In February 2016,  I once wrote about my Passport Office Experience, I talked about my surprise at the exceptional customer service at the office. So last Friday I was back again at the offices to apply for passports for my family members. Is Customer Service still exceptional? What has changed in roughly a year?

Well I can confirm that Customer Service at the Passport Office in Harare is still High. What has changed is that the queues are longer-more Zimbos are applying for passports. Perhaps it could be due to the Festive Holidays? We may never know as we need official statistics from the Passport Office.

So on Friday I arrived at the Passport Office at 6:30am and was given number 220. I did not mind to be number 220 knowing that the Passport Office is efficient in processing passport applications. So how did it go?

1. My biggest frustration came from the receipting of funds using the swipe machine. There was only one swipe machine and this led to my 1 hour delay in getting application forms
2. Folks with cash to buy application forms did not endure any frustrating delays
3. Excellent rating for the ladies who work in Rooms 4 and 5. Very patient and helpful ladies. The lady in Room 5 is responsible for taking and processing photos. The lady in Room 4 is responsible for final checking of documents and authorisation.
4. How long did it take me? I left the offices at 11:30am. I had unnecessary delays because my young kids needed photos to be taken (The Office does not take photos of minors). My time could have been less had I brought cash to pay for the passport forms.
5. By the time I left at 11:30am, more folks were still flocking in. My own estimate is that close to a thousand people came to the offices.
6. The Bond note is accepted for passport forms applications
7. In February 2016 the offices were open during the weekend (Saturday)-this is no longer the case-they only open during the working week.

So my overall rating is still high for the office although a few areas need to be improved on such as:

1.Bring more swipe machines for use. Also advise members of public on use of bank cards because I witnessed folks who brought other people’s cards being turned away.

2.Enable payments through the Eco Cash platform

3.Put a Suggestions Box

4.Put  Anti-Fraud Posters

5.Have contingent plans for the rain season

6.Improve on ventilation

7.Your website is down

8. Establish a Help Desk

If you are visiting the Passport Office to apply for a passport then take note of the following issues:

a) If you are an adult, no need to bring photos, the office does this for you for free

b) Bring photo copies of your documents-Photocopying outside the Passport Office is pricey-$1 for two copies!

So have fun next time you visit the Passport Office, we encourage them to keep up the high standards of course they have a few areas that they need to improve on. I witnessed a good number of people submitting forms for Diaspora relatives –perhaps not necessary, how about decentralising the process to all Embassies or even online?

To other Government Departments-you surely need to visit the Passport Office and learn about efficiency. To the Private Sector-you too need to visit the Passport Office and learn about Customer Service because the Passport Office is our ZBIN 2016 Customer Service Award Winner.

ZBIN will be championing business partnerships in 2017 for our members. We already have a trial run in Bulawayo of sisters who are involved in agricultural projects. We will be promoting partnerships within Zimbabwe by locals. Lessons learnt from local partnership projects will be used to promote partnerships between locals and the Diasporas. So the ball is in the court of locals, PROVE THAT YOU CAN SUCCESSFULLY PARTNER in business. If you can provide us with solid evidence then we will actively promote you to partner with the Diaspora.

Our strategy as ZBIN is to help promote partnerships by locals in stage one and this will be happening from January to September 2017, the last quarter of the year should be the selection of successful partnerships for possible funding and engagement with the Diaspora.

Before engaging in Partnership Arrangements its important to read the following Principles of Partnerships which we took from www.salfordcity.org

1. Collective understanding of the purpose of your partnership

This means:
• Being clear about the purpose of the partnership and its intended outcomes.
• Ensuring partners actively commit to working together.
• Ensuring members are responsible for the work of the partnership.
• Ensuring the partnership’s aims are consistent with other plans and priorities.

2. Performing effectively within clearly defined functions and roles

This means:
• Being clear about the functions and roles of the partnership ensuring effective delivery and implementation.
• Being clear about the partnership’s links to other partnerships.
• Being clear about the partnership’s lines of responsibility and ensuring these are made clear to the public.

3. Establishing and promoting the values of your partnership

This means:
• Putting the values of the partnership into practice.
• Partners show commitment to the partnership by ensuring the appropriate level of membership.
• The partnership communicates effectively to people outside the partnership and promotes what they do.

4. Taking informed, transparent decisions and managing risk

This means:
• Being rigorous and clear about how decisions are taken.
• Having and using good quality information, advice and support.
• Ensuring that an effective risk management system is in operation.

5. Developing skills, knowledge and experience in order to govern effectively

This means:
• Ensuring that all partners have the skills, knowledge and experience they need to perform well.
• Developing the skills of people with partnership responsibilities and judging the quality of their performance, both as individuals and as a group.
• The partnership has a learning culture which allows partners to gain knowledge and skills.

6. Engaging all partners equally and making accountability real

This means:
• Partners feel they have equal influence and power within the partnership.
• Partner members ensure their organisational plans reflect partnership priorities.
• Partners actively promote the principles of equality and diversity across the partnership.

In next instalment we will cover advantages of Partnerships and Risk Management in Partnerships.