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Operational Tipsand Tricks:

Making Your Job Easier

Business Licensing Officials Association

2018 Spring Conference

Game Changers, Hacks, andOther Brilliant Ideas

YOU! are the Source of Inspiration

• Small towns, big cities

• Rural counties, urban counties

• Newcomers

• Seasoned veterans

• Active Listserv Participants

Requests for “game-changing” ideas sent to 23 active BLOA folks

Responses received from 30% of those contacted.

Wow! I didn’t

know that!

YOU are the ones who will help each otherlearn how to make our jobs just a little bit

easier, better, friendlier.

What Innovation Looks Like

…because someone believedit was possible.

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Challenges to Innovation

• No legislative, executive, or managerial support

• Uncertainty of cost to implement or projected savings

• No widespread buy-in from employees

• Not enough knowledge, time, resources to motivate,seek, plan and implement innovation

• No “champion” of innovation

• Fear of failure

• Daunted by long-term time frames

• Mindset: “good enough”, “We’ve always done it that way.”

Approaches to Pursue Innovation

• Grass-roots level improvements – do what is within yoursphere of influence, start where you are

• Start small, but ever forward.

• Challenge the status quo: view “we’ve always done it thatway” as an obstacle to excellence: nothing is ever as good asit can be.

• Pilot projects – short-term “trial basis” which provides a “safe”area to try new ideas, bound by both time and scope. Failurebecomes an educational experience, and success becomes a“safe” risk-taking endeavor.

More Approaches

• Make the time and energy to seek out new ways of doingthings.

• Look for ideas beyond our own business license industry,much opportunity to learn from other industries

• Brainstorm with others: in your department, organization,professional associations; with your stakeholders.

• Learn as much as possible about the job, and ways to makesmall (or large) improvements will become evident

• Learn as much as possible about technology and innovation;become an “expert.”

• SHARE your game-changing processes with others, so theycan learn as well.

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Areas for Innovation

1. Contacting Customers

2. Educating Customers

3. Managing Paperwork

4. Improving Customer Service

5. Taming the E-mail Monster

6. Miscellaneous

Some areas will benefit you, some will benefityour customers, and some will benefit both.

Some innovations will benefit several areas.

Contacting Customers

• Auto-e-mailing courtesy reminders before and after deadline

• Auto-calling courtesy reminders before and after deadline

• Use consistent forms and letters to be compatible with #10windowed envelopes (saves time, cost of labels, and requiresonly one type of envelope)

• Generic letters, short and succinct, sent with license renewalsto avoid need to match to business-specific renewal forms

• Mail merge for personalizing and addressing lettersindividually

Educating Customers

• A Business Handbook (“how to do business lawfully”)

• Include a bright yellow paper with each renewal form, listingways to submit business license applications: online, in-person, mail-in.

• Include a one page information letter with renewal mailing

• Meaningful, useful, easy-to-navigate website – own it!

• Problem-area pamphlets

• Business License ordinance in booklet form for citizens

• Cross-training: when a citizen calls for a building permit,information is also provided about business licenses

• Workshops: offer periodic business-training workshops

• Be a speaker for business-support organizations

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Managing Paperwork

• Document scanning software (ex. OnBase)

• Document retention schedules

– Lawful destruction

• Allow forms to be completed online

Improving Customer Service

Online Services

• Calculator for business license fees (and building permits)

• Applications for renewing or new businesses

• Credit Card Authorization Form so credit card payments canbe accepted (at the counter) when online payments are notavailable

• Map of license holders (save list in Excel, drop into GoogleMaps)

• Hospitality Tax remittance vouchers (online or on paper)

More Customer Service Tips

“And a cherry on top”

• Mints with seasonal candy dishes and lollipops to the children

• Offering place for businesses to advertise their business withbusiness cards in a common area

• List or brochure of resources for citizens (other departments,local utilities, state agencies, or federal agencies)

• Attach silk flowers to ends of cheap pens for customers(deters pens from wandering off and resembles bouquet offlowers in pen holder)

• Electronic Take-a-Number system for busy times of year:allows customers to feed meters, use restrooms, visit otheroffices without losing their place in line (and avoids “cutting”)

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More Customer Service Tips

Forms, Forms, and More Forms

• Prepared packets of required applications for different typesof businesses (new, inside and outside jurisdiction; home-based and commercial, Hospitality Taxes, LocalAccommodations Taxes, etc.)

• Make forms accessible to customers needing them: magazinerack, kiosk, website, etc.

Other Tips

• Heavy, consistent use of Comment Cards

• “One Stop Shop”: cross-training of personnel

Taming the E-mail Monster

• Rules

• Archiving– Check with your IT staff (don’t want to get this one wrong)

• Group e-mail Inbox

Miscellaneous

• All staff have access to all business license and permit forms,penalty chart (to estimate penalties), city limits street listingguide, construction guidelines

• Print, highlight, and tab the jurisdiction’s business licenseordinance and the BLOA Handbook for easy reference

• NAICS website (https://www.naics.com/search/)

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More Miscellaneous Tips

• Compliance: Ensure all permitted work is licensed beforepermit is issued

• Hang tags or stickers for contractors’ vehicles for easyevidence of compliance

• “Notice of Violation” door hangers to leave on doors whendoing an inspection and no one answers the door.

• Machinery: a folding machine

• Machinery: a Pressure Sealer to fold and seal receipts andbusiness licenses

Final Thoughts

• “So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seemimprobable, and then, when we summon the will, they soon becomeinevitable.” – Christopher Reeve

• “Let go of your attachment to being right, and suddenly your mind ismore open. You’re able to benefit from the unique viewpoints ofothers, without being crippled by your own judgement.”– Ralph Marston

• “It is not always possible to know what one has learned, or when thedawning will arrive. You will continue to shift, sift, to shake out, andto double back. The synthesis that finally occurs can be in the mostunexpected place and the most unexpected time. My charge… is tobe alert to the dawnings.” – Virginia Smith

Questions?

Pam Davis, ManagerRichland County Government

Business Service Center

803-576-2287

bsc@rcgov.us

www.rcgov.us/bsc

Go for it!

Simpsonville City Hall 118 NE Main Street ● Simpsonville, SC 29681

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