them.
- Build trust.
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Adriel
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