Shaping a Resilient Organisation
Amidst an ever-evolving operating environment, digitalisation remains one of HDB’s key strategies in enhancing the customer service experience and developing a future-ready workforce.
Providing Customer Service that Delights
Serving up a positive and seamless customer experience is HDB’s service goal. Guided by our HDB Service Master Plan, we have introduced numerous initiatives over the years to deliver hassle-free service, actively leveraging technology as an enabler.
We provide a wide range of more than 200 electronic services on the HDB InfoWEB and Mobile@HDB app to make it convenient for customers to carry out transactions anytime and anywhere. The e-Services cover a wide range of transactions from flat buying, selling and renting, to season parking applications and renewals. We are constantly looking into ways to enhance our website and mobile app to better meet customers’ informational and transactional needs. For example, we are studying our customers’ service journey to redesign our digital platforms and services. This FY, 99.7% of our transactions were completed digitally from end to end. We also garnered a high e-payment adoption rate of 99.1% among our customers.
Beyond digital channels, HDB also enhanced the customer experience for those who require more personalised service and advice. As safe management measures (SMMs) imposed in the last FY had impeded face-to-face interactions with our customers, we piloted video conferencing appointments at Tampines Branch in October 2021, in collaboration with Government Technology Agency and Public Service Division. Through these video appointments, customers continued to enjoy personalised services on select matters such as transfer of flat ownership and administration of the Lease Buyback Scheme. While SMMs have since eased, video conferencing remains as a service touchpoint to bring greater convenience for customers.
A Senior Estate Manager at Tampines Branch, Lynn provides advice on various housing matters to her residents. When the opportunity arose to trial video conferencing, Lynn jumped at the chance as she recognised the convenience it would bring to residents. She also trained other colleagues to use the platform effectively, so even more residents can benefit from the video appointments.
“Addressing enquiries is the easy part but providing personalised customer service requires empathy and sincerity, which may not come through as easily over phone calls or emails. Video conferencing has not only digitalised our service delivery and offered convenience to our residents, it has also enabled us to preserve a strong human touch. We can let the residents know, through our friendly faces, that HDB is an organisation that cares for them. For me, seeing residents smile helps me to know that my service has really benefitted them!”
Lynn Koo
Senior Estate Manager
Building a Future-Ready Workforce
Key to HDB’s transformation efforts is a workforce that is digitally empowered. This FY, we continued to build up specialist capabilities in areas such as business analytics, building information modelling, and geospatial technology. We also pressed on with strengthening staff’s knowledge of topics such as cyber and data security, through virtual talks and quizzes. Separately, we encouraged the widespread adoption of digital workplace tools and collaboration hubs, such as M365 OneDrive and SG-Teams, through guides and hands-on demonstrations.
Beyond enhancing staff’s digital competencies, we also supported their professional development. As part of Whole-of-Government efforts to build a strong Public Service, we put in place learning roadmaps to help staff level up core competencies that are expected of all public officers. The HDB Ambassador 3.0 programme, comprising an e-learning module and personalised conversations, was launched in FY2021 to contextualise HDB’s workforce transformation journey for every staff. A Leading Change Forum and new run of Leading Change Programmes were also introduced to seek alignment among the HDB Middle Management Team on the ethos of collective leadership, as well as an open, caring and less bureaucratic culture, so that they can better drive transformation in their respective work domains.
Accolades
HDB received several international and local awards this FY, an affirmation of our commitment to excellence. These include the Urban Land Institute Global Award for Excellence for Kampung Admiralty and Punggol Town, which acknowledges excellent land use across multiple disciplines such as architecture and planning. Separately, our housing projects Punggol Northshore, Tampines GreenGlen and Tampines GreenCrest were conferred the Global Future Design Awards for their outstanding and innovative architectural designs.
Our intensive town greening efforts were recognised at the International Federation of Landscape Architects Asia-Pac Landscape Architecture Awards. Six of our housing projects picked up accolades: Parc Residences at Tengah and Punggol Point Cove received the Excellence Award, whereas four other projects in Dawson, Tampines, and Kallang Whampoa received Honourable Mentions.
At the ministry level, HDB received the Minister Award (Team) for our innovative products and programmes such as Community Care Apartments, HDB Smart Hub, Enhanced CPF Housing Grant, the construction of common services duct in Tengah town, and mobile grocery kiosks at selected HDB carparks.
On the digital front, we won the OpenGov Recognition of Excellence Award for our HDB Smart Enabled Home initiative. This award recognises organisations for their innovative use of technology to optimise processes and deliver citizen-centric services. We also attained the Singapore Computer Society’s Achievement Award in Digital Transformation & Innovation for successfully organising our information technology infrastructure to drive business transformation. The MyNiceHome website separately emerged overall winner of the ‘Best Usability Award’ category in Government Technology Agency’s inaugural Digital Services Awards.