Reducing licence application processing times by 94% while freeing up operational capacity by 60% to do more with less.

A government department wanted to revolutionise its commercial licensing framework to support local businesses in providing commercial and recreational tours.

CorbettPrice was engaged in designing and implementing a revised operating model for the department to execute the new framework and support local businesses to help stimulate the visitor economy following the global pandemic.

Our Process

To ensure a holistic transformation, we began with a multi-faceted assessment of the current operating model. Surveys provided quantitative data on stakeholder experience, while focus groups and workshops deepened our understanding of underlying challenges, potential solutions, and the skills needed to bridge the gap between the current state and desired outcomes. Crucially, feedback was sought from both internal staff and external stakeholders, including the local businesses the department serves.

We meticulously mapped the entire end-to-end licensing value chain to expose not just bottlenecks, but also areas where inefficiencies diminished the experience for all involved. This mapping provided the blueprint for targeted improvements, including where new or enhanced skills would be crucial for success.

To translate insights into action, feedback was systematically categorized against key components of the operating model. This structured approach ensured the redesign would not just address immediate issues, but drive sustainable change within the department's core operations, supported by proactive workforce skill development.

The redesigned operating model went beyond streamlining processes; it prioritised empowering the workforce to better serve local businesses. Key areas of skills development included:

Understanding Business Needs: Training sessions and resource guides were developed to deepen government personnel's understanding of the challenges faced by small tour operators, fostering greater empathy and solution-oriented support.
Clear and Concise Communications: Staff were coached in translating complex regulations into plain language, ensuring that license requirements were easily understood and navigated by business owners.
Proactive Support: Shifting from a reactive to a proactive mindset, staff were trained in anticipating common questions, providing clear guidance throughout the application process, and actively resolving issues to prevent delays.

The Results

Improvements at the front end of the application process helped reduce approval timeframes by 94%.
Eliminating, standardising, simplifying and automating large parts of the application process helped free up operational capacity by 60%, enabling teams to focus efforts on supporting local businesses.
Enabled CTOs to re-start their businesses after the catastrophic 2019-20 bushfires while receiving support for surging visitation due to the COVID pandemic.