Singapore’s surplus sharing initiatives – the Progress Package and Workfare Bonus Scheme – received global recognition when they won the 2007 United Nations Public Service Award. Behind the scenes, distributing $2.6 billion from Budget surpluses to over 2.3 million Singaporeans in the form of the Government’s Progress Package was a massive and complex operation made painless by the innovative use of technology.

Ms Tan: The “one size fits all” concept is no longer applicable in customer service today.

The electronic system created by the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Board  ( www.cpf.gov.sg ) helped more than 2 million people sign up for their cash gift electronically.This was just one of the many examples of how the CPF Board has been harnessing technology to enhance service delivery and to improve interactions with its customers. Ms Tan Swee Hua , chief information officer of the CPF Board, talks to iN.SG about:

CPF Board’s role in the distribution of the Progress Package

The Government introduced two new surplus sharing schemes last year - the Progress Package and the Workfare Bonus Scheme. Whilst the Workfare Bonus Scheme is a completely new scheme specifically designed to reward older low wage Singaporeans, the Progress Package was more of a consolidation of four schemes: growth dividends for Singaporean adults; the Workfare Bonus Scheme for low-wage workers; CPF top-ups for elderly Singaporeans; and the National Service Bonus for national servicemen. The CPF Board was tasked as the agent to process and distribute the Progress Package to the 2.3 million eligible Singaporeans.

The need for an integrated approach

The Progress Package incorporated schemes from many different government agencies targeting at different groups: so there was a need to integrate the various schemes across the agencies to support consistent eligibility and allotment criteria, as well as sign-up procedures. For the convenience of Singaporeans, almost all eligible citizens were determined automatically from existing data captured by the various government agencies such as Ministry of Home Affairs, the Housing Development Board and the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore.

This integrated approach across agencies helped simplify the government-to-citizen transaction as Singaporeans only needed to interact with just one interface. We also established integration with the local banks to make available the large distribution and location base of automated teller machines as another convenient channel for sign-up.

Security considerations

Amidst the ease and availability of the electronic channels, another crucial consideration was security. CPF Board provided a one-time PIN as well as SingPass for authentication on the Internet channel. As an added incentive, citizens who signed-up via the electronic channels could expect to receive their payments earlier than those who did not.

The response rate

We achieved a high rate of 90 per cent sign-up via electronic means (Internet and ATMs). Within the first month, 94 per cent of all eligible Singaporeans had already signed up for the package, far exceeding the initial target of 90 per cent. Towards the end of the exercise in December 2006, 97 per cent of all eligible Singaporeans had signed up, translating to more than S$2 billion being disbursed accurately and expeditiously to eligible Singaporeans.

Enhancing customer service through technology

Information technology has always been and will continue to be a key enabler in improving our operations and enhancing our customer services for the benefit and convenience of our customers. The “one size fits all” concept is no longer applicable in customer service today. “MyCPF” was developed based on customer feedback and active engagement. We adopted the “different strokes for different folks” strategy which addressed the needs of the different customer segments.

For example, a biometric-counter solution has been developed and implemented for older folks who have difficulties remembering passwords. m-Ambassador was launched to assist members to obtain the service they needed quickly without having to visit the CPF service centre in person. For the non-IT savvy, our customer service officers are always ready to help at our e-lobby and helpdesks.

Managing diversity

We have a large diverse group of customers. With our island’s high Internet and mobile phone penetration rates, most customers would want an enlarged scope of services to be made available through these channels. We will continue to roll out new initiatives via these channels, in line with iGov2010 initiatives. So on one hand, we have to continuously explore the use of IT to enhance our customer service to meet the rising expectations of one segment. Yet on the other hand, we must also address the needs of other customer segments and ensure that they are not left behind. In addition, we are always mindful of the need to reduce cost, and to do more with less.

Key learning points in e-services deployment

For e-services which are accessed by the public via the Internet and mobile phone, simplicity and ease of use are key factors. These factors will determine the take-up rate. Other factors will include service availability and performance. Thus, in all such projects, sufficient time and effort should be allocated to the review and design of the entire service process - from the front-end interface to the back-end processing.