ATO Single Corporate Perceptions Survey · ATO Corporate Perceptions Survey - 2 . CONTENTS. Page...

18/05/16

2015 ANNUAL REPORT

ATO Corporate Perceptions Survey

ATO Corporate Perceptions Survey - 2

CONTENTS

Page

Summary of key results 3

Conclusions 6

Background and objectives 7

Overview of methodology 8

Wider perceptions 10

Satisfaction 15

Service commitments 15

Overview of satisfaction across channels 17

Service expectations 18

Inbound phone 20

Shopfront 29

Correspondence 33

Compliance activities 38

Digital experience 46

Appendix A: Sample profiles 65


SUMMARY OF KEY RESULTS A

IMM

ET

HO

D

The ATO’s Corporate Perceptions survey provides overall community measurements of the ATO’s reputation and the ATO’s service delivery performance. This report presents the annual 2015 results, with comparisons made with 2014 (the benchmark year) where relevant.

The ATO acts with integrity

64 71 7953 62 65

55 63 6851 60 69

54 5565

50 53 6143

54 54

GENERAL PUBLIC PERCPETIONS OF THE ATO HAVE WORSENED SINCE 2014 FOR THREE MEASURES, BUT CONTACT WITH THE ATO CONTINUES TO POSITIVELY INFLUENCE WIDER PERCEPTIONS% agree (nett)

GP BC RC GP BC RC GP BC RC GP BC RC GP BC RC GP BC RC GP BC RC

The ATO is technologically

up-to-date

The ATO is doing a

good job

The ATO is fair and professional in how it

administers the tax and Superannuation system

The ATO applies the tax and

superannuation law with certainty and consistency

The ATO is open and

accountable

If I provided feedback to the ATO, I think they

would be responsive

GP = General public community (451) BC = Business Community (451) RC = Recent Contact Customers (3,100)

The survey involved telephone interviews with 4,002 respondents. Fieldwork was conducted from 24 March 2015 to 22 January 2016 and covered customer interactions that occurred during the 2015 calendar year. Both customers who had a recent service experience with the ATO and the wider Australian general public and business communities were surveyed.

WID

ER

PE

RC

EP

TIO

NS

OV

ER

AL

L S

AT

ISF

AC

TIO

N

The ATO continued to be viewed most favourably in terms of acting with integrity and least favourably for being responsive to feedback. General public perceptions of the ATO declined since 2014 for three of the attributes. Recent contact with the ATO continued to have a positive influence on wider perceptions of the ATO (furtheranalysis indicates this was especially the case among individuals). More in-depth analysis also shows tax professionals’ perceptions of the ATO were weaker than other customer groups in some regards (i.e.technologically up-to-date, responsiveness to feedback, and being open and accountable), but they were at least as likely as other customer groups to view the ATO as acting with integrity.

Base: customers who have had recent contact with the ATO (ranges from 139 to 3,070)

74 76 75 73 74 67 70 72 69 85 77 75 7055

70 7753

77 67

THREE IN FOUR ATO CUSTOMERS WERE SATISFIED WITH THE SERVICE THEY RECEIVED

% satisfied

TOTAL(ATO

sample)

Individual Micro SME Large business

Tax agent

BAS agent

Inbound phone

Inbound corresp

Shop-front

Online Outbound phone

Audit Website Outbound letter

Outbound email

ATO app

SMS myGov

Significantly lower than total

Individuals

Overall satisfaction across all customer groups and channels combined (74% in 2015) was consistent with the 2014 result (76%). Satisfaction continued to be lowest for the ATO app and website, although the websiteachieved a six point increase (significant at the 90% confidence level). Tax agents were the least satisfied customer group.

Other analysis shows service expectations fell slightly in 2015 (59% had positive expectations of the service they would receive, a drop of three points since 2014).

Significant decrease since 2014

Significant change since 2014

51% among individuals/general

public (primary target)


SE

RV

ICE

CO

MM

ITM

EN

TS

2015 ratings of the service commitments are on the whole consistent with the 2014 results.

Note, ratings for the attribute showing an annual decline (‘easy to meet my tax and Super obligations’) were not included in the first quarter of 2014. The 2015 quarterly results show that perceptions of this attribute are lower in the first quarter. When the 2015 first quarter results are removed from the annual calculation, there is no longer a significant difference between 2014 and 2015.

Knowledgeable in dealings with me*

Informed me of what I

needed to do*

Info sufficient to meet needs

Info I could rely on

Easy to meet my tax (and Super)

obligations

Time taken was acceptable

Kept informed about status/delays/issues*

Info I could understand

*These attributes were notasked of online customers

% Nett Agree (4-5) % Nett Disagree (1-2)Note: Ratings of ‘3’ or ‘don’t know’ not shown on chart

90%

80%

77%

77%

76%

75%73%

72%

68%

54%

53%

Treated respectfully and

courteously*

Easy to access info/service

ATO would be responsive to feedback

3%

8%

8%

11%

9%11%13%

15%

11%

19%

17%

Key shifts since 2014 Individuals’ perceptions of accessibility and a sense of being

treated fairly Tax professionals’ perceptions of staff taking responsibility to

resolve issues Business perceptions of timeliness and information

Base: inbound phone, inbound correspondence, shopfront, online, outbound phone, and audit (1,840-3,100)

OVERALL SATISFACTION

INB

OU

ND

PH

ON

E

61%55%

2014 2015

One contactCall resolution has worsened- In part due to more debt cases requiring multiple contacts

Most favourable perceptions• Treated respectfully and courteously• Treated fairly• Contact was in a way I wanted

Priorities for improvement• ATO took responsibility to solve issues• Easy to meet obligations• Individual circumstances taken into account• Time taken was acceptable• Easy to access services and information• Knowledgeable staff (tax professionals and businesses)• Improved information (large businesses and tax agents)

Key shifts since 2014 Individuals’ overall satisfaction Individuals’ perceptions of a tailored service, knowing what

to do, being treated fairly, information, and staff

OVERALL SATISFACTION

SH

OP

FR

ON

T

Most favourable perceptions• Treated respectfully and courteously• Treated fairly• Informed me of what I needed to do

Priorities for improvement• ATO took responsibility to solve issues• Easy to meet obligations• Individual circumstances taken into account• Knowledgeable staff and improved info (micro businesses)

2014 2015

One contact

56%68%

In 2015 individuals are more satisfied than businesses (76% vs 63%)

OVERALL SATISFACTION with inbound correspondence

CO

RR

ES

PO

ND

EN

CE

Most favourable perceptions (inbound correspondence)• Treated respectfully and courteously• Treated fairly

Priorities for improvement (inbound correspondence)• ATO took responsibility to solve issues• Reliable and sufficient information• Kept informed about status/delays• Knowledgeable staff (businesses)• Information I could understand (businesses)

Decline of 4 points since 2014, driven by individuals and general public

OVERALL SATISFACTION with outbound correspondence

72%

85%

69%

70%

Call resolution has improved- due to faster resolution of income tax queries, and fewer ABN or ABR queries among micro businesses


SMEs are most satisfied (81%)

70% OVERALL SATISFACTION

AU

DIT

S/R

EV

IEW

S


OU

TB

OU

ND

PH

ON

E

Most favourable perceptions• Treated respectfully and courteously• Treated fairly• Fully informed of information needed to provide• Informed me of what I needed to do

Priorities for improvement• Clearly explaining process• ATO took responsibility to solve issues• Help taxpayer meet obligations• Kept informed about issues/status/delays• Individual circumstances taken into account• Sufficient, easily understood, and reliable information• Easy to understand rights and obligations• Time taken was acceptable• Knowledgeable staff

Most favourable perceptions• Treated respectfully and courteously• Treated fairly


ON

LIN

E

(PO

RT

AL

)


WE

BS

ITE

Most favourable perceptions• Available when needed• Accessible on preferred device• Knowing I could contact the ATO for help

Priorities for improvement• Well organised and easy to navigate• Easy to access information I needed• Information I could understand• Information sufficient to meet needs• Individual circumstances catered for• Time taken was acceptable

Key shifts since 2014 Ease of accessing on preferred device (all portal users) Online service available when needed (all portal users) Confident ATO received info (especially individuals) Confidence in system security (tax professionals)

Key shifts since 2014 Overall satisfaction across all website visitors

(significant at 90% confidence level) SME overall satisfaction Perceptions of information being sufficient to meet

taxpayer’s needs More website visitors said they had no problem with

the website

Priorities for improvement• ATO took responsibility to solve issues• Knowledgeable staff• Helping customer meet tax obligations• Ease of dealing with the ATO• Easy to understand rights and obligations

Most favourable perceptions• Confident system is secure• Confident the ATO received my info• Ease of access

Priorities for improvement• Well organised and easy to navigate site• Able to do what is needed in one visit• Information I could understand• Individual circumstances catered for


CONCLUSIONS

This section draws together key research conclusions and recommendations.

The ATO’s reputation and service delivery continues to be regarded favourably

In 2015, 74% of customers rated their service experience positively (compared to 76% in 2014). Further, across the two years of

this research most of the general public and business communities believed the ATO acted with integrity and did a good job.

All offline channels continue to meet the needs of most customers, but with some shifts in perceptions of the inbound phone

service evident since 2014

Satisfaction levels are highest for the shopfront service, and individuals’ experiences of the shopfront service have improved

since 2014.

Whilst the ATO’s inbound phone service continues to serve most taxpayers across all customer groups well, several declines are

evident. Call resolution has declined, as has individuals’ perceptions of the inbound phone service’s accessibility and fair

treatment of customers, and tax professionals’ perceptions of issue resolution. Conversely, businesses view the inbound phone

service’s timeliness and information more favourably than in 2014.

Opportunities to improve satisfaction with the inbound phone service centre on:

Issue resolution and improved information (the latter is especially key for tax professionals and large businesses)

Considering individual circumstances and making it easy for taxpayers to meet their obligations

Accessibility and timeliness

More knowledgeable staff – a lynchpin factor that underpins all of the drivers of satisfaction, but particularly for

businesses and tax professionals.

Portal services lead the ATO’s online channel offering, but with the website gaining ground since 2014

Portals continue to be the online channel viewed most favourably, while the ATO’s website and app continue to rate less well.

However, the performance of the ATO website has improved since 2014. Specifically:

Overall satisfaction with the website has risen, especially among SMEs

Fewer customers report problems with the website

Visitors are more likely to find sufficient information to meet their needs.

Opportunities to further enhance satisfaction with the website continue to mainly focus on:

Site organisation and navigation issues (which are closely linked to perceptions of accessibility and timeliness)

Sufficient information that is tailored to individual circumstances and easy to understand.

Building trust in, and the reputation of, the ATO is increasingly important to curtail declining general public perceptions and

support digital transformation

Despite fairly high levels of service delivery across 2014 and 2015, there is evidence of declining wider perceptions of the ATO

among the general public in regard to:

An overall sense that the ATO is doing a good job

Administering the tax and superannuation system in a fair and professional manner

Being technologically up-to-date.

ATO communications may have contributed to this, e.g. satisfaction with outbound correspondence has dropped among

individuals. However, the challenge is likely to predominantly lie with managing other conduits of influence that help shape

reputation, such as media and word of mouth. Looking ahead, the ATO’s greater focus on reducing tax avoidance among

multinationals and wealthy individuals may work favourably in this regard.

As customer interactions with the ATO move increasingly online, the importance of favourable wider perceptions rises. The

2014 customer satisfaction modelling work showed that wider views of the ATO’s integrity, fairness, and professionalism can

influence taxpayers’ experiences of digital services, e.g. trust levels in the reliability of the information.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

The ATO commissioned Millward Brown to undertake a Corporate Perceptions survey focussing on enterprise wide issues

relating to the ATO as a government agency and administrator. The survey replaced a number of separate corporate perception

and satisfaction surveys and is designed to provide the ATO with a better evidence base for planning and reporting, including a

more sophisticated understanding of taxpayers.

Specifically, the survey is designed to provide overall community measurements of:

The ATO’s reputation

The ATO’s service delivery performance.

These measurements include external indicators of ATO performance as described by the ATO’s service commitments.

The survey has been conducted for two years. This report presents the 2015 annual results, with comparisons made to the 2014

(benchmark year) results where relevant.


OVERVIEW OF METHODOLOGY

The 2015/2016 Corporate Perceptions survey involved telephone interviews with 4,002 respondents. The survey was

conducted in four waves, with fieldwork conducted monthly, as follows:

Quarter Fieldwork dates Period of service interactions covered

March quarter 2015 23 March – 24 April 2015 January – March 2015

June quarter 2015 11 May – 28 July 2015 April – June 2015

September quarter 2015 11 August – 23 October 2015 July – September 2015

December quarter 2015 10 November – 22 January 2016 October – December 2015

Annual period 23 March, 2015 – 22 January 2016 January – December 2015

Two broad groups are surveyed:

1. Customers who have had a recent service experience with the ATO (sourced from contact lists generated from ATO

business systems) via a range of channels

2. Wider Australian communities (the general public community and the business community) – representative samples of

these communities include both those who have and have not had a recent service experience with the ATO.

The table below shows the respondent profile for the annual sample along with maximum margins of error. These have been

calculated at the 95% confidence level and assume simple random sampling. They also assume a survey result of 50%. As a

survey result moves closer to 0% or 100%, the margin of error decreases.

Sample structure

Sample group Annual

n=

Maximum margin

of error (on YTD

sample)

Customers who have had a recent service experience (sourced from ATO

business systems) 3,100 +/-1.8%

CH

AN

NEL

Inbound phone 1,163 +/-2.9%

Shopfront 150 +/-8.0%

Inbound correspondence 229 +/-6.5%

Audit 159 +/-7.8%

Outbound phone 139 +/-8.3%

Online (Portal) 1,260 +/-2.8%

CU

STO

MER

GR

OU

P Individuals 1,001 +/-3.1%

Micro 834 +/-3.4%

SMEs 646 +/-3.9%

Large businesses 169 +/-7.5%

Tax agents 228 +/-6.5%

BAS agents 222 +/-6.6%

Wider Australian communities

General public community 451 +/-4.6%

Business community 451 +/-4.6%

Total number of interviews 4,002 NA


Respondents who have experienced additional channels – outbound correspondence, outbound email, SMS messages, ATO

mobile web applications, the ATO website, and myGov – were identified by asking respondents from the various sample groups

in the above table about their experiences with these channels.

Additional groups used in the analysis

Sample group Annual

n=

Maximum margin

of error (on YTD

sample)

Outbound letter (last 3 months) 2,320 +/-2.0%

Outbound email (last 3 months) 1,029 +/-3.1%

SMS message (last 3 months) 422 +/-4.8%

ATO mobile web application (ever) 207 +/-6.8%

ATO website* (last 3 months) 1,221 +/-2.8%

myGov (last 3 months) 442 +/-4.7%

*The online ATO sample group was not asked about visiting the website in the last 3 months as, by definition, they had had a recent online service (portal) experience with the ATO.

