Big conveyancing firm reorganises staff workload following criticism
O’Neill Patient solicitors' service levels were slammed at the beginning of the year but it has now reduced the size of its working pipeline.
Conveyancing giant O’Neill Patient (ONP) has reduced the number of cases that each case manager deals with by 30% in order to provide a better service to customers and estate agents to speed up turnaround times.
The change in tack comes after ONP’s service levels came in for stinging criticism at the beginning of the year.
The Neg reported in January how an investigative piece in The [Sunday] Times reported frustrated homebuyers being let down by ONP had put the solicitors on the defensive with its chief executive Nick Hale telling this publication that the newspaper report was “somewhat unbalanced”.
Reduced pipeline
Now in an unprecedented move, the firm has taken the step of reducing the size of its working pipeline.
The reduced workload has been trialled over the past quarter and as a result both its customer satisfaction levels and its Net Promoter Score have increased by 25% with a corresponding 56% reduction in complaints.
ONP has also reduced the number of trainees in the business and is instead focusing on experienced case managers.
This has lifted performance, sped up transaction times and increased levels of customer service as well as increasing staff mental well-being.
Business review
Craig Underwood, Group Chief Operating Officer at ONP Group, says: “Following the impact of the Stamp Duty holidays and the Liz Truss budget, we reviewed how we did business.
“We have actively sought feedback from clients and… the result is a strategy that brings our case managers closer from the outset, starting with every client receiving a personal call from a case manager within 24 hours of a case being submitted to us.”
And Underwood adds: “We have intentionally set our average caseloads at 65, substantially below the levels of our competitors. The levels are lower again for trainees and those relatively new to the job.
“This ensures that each case manager has the necessary capacity to deliver unparalleled attention to detail, maintain prompt communication with clients and intermediaries, and provide comprehensive support throughout the entire conveyancing process.”
