Our school district’s stakeholders include students, parents, teachers, staff, administrators, and the taxpayers footing the bill. Virtually everyone who lives within our district.

Some of the most progressive corporations and agencies make everyone a stakeholder service representative. That makes sense for us because we often alternate between roles.

When a fifth grader gave me a tour of her elementary school, she was the stakeholder service representative and I was the stakeholder. When she gave me a suggestion for improving her school, she was the stakeholder and I was the stakeholder service representative.

One useful study of stakeholder relations is Serving the American Public: Best Practices in Resolving Customer Complaints, a March 1996 Vice President Gore team report. It’s available as a link from my Web site (https://www.nicholasjohnson.org [Previously http://soli.inav.net/~njohnson ]) and would be useful reading for any Iowa City business or agency.

Gore’s group involved about equal representation from business and government. It benchmarked best practices from both. It’s impossible to summarize a lengthy report in a short column. But most of the recommendations are directly applicable to our school district.

• It turns out that what the team calls “the best-in-business” don’t become defensive, trivialize or ignore complaints. In fact, they positively encourage complaints, and view them as a precious resource (called “opportunities” or “free marketing”) in their constant striving to improve. Dissatisfied stakeholders tell 10 others. But three-fourths don’t tell the company or agency. They think it futile or don’t know where to go. So progressive institutions supplement open communication with surveys and focus groups. The goal is to find, and then exceed, stakeholder expectations.

• By delegating the authority to resolve complaints “quickly and courteously with common sense,” 85 percent are disposed of during the first contact. This can cut costs 50 percent. (Contrast that with our tennis courts lights fiasco.) In our case, a teacher resolving a parent’s concern rather than requiring appeals to principal and superintendent.

• They don’t try to cover up, or pretend complaints don’t exist. Even when resolved at the lowest level, complaints (sometimes all stakeholder contacts) are meticulously recorded, put in a database and analyzed for trends. Top management makes constant changes based on this real-time data. And employees know they will be rewarded, not punished, for such reporting. They know any organization that discourages employees from “making waves” will soon find itself dead in the water. (I’m always saddened by the teachers and parents who ask me to treat their concerns in confidence because they fear retribution.)

• They recognize the importance of training. Although Southwestern Airlines reverses the usual approach with its motto, “We hire for attitude and train for skills.” (I think I want a pilot – or teacher -- with more than just a good attitude!)

Imagine what it could mean to the constant improvement of our schools.

Every suggestion from a student, parent, teacher, staff member or other member of the community taken seriously. Recorded. Evaluated as