NOTES TO THE READER

Subgroup analysis

Detailed subgroup analysis was carried out for this report. Results pertaining to customer satisfaction were largely analysed by

customer group and channel. Results pertaining to wider community perceptions were analysed by customers who had a recent

service experience, and the community groups, as well as demographics and business characteristics within the respective

community groups.

Significant tests used in this report

Throughout this report, only statistically significant differences at the 95% confidence level between sub-groups of the survey

population are presented unless otherwise specified. Column proportion tests of difference were used for all subgroup analysis.

An overlap formula was also applied during analysis which accounts for respondents that fall into more than one column.

Weighting

Unweighted data has been used for the ATO sample group.

Interviews completed with the general public community group have been weighted by age and gender according to ABS 2011

census population characteristics.

Interviews completed with the business community group have been weighted by business size according to ABS 2012 business

population data.

Base sizes

Base sizes are shown in the tables and graphs in brackets and use unweighted data (as the statistical reliability of results is

determined by unweighted base sizes). The percentages in the tables and graphs use weighted data, where relevant, to ensure

the survey results are representative of the populations of interest.

Rolling averages

Rolling averages (also known as moving averages) are used for the ‘wider perceptions’ results to smooth out the volatility

between quarters in the results, which were caused by small sample sizes in the business community and general pubic

community results in particular. They are calculated in this report using the average (mean) of the data of the most recent two

quarters. Rolling averages have not been used elsewhere in the report as the satisfaction results are largely focussed on the

recent contact samples (which tend to be larger).


WIDER PERCEPTIONS

This section examines wider perceptions of the ATO among the following groups: all customers who have had recent contact

with the ATO (with results also presented separately for individuals, businesses, and tax professionals who have had recent

contact), the general public community, and the business community. The latter two groups may or may not have had recent

contact with the ATO.

WIDER PERCPEPTIONS OF THE ATO BY RECENT CONTACT GROUP ANDCOMMUNITY GROUPS Salient points from the findings presented in the two charts overleaf are:

Across all groups, the ATO was viewed most favourably in terms of acting with integrity and least favourably for being

responsive to feedback.

The general public community viewed the ATO least favourably (for five of the seven attributes their perceptions are

lower than general business community perceptions). This largely arose from declining general public perceptions since

2014, evident in the nett agree scores for three of the attributes.

Recent contact with the ATO clearly had a positive influence on wider perceptions of the ATO. Interestingly, individuals

who had had recent contact with the ATO viewed the ATO more positively in terms of doing a good job, being

technologically up-to-date, and responsive to feedback, than businesses and tax professionals who had had recent

contact.

Although tax professionals’ perceptions of the ATO were weak in some regards (i.e. technologically up-to-date,

responsiveness to feedback, and being open and accountable) they were at least as likely as other customer groups to

view the ATO as acting with integrity.


D1: Now we have a question about your overall perceptions of the ATO. Please note that we are talking about how the ATO goes about its business and not about tax rates and tax laws. I’d like you to tell me how much you agree with each of these statements, using a scale of 1 to 5 where 1 is strongly disagree and 5 is strongly agree.

Community perceptions(%)

(1) Strongly disagree 2 4 (5) Strongly agree

IND - IndividualsBUS - BusinessesTAX – Tax/BAS agents

GP - General public communityBC - Business communityRC - Recent contact customers

Significant increase/decrease since last year

The ATO applies the tax and superannuation law with certainty and consistency

The ATO is open and accountable

If I provided feedback to the ATO, I think they would be responsive

7 7 5 4 6 7 6 10 7 5 712 16

11 13 11 13 161 43 3 3 3 2

33 3 3

45

46 5

78

4338 40 38 41 41

35 37 38 38 39 3732

37 35 37 34 32

11 17

25 28 24 25

1416

23 26 2220

11

16 1923

1815

GP BC RC

55

65

9 8

54 53

61

814

10

5054 54

21

1519

43

11

GP BC RC GP BC RCIND(RC)

BUS (RC)

TAX(RC)

IND(RC)

BUS (RC)

TAX(RC)

IND(RC)

BUS (RC)

TAX(RC)

46

23

57

15

66

10

64

8

61

10

53

19

66

7

64

9

60

16

6pts

5pts

3pts

3pts

6pts

5pts

6pts

Base: General public community (451), business community (451), all recent contact customers (3,100), individuals with recent contact(1,001), businesses with recent contact (1,649), tax professionals with recent contact (450)

Community perceptions(%)

3 2 2 2 2 211

6 5 5 5 7 7 6 6 5 6 8 6 5 7 7 7 101 2 1 2 1

33 2 2 3

1 2 3 2 32 2

1 3 3 3 2

6

48 50 46 44 46 5041 43 43 40

45 44 43 47 44 44 44 4335

44 42 43 42 42

1521 33 33 32

32

10

1726 30 24 25

12

16 2429

2318

18

18 2329

2215

The ATO is doinga good job

The ATO is fair and professional in how it administers the tax and

superannuation systemThe ATO acts with integrity

The ATO is technologicallyup-to-date

64

71

79

3

GP BC RC GP BC RC GP BC RC GP BC RC

5 3

51

60

69

6368

55

62 65

53

7 798 9

1488 10

IND(RC)

BUS (RC)

TAX(RC)

IND(RC)

BUS (RC)

TAX(RC)

IND(RC)

BUS (RC)

TAX(RC)

IND(RC)

BUS (RC)

TAX(RC)

57

16

62

9

68

8

82

2

64

9

67

8

69

8

79

3

78

4

70

7

74

8

72

10

7pts

5pts

7pts

7pts7

pts

9pts

8pts

3pts

2pts

6pts

6pts

6pts

7pts 10

pts 5pts

(1) Strongly disagree 2 4 (5) Strongly agree

IND - IndividualsBUS - BusinessesTAX – Tax/BAS agents

GP - General public communityBC - Business communityRC - Recent contact customers

Base: General public community (451), business community (451), all recent contact customers (3,100), individuals with recent contact(1,001), businesses with recent contact (1,649), tax professionals with recent contact (450)


7pts


CHANGES IN WIDER PERCEPTIONS OVER TIME For the same six groups, the next charts (on this page and overleaf) show how wider perceptions of the ATO have changed over

time in more detail.

Salient points are as follows:

General public perceptions of the ATO worsened in regard to:

o The ATO being fair and professional in how it administers the tax and superannuation system – a low point was

reached in the June 2015 quarter. This appears to be a non-seasonal effect as it was at a level lower than at

the same time in 2014.

o The ATO being technologically up-to-date – perceptions declined between the March and June quarters of

June 2015 and did not recover.

o The ATO doing a good job – the result of a gradual decline over time.

Individuals’ perceptions of the ATO being fair and professional in how it administers the tax and superannuation system

declined since 2014. Of note, the relatively low levels in the last two quarters of 2015 were significantly lower than at

the same time in 2014. However, individuals’ favourable ratings were still comparable with those of businesses and tax

practitioners who had had recent contact.

5851

59 60

71 69

62

65

62

52 5147

485557 59 58

58 59

57 63 63

70 70 71 73 71 69 69 69

30

100

General publicBusiness communityRecent contact

The ATO is fair and professional in how it administers the tax and Superannuation system

% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2 quarter rolling average

(224 - 451)

(1,449 – 3,100)

(224 - 451)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

75 7070 6967 6871

73 76 77 7571 70 7071

69 68

72

70 69

69

6864 66 67 67

70 67 65

69

30

100

IndividualsBusinessesTax practitioners

The ATO is fair and professional in how it administers the tax and Superannuation system

% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D


(495 – 1,011)

(217 - 485)

(715 – 1,649)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

RECENT CONTACT

6153

62 6267 65

6056

62

64

52 54 54

66 68

6056 57

62 6665 67

68 66 65 67 66

30

100


The ATO is technologically up-to-date

% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D


(224 - 451)

(1,449 – 3,100)

(224 - 451)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

74 7266 64

58 57

74 75 74 72 74 7570

6465

67

65 62 64 65

5157

6158 56 58 58

30

100

IndividualsBusinessesTax practitioners% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D


(495 – 1,011)

(217 - 485)

(715 – 1,649)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

RECENT CONTACTThe ATO is technologically up-to-date

53 5053 53

63 61

53

56

54 51 53 5347 4649 51 54

55

53 5056 57

62 63 62 64 62 60 61 63

30

100



% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D


(224 - 451)

(1,449 – 3,100)

(224 - 451)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

68 6462 6159 5766 67 68 68 66 63 63 65

60 60 61

63

61

60 616263

6356 55

5953 55

61

30

100



% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D


(495 – 1,011)

(217 - 485)

(715 – 1,649)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

RECENT CONTACT

Base: Noted in brackets in graphs

Significant increase/decrease since last quarter/year M = March quarter, J = June quarter, S = September quarter, D = December quarter= Significantly different from the same quarter, last year.


6255

5863

69 6865

65 59

60

5753 53 5757

60

61

56

5963 65 63

7169 68 69 69 68 69 68

30

100


The ATO is doing a good job

% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D


(224 - 451)

(1,449 – 3,100)

(224 - 451)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

76 7466 67

64 62

75 75 76 76 74 74 74 73

67 65

64

68 69 67 67

6673

7062 59 59 58

64 66

30

100


M J S D M J S D


(495 – 1,011)

(217 - 485)

(715 – 1,649)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

RECENT CONTACTThe ATO is doing a good job

65 6468

7179 79

6270

68

5966 68

58 59

75 73

66

64 70

7172

72

80 79 78 79 79 79 78 79

30

100



% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D


(224 - 451)

(1,449 – 3,100)

(224 - 451)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

78 7879 7980 82

77 77

7980

78 77 76 7881

79 75 78

80 79 7978

82 82 80

78 79

81 81 83

30

100



% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D


(495 – 1,011)

(217 - 485)

(715 – 1,649)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

RECENT CONTACT

55 5456 5565 65

5160

58

50

54 58

5249

5858 56

54

48 50

61 59

64 64 65 67 65 64 66 67

30

100


The ATO applies the tax and Superannuation law withcertainty and consistency

% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D


(224 - 451)

(1,449 – 3,100)

(224 - 451)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

69 6665 6460

6665 67 71 7065 64

66

6965

63 61

67 66 64

66 6559 61 62 59 60 63

6769

30

100


M J S D M J S D


(495 – 1,011)

(217 - 485)

(715 – 1,649)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

RECENT CONTACT

The ATO applies the tax and Superannuation law withcertainty and consistency

44 4350 5454 54

43 46 4842 43 47 43

39

54

50 50

50 50 53 565453

53 54 55 54 53 55 55

20

100


If provided feedback to the ATO I think they would be responsive

% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D


(224 - 451)

(1,449 – 3,100)

(224 - 451)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

59 6053 53

47 465458 62 61 58 58 61 61

51 51 52 55

53 52 52

53

59

5342 43

48 46 47 47

20

100


M J S D M J S D


(495 – 1,011)

(217 - 485)

(715 – 1,649)

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

RECENT CONTACT

If provided feedback to the ATO I think they would beresponsive

Base: Noted in brackets in graphs

Significant increase/decrease since last quarter/year M = March quarter, J = June quarter, S = September quarter, D = December quarter= Significantly different from the same quarter, last year.


DEMOGRAPHIC VARIATIONS Demographic variations in the business community’s perceptions of the ATO are as follows:

Partnerships had more positive perceptions of the ATO’s openness and accountability than sole traders (63% agreed vs

46%, respectively)

Smaller businesses (annual turnover under $100,000) rated the ATO more favourably than larger businesses (annual

turnover over $100,000):

o The ATO is doing a good job (71% agreed vs 56%, respectively)

o The ATO being responsive to feedback (63% agreed vs 46%, respectively).

A larger number of demographic variations exist in the general public community’s perceptions of the ATO. These are as

follows:

Females held more positive perceptions than males of the ATO being open and accountable (57% agreed vs 42%)

Younger Australians held more positive perceptions of the ATO’s application of tax and superannuation law being

certain and consistent (63% of those aged under 40 agreed vs 47% of those aged 40+)

Conversely, older Australians held more positive perceptions of the ATO being responsive (49% of those aged 40+

agreed vs 35% of those aged under 40)

Australians who speak a language other than English at home1 held less favourable perceptions of the ATO, than those

who do not speak another language at home, in terms of the following:

o Acting with integrity (52% agreed, vs 66% of those who only speak English at home)

o Being fair and professional in how it administers the tax and superannuation system (33% agreed, vs 54% of

those who only speak English at home).

Several differences in perceptions of the ATO also exist according to current employment status. These are as follows:

o Those working in full time employment had more favourable perceptions of the ATO than those working in

part time employment, in terms of:

Acting with integrity (68% agreed vs 55%)

Applying the tax and superannuation law with certainty and consistency (60% agreed vs 44%).

o Those who are retired, receive government assistance or primarily do home duties have less favourable

perceptions of the ATO being technologically up-to-date than those of any other employment status (40%

agreed vs 58%).

1 These results are based on 46 respondents who say they speak a language other than English at home.


SATISFACTION

This section examines customers’ satisfaction with the ATO’s service from a range of channels.

SERVICE COMMITMENTS The ATO’s service commitments are in place to assure the community, and the ATO, that the services it provides are of a

consistent and high standard. The chart below summarises the annual results related to these.

Question scale: Please use a scale of 1 to 5 where 1 is strongly disagree, 2 is disagree, 3 is neither agree nor disagree, 4 is agree and 5 is strongly agree.

On the whole, the 2015 results are fairly similar to those in 2014. At least seven in ten customers rated the ATO favourably on

eight of the 11 service commitments. The ATO’s service was again viewed most favourably for the ATO and its staff treating the

customer respectfully and courteously, and informing the customer of what they need to do. The least favourably rated service

commitments again relate to follow up (keeping the customer informed about the status of their issue/delays), and being

responsive to feedback. Just over half of customers rated these service commitments positively.

Since 2014, a small but significant decline in favourable ratings are evident for the ATO making it easy to meet the taxpayer’s tax

and superannuation obligations (partly driven by a decrease among large businesses) and individuals’ perceptions of the ATO

making it easy to access information and services. However, ratings for these attributes were not included in the first quarter of

2014. The 2015 quarterly results show that perceptions of these attributes are lower in the first quarter. When the 2015 first

quarter results are removed from the annual calculations, there are no longer significant differences between 2014 and 2015.

