Fifth Quadrant’s Complaint handling policy

At Fifth Quadrant we aim to deliver excellence in market research. This policy underpins our commitment to acknowledge, investigate and respond to client complaints and feedback, and to be open to opportunities to improve our systems and service.

Our clients need to have their complaints and feedback about us, our services, our staff, or the handling of a complaint resolved appropriately.

We expect staff at all levels and in all areas of Fifth Quadrant to be committed to fair, effective and efficient complaint handling for all our customers. 

This policy allows our staff to take responsibility for helping clients and suppliers make a complaint, provide feedback, or offer suggestions about service improvements through fair, accessible, and transparent processes. 

We also expect that the services we provide will be conducted in an ethical and transparent manner and that our staff comply with the values and obligations of both the FQ Code of Conduct Policy and our FQ Anti-bribery and Corruption Policy.pdf. 

What is covered by this policy?

This policy applies to all complaints received by Fifth Quadrant or our agencies about our services and the handling of a complaint. 

It also applies to all our activities that involve receiving or managing complaints from our clients made to or about us, regarding our services, staff, and complaint handling.

This policy also applies to all complaints about Fifth Quadrant, all staff, consultants, contractors, and outsourced service providers performing work for Fifth Quadrant.

Guidance for staff related to staff grievances is set out in separate policies.

 Definitions 

Our complaint handling process

We aim to resolve complaints as soon as possible and when the complaint is first made. 

If our staff member is unable to find a resolution, the client can request a review of the issue and this review must be independent. 

To be an independent review, the staff member reviewing the complaint must not have been involved in the initial investigation of the complaint. 

Where a person making a complaint is dissatisfied with the outcome of this further review of their complaint, they may seek an external review of our decision with, for example, the NSW Ombudsman. 
 

Our key principles 

There are six key principles that underpin our complaints handling processes. They are that we:

• enable complaints and make it easy for clients to register a complaint or feedback
• respond to complaints quickly and keep the client informed
• resolve complaints quickly and flexibly
• are objective and fair, and no client is disadvantaged by lodging a complaint
• ensure confidentiality where this is practical and appropriate
• coordinate all parties included in a complaint, whether internal to Fifth Quadrant or separate organisations, ensuring one source of truth and building trust in our services and processes.

This policy and the accompanying Complaints Handling Procedure provide details on the processes, timeframes, and expectations that these principles drive.

What do our key principles mean for staff?

We enable complaints

Complaining to or about Fifth Quadrant is free.  Our focus is always on the client, including when dealing with feedback and complaints about our services, systems, practices, procedures, products, our staff and our complaint handling process.

This means that when anyone raises concerns via feedback or through a complaint we will:

• deal with their complaint in a reasonable timeframe
• provide them with information about our complaint handling process
• provide them with multiple and accessible ways to make complaints
• listen to them, treat them with respect and actively involve them in the complaint process where possible and appropriate
• communicate with them through their preferred method and, where required, through their preferred representative. 

We must also take all reasonable steps to ensure that people making complaints are not adversely affected because a complaint has been made by them or on their behalf.

We take anonymous complaints as seriously as any other complaint and we will investigate them, where possible. An anonymous complaint may mean that we won’t be able to communicate the resolution to the specific customer making the complaint, but it can still help us improve our processes. 

Staff are also encouraged to provide feedback on the effectiveness and efficiency of all aspects of our complaints management system. 

We respond to complaints

We expect staff to respond to complaints quickly and where possible, resolve a client’s complaint at the first contact with Fifth Quadrant.

This means that, regardless of the channel the customer has used to register their complaint, we always need to acknowledge a complaint once it has been made and refer it to the appropriate staff member in a timely manner.

We are committed to managing customer expectations and assisting them to an outcome for their complaint. This means we:

• promptly acknowledge complaints
• inform the complainant as soon as possible of:
  • our complaints process
  • the expected timeframes for our actions
  • the progress of their complaint and reasons for any delay
  • their likely involvement in the complaint resolution process.
• assess and prioritise the complaint in accordance with the urgency and/or seriousness of the issues raised. 

