Sutter County, CA Permitting and Environmental Health transform customer service from a cost to revenue using Acta

“We used to have a ton of walk-ins and now we get tons and tons of emails and calls.” Neal Hay, Director of Development Services Department for Sutter County said when Acta first talked with him. Customer service across the Planning, Development Services, and Environmental Health Departments was a significant cost center. Staff had to constantly monitor and respond to incoming calls and emails while processing services, preparing for meetings, and planning for projects. 

“When you think about it, inconsistent messaging that results in more follow-up communications is a cost, time spent on transferring inquiries from person to person is a cost, passing on customers to managers for time and knowledge sake is a cost.” 

The Development Services and Environmental Health Departments needed a simple, but effective solution that would decrease the cost and labor of manual customer service routines so that staff could get time and peace of mind back to do higher revenue-generating tasks. 

The Departments chose Acta to modernize their customer service functions. They were drawn to its ability to integrate into Outlook, increase consistency within and between departments, and move time away from customer service into more demanding activities. 

Within the first 2 weeks of using Acta, Sutter County’ Development Services and Environmental Health Department used Acta to respond to 207 customer inquiries, saving 15 staff hours and over $2500. 

The range of use-cases for Acta spanned cell-tower permits, public records requests, solar permits fees, guidance on application revisions, restroom agreements, ADA compliance information, animal control, special event permits, and guidance on updating health inspections–just to name a few. 

“Acta helps us do more with less. A simple solution that my staff love. Acta saves time and creates money. A no-brainer for any Building or Planning Department” says Neal.

‍