Differences in perceptions by customer group and channel are summarised in the text boxes in the chart above. Compared to

other channels, the shopfront service was rated most favourably for eight of the 11 service commitments. The ATO’s online

(portal) service was perceived especially favourably on several attributes related to a theme of ease and efficiency. Whilst the

Service commitment standards (all channels)

90%

80%

77%

77%

76%

68%

75%

73%

72%

54%

53%

3%

11%

8%

8%

9%

11%

11%

13%

15%

19%

17%

Treated respectfully and courteously*

Knowledgeable in dealings with me*

Informed me of what I needed to do*



Easy to access info/service

Easy to meet my tax (and Super) obligations


Kept informed about status/delays/issues*


% Nett Agree (4-5) % Nett Disagree (1-2)

Base: 2015 data. Inbound phone, inbound correspondence, shopfront, online, outbound phone and audit (n=1,840 – 3,100 depending on attribute) *These attributes were not asked of online customers

Respondents who rated the service a 3 (neither agree nor disagree), or were unsure, are not displayed on the chart. Both are included in the bases.


Shopfront 91%Inbound corr. 73%Large businesses 69%

Shopfront 86%Individuals 81%Inbound phone 80%Businesses 75%Online 73%

Shopfront 85%Online 79%Large businesses 70%

Shopfront 86%Individuals 79%Businesses 74%Inbound corr. 68%Shopfront 86%

Micros 80%Individuals 79%SMEs 71%Tax agent 66%

Individuals78% → 74%

Shopfront 83%Online 80%Inbound phone 68%Inbound corrs. 62%

Shopfront 82%Online 78%Inbound phone 68%Inbound corr. 62%Micros 75%Tax agents 64%


Online 75%Inbound phone 65%Inbound corr. 61%Tax agents 61%

Large businesses80% → 67%

4pts

Shopfront 73%Inbound corr. 65%Online 51%Individuals 60%SMEs 49%Tax agent 43%

Audit 67%Inbound phone 51%Micros 57%Tax agents 44%


inbound phone channel was viewed less favourably than other channels in terms of convenience (i.e. timeliness and ease of

access), it was viewed most positively for providing information the customer can understand. Audit/review customers were

most likely to positively rate the follow up they received. Tax agents tended to be less satisfied, with their ratings of five of the

service commitments lower than average.

CHANGES IN SERVICE CO MMITMENTS OVER TIME

A small number of changes are evident in ratings of the service commitments over time. These are illustrated below.

80 7980 76 76

8579 82 79 76

0

100

Individuals (149-164)% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

61 57

60 63 6559 54 49

5966

0

100

Micro (120-193)% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

Knowledgeable in dealings with me Kept informed about status/delays/issues

45 4368

3933

44 4638

5140

0

100

Tax agents (55-76)% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL


Base: Individuals, 2014 (n=621), 2015 (n=611)

Significantly different from same quarter, previous year

Base: Micro, 2014 (n=558), 2015 (n=550)


Base: Tax agents , 2014 (n=264), 2015 (n=228)



Easy to meet obligations

Base: All recent contact customers (2014 n= 2050, 2015 n=2772), Large businesses (2014 n=107, 2015 n=141)


72 6880

67

72 73 70

66

67 72 69

76 7987

50

6373

88

0

100

All recent contact (644-723)

Large businesses (19-49)% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

78 7477 79 78

70 73 76 75

0

100

Individuals (232-246)% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

Easy access service/info

Base: Individuals, 2014 (n=726), 2015 (n=954)



OVERVIEW OF SATISFACTION ACROSS CHANNELS

The chart below summarises satisfaction levels with the overall quality of the service received, by customer group and channel.

Overall, around three quarters (74%) of customers were satisfied with the quality of the service they received in 2015. This has

not changed significantly since 2014 (76%).

There is a small amount of variation in nett satisfaction levels by customer group. Tax agents were least satisfied. Individuals

and micro businesses were more likely to be very satisfied (a rating of 5 out of 5).

Greater variation in satisfaction levels is evident by channel. Nett satisfaction levels (ratings of 4 or 5) were highest for the

shopfront and online (portal) channels, and lowest for the website and ATO app. Satisfaction levels in 2015 were similar to

those measured in 2014 for all channels with the exception of outbound letter, which experienced a drop of four points.

A5a/B3 (Inbound phone, inbound correspondence, shopfront and online): How satisfied were you with the overall quality of the (service/online service) you received? A5a (Outbound phone and audit): How satisfied were you overall with the way the ATO handled the (contact/review or audit)? C6a/6b/6c: Overall, how satisfied were you with the quality of the (letter/SMS or txt message/email) you received? C2/C9/C11: Overall, how satisfied were you with your experience of (visiting the ATO’s website/using the app/using myGov to manage your tax or super online)? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

Overall satisfaction by channel

(%)

6 6 7 6 511 8 8 10

5 5 412

5 29

3 64 4 5 3 4

33 5

6

3

2 8 8

6

51

8

27

39 36 3644

5041 38

33 29 27

50

3732

3732 35

2835 35

35 40 3929

24

26 32 3939

58

27

3738

1837

43

25

4232

TOTAL(ATO

sample) Individual Micro SMELarge Bus

BAS agent

Inbound phone

Inboundcorresp.

Shop front Online

Outbound Phone Audit

(3,070) (981) (826) (645) (228) (222) (159)(139)(1,163) (229) (150) (952)

Outbound letter

(2,178)

ATO APP

(220)(168)

Taxagent Website

(669)

Outbound email

(1,411)

SMS

(722)

myGov

(581)*

74 76 7573 74

67 70 72 69

8577 75

70 70

77

53

77

67

10 10 11 9 814 11 13

16

7 1311 13

9

3

17

5

13

55

4pts

4

(1) Very dissatisfied 2 4 (5) Very satisfiedSignificantly higher or lower than total


Base: Customers who have had recent contact with ATORespondents who rated the service a 3 (neither agree nor disagree), or were unsure, are not displayed on the chart. Both are included in the bases.*Note, myGov satisfaction is based on individuals and general public who have used myGov in the last 3 months.


SERVICE EXPECTATIONS The chart below summarises service expectations by customer group and channel.

Service expectations have fallen slightly since 2014. Fifty-nine percent of customers had positive expectations of the quality of

service they would receive (rating of 4 or 5 out of 5) in 2015, a drop of three points. This fall appears to largely stem from a

decline in expectations among individuals (down five points to 55%).

Ten percent of all customers had negative expectations of the quality of service they would receive (rating of 1 or 2 out of 5).

Tax professionals have the highest expectations. In terms of channel, expectations are highest for inbound correspondence.

A6a (Inbound phone, inbound correspondence, shopfront): Before you had this last contact with the ATO, what quality of service did you expect? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very poor service’ and 5 means ‘very good service’. A6a (Audit and outbound phone): Before you had (contact/the review or audit) with the ATO, how well did you expect the ATO to handle it? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very poorly’ and 5 means ‘very well’. B4a (Online): Before you first tried this ATO online service, what quality of service did you expect? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very poor service’ and 5 means ‘very good service’.

Service expectations

(%)

Base: Customers who have had recent contact with ATO

7 9 6 84 2 5 5 5 8 7 6 5

9 8

34

34

32

3 3 35 5 5

2

61

3026

3227

35 3833

39

27 2934

19

3126

33

2929

2830

28 21 34

31

36 29

31

37

31

2921

TOTAL(ATO

sample)

(3,070) (981) (1,639) (826) (168) (450) (228) (222) (1,163) (229)(645)

Individual

Any recent contact business Micro SME

Large business

Any tax professional Tax agent Bas agent

Inbound phone

Inbound corresp Shopfront Online

Outbound phone Audit

(150) (952) (139) (159)

5955

6058

6459

6763

58

66

5661

55 54

10 13 912

75

8 8 913 12 11

715

9

703pts

5pts

(1) Poor 2 4 (5) Good

Significantly higher or lower than total

Significant increase/decrease since last yearRespondents who rated their service expectations a 3 (neither good nor poor), or were unsure, are not displayed on the chart. Both are included in the bases.


COMPARISONS OF SERVICE EXPERIENCE WITH EXPECTATIONS The chart below summarises how the service experience compared with expectations. A five point scale was used where 1 is

‘much worse than I expected’ and 5 is ‘much better than I expected’. Note, unlike other bar charts included in this report the

midpoint ratings (3) are illustrated on the graph as these are not considered to be a neutral rating; rather they indicate

expectations were met.

Six in ten (60%) customers rated their service experience better than they had expected (a drop of three points since 2014), 12%

rated it worse than they had expected, and 27% indicated it matched their expectations.

The small drop in service expectations being exceeded stemmed from individuals and the inbound phone channel. Note,

however, that individuals continued to be the customer group most likely to have their expectations exceeded. The service

expectations of tax agents and SMEs were least likely to be exceeded. The shopfront channel was most likely to exceed

customer expectations, whereas the online (portal) and inbound correspondence channels were least likely to exceed

expectations.

A6b (Inbound phone, inbound correspondence, shopfront): Looking back, how did the service you received from the ATO compare to what you expected? A6b: (Audit and outbound phone): Looking back, how did the way the ATO handled the (contact/review or audit) compare to what you expected? B4b: Looking back, how did the ATO online service you used compare to what you expected? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘much worse than I expected’ and 5 means ‘much better than I expected’.

6 6 6 5 5 8 7 9 5 6 9 3 63 5

6 75 6 5 4

7 6 9 8 8

5 49 7

2721

3025

3436 32

36

2824

28

13

3324 20

29

29

30

28

3035

3028

32

27

26

27

34

23 28

3036

2834

2418

22 2025

3429

47

23

40 36

(1) Much worse than expected 2 3 4 (5) Much better than I expected

Quality of service compared to expectations

(%)

Base: Customers who have had recent contact with ATO

TOTAL(ATO

sample)

(3,070) (981) (1,639) (826) (168) (450) (228) (222) (1,163) (229)(645)

Individual

Any recent contact business Micro SME

Large business

Any tax professional Tax agent Bas agent

Inbound phone

Inbound corres Shopfront Online

Outbound phone Audit

(150) (952) (139) (159)

60 65 58 62 55 53 52 57 62 55 75 57 63 64

12 13 11 12 10 11 14 14 14 14 17 8 10 12 12

48

3pts5pts

4pts

Significantly higher or lower than total



INBOUND PHONE

OVERALL SATISFACTION The following two charts show customers’ overall satisfaction with the quality of the service they received from the inbound

phone channel. The first chart looks at satisfaction levels over time for all inbound phone customers and the second chart

displays the 2015 nett satisfaction ratings by customer group.

Nearly three quarters (72%) of customers were satisfied with the inbound phone service in 2015. This has not changed

significantly since 2014 (74%).

In 2015 micro businesses were more satisfied than SMEs or tax professionals. Additional analysis reveals a seasonal effect

among businesses. In both 2014 and 2015, businesses’ ‘very satisfied’ ratings declined in the June quarter and recovered in the

September quarter.

A5a: How satisfied were you with the overall quality of the service you received? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.


78 7569 70

62

8073

7768

5863

74

2014

2015

Overall satisfaction with inbound phone by customer group

Individuals Micro SME Large business Tax agent BAS agent

(397) (390) (305) (311) (207) (223) (23*) (40) (100) (103) (112) (96)

Base: Inbound phone customers

*Caution: small sample size

Businesses who are very satisfied dips in June quarters and recovers in September quarters (32% to 48% in 2014 and 33% to 45% in 2015)

% nett satisfied

Overall satisfaction with inbound phone


M = March quarter, J = June quarter, S = September quarter, D = December quarter

73 74 75 74 71 72 7173

42 4048

38 37 40 39 41

11 10 13 12 13 14 13 12

0

100

Nett satisfied

Very satisfied

Nett dissatisfied

2014 2015

(1,144) (1,163)

74

42

12

72

39

13

%

M J S D M J S D

(205) (300) (310) (310) (303) (300) (293) (267)

2014 2015 ANNUAL

Significant increase/decrease since last quarter


3

First priority

Second priority

Third priority

DRIVERS OF OVERALL SATISFACTION

Import

ance (

index s

core

)

Higher PerformanceLower Performance

Strong

driver

Weak

driver

PRIORITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT Next we present the results of multivariate analysis undertaken to establish the priorities for service improvements of the

inbound phone channel.

Service attributes have been mapped onto two key dimensions:

1. The perceived ‘performance’ of the ATO on service elements

2. The relative level of importance of each of these service elements (i.e. the strength of the element in driving overall

satisfaction).

The level of satisfaction with the service offered is

asked in the interview. The importance index is

calculated at the data analysis stage using a

combination of statistical analysis techniques

(regression and correlation). By examining these

results together, we can establish both the relative

level of importance of a given service or performance

element, and performance on this same element.

Attributes that are very important to customers, but

are ones which customers perceive the ATO to be

performing less well on, should be the ATO’s first area

of priority (see diagram to right).

The analysis described above is presented on the next

four charts. The first chart presents the results for all inbound phone customers. The subsequent three charts look at the

results separately for individuals, micro businesses, SMEs, BAS agents and tax agents.

Across all customer groups, the ATO performs especially well in treating customers respectfully and courteously, treating

customers fairly, and meeting customers’ channel preferences (i.e. offering contact to the customer in a way that they want).

Top priorities to focus on in order to improve overall satisfaction with the quality of the inbound phone service continue to

relate to problem resolution (i.e. the ATO and its staff taking responsibility to solve issues and problems), making it easy for

customers to meet their tax and superannuation obligations, providing a tailored service (i.e. taking individual circumstances

into account), timeliness and accessibility.

Follow-up (i.e. keeping the customer informed about status/issues) is also an area for consideration. Although it is not as strong

a driver as the above attributes, inbound phone customers perceive the ATO least favourably in this regard.

Whilst the patterns are broadly similar by customer type, there are additional priorities for some groups:

Staff knowledge is a priority for improvement for tax professionals, large businesses, and SMEs

Improved information is especially key for large businesses and tax agents

Making it easy to meet their clients’ tax obligations is a particular priority for tax agents (their perceptions of this are

notably lower than those of BAS agents)

Perceptions of the time taken being acceptable are notably lower among SMEs and large businesses.


Drivers of overall satisfaction with inbound phone – individuals

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

INDIVIDUALS

60% 65% 70% 75% 80% 85% 90%

0.3

0.4

0.5

Contact was in a way that I wanted

Info I could rely onInfo I could understand

Easy to access services and info

Info sufficient to meet needsIndividual circumstances taken into account

ATO made it easy to meet tax and super obligationsTreated respectfully and courteously

Knowledgeable in dealings with me

Informed me of what I needed to do

Kept informed about status/delays/issues

Took responsibility to solve issues

Easy to deal with

Treated fairly


Inbound phone customers – individuals (390) Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.

