Customer Service is the Last Mile for DOB Upgrades

By Frank Fortino

Last month, I wrote about the arrival of Inspection Ready program – a new program that will give complete transparency to owners and construction companies on many of the logistics of our industry. Inspection Ready will centralize:

  • Scheduling construction inspections
  • Results on the construction inspection
  • Plumbing process and inspections
  • Daily or on all field actions will be transmitted via email based on the co. and individually assigned to the project known as delegates.

The Inspection Ready system has been designed, field tested and tweaked. It’s now Go Time, and we’re all ready for opening day.

When we think about the evolution of the DOB over the last few years, we have to consider two sides of the story – first is the systems that have been improved for transparency and efficiency. The other side of the story is customer service – how our trade interacts with the new systems and thus the DOB.

One of the new procedures that will launch with Inspection Ready is the improved Q-Matic System. This system of ticketing and que management on first look may feel like another nice upgrade. Yet a closer look reveals its true importance.

The new Q-Matic system acts as the front of the funnel – where our trade interfaces with the DOB. The system will essentially select and route requests to a specific destination within the agency. Automation starts at the front, with self-serve kiosks providing the entry point for all inquiries, and the routing happening behind the scenes. It’s a completely automated and digital system that should streamline our entire process.

This month, the Q-matic system will be placed In the Manhattan DOB, with implementation scheduled for Friday 12/4/15. This system should provide accountability to the process from start to finish.