Qualitative Interviews with Customers

Form Approved

OMB. No 1230-XXXX

Exp. Date: XX-XX-XXXX

A Study of Customer Satisfaction with ODEP TA Centers

Interview Guide for Qualitative Interviews with Customers

Thank you for participating in this interview. My name is [NAME] and this is my colleague [NAME]. We work for Westat, a research organization based in Rockville, MD.

Before we get started, there are a few things I should mention. This is a research project. Your participation in this interview is voluntary. There is no penalty if you decide not to participate. You may end the interview at any time. If you choose to participate, you can skip questions that make you uncomfortable. We have planned for this interview to last about 60 minutes.

Your responses in this interview are private. They will not be shared with others at your place of employment. We will submit a final report to DOL at the conclusion of the study that may use quotes from you or other interviewees in our reports; however, interviewees’ names, their places of employment, and other information that could be used to identify interviewees or their employers, will not be linked to responses.

Do you have any questions? [Answer all questions.]

Finally, with your permission, we would like to record this interview. The recording will be used to help us recall exactly what was said when we go to summarize our findings. The recordings and any notes we have will be stored securely on Westat’s computer and will be protected. They will only be available to the Westat project team. Are you okay with us recording?

[IF PERMISSION IS GIVEN TO RECORD, ASK AGAIN IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS. ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS. IF PERMISSION IS NOT GRANTED, RESCHEDULE FOR A TIME WHEN A SCRIBE IS AVAILABLE TO TAKE NOTES.]

If there are no further questions or concerns, I’d like to start the audio recording now.

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays an Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 1230-XXXX. The time required to complete this collection of information is estimated to average 60 minutes, including the time to review instructions, search existing data resources, gather the data needed and complete and review the collection of information. Send comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden [email protected] and reference the OMB Control Number 1230-XXXX.

1. Utilization of TA

1. Please briefly describe the reason you to contacted [CENTER] for assistance most recently.

• Were you looking for technical assistance with an issue/concern/problem?

• Were you looking for guidance with a police?

2. Why did you decide to contact [CENTER] versus other possible organizations/entities for assistance?

• Whose decision at your organization was it to contact this [CENTER]?

• Over the past 12 months, have you reached out to any of the other ODEP Centers (JAN, EARN, PEAT, NCWD/Y, LEAD, etc.)? Was it for the same or a different issue?

3. I’d like to get a better idea of the nature of your communications with [CENTER]….

• How frequently do you contact [CENTER] for assistance?

• What was your primary mode(s) of contact?

• Did you interact with one staff or multiple staff at [CENTER]?

2. Interaction with Center

4. I’d like to hear about your overall impressions about interacting with the [CENTER].

• Would you say your experiences were mostly positive or negative? Why?

• What did you appreciate most about working with this [CENTER]?

• What adjectives would you use to describe the nature of your interactions with the [CENTER]?

• How did those interactions compare with other TA experiences you’ve had with other Centers, Clearinghouses, Consultants, or TA resources?

5. When you think about the time it took to receive assistance, how would you characterize the [CENTER]’s timeliness?

• Were you able to proceed on a timeline that was helpful for you? In other words, did you get the assistance you needed from [CENTER] as quickly as you needed? If not, what do you think the issue was?

• Who determined the timeline? Did you or the [CENTER] dictate the TA timeline or was that determined collaboratively?

• Were multiple interactions needed? If so, why do you think that is?

6. How satisfied were you with the responsiveness of the Center?

• In what ways could [CENTER] have been more responsive?

7. In what ways was the [CENTER] staff most helpful to you with regard to your issue/need?

• How was their knowledge/expertise relevant to your issue/need? What (if anything) was lacking?

• What could they have done differently to be more helpful?

3. Outcome of Interaction

8. Did [CENTER] provide you with information that helped solve the issue that caused you to contact [CENTER]?

• If YES,

  • How did you use the information provided by [CENTER]?

  • What materials did they provide?

  • Did you have to tailor it for your setting?

  • How difficult was it to tailor?

  • How long did it take to implement?

  • Was anything not relevant or outdated?

• How useful was that solution?

• Are you currently using that solution?

• If NO:

• How did the information from [CENTER] fall short?

• What did you end up doing?

• Is this still an issue?

• Where else have you reached out to try to find an answer/solution?

• What could [CENTER] have done to better meet your needs?

9. In what ways has the information/solution provided by [CENTER] changed how you/your organization operate?

• New policies/procedures in place?

• Revision of existing policies/procedures?

• Relationships with new organizations?

• Other?

• If none, why?

10. If changes were made in your organization, what did the [CENTER] do to make adoption of those changes possible?

11. Please describe any specific promising practices that the [CENTER] used that effectively lead to adoption or implementation of a specific policy or practice? If so, please describe.

12. What aspects/dimensions/characteristics of the way TA and Policy are delivered influence the adoption of practices and policies the most within your organization?

4. Overall Satisfaction

13. Overall, how satisfied are you with your experience with [CENTER]?

14. What recommendations would you make for improving the way [CENTER] provides services, information, etc.? Process and methods of TA service delivery or policy dissemination?

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