Drivers of overall satisfaction with inbound phone – all customers

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

ALL INBOUND PHONE CUSTOMERS

60% 65% 70% 75% 80% 85% 90%

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5





Individual circumstances taken into account

ATO made it easy to meet tax and super obligations

Treated respectfully and courteously




Took responsibility to solve issuesEasy to deal with

Treated fairly


All inbound phone customers (1,163)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.


Drivers of overall satisfaction with inbound phone – micro, SMEs, and large businesses

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7






Treated respectfullyand courteously




Easy to deal with

Treated fairly










Treated fairly









Knowledgeable in dealings with meInformed me of what I needed to do



Understood complex tax issues

Treated fairly


MICRO SME LARGE


Individual circumstancestaken into account

Easy to deal with

Able to resolve issues reasonably

ATO made it easyto meet tax and super obligations




Easy to deal with


Inbound phone customers – micro (311), SMEs (223), and large businesses (40)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.

Drivers of overall satisfaction with inbound phone – tax agents and BAS agents

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

TAX AGENT

60% 70% 80% 90%

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7






ATO made it easy to meetclients’ tax obligations






Easy to deal with

Treated fairly








ATO made it easy to meet clients’ tax and obligations Treated respectfully and courteously

Knowledgeable in dealings with meInformed me of what I needed to do



Easy to deal with

Treated fairly


BAS AGENT

Inbound phone customers – tax agents (103) and BAS agents (96)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.


Changes over time in service attributes ratings

A number of changes in service attribute ratings over time are evident. These are illustrated below. Since 2014, individuals’

perceptions of the inbound phone service declined in relation to making it easy for taxpayers to meet their obligations,

accessibility, and a sense of being treated fairly. Tax professionals’ perceptions of staff taking responsibility to solve issues

declined. Conversely, businesses viewed the timeliness of the inbound phone service more favourably than in 2014. In the last

quarter (December 2015), micro businesses’ perceptions of the inbound phone service providing information they can

understand has reached a new high.

7368

72

58

72 74 7671

6569 70 69

65

78 78

65

5564

58 56

30

100

All Inbound phone (265 - 310)

Inbound phone - Tax professionals (31 - 71)


% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

Annual base: All inbound phone (2014 n=1144; 2015 n=1163), Inbound phone tax professionals(2014 n=212; 2015 n=199)

Easy to meet tax / Super obligations

7769

76 7974

78

66 6771 72

30

100

Inbound phone - Individuals (94 - 100)

Easy to access

% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

Annual base: Inbound phone individuals (2014 n=397; 2015 n=390)

8882

88 88 90 8883 84

7885

30

100

Inbound phone - Individuals (94 - 100)

Treated fairly

% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

Annual base: Inbound phone individuals (2014 n=397; 2015 n=390)

6965

7163

6674

6761

65 66 68

6776

6965

59 6068

30

100

All inbound phone (267 - 310)

Inbound phone - Individuals (94 - 100)% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

Annual base: All inbound phone (2014 n=879; 2015 n=1163), Inbound phone individuals (2014 n=297; 2015 n=390)

81 8181 83

82 79 81 8177 77

81

92

78 8085

8177 79 79

95

30

100

Inbound phone - Any business (109 - 152)

Inbound phone - Micros (66 - 103)

Information I could understand

% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

Annual base: Inbound phone - Any business (2014 n=535; 2015 n=574), Inbound phone micros (2014 n=305; 2015 n=311)

6368

6254

7265 64 61

7378

30

100

Inbound phone - Any business (109 - 152)


% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

Annual base: Inbound phone - Any business (2014 n=535; 2015 n=574)

Significant increase/decrease since previous quarter/year= Significantly different from the same quarter, last year.


Suggestions for improvement

In the 2015 December quarter of fieldwork, inbound phone customers who were less than ‘satisfied’ with the overall quality of

service were asked what the ATO could have done for the respondent to give them a better rating. This question was asked

without prompting with answer options. Responses are summarised in the table below. Categories that are similar have been

grouped together and presented as a ‘nett score’ (see bolded descriptions and figures) – each nett score figure gives the

percentage of respondents that gave at least one of the more detailed reasons (which are listed below the nett score).

Inbound phone customers’ unprompted suggestions for improvement of service quality

Inbound phone customers who are less than

satisfied with service quality*

(n=70)

%

Improve systems, processes, channels 31

Allocate case managers/deal with one person 7

Staff to be more consistent 4

Be more flexible with payment arrangements/debts 4

Better communication between ATO staff/departments 4

Follow up of unpaid Super needs to be better 4

Improve website navigation/less clutter 4

Ability to be contacted over the holidays 3

Not have to do everything online 3

Improve the way AUSkey works 1

Better communication/information 26

Keep people updated/provide follow up 9

Provide more information/advice 7

Make things clearer and easier to understand/less complicated 4

Improve communication 3

Provide accurate/correct correspondence 3

Improved understanding of taxpayer situation 24

Consider my individual case/circumstances 14

Listen 4

Be aware of client history 3

Need to do more research/look into the problem more thoroughly 3

Reply to issues instead of generic responses 1

Improved efficiency 21

Answer phone promptly/not on hold too long/no automated system 10

Be faster/more efficient 9

Quicker response 6

Better staff 13

Be more personable/compassionate/helpful/professional 7

Be more knowledgeable/qualified 7

Other 13

Follow through with my request/do what you say you will 7

Resolved the issue 3

Be fairer 1

Other 11

Nothing 4

Don’t know 1 Source: A5ai *Note, these results are based on respondents interviewed in the December 2015 quarter, when the question was introduced to the survey. Percentages add to more than 100% as respondents were able to suggest more than one improvement.


IMPROVE SYSTEMS, PROCESSES, CHANNELS

Staff to be more consistent

Allocate case manager/deal with one person

Ensuring staff are the same staff so I don't get a different answer each time I call. (Micro, Inbound phone)

There needs to be more consistency between staff members and what they tell you. Also, there needs to be a way that staff

members can look up previous calls and information that will help current calls. (Individual, Inbound phone)

All I needed was somebody to have a more individual approach to my case - I had to repeat myself on several occasions.

Maybe they could allocate a case manager - somebody I can communicate with so I can develop a trust with someone and

come up with a better solution. (Individual, Inbound phone)

They seem to have a disconnect with the people you deal with and the subsequent action that follows. Have to re-explain

things to new people and go through the whole process again. (BAS agent, Inbound phone)

Don’t transfer people around so much. I just want to speak to one person. (Micro, Inbound phone)

BETTER COMMUNICATION/ INFORMATION

I would've liked to receive some kind of assurance that they would follow up with my missing funds, which are due to me by

the liquidator. (BAS agent, Inbound phone)

They should contact me because we lost our company return. It’s been five months and they haven't given me my tax

return. I need a call from someone like a supervisor. (Individual, Inbound phone)

A little more info on where they were up to with my claim, they said they would keep in touch but they did not. (Individual,

Inbound phone)

A faster timeline to deal with this. We had to constantly chase them and it took far longer than it should have. (Tax agent,

Inbound phone)

Keep people updated

Provide more information/advice

More certainty in interpreting tax rules. The ATO officers do not seem to provide us with opinions on the tax rules, but just

refer us to the website. (Tax agent, Inbound phone)

I wish they could've told me exactly what I needed to do. I was trying to sort out a debt for a client and wasn’t able to make

an offer. Disappointing. (Tax Agent, Inbound phone)

BETTER STAFF

Be more knowledgeable/qualified

Be a bit more welcoming, treating us as a customer. It shouldn't be so difficult to use to government services. Should be

easier to allow all ages to access these services. With older generations, we aren’t going to sit down to learn the internet.

(Individual, Inbound phone)

Be more personable/compassionate/helpful/professional

The staff are not well trained, they just put you from person to person. They need everything to be computerised. The wait

times are too long. (Tax agent, Inbound phone)


IMPROVED UNDERSTANDING OF TAXPAYER SITUATION

Consider my case/individual circumstances

I want to be treated more as individual rather than just being lumped with everyone else as having the same problem. I

want to be treated as a unique situation. (Individual, Inbound phone)

The ATO are trying to do a lot with technology. Every client is unique and there seems to be too much of a template now. A

good trend in recent years is all the tax laws have examples in them, but sometimes the examples don’t fit the

circumstances you have. (Tax agent, Inbound phone)

When we ring up in regards to the clients’ debt, they are not really considerate with clients’ circumstances. It is frustrating

entering into a payment arrangement. The client tries really hard to meet their BAS and the ATO don't seem to care about

how tough it can be. (Tax agent, Inbound phone)

I think the ATO are there to work for the people and I don't think there are a lot of people there willing to listen to individual

circumstance. Not a lot of compassion and flexibility. (Micro, Inbound phone)

They have to be more personable and understand people. Don't look at you as a tax file number and should analyse each

individual and their circumstances. (Individual, Inbound phone)

Better understanding of our business difficulties and circumstances beyond our control. Sometimes I found them to be

inflexible, for example, we were late for 5 days on something and it caused significant issues - despite asking in advance for

an extension for 5 days. (SME, Inbound phone)

IMPROVED EFFICIENCY

Answer phone promptly/not on hold too long

Be able to initially communicate with a human being rather than the prompts menu. Once I got through to someone it was

much better. (Micro, Inbound phone)

I think it’s just getting hold of the right person. Not having to go through all the automated systems, you are on hold too

long. (SME, Inbound phone)

They have to make the phone system easier. I've been on hold for a long time at times, I've been told by the recorded

message that they were busy and unable to take the call - and that was the case for two weeks. (Micro, Inbound phone)

There are time delays on the phone, transferring on hold between departments takes too long. (Individual, Inbound phone)

The automated responses weren’t working for me, they wanted a voice recording for identification. Took 5-10 minutes to

get through. The second time doing it, the recording was successful then the call disconnected. The third time, I had to go

through the whole process again. (Micro, Inbound phone)

When we call we have to wait for 40-45 minutes to get through. When we sent our request, we had to wait for months and

months to get response and we didn’t. I had to call them to follow up and they said the request was in the system but not

active. They prioritised it then, but we are still waiting. (SME, Inbound phone)

A faster timeline to deal with this. We had to constantly chase them and it took far longer than it should have. (Tax agent,

Inbound phone)

Be faster/more efficient


NUMBER OF CONTACTS TO RESOLVE MATTER Call resolution has worsened since 2014, with 43% of inbound phone customers needing more than one contact to resolve the

matter (an increase of six points since 2014). 55% needed just one contact in 2015.

Additional analysis shows that a slightly higher proportion of debt customers in the 2015 sample contributed to this (15%

compared to 12% in 2014). Debt customers are more likely than other customers to need more than one contact. Also, the

proportion of debt customers requiring more than one contact has increased since 2014 (40% in 2014 and 53% in 2015).

A2: Was the matter resolved in one contact with the ATO or did you have more than one contact regarding the same matter? By contact we mean by phone, in person, letter, email, by visiting their website, or some other way. A3a/b: Did you last have contact with the ATO about this matter by phone, in person, letter, email, by visiting their website, or some other way? And what type of contact did you have with the ATO about the same matter before that?

The number of contacts needed to resolve a matter varies by the reason for the contact (as illustrated in the next chart).

Audit/reviews, employer matters, debt, and superannuation matters are most likely to require more than one contact.

A1a: Which of the following best describes the main reason for your contact? (the list of options shown in the graph was read to respondents) A2: Was the matter resolved in one contact with the ATO or did you have more than one contact regarding the same matter? By contact we mean by phone, in person, letter, email, by visiting their website, or some other way.

68 59 61 60 58 63

45

54

3241 38 37 40 35

53

45

0

80

All in one contact

More than one contact%

Among those who had more than one contact, other channels used were:

68%

18%

9%

9%

2%

66%

23%

7%

7%

1%

Another phonecall

Letter/fax

Email

Website

Shopfront

2014 2015

Number of contacts to resolve matter (inbound phone)

(265) (300) (269) (310) (303) (300) (293) (267)


Don’t know responses range from 0% to 3% and are not shown on the chart.

Significant increase/decrease since last quarter/year

61

37

55

43

2014 2015

(1,144) (1,163)

ANNUAL

Base: Those who had more than one contact (2014 n=424, 2015 n=502)

M J S D M J S D


2014 2015

= Significantly different from the same quarter, last year.

Number of contacts to resolve matter (inbound phone) by reason of contact

%

5571 67 61 59 58 56 46 47 39

2758

4326 30 37 41 40 43 51 53

50 7341

2 3 2 2 1 1 3 1 11 1

All in one contact More than one contact Don't know

Totalsample

FBT Administration ABN or ABR PAYG GST or

ExciseIncome

tax Superannuation Debt Employer matter

Audit or review Other reason

(1,163) (34) (92) (54) (111) (173) (290) (92) (180) (18*) (15*) (93)

*Caution: Small sample size

Base: Varies by reason for contact (see graph) Significant increase/decrease since last year

= Significantly different from total sample result


SHOPFRONT

OVERALL SATISFACTION The following two charts show customers’ overall satisfaction with the quality of the service they received from the shopfront

service. The first chart looks at satisfaction levels over time for all shopfront customers, and the second chart displays the 2015

nett satisfaction ratings by customer group.

Over eight in ten (85%) customers were satisfied with the quality of the service they received during their shopfront experience.

Shopfront customers were especially likely to be very satisfied (58% said they were very satisfied).

Whilst no significant variation is evident over time among the total group of shopfront customers, subgroup analysis reveals

individuals were significantly more satisfied than in 2014 (up 13 points to 89% in 2015).



PRIORITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT The next two charts illustrate how well the ATO performed on specific aspects of the shopfront service, as well all the areas to

focus on to improve customers’ overall satisfaction. The first chart examines all customers (combined). The second chart looks

at the results for individuals and micro businesses separately.

The ATO performed especially well in terms of treating customers fairly, as well as respectfully and courteously, and informing

taxpayers of what they needed to do.

Top priorities for improving overall satisfaction with the shopfront experience relate to staff taking responsibility to solve issues,

followed by making it easy for taxpayers to meet their obligations, and taking individual circumstances into account (especially

for micro businesses). Keeping taxpayers informed is rated worst.

Knowledgeable staff and improved information are priorities for micro businesses.