If a matter concerns an immediate risk to safety or security the response will be immediate and will be escalated appropriately. Refer to the guidelines or procedures relevant to your work area for the appropriate escalation procedure.

Our commitment is that we will acknowledge a complaint within five (5) working days of receipt and will communicate the resolution to the person making the complaint within 20 working days of receipt of their complaint.

We are objective and fair

We address each complaint with integrity and in an equitable, objective, and unbiased manner.

The staff member handling a complaint must not be the staff member whose conduct or service is being complained about.

Conflicts of interest, whether actual or perceived, will be managed responsibly and professionally. 

We also ensure that if the customer is not happy with the outcome of our internal review, we inform the customer of the steps they need to take to make a complaint to the NSW Ombudsman.

Confidentiality

We protect the identity of people making complaints where it is practical and appropriate to do so.

The identity of the complainant may be revealed (or become apparent) where we need to provide information about the complaint to investigate and resolve it. 

Personal information that identifies individuals will only be disclosed or used by the agency within DCS as permitted under the relevant privacy laws, secrecy provisions and any relevant confidentiality obligations.

Our professional responsibilities

At Fifth Quadrant, all staff need to commit to our six Customer Service Commitments:

• easy to engage
• act with empathy
• respect my time
• explain what to expect
• resolve the situation
• engage the client.

Anyone doing work for Fifth Quadrant must also commit to understand and comply with our complaint handling practices by:

• treating everyone with respect, including people who make complaints
• understanding and complying with this policy, our complaint handling procedures and any local rules or guidelines that apply to their work or legislative requirements
• following Fifth Quadrant’s complaint management system after a complaint is received:
  •  acknowledging the complaint
  •  assessing and investigating the complaint
  • escalating the complaint as required and appropriate
  • providing reasons for the decision to the client, including options for redress, where appropriate
  • closing the complaint
• assisting people who wish to make complaints to access our complaints process
•  being alert to complaints and assist staff handling complaints to resolve matters promptly
• providing feedback to management on issues arising from complaints through our complaint handling reporting processes
• implementing changes arising from individual complaints and from the analysis and evaluation of complaint data as directed by management.

Our staff whose principal duties involve complaints handling must further commit to demonstrating exemplary complaint handling practices by:

• assisting people in making a complaint, as required
• keeping informed about best practice in complaint handling
• providing feedback to management on issues arising from complaints through our complaint handling reporting processes
• providing suggestions to management on ways to improve the organisation’s complaints management system
• implementing changes arising from individual complaints and from the analysis of complaint data as directed by management.
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Alongside these responsibilities, our managers and executives must also commit to establishing and managing our complaint management system by:

• providing regular reports to the F&PM on issues arising from complaint handling work
• ensuring recommendations arising out of complaint data analysis are canvassed with the F&PM and implemented where appropriate
• recruiting, training and empowering staff to resolve complaints promptly and in accordance with our policies and procedures
• encouraging staff managing complaints to provide suggestions on ways to improve the organisation’s complaint management system
• encouraging all staff to be alert to complaints and assist those responsible for handling complaints to resolve them promptly
• recognising good complaint handling by staff. 

The Finance & People Manager (F&PM) also has the responsibility to promote a culture that values complaints and their effective resolution by:

• reporting publicly on our complaint handling
• providing adequate support and direction to key staff responsible for handling complaints
• regularly reviewing reports about complaint trends and issues arising from complaints
• encouraging all staff to be alert to complaints and assist those responsible for handling complaints to resolve them promptly
• encouraging staff to make recommendations for system improvements
• recognising good complaint handling by staff
• supporting recommendations for service, staff and complaint handling improvements arising from the analysis of complaint data.

If you have a complaint please contact us here.