Projects: Public administration

The emergency call number 112 and the police call number 110 are expanding. In the future, citizens in Germany will be able to call public authorities using the toll-free number 115.

Actually, the project is still in the planning phase. The fine concept will be developed in the first half of 2008. But other countries are already knocking on the door of the project group 115. Whether a delegation from Bahrain or the State of Victoria in Australia, they want to know how Germany will introduce the central call number for public authorities 115.

When it comes to citizen service, they might also take a lesson from the Mayor of New York. He recognized the problem of confusing numbers and responsibilities in the public authorities five years ago. Michael Bloomberg promised the inhabitants of the Big Apple the beginning of a new service era. A telephone number for citizens, companies, and tourists was his proposal. The Mayor's goal was ambitious: up to that point, New York had more than 120 public authorities and 40 call centers. Wait times of half an hour on the telephone were common. Today, it usually takes about 30 seconds until the callers to 311 have discussed their concerns with the New York municipal administration. Some days, the wires are positively burning up: this number receives more than 16 million calls each year. The hotline is answered daily around the clock and serves callers in more than 170 languages.

For quite a while already, Romans have received direct help from the municipal administration via the central call number 060606. The call center of the Italian capital receives approximately 15,000 calls daily. The employees of the public authorities take care of approximately 85 percent of the concerns directly on the first call. For quick answers, the call center accesses a knowledge database and a T-Systems customer management system. On Mallorca, the city administration of Palma de Mallorca is gaining experience with this new service attitude with support from T-Systems. Approximately 50 percent of citizens use the central call number 010 for their inquiries. And it is answered around the clock, 365 days a year in four languages.

More proximity to citizens, better services, and a more efficient administration: these are the goals that the public administration in Germany wants to achieve with the uniform call number 115. Practical examples show that a telephone service center can increase the availability of public authorities by 50 percent, to nearly 90 percent. Currently, several model regions are testing the public authorities' call number 115, including Berlin, Hamburg, a few cities and regions in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the entire Rhine-Main area. In total, 13 million inhabitants are enjoying the new service area for public authorities.

Read more about the hotline for all of Germany in the printed edition of Best Practice.