%

68

8778

84 84 89 84 81

5463

43

6350

7361

4912 8 5 8 8

3 0 5

0

90

Nett satisfiedVery satisfiedNett dissatisfied

M J S D M J S D

(41) (38) (40) (38) (38) (37) (38) (37)

2014

2015

2015

2014 2015

79 85

55 58

8 4

ANNUAL

Base: Shopfront customers

Overall satisfaction with shopfront service

(157) (150)

7683

89

78

2014

2015

Overall satisfaction with shopfront service by customer group

Individuals Micro

(92) (90) (65) (60)Base: Shopfront customers

% nett satisfied


Drivers of overall satisfaction with shopfront – all customers

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

SHOPFRONT – ALL CUSTOMERS

70% 75% 80% 85% 90%

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6







ATO made it easy to meet tax and super obligationsTreated respectfully and courteously





Easy to deal with

Treated fairly


All shopfront customers (150)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.

Drivers of overall satisfaction with shopfront – individuals and micro

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

INDIVIDUALS MICRO

60% 65% 70% 75% 80% 85% 90% 95%

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7













Easy to deal with

Treated fairly







ATO made it easy to meettax and super obligations






Treated fairly


Easy to deal withTime taken was acceptable

Shopfront customers – individuals (90) and micro (60)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.


Changes over time in service attributes ratings

A number of improvements in service attributes ratings between 2014 and 2015 are evident. These largely relate to

improvements in individuals’ perceptions and are illustrated below.


In the 2015 December quarter of fieldwork, shopfront customers who were less than ‘satisfied’ with the overall quality of

service were asked what the ATO could have done for the respondent to give them a better rating. A sample of their verbatim

responses are provided below.


2014 2015

ANNUAL

All shopfront (2014 n=116; 2015 n=150)

Shopfront individuals (2014 n=69; 2015 n=90)

70 83

68 87


2014 2015

% agree (nett)

All shopfront (2014 n=157; 2015 n=150)

Shopfront individuals (2014 n=92; 2015 n=90)

79 91

75 93

I was treated fairly

2014 2015

All shopfront (2014 n=116; 2015 n=150) 83 92

Significant increase/decrease since last year2014 2015

Shopfront individuals (2014 n=92; 2015 n=90) 79 92


2014 2015




Info sufficient to meet my needs

2014 2015


Knowledgeable staff

2014 2015


Staff easy to deal with

2014 2015

ANNUAL


Staff to be more consistent

If the assessment of the tax refund have been done in a more conscious way, instead of just being put into the computer.

I’m a pensioner with superannuation and I didn’t put the right code in. I thought someone would've known or realised that,

given it was a very simple return. When I went the second time, I queried where the assessment was, I was told it had been

processed manually. When I went the second time the girl told me it was the coding. (Individual, Shopfront)

BETTER STAFF

Be more knowledgeable/qualified

The person I was speaking to had no idea. They need to have a bit more knowledge. I'm an individual tax payer and I

thought she should know more. (Individual, Shopfront)

None of the ladies I spoke to knew what the reason for my problem was. I had lodged my tax return but I hadn't received it.

When I went in, they said it was suspended but no one knew why and there was no reason why on the screen. So just

maybe if people had more knowledge in their dealings. (Individual, Shopfront)

RESOLVED THE ISSUE

Responsibility for solving problems - taking more responsibility. (Individual, Shopfront)

Been able to resolve the issue with CentreLink. (Individual, Shopfront)


NUMBER OF CONTACTS TO RESOLVE MATTER Shopfront customers’ issues were resolved in fewer contacts in 2015 than in 2014. More than two thirds (68%) were resolved in

just one contact, an increase of 12 points since 2014.

More in-depth analysis indicates this improved contact resolution stems from:

fewer ABN or ABR queries among micro businesses in 2015 (this was the main reason for shopfront contact for 20% of

micro businesses in 2014, down to only 3% in 2015)

faster resolution of income tax queries (equally across micro and individuals) – 53% of income tax queries via shopfront

were resolved in one contact in 2014 vs 73% in 2015.

Of the 31% who needed more than one contact in 2015, most (60%) had phone contact with the ATO.



70%

25%

7%

4%

4%

60%

26%

4%

13%

4%

Telephone

Another shopfront visit

Website

Letter/fax

Email

2014 2015

Number of contacts to resolve matter (shopfront)

Base: Shopfront customers Base: Those who had other contact (2014 n=69), 2015 (n=47)

56

68

44

31 1

2014

2015

One contact More than one contact Don't know

(157)

(150)



CORRESPONDENCE

INBOUND CORRESPONDENCE Overall satisfaction

The following two charts show customers’ overall satisfaction with the quality of the service they received as a result of their

inbound correspondence. The first chart looks at satisfaction levels over time for all inbound correspondence customers, and

the second chart displays the 2015 nett satisfaction ratings by customer group.

2014 and 2015 satisfaction levels are consistent, with 69% indicating they were satisfied with the quality of the service they

received in response to their inbound correspondence. In 2015, individuals were more satisfied than businesses.

A5a: How satisfied were you with the overall quality of the service you received?

A5a: How satisfied were you with the overall quality of the service you received?

Priorities for improvement

The next two charts illustrate how well the ATO performed on specific aspects of its inbound correspondence, as well as the

areas to focus on to improve customers’ overall satisfaction with this channel. The first chart examines all customers

(combined). The second chart looks at the results for individuals and businesses separately.

The ATO performs especially well in terms of treating customers respectfully and courteously, and treating customers fairly.

Top priorities for improving overall satisfaction with the inbound correspondence experience relate to providing sufficient

information to meet the taxpayer’s needs, providing reliable information, and staff taking responsibility to resolve issues. Follow

up is also key as it is the lowest rating attribute.

Knowledgeable staff and information that can be understood are also key priorities for businesses.

73

5664

77 7166 69 68

4632

2739

45

2841 41

17

2412 13 13 17 16 18

0

90


Overall satisfaction with inbound correspondence

%

M J S D M J S D

(48) (41) (33) (62) (62) (53) (58) (56)

201569 69

37 39

16 16

Base: Inbound correspondence customers


2014 2015

2014 2015 ANNUAL

(184) (229)

70 6965

76

6371

2014

2015

Overall satisfaction with inbound correspondence by customer group

Individuals Any business Tax practitioners

(80) (80) (78) (121) (26*) (28*)Base: Inbound correspondence customers

*Caution: small sample size

% nett satisfied


Drivers of overall satisfaction with inbound correspondence – all customers

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

INBOUND CORRESPONDENCE – ALL CUSTOMERS

55% 60% 65% 70% 75% 80% 85% 90%

0.35

0.4

0.45

0.5

0.55












Easy to deal with

Treated fairly


All Inbound correspondence customers (229)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.

Drivers of overall satisfaction with inbound correspondence – individuals and businesses

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

INDIVIDUALS BUSINESSES

60% 70% 80% 90%

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6











Easy to deal with

Treated fairlyTime taken was acceptable









Easy to deal with

Treated fairly



Kept informed aboutstatus/delays/issues


Inbound correspondence customers – individuals (80) and businesses (121)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.


Changes in service attributes ratings over time

There were no significant changes in ratings of the service attributes over time.


In the 2015 December quarter of fieldwork, inbound correspondence customers who were less than satisfied with the overall

quality of service were asked what the ATO could have done for the respondent to give them a better rating. A sample of their

verbatim responses are provided below.


They could have given me a little more information from their end just to make it a bit easier for me. Talking to them, I

found out they could have given more information and they didn't. It seems that the answers are cut and dry, but I think

there are more options. (Individual, Inbound correspondence)

They want me to lodge a tax return from 2001 but they can’t give me the information to do that so I'm stuck in a catch 22.

(Individual, Inbound correspondence)

Be more accurate with their written correspondence. All they had was a small debt with annual tax return. The first

correspondence I received didn’t have a timeline to pay and the amount owed or payable now was zero. I sat on it and

waited for an invoice and nothing arrived. Then the next letter I got said ‘pay up or we will take legal action’. I never had a

due date or anything. (Micro, Inbound correspondence)

Reply to my letter. (Individual, Inbound correspondence)


Actually replying to the issues which I raised in my letter - instead of sending just another computer standard letter. Taking

more account of my individual circumstances. (Micro, Inbound correspondence)

Actually look into the problem. (Micro, Inbound correspondence)


Not making me wait for a letter - resolving the issue as soon as possible. They should give me the information over the

phone instead of waiting for a letter. (Individual, Inbound correspondence)

I was requesting information on a previous tax return and I couldn’t request it over the phone. I had to fill out a form online

to request the documents and it took a long time for something that should’ve been very simple. (Individual, Inbound

correspondence)

They sent me a form and I filled it up sent it back. After a couple of weeks, they sent me a message to say they couldn't find

my super and that I should do it online. I'm a labourer and I don't use computers - I was also told I'd lose my super if I didn't

do it online. (Individual, Inbound correspondence)

FOLLOW THROUGH WITH MY REQUEST/WHAT YOU SAY YOU WILL

Followed through with my request for my copy of my tax return in a couple of weeks and not a couple months. (Individual,

Inbound correspondence)

Returned my old tax returns to me. (Micro, Inbound correspondence)

They could have provided us with a full tax return from a few years ago that we needed for the bank to give us a loan.

There needs to be a system to get a full copy of tax returns when needed. (Micro, Inbound correspondence)


NUMBER OF CONTACTS TO RESOLVE MATTER Just over half (55%) of inbound correspondence customers needed more than one contact to resolve the matter they contacted

the ATO about. Of these customers, 78% needed phone contact.

These results are similar to those in 2014.


IMPROVED EFFICIENCY

They could have done it more quickly. (Tax agent, Inbound correspondence)

I would like to have my request handled more efficiently. They didn't seem to know how to find what I was asking for.

(Micro, Inbound correspondence)

Answer the phone more promptly. (SME, Inbound correspondence)

We need contacts to be quicker, you wait on the phone a long time. (SME, Inbound correspondence)

BETTER STAFF

Getting trained on the particular areas of the matter, one person answering all the questions instead of multiple staff and

passing the phone around all the time. (SME, Inbound correspondence)


71%

21%

15%

11%

3%

78%

14%

12%

6%

4%

Phonecall

Another letter/fax

Email

Website

Shopfront

2014 2015

Number of contacts to resolve matter (inbound correspondence)

Base: Inbound correspondence customers Base: Those who had other contact (2014 n=99, 2015 n=125)

46

42

54

55

1

3

2014

2015

One contact More than one contact Don't know

(184)

(229)


OUTBOUND CORRESPONDENCE Overall satisfaction

The following two charts show customers’ overall satisfaction with the quality of the letter they received. The first chart looks at

satisfaction levels over time for all recipients of a letter and the second chart displays the 2015 nett satisfaction ratings by

customer group.

Satisfaction with the quality of the ATO’s letters has dropped since 2014 (down four points to 70% in 2015). Satisfaction levels in

the last two quarters of 2015 were lower than at the same time in 2014.

Analysis by customer group shows declines in satisfaction ratings since 2014 among individuals and the general public

community.

C6a: Overall, how satisfied were you with the quality of the letter you received? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

C6a: Overall, how satisfied were you with the quality of the letter you received? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

71 74 75 76 72 70 66 70

39 40 42 39 37 37 36 40

9 6 8 6 9 9 12 7

Nett satisfiedVery satisfiedNett dissatisfied%

Overall satisfaction with outbound correspondence

(522) (634) (594) (570) (575) (532) (557) (514)

Base: Outbound correspondence customers

74

7

70

9

2014 2015

(2,320) (2,178)

ANNUAL

40 37

M J S D M J S D


2014 2015

Significant increase/decrease since last quarter/year = Significantly different from the same quarter, last year.

7479

73 73 71 6975

87

6670 68 69 72 72 70

7569

652014

2015

Overall satisfaction with outbound correspondence by customer group

All customersfrom ATO

sample Individuals Micro SMELarge

business Tax agent BAS agentGeneral public

Business community

(1,971) (1,836) (583) (427) (555) (533) (380) (427) (92) (110) (241) (206) (120) (133) (96) (73) (253) (269)

Base: Outbound correspondence customers


% nett satisfied


COMPLIANCE ACTIVITES

AUDITS AND REVIEWS Overall satisfaction

The next two charts show customers’ overall satisfaction with how well the ATO handled an audit or review. The first chart

looks at satisfaction ratings over time for all audit/review customers and the second chart displays the 2015 nett satisfaction

ratings by customer group.

In 2015, 70% of customers were satisfied with the way the ATO handled their audit or review. Around one in ten (11%)

indicated they were dissatisfied. SMEs were the most satisfied group. Results have not changed significantly since 2014.

A5a: How satisfied were you overall with the way the ATO handled the review or audit? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

A5a: How satisfied were you overall with the way the ATO handled the review or audit? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.


%

68 71 74 72 7669

58

75

36 3244

3546

36 3238

14 18 15 14 11 14 13 8

0

90


Overall satisfaction with audits/reviews

M J S D M J S D

(28) (34) (27) (65) (37) (36) (38) (48)

201573 75

42

13

Base: Audit/review customers

71 70

36 38

15 11

2014 2015 ANNUAL

(154) (159)

2014 2015

Overall satisfaction with audits/reviews by customer group

*Note, small base sizes - results are indicative only.

52

7569

82

56

73

62

81

2014

2015

Individuals Any business Micro SME

(25*) (27*) (129) (132) (62) (60) (49) (57)Base: Audit/review customers

% nett satisfied



The next four charts illustrate how well the ATO performed on specific aspects of audits/reviews, as well as the areas to focus on

to improve customers’ overall perception that the ATO handled the audit or review well. The first chart examines all customers

(combined). The subsequent three charts look at the results for individuals, businesses (micro businesses vs SMEs), and large

businesses. Both 2014 and 2015 data has been used for the results pertaining to individuals and large businesses to generate

sufficient sample sizes for this analysis.

Like the other channels we’ve examined, the ATO rated well in terms of treating customers respectfully, courteously, and fairly.

The ATO informing the taxpayer of the information they need to provide, and what they are required to do, was also viewed

favourably.

Key areas for improvement focus on ATO staff taking responsibility to resolve issues, keeping the customer informed about

issues, clearly explaining the process, helping the taxpayer meet their tax obligations, ensuring individual circumstances are

taken into account, providing sufficient and easily understood information, making it easy for taxpayers to understand their

rights and obligations, and the time taken being acceptable.

Further to the above:

Reliable information and knowledgeable staff are also a priority (a first priority for some customer groups and a

secondary priority for others)

Understanding complex tax issues is a key priority for large businesses

Being treated fairly, a full explanation of the reasons for the final review or assessment, and perceptions of the

workload being reasonable, are key priorities for individuals

Clear and easy to understand written communications are a key priority for micro businesses.

Drivers of overall satisfaction with audits/reviews – all customers

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

ALL CUSTOMERS (AUDITS/REVIEWS)

65% 70% 75% 80% 85% 90%

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6



Helped me meet tax obligations

Answered my questions

Easy to understand rights and obligations







Easy to deal with

Treated fairly


Extra workload was reasonable

Advised of review areas

Fully informed of info needed to provide

Greater understanding of tax obligations

Process clearly explained

Written communications clear and easy to understand

Adequate time to prepare

Full explanation of final review or assessment

Advised could request review of decisions

All audit/review customers (154)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.


Drivers of overall satisfaction with audits/reviews – Individuals

0.1

0.2

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

55% 60% 65% 70% 75% 80%

0.4

0.5

0.6













Easy to deal with

Treated fairly





Greater understandingof tax obligations


Written communications clearand easy to understand




INDIVIDUALS

0.3

Audit/review customers – individuals (52)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2014 and 2015 annual data combined.

Drivers of overall satisfaction with audits/reviews – micro and SMEs

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

60% 65% 70% 75% 80% 85% 90%

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7












Easy to deal with

Treated fairly




Fully informed of infoneeded to provide



Written communications clearand easy to understand



Advised could request review of

decisions













Easy to deal with

Treated fairly







Written communications clear and easy to understand

Adequate time to prepare Full explanation of final review or assessmentAdvised could request review

of decisions

MICRO SME


Audit/review customers – micro (60) and SME (57)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.


Drivers of overall satisfaction with audits/reviews – large businesses

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7


Info I could understandInfo sufficient to meet needs

Helped me meettax obligations


Easy to understandrights and obligations



Knowledgeable indealings with me

Informed me of whatI needed to do


Took responsibilityto solve issues

Easy to deal withUnderstood complex tax issues

Able to resolveissues reasonably

Treated fairly




Fully informed of infoneeded to provide

Greater understandingof tax obligations


Written communicationsclear and easy to understand


Full explanation of finalreview or assessment


LARGE BUSINESSES

Audit/review customers – large businesses (33)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2014 and 2015 annual data combined.



In the 2015 December quarter of fieldwork, audit/review customers who were less than ‘satisfied’ with the way the ATO

handled the review or audit were asked what the ATO could have done for the respondent to give them a better rating. A

sample of their verbatim responses are provided below.

PROVIDE MORE INFORMATION/ADVICE

They provided a number for me to call and the details were incorrect. Their information provision was inadequate. There

was no written communication until the final decision. The information communicated when I spoke to them seemed to

only be to shut me up rather than inform me. (Individual, Audit)

Be more self-explanatory and upfront. If they had given me the information prior and upfront, it wouldn't have taken three

months to resolve. (Micro, Audit)

I'm not aware that it was a formal review - I thought it was an informal call made to new businesses to check up on

registrations. (Micro, Audit)

BE MORE KNOWLEDGEABLE/QUALIFIED

I don’t really understand why it was happening and it was hard to get in touch with them. I was put on hold for a long time.

The first person I spoke to didn’t know what I was talking about. (Micro, Audit)

The issue was they wanted to find a box to classify us. That was fine, but one of the people who came out kept asking us

‘do you fall into this category?’ over and over again. I basically had to find the category for him as he was unable to do it

himself. (SME, Audit)

BE MORE PERSONABLE/COMPASSIONATE/HELPFUL/PROFESSIONAL

Their communication was not professional nor was it satisfactory to meet the legal requirement if I wanted to take it

further. They didn’t consider my personal business circumstances and their actions and outcomes were completely

unnecessary. (Individual, Audit)

KEEP PEOPLE UPDATED

Just get back to me with their findings, we haven't had any correspondence as to what happened with it. (Micro, Audit)

More notice - or a letter stating that a review would be happening as I didn't know it was happening. (Micro, Audit)

BE FAIRER

To be fair - the lady that reviewed me knew that the things that were wrong were a mistake and not done on purpose. The

lady waited for the final audit to take place and then penalised me - I felt like I had been tricked. (Individual, Audit)


OUTBOUND PHONE Overall satisfaction

The following two charts show customers’ overall satisfaction with the phone call they received from the ATO. The first chart

looks at satisfaction levels over time for all recipients of a call. Care should be taken in interpreting the quarterly results due to

small sample sizes. The second chart displays the 2015 nett satisfaction ratings by customer group.

Three quarters (75%) of outbound phone customers in 2015 were satisfied with the call (similar to the 2014 result). There are

no significant differences by customer group.

A5a: How satisfied were you overall with the way the ATO handled the contact? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

A5a: How satisfied were you overall with the way the ATO handled the contact? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.


The chart below illustrates how well the ATO performed on specific aspects of outbound phone calls, as well as the areas to

focus on to improve customers’ overall perception that the ATO handled the contact well.

The ATO were rated especially well in terms of treating customers respectfully, courteously, and fairly.

Top priorities for improvement focus on ATO staff taking responsibility to resolve issues, staff knowledge, and helping the

customer to meet their tax obligations. The ease of dealing with the ATO, and understanding the taxpayer’s rights and

obligations, are also strong drivers of the overall perception that the ATO handled the contact well and are, therefore, worthy of

attention.


%

7868 67

7869 74

79 77

52 52

4130

19

3845 46

7 10 33 7

25

8 10 10

0

90


Overall satisfaction with outbound phone

M J S D M J S D

(27) (31) (27) (46) (32) (39) (29) (39)

2014

2015

2015

73 75

42 37

13 13

Base: Outbound phone customers (2014 n=131, 2015 n=139)

2014 2015 ANNUAL

(131) (139)

Overall satisfaction with outbound phone by customer group

*Note, small base sizes - results are indicative only.

7074

70

82

63

7782

73

2014

2015

Individuals Any business Micro SME

(27*) (24*) (104) (115) (66) (51) (34) (52)Base: Outbound phone customers

% nett satisfied


Drivers of overall satisfaction with outbound phone – all customers

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

OUTBOUND PHONE – ALL CUSTOMERS

65% 70% 75% 80% 85%

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7















Easy to deal with

Treated fairly


All outbound phone customers (139)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.

Drivers of overall satisfaction with outbound phone – micro and SMEs

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

MICRO SME

65% 70% 75% 80% 85% 90%

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8










Treated respectfully and courteouslyKnowledgeable in dealings with me




Easy to deal with

Treated fairly






Helped me meet tax obligationsAnswered my questions








Easy to deal with

Treated fairly



Outbound phone customers – micro (51) and SME (52)Source: A4a, A4c, A4d, A4e, A5a. 2015 annual data.



Look at my case as an individual case rather than a group - take my circumstances into account. Instruct me with more

information about what I needed to do. (Micro, Outbound phone)

They need to understand and tailor answers appropriately. (Individual, Outbound phone)

To have all the facts in front of them before calling me. I have tried to set this up 3 times and I am still not sure it is working.

I am not chasing them up any further - they obviously don't want the money. (Individual, Outbound phone)


In the 2015 December quarter of fieldwork, outbound phone customers who were less than ‘satisfied’ with the overall way the

ATO handled the contact were asked what the ATO could have done for the respondent to give them a better rating. A sample

of their verbatim responses are provided below.

BETTER STAFF

They weren't 100% sure of my situation in the tax matter. They were proven to be incorrect. (SME, Outbound phone)


Better communication with the staff between themselves. (SME, Outbound phone)


The should have contacted my tax agent not me. (SME, Outbound phone)

AUSkey deputised but still not okayed - especially on the phone. (SME, Outbound phone)

Have someone I could speak with that knew why they sent me a letter in the first place. (Large business, Outbound phone)

Go via the tax agent. (Individual, Outbound phone)


DIGITAL EXPERIENCE This section examines perceptions of the ATO’s digital channels: online services (portal visits), the ATO website (non-portal

visits), the ATO app, SMS/texts, and myGov.

ONLINE SERVICES (PORTAL VISITS) This set of results relates to the ATO’s portals. Respondents were sourced from the ATO’s administrative systems that identify

web interactions initiated by a customer to an ATO system such as the individual portal, business portal, BAS tax portal or

SuperSeeker. Further, results are based on those respondents who said that their last online experience required them to enter

a password to enter the area on the ATO website that they entered.

To provide context to the results, the following chart shows the most common reasons for using an online portal (in relation to

the respondent’s last experience). By far, the most common reason was to view or lodge an activity statement online (41%).

B1a: This first question is about your use of the ATO’s online services that are available through its website (www.ato.gov.au) or the (business portal/ tax agent portal/ BAS agent portal/ individual portal or SuperSeeker). In the last three months, which of these have you (done/done for business purposes)? B1b: Which did you use most recently?

OVERALL SATISFACTION The next two charts show portal users’ overall satisfaction with the quality of the online service they used. The first chart looks

at satisfaction levels over time for all portal users, while the second chart displays the 2015 nett satisfaction ratings by customer

group.

Satisfaction with online services (portals) has not changed significantly since 2014, with more than three quarters (77%) of portal

users satisfied in 2015.

Across the year, satisfaction was at a low in the June quarter (and significantly lower than in the same quarter of 2014). More

in-depth analysis suggests that this stemmed from a drop in tax professionals’ satisfaction (55% compared to 79% in the

previous quarter) – this reflected a portal outage at this time.

Dissatisfaction levels peaked in the last quarter of 2015 – this was driven by Micro businesses.

In both 2014 and 2015, BAS agents tended to be less satisfied than other customer groups. However, BAS agents were more

likely to be ‘very satisfied’ with their online service experience than in 2014.

Top online services used

Base: Portal users (2014 n=688, 2015 n=952). Note, services used by less than 2% of portal users not shown.

41

14

10

3

2

3

6

2

2

3

2

2

41

10

8

5

4

5

3

3

3

3

2

2

2014

2015

%

Viewed or lodged activity statements online

Lodged a tax return online

Viewed or lodged activity statements for your clients

Viewed client account information

Viewed your statement of account or payment options

Tested, lodged or downloaded files

Visited the ATO's website to find out information

Viewed the progress of an income tax return

Kept track of your super by viewing your current account, or looking for lost super or super held by the ATO

Transferred your super into the super account you wanted

Viewed or updated your personal contact details

Registered for one or more AUSkeys

Among tax agents, annual increase from 20% to 36%

http://www.ato.gov.au/


B3: How satisfied were you with the overall quality of the online service you used? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.


The next chart shows nett satisfaction ratings in 2015 by the type of service used. Variation in satisfaction ratings is evident and

to some extent reflects the customer group using the service, e.g. tax professionals’ services tended to be more poorly rated.


Overall satisfaction with portal services

Base: Portal users are defined by the ATO online sample, i.e. ATO’s administrative systems that identify web interactions initiated by a customer to an ATO system such as a portal or SuperSeeker. To confirm whether their recent online experience was a portal, respondents were then asked if they needed to enter a password to enter a part of the site.




81 77 78 8072

82 75

31 3024 26 26 31 27

5 7 5 6 7 4 9

0

100

Nett satisfied

Very satisfied

Nett dissatisfied

79

28

6

77

27

7

%

M J S D M J S D

(228) (223) (237) (208) (209) (220) (315)

2014 2015

2014 2015 ANNUAL

(688) (952)

85

7479

8377

65

79 77 7985

7367

2014

2015

Overall satisfaction with portal services by customer group


(197) (247) (148) (207) (155) (240) (60) (71) (79) (89) (49) (98)Base: Portal users

• Annual increase in BAS agents who were very satisfied (29% in 2015 vs 12% in 2014)• Micro dissatisfaction peaked in 2015 Dec qtr (23%) vs 4% in previous quarter and 7% in 2014 Dec qtr% nett satisfied

Overall satisfaction by portal service

Base: Varies – see bar descriptions. 2015 annual data

% satisfied (nett)

85

83

81

81

80

77

73

68

Viewed statement of account or payment options (34)

Kept track of Super by viewing current account, or looking for lost Super or Super held by the ATO (30)

Lodged a tax return (97)

Tested, lodged or downloaded files (43)

Viewed or lodged activity statements online (384)

Viewed progress of tax return (30)

Tax professionals viewed or lodged activity statements for their clients (80)

Viewed client account information (47)



The next four charts illustrate how well the ATO performed on specific aspects of its online services, as well as the areas to focus

on to improve customers’ overall satisfaction. The first chart presents the results for all portal users. The next three charts look

at the results by customer group.

Portal users viewed the online service most favourably for security and giving the customer confidence that the ATO had

received their information.

The strongest driver of overall satisfaction with online services is ease of access and the ATO perform well in this regard.

Key areas for improving portal users’ experiences focus on the site’s organisation and ease of navigation, the ability to find or do

what they needed to in one visit, providing information they could understand, and providing a tailored service (the latter two

apply more to businesses).

Although a somewhat weaker driver of overall satisfaction, ‘making it clear what to do if the customer encountered a problem

on the site’ is also worthy of attention as this aspect received the poorest rating.

Whilst the story is broadly similar across the customer groups, there are a few differences:

Being clear what to do if there is a problem on the site, and the time taken being acceptable, are priorities for tax

professionals.

Tax professionals view the information more favourably than businesses in regard to its reliability.

Individuals and tax agents rated the online service having a contemporary look and feel more favourably than

businesses.


Drivers of overall satisfaction with online services – all portal users

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

ALL PORTAL USERSS

50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

0.15

0.2

0.25

0.3

0.35

Well organised and easy to navigate site

Clear what to do if problem on site

Easy to access info/do what I needed


Knew I could contact ATO for help



Easy to access on preferred device


Able to find/do what I needed in one visit

Confident system is secureConfident ATO had received my info

Individual circumstances catered for

Available when needed

Contemporary look and feel


All portal users (952)Source: B2, B3. 2015 annual data.

Drivers of overall satisfaction with online services – individual portal users

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

INDIVIDUAL PORTAL USERS

55% 60% 65% 70% 75% 80% 85%

0.1

0.15

0.2

0.25

0.3

0.35

0.4











Confident system is secure

Confident ATO had received my info




ATO made it easy to meet taxand super obligations

Portal users – individuals (242)Source: B2, B3. 2015 annual data.


Drivers of overall satisfaction with online services – business portal users

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

MICRO SME LARGE

40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5



Easy to access info/do what I neededInfo sufficient to meet needs











ATO made it easy to meettax and super obligations















Clear what todo if problemon site







Able to find/do what I needed in one visitConfident system is secure

Individual circumstancescatered for

Available when neededContemporary look and feel





Available when neededConfident ATO had received my info

Portal users – micro (207), SME (240), large businesses (71)Source: B2, B3. 2015 annual data.

Drivers of overall satisfaction with online services – tax agent and BAS agent portal users

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE


50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4


Clear what to doif problem on site





















Easy to accesson preferred device

Time taken was acceptableAble to find/do what I needed in one visit







TAX AGENT BAS AGENT

Portal users – tax agents (89) and BAS agents (98)Source: B2, B3. 2015 annual data.


Changes over time in service attributes

The following charts summarise the significant changes that occurred in perceptions of online service aspects over time. Of

note, since 2014 there have been worsening perceptions of the ease of accessing the online service on the user’s preferred

device, the online service being available when needed, and confidence in the ATO receiving the user’s information (the latter

was driven by individuals). Whilst still high, tax professionals’ confidence in the security of the ATO’s online systems dropped.

Annual base: All portal users (2014 n=688, 2015 n=952), individuals (2014 n=197, 2015 n=247)

2015

Annual base: (2014 n=148, 2015 n=207)

Able to find / do what I needed in one visit Information I could rely on

Annual base: (2014 n=148, 2015 n=207) Annual base: All portal users (2014 n=688, 2015 n=952)

Information I could understand Easy access on preferred device

71 696963

7570 70 69

58

7075

70 7164

58

48

71 68

30

100

All portal users (208-315)

Individuals (50-76)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

M J S D M J S D

2014

7974

8072

84

70

8880

61

30

100

Micro (44-57)

ANNUAL ANNUAL

2015

%

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

M J S D M J S D

2014

7772

7975 76

72 7179

67

30

100


ANNUAL ANNUAL

7066

7066

7268

7871

48

30

100

Micro (44-57)

2014 20152014 2015

2014 20152014 2015

% agree (nett)

% agree (nett)% agree (nett)

% agree (nett)

%

2015

%

92

81

9184

91 91 95 88

8379 76

8689

95

77

92 87

80

30

100

Any Tax professionals (35-62)

Micro (44-57)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

M J S D M J S D

2014

9590

93 96 95 94 91 9287

30

100

Portal users who sent info (101-191)

ANNUAL ANNUAL

%

2015

%

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

M J S D M J S D

2014

78 75

8278 75 73 72

85

71

30

100


ANNUAL ANNUAL

8176

78 81 8379

7378 75

30

100


Annual base: Tax professionals (2014 n=128, 2015 n=187), micro (2014 n=148, 2015 n=207) Annual base: Portal users who sent info (2014 n=413, 2015 n=554)

Confident system is secure Confident ATO had received my information

Annual base: All portal users (2014 n=688, 2015 n=952) Annual base: All portal users (2014 n=688, 2015 n=952), BAS agents (2014 n=49, 2015 n=98)

Available when needed Easy to meet obligations

2014 20152014 2015

2014 20152014 2015

Driven by decline among

individuals (98% to 87%)

Significant decline

among BAS agents (92% in 2014 to 71%

in 2015)

Significant increase/decrease since last quarter/year= Significantly different from the same quarter, last year.



In the 2015 December quarter of fieldwork, portal users who were less than ‘satisfied’ with the overall quality of the portal

service were asked what the ATO could have done for the respondent to give them a better rating. This question was asked

without prompting with answer options. Responses are summarised in the table below. Categories that are similar have been

grouped together and presented as a ‘nett score’ (see bolded descriptions and figures) – each nett score figure gives the

percentage of respondents that gave at least one of the more detailed reasons (which are listed below the nett score).

Portal users’ unprompted suggestions for improvement of portal service

Portal users who are less than

satisfied with portal service*

(n=79)

%

Improve functionality and navigation 56

Improve functionality of website/portal 27

Website not user-friendly/badly organised 25

Website difficult to navigate/goes round in circles 13

Improve login process 4

Improve reliability 49

Problems with Portal crashes/goes down too often and for too long/needs to be more stable 29

Problems with browsers - not compatible with some devices and operating systems e.g. Macs,

Chrome 14

Issues with AUSkey 9

Need to update Java too frequently/issues with Java 6

Contacted/rang helpdesk 4

Had to resubmit things due to problems with website 3

Improve information and communication 32

Poor communication/improve communication 10

Hard to get information/lack of information 6

Information needs to be clearer 6

Need to reply more promptly to emails (sent via portal) 5

Acknowledge receipt of uploaded documents/forms 5

Helpdesk gives conflicting or nonspecific information 4

Other 9 Source: B3i. *Note, these results are based on respondents interviewed in the December 2015 quarter, when the question was introduced to the survey. Note also that respondents may mention more than one of the suggested improvements above.

IMPROVE FUNCTIONALITY AND NAVIGATION

The portal is not very user friendly. You can't save and come back, you have to do it all in one go. This is why I use an SBR

provider instead of the portal and pay for it, because it's more user friendly. I think it's a shame the ATO is encouraging us

not to ring them, it’s a bad thing too. (BAS agent, Online)

They need to make it more intuitive. More stable and accessible through all types of web browsers. Make it user friendly

from a printing perspective and being able to save drafts. (Large business, Online)

A complete revamp. Less nonsense with passwords etc. I feel like for years they've been unable to communicate with Apple

computers. I have no confidence in it, needs to be much simpler. I’m missing a notice for assessment and I’m totally

dissatisfied. (Micro, Online)

I think it's clunky and time consuming. I still can't change contact details on the website, very frustrating. We have 5 entities

we lodge a BAS for- there is no ability to link details e.g. an address across all entities. (SME, Online)

What annoys me is there is no actual ‘close’ on some screens or ‘back’, you go right out and have to log back in again. (SME,

Online)

Improve functionality of website/portal


IMPROVE FUNCTIONALITY AND NAVIGATION

The navigation needs to be easier. The ATO site needs to be more useable for everyday people, instead of just computer

nerds. Trying to find out about tax file declaration forms for new employers - the loop that you get caught in on the website

is just ridiculous. The ATO website search option doesn't work well enough - doesn't take you where you need to go. (BAS

agent, Online)

The site is badly organised, it is hard to find something you don't use regularly, it can take some time to find. Deleting

clients from my list is a hassle, as you have to do it client by client. They need a mass delete button to delete many clients at

once. (Tax agent, Online)

The mail function is almost impossible to use. Assessments are sent to MyGov but no one knew and one client was fined.

People are not even told they have a MyGov account! It is very difficult to change the MyGov account situation. Portal is

great when it works, but often down with technical difficulties.(Tax agent, Online)

Improve functionality of website/portal (continued)

IMPROVE RELIABILITY

The portal goes down often and takes time to get up again. (Tax agent, Online)

Reliability and speed at which it works. I can waste an hour every day when it is not working. (Tax agent, Online)

On due dates the system needs to be able to cope with the extra traffic. On other dates the system works just fine. There

always seems to be problems accessing the system and run time errors depending on when you are doing it. (SME, Online)

A lot of the time the business portal seems to be having a meltdown, especially near the 21st of each month when our

deadline is. (SME, Online)

At peak times the website goes down. It seems to be not able to cope with a high amount of traffic on the portal. (BAS

agent, Online)

Most of my catch up work is on weekends. The portal is forever down on the weekends. That’s when I get to sit and relax

and take all the information and do general maintenance that I need. (BAS agent, Online)

Problems with portal crashes/goes down too often/needs to be more stable

IMPROVE INFORMATION/COMMUNICATION

The problem is they didn't send out a hard copy of an invoice - so I was unaware I owed them any money - it was only

periodically by chance that I go through and empty my junk mail, that I found an ATO email alert - and only then did I find

the invoice. They could contact my phone - the email system isn't the best method of getting important information from

the ATO. (Individual, Online)

I had a major issue with the linking of eTax to MyGov. Took a number of phone calls to resolve, very frustrating. As a result

the tax office eventually put a debt collecting agency on to me. Poor communication from the tax office through their

website, not sending automatic emails as it was meant to. (Individual, Online)

Poor communication/improve communication

Information needs to be clearer

Section on Medicare and private health insurance is in double negatives and other confusing terminology. (Micro, Online)

In my last year’s return I earned more and paid less tax, and this year I earned less, paid more tax and didn’t get it back.

Wasn’t able to change anything or find out the reasoning. (Individual, Online)

There needs to be more information and more explanations of the tax concepts when you are trying to lodge a return.

(Individual, Online)


Use of other channels to resolve matter

In 2015, around one in six (16%) portal users needed to have some

other type of contact with the ATO about the same issue. This need

was higher among tax agents at 30% and reflects an increase since

2014 of five percentage points.

B6a: Did you also need to have contact with the ATO, either by phone, letter, in person, or some other way?

Telephone continued to be by far the most common (88%) other channel used to address the issue that was the subject of the

customer’s use of the online service. In 2015, customers most commonly needed to use other channels due to an error with the

online service (36%).

Perceptions of the consistency of advice received worsened, with 37% saying they were given the same advice as they got

through their online service (a drop of 12 points since 2014).

B6b: Was the contact by phone, letter, in person, or some other way?

B6c: Why did you contact the ATO? Was it because… B7: Using the scale of 1 to 5 where 1 is strongly disagree and 5 is strongly agree, how much do you agree or disagree that the staff at the ATO gave you the same advice as you got through their online service?

Problems or concerns with online service

On the whole, portal users’ problems or concerns with the online service in 2015 were similar to those experienced in 2014. The

site not working properly on their computer was the most common issue. Whilst broken links was still common, it was less of an

issue than in 2014. Around half (51%) said they had no problems.

% who required other contact

Base: Portal users (2014 n=688, 2015 n=952)

18

16

2014

2015

%

Higher among tax agents (30% in 2014, 25% in 2015)

Other contact channels used

Base: Portal users who needed other contact (2014 n=124, 2015 n=155)

%

81

11

11

1

4

88

5

6

2

3

Telephone

Letter / fax

Email

In person

Other

2014 2015

Reason for contact

25

26

11

47

36

27

16

30

2014 2015

%

Base: Portal users who needed other contact (2014 n=124, 2015 n=155)

Perception of consistency of advice

The ATO gave you the same advice as you got through their online service

Base: Portal users who had other contact with the ATO by phone, in person, letter or email (2014 n=121, 2015 n=156)

2

6

7

12

12

22

30

24

49

37

2014

2015

Didn't speak with ATO staff Unsure Disagree Neither Agree

%

Experienced errors with online service

Wanted to ask questions about the online service

Instructed that this was required

Something else

Significant change since 2014

Problems or concerns with online service

Base: Portal users (2014 n=688, 2015 n=952)

*Includes website/portal crashes (4%), browser problems (2%), slow site (2%), log-in troubles (1%), navigation issues (1%), difficult search engine (1%), AUS key trouble (1%), difficulties in finding information (1%), confusing or inconsistent information (1%)

19

21

9

6

14

47

20

17

9

7

13

51

2014

2015

Site would not work properly on computer

Broken links on website

Conflicting information from different ATO sources

Concerns about security

Another problem

No problem

%



WEBSITE This set of results relates to the ATO website. Respondents were sourced from the wider business and general public

community samples, as well as all ATO sample groups (excluding the ATO online sample group), and are based on those who

visited the ATO website in the last three months. Results only include respondents who said that they were not required to

enter a password to enter the area on the ATO website that they entered. This was done to ensure respondents were not

answering the questions in relation to a portal visit.

Overall satisfaction

Just over half (55%) of visitors to the ATO website were satisfied with their website experience. The apparent improvement of

six percentage points since 2014 is statistically significant at the 90% confidence level. SMEs’ favourable ratings improved since

2014 (significant at the 95% confidence level). While tax agents’ perceptions also appear to have approved since 2014, care

should be taken in interpreting the magnitude of this increase due to the fairly small base size in 2014.

C2: Overall, how satisfied were you with your experience of visiting the ATO’s website? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

C2: Overall, how satisfied were you with your experience of visiting the ATO’s website? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

46 49 48

33

56

36

67

54 5254 57

4551

61 63 60 5954

2014

2015

Overall satisfaction with website by customer group

All customersfrom ATO

sample Individuals Micro SMELarge

business Tax agent BAS agentGeneral Public

BusinessCommunity

(309) (520) (100) (144) (98) (115) (51) (130) (9*) (31) (33) (57) (18*) (43) (132) (185) (63) (108)

Base: Non-portal website visitors*Caution: small base size


% nett satisfied




%

39

5850 50 53

60 56

15

26

16 13 16

20 2222

15

1925

18

17 130

90


Overall satisfaction with website (non-portal)

201549 55

19 18

19 18

Base: Website visitors (non-portal)

M J S D M J S D

(147) (119) (138) (160) (169) (161) (179)

2014 2015

2014 2015 ANNUAL

(404) (669)



The next two charts illustrate how well the ATO performed on specific aspects of its website, as well as the areas to focus on to

improve customers’ overall satisfaction with the ATO website. The first chart displays the results for all website visitors,

whereas the second chart separates results for businesses and individuals.

The website was viewed most favourably for being available when needed and accessible on their preferred device, as well as

the customer knowing that they could contact the ATO for help.

Key areas for improvement focus on the website’s organisation and ease of navigation, ease of accessing the information

needed, providing information the customer can understand and is sufficient to meet their needs, individual circumstances

being catered for, and reducing the time taken to complete the task (the latter two apply especially businesses).


Drivers of overall satisfaction with the website – all website (non-portal) visitors

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

ALL WEBSITE (NON-PORTAL) VISITORS

50% 55% 60% 65% 70% 75% 80%

0.2

0.3

0.4Well organised and easy to navigate site


Easy to access info I needed



Info could rely on

Info could understand




Available when neededContemporary look and feel

All website (non-portal) visitors (669)Source: B2, B3. 2015 annual data.

Drivers of overall satisfaction with the website – individuals versus businesses

WEAKER DRIVER

STRONGERDRIVER

LOWER PERFORMANCE

HIGHER PERFORMANCE

BUSINESS NON-PORTAL VISITORS INDIVIDUAL NON-PORTAL VISITORS

50% 60% 70% 80%

0.2

0.3

0.4






Info could rely on

Info could understand











Info could rely onInfo could understand


Time takenwas acceptable

Individual circumstancescatered for



Website (non-portal) visitors – businesses (384) and individuals (185)Source: B2, B3. 2015 annual data.


Changes over time in service attributes

The following charts summarise the significant changes that occurred in perceptions of specific aspects of the website over time.

Most notably, the website was viewed more favourably in 2015 for providing information sufficient to meet taxpayers’ needs

(up six points to 62%).


In the 2015 December quarter of fieldwork, website visitors from the general public community or business community who

were less than ‘satisfied’ with the overall quality of service were asked what the ATO could have done for the respondent to give

them a better rating. A sample of their verbatim responses are provided below.

EASIER TO FIND THINGS/ INFORMATION

It needs to be not so confusing. When you try to do something, you click on links and sometimes end up at the first page

you started at. (Business community, Website visitor)

Make the information easier to find. (Business community, Website visitor)

I find it quite un-user friendly in finding the information you need or you’re looking for. (Business community, Website

visitor)

Make it easier to find things. (Business community, Website visitor)

Information should be much easier to find rather than clicking 10 times and getting to the form. (Business community,

Online)

6670

6268

6069 68

6370 67

805966

62 6065 66

80

30

100

All website visitors (119-179)

Website visitors - businesses (55-106)

42 4344 46

3644

38 43 48

0

100

All website visitors (119 - 179)% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

Annual base: Website customers (2014 n=404; 2015 n=669)

5662

50

6456 58

64 62 65

30

100

All website visitors (119 - 179)% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

Annual base: Website customers (2014 n=404; 2015 n=669)

Information I could rely on

% agree (nett)

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

2014 2015

ANNUAL

Annual base: Website customers (2014 n=404; 2015 n=669), Website customers – businesses (2014 n=221; 2015 n=384)

Clear what to do if I encountered a problem on the site Information sufficient to meet my needs



PROBLEMS OR CONCERNS WITH THE WEBSITE Fewer taxpayers stated they had a problem or concern with the website (60% in 2014 vs 47% in 2015). Broken links on the

website were the most common issue in 2015 (20%).

C4a: Which of these problems or concerns, if any, did you have while using the ATO’s website?

Problems or concerns with website (non-portal)19%

10%

19%

16%

22%

40%

20%

10%

11%

8%

12%

53%

Broken links on website

Site would not work properly on computer

Conflicting information from different ATO sources

Conflicting information from different web pages

Another problem*

No problem

2014

2015

Base: Website visitors (non-portal) (2014 n=404, 2015 n=669)*Includes website navigation issues (3%), difficult search engine (2%), difficulties in finding information (4%), had to phone for help (1%), lack of/old information (2%), confusing or inconsistent information (1%)


BETTER SEARCH ENGINE

Make their links easier to use - when you go on the search engine and look for fuel tax credits, it's got a whole page of

results and right down the bottom is the calculator. (General public community, Website visitor)

Better search function. (Business community, Website visitor)

It needs to be more detailed in terms of what I search for - it requires a high level of understanding. More explanations are

needed for taxation agents to rely on. (Business community, Website visitor)

NEEDS TO BE MORE USER FRIENDLY

Should have made it more user friendly and put most of the forms online without downloading or printing. (Business

community, Website visitor)

If it was in a more accessible format. (General public community, Website visitor)

Just make things not so complicated - you lodge a tax file number and you have to enter the information, then you have to

print off a receipt email and then take all of that to the post office to send off to the ATO. All just to get a tax file. (Business

community, Website visitor)

F IX PROBLEMS WITH THE SYSTEM

I had a lot of difficulty downloading the AUSkey. There needs to be a easier way to download AUSkey without any

problems. (Business community, Website visitor)

Get the system to work, there is too much down time. (Business community, Website visitor)

Have up to date information about troubles logging in. (Business community, Website visitor)


MYGOV Around one in seven (15%) members of the general public, and over half (54%) of individuals who had recently had some kind of

contact with the ATO, had used myGov in the last three months. Around two thirds (67%) said they were satisfied with their

experience of using myGov. The proportion of users who were ‘very satisfied’ has declined between 2014 and 2015.

C10: myGov is an online service that lets you access a range of Australian Government services with one username and password, all in one place. In the last three months, have you used myGov to manage your tax or superannuation online?

C11: Overall, how satisfied were you with the experience of using myGov to manage your tax or super online? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

Additional analysis shows the following demographic subgroups of individuals/the general public community were significantly

more likely to use myGov:

Younger people (51% of 18-39 year olds in the combined ‘individuals/general public community group’ used myGov vs

40% of those aged 40-54, vs 27% of those aged 55+)

Those in paid work (46% vs 31% of those not in paid work)

Higher education groups (50% of those with a tertiary education vs 39% of those with a trade qualification or

certificate/diploma not requiring a degree vs 32% of those with a high school qualification or no qualification).

71 6575 70 67 66 65

43 35 40 3427

37 30

13 17 14 15 12 13 13


Overall satisfaction with myGov

M J S D M J S D

(138) (177) (127) (122) (132) (154) (173)

Base: myGov users

70

15

67

13

2014 2015

(442) (581)

ANNUAL

39 32


Significantly different from this quarter last year

M = March quarter, J = June quarter, S = September quarter, D = December quarter2014 2015


ATO APP Six percent of respondents in the survey said they had used the ATO app. Just over half (57%) of users who had used the ATO

app at some point said they were satisfied with their experience. Individuals are the primary target of the app. The app

features are unlikely to support groups who have portals. Individuals’ perceptions of the app appear to have decreased since

2014 (sitting at 51% in 2015).

C9. Overall, how satisfied were you with the experience of using the app? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

C9. Overall, how satisfied were you with the experience of using the app? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.


In the 2015 December quarter of fieldwork, app users who were less than ‘satisfied’ with their experience of using the app were

asked what the ATO could have done for the respondent to give the app a better rating. A sample of their verbatim responses

are provided below.

73

455351 54 56 2014

2015

Overall satisfaction with the ATO app by customer group

General Public/Individuals Businesses Tax professionals

(71) (87) (87) (76) (49) (57)

Base: ATO app users


% nett satisfied

4964 60

52 57 57 5447

31 3039

23 2028 29 2319

9 13 17 20 1914 16


Overall satisfaction with the ATO app

(39) (53) (54) (61) (59) (48) (49) (64)

Base: ATO app users

57

14

53

17

2014 2015

(207) (220)

ANNUAL

30 25

M J S D M J S D


2014 2015

MAKE IT EASIER TO ACCESS/TOO MUCH SECURITY

Make myGov registration a bit easier. Just trying to get it to log in, I couldn't get it to register properly on the app. (Tax

agent, ATO app user)

There were times where you just couldn't get on, just a bit like a broken link. You would load it and it wouldn't open.

(Individual, ATO app user)

Make it easier when you change your number - you have to create a whole new account if you don't have access to your old

number - it’s so annoying because I linked everything already. (Individual, ATO app user)

Make it more easily accessible. (Tax agent, ATO app user)

I just think it’s onerous with the level of security. (Individual, ATO app user)


NEEDS TO BE MORE INFORMATIVE

Allow for more facilities on it - you only get really basic and general stuff, it needs more detail. (Individual, ATO app user)

I didn’t find it informative and there wasn’t much I could access from the app - I just gave up on it. (BAS agent, ATO app

user)

NEEDS TO BE EASIER TO NAVIGATE

Better links. Easier to navigate. (Individual, ATO app user)

I found that it is difficult to navigate. In general, it is difficult to use. (SME, ATO app user)

It’s hard to navigate through the app. (Individual, ATO app user)

Just the navigating is a bit hard sometimes. Navigating around to get to the right spot. (Micro, ATO app user)

OTHER SUGGESTED IMPROVEMENTS TO THE APP

They didn't have one for tax agents - the one they have now is more general. (BAS agent, ATO app user)

I tried to use the ABN lookup feature, but the information it gave me was different to the information that I got when I

looked it up on my laptop online. (BAS agent, ATO app user)

Stay within the application when using it, rather then having it take you online. What is the purpose of the app when it just

takes you to all the ATO webpages? (General public community, ATO app user)

I’m trying to link ATO to Centrelink and it is not doable. There is something wrong, I can link to all other services but those

two won’t link. (Individual, ATO app user)

The app was quite new when I was using it. It didn't allow you to do the same amount of stuff you could do on the website.

(Micro, ATO app user)


SMS Around three quarters (77%) of taxpayers who received an SMS message from the ATO were satisfied with this service

experience in 2015. Little variation is evident over time. Individuals viewed SMS messages more favourably than businesses in

2015.

C6b: Overall, how satisfied were you with the quality of the SMS or txt message you received? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

C6b: Overall, how satisfied were you with the quality of the SMS or txt message you received? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

76 74 74 77 72 77 80

5243 41 37 40 38

49

7 7 6 8 7 3 3

Nett satisfiedVery satisfiedNet dissatisfied%

Overall satisfaction with SMS/txts

(119) (161) (142) (173) (170) (170) (209)

74 77

2014 2015

(422) (722)

ANNUAL

45 42


Base: Annual SMS/txt users

M J S D M J S D

2014 2015

7 5

7873

7974 74 73

83

71 71 7179 78

2014

2015

Overall satisfaction with SMS/txts by customer group

Individuals Micro SME Any business Tax agent BAS agent

(83) (229) (88) (178) (28*) (76) (119) (264) (96) (86) (103) (101)

Base: Recipients of SMS/txt*Caution: small base size

% nett satisfied


EMAIL Satisfaction with outbound email was similar to that in 2014, with more than three quarters of those who received an email in

the last three months saying they were satisfied with the quality of the email (77% in 2015). BAS agents and SMEs were

especially satisfied.

C6c: Overall, how satisfied were you with the quality of the email you received? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

C6c: Overall, how satisfied were you with the quality of the email you received? Please use a scale where 1 means ‘very dissatisfied’ and 5 means ‘very satisfied’.

75 77 81 77 78 78 77

41 44 41 44 44 41 42

3 4 3 4 3 3 3


Overall satisfaction with the outbound email

(368) (319) (342) (352) (316) (362) (381)

Base: Recipients of outbound email

78

3

77

3

2014 2015

(1,029) (1,411)

ANNUAL

42 43

M J S D M J S D


2014 2015

8278 75

6876

8778

7480

75 7382

2014

2015

Overall satisfaction with outbound email by customer group


(199) (310) (208) (262) (200) (289) (66) (84) (161) (177) (123) (154)

Base: Recipients of outbound email

% nett satisfied


APPENDIX A: SAMPLE PROFILES

Demographic profile of individuals and the general public community

Individuals

%

General public

community

%

Age (1,001) (451)

18-24 years 8 10

25-29 years 15 3

30-34 years 16 12

35-39 years 11 17

40-44 years 10 8

45-49 years 8 7

50-54 years 8 15

55-59 years 8 5

60-64 years 6 5

65-69 years 5 6

70-79 years 3 10

80 or over 1 2

Gender (1,001) (451)

Male 53 49

Female 47 51

Other - -

Refused to answer - -

Work status (1,000) (450)

Paid work full time (including own business) 51 42

Paid work part time (including own business) 23 21

Unemployed 8 8

Government assistance, retired from work, home duties 14 27

Other 4 3

Speak a language other than English at home (1,001) (451)

Yes 22 16

No 78 84

Identify yourself as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander (1,001) (451)

Yes 3 1

No 97 99

Identify yourself as having a disability (1,001) (451)

Yes 6 9

No 94 91


Whether prefer to receive information in language other than

English (224)^ (47)^

Yes 7 2

No 93 98

Whether prefer products or information in accessible formats (60)^^ (55)^^

Yes 33 47

No 55 39

Unsure 12 14

Education (1,001) (451)

No qualification 3 3

High school qualification 26 31

Trade qualification 5 6

Certificate or diploma that does not require a degree 20 25

University degree 27 24

Postgraduate qualification, e.g. Honours, Masters, Doctorate,

Fellowship, Postgraduate Diploma 19 10

Other - -

Don’t know - -

Prefer not to say - -

*denotes % between 0.0% and 0.5%

^Base is respondents who speak a language other than English at home.

^^Base is respondents who identify as having a disability. Source: E1, E2, E4, E5, E6, E8, E10

General public community contact with the ATO in the last three months

General public community

%

(451)

Contact with the ATO by phone in last 3 months 11

Contact with the ATO by email in last 3 months 6

Contact with the ATO in person in last 3 months 1

*denotes % between 0.0% and 0.5%Source: C1i


Demographic profile of businesses

Micro

%

SME

%

Business community

%

Current position (834) (646) (451)

Owner 76 17 70

Accounts/Payroll Clerk 2 6 4

Accountant 2 28 3

Tax Manager 1 2 1

Financial Controller 3 32 3

HR manager - 1 -

Other 14 13 18

Refused 3 1 1

Number of employees (834) (646) (451)

No employees 6 3 60

1-4 employees 25 7 21

5-19 employees 6 29 14

20-199 employees 3 49 3

200+ employees 1 11 1

Don’t know 4 - 1

Age of business (834) (646) (451)

Less than 1 year 12 1 1

1-2 years 13 2 1

3-4 years 13 5 1

5-6 years 11 7 4

7-10 years 15 13 6

More than 10 years 36 72 86

Entity type (834) (646) (451)

Sole trader 62 3 43

Company 19 82 32

Partnership 7 3 13

Trust 6 8 5

Other 3 3 5

Don’t know 4 1 1

Business annual turnover (834) (646) (451)

Up to $100,000 57 4 44

$100,001 to $500,000 21 4 27

$500,001 to $1 million 4 4 5

More than $1 million up to $10 million 5 39 13

More than 10 million 1 43 2

Don’t know 7 3 4

Refused 5 3 5 *denotes % between 0.0% and 0.5%Source: F1, F2, F3, F4, F5


Business community contact with the ATO in the last three months

Business community

%

(451)

Contact with the ATO by phone in last 3 months 25

Contact with the ATO by email in last 3 months 9

Contact with the ATO in person in last 3 months 2

*= denotes % between 0.0% and 0.5% Source: C1i

Profile of large businesses

Large businesses

%

Current position (169)

Payroll Clerk or Human Relations (HR) 3

Taxation and compliance specialist (tax manager, tax accountant) 29

Accounting or Finance Manager/Director 40

Senior executive (e.g. CEO, CFO, Company Secretary) 13

Accounting or Finance Executive 15

Number of entities in economic group (169)

0-9 entities 66

10-19 entities 17

20-49 entities 11

50-99 entities 4

100+ entities 4

Don’t know 5

Whether entities are consolidated for tax purposes or grouped for GST purposes (169)

Consolidated for tax purposes 22

Grouped for GST purposes 4

Both 57

Other 10

Don’t know 7 Source: H1,H2, H3


Profile of tax practitioners

Tax agent

%

BAS agent

%

Type of practice (228) (222)

Sole practitioner 51 66

Company 39 28

Partnership 8 4

Internationally affiliated practice - -

Don’t know 1 2

Whether a registered tax agent (228) (222)

Yes 67 39

No 33 61

Unsure - -

Number of clients (152)^ (86)^

1-25 clients 13 63

26-50 clients 6 16

51-100 clients 14 9

101-250 clients 15 6

251-500 clients 25 2

More than 500 clients 27 1

Don’t know 1 2 Source: G1,G2, G3

^Base is registered tax agents.

ATO Single Corporate Perceptions Survey · ATO Corporate Perceptions Survey - 2 . CONTENTS. Page...

Documents

Transcript of ATO Single Corporate Perceptions Survey · ATO Corporate Perceptions Survey - 2 . CONTENTS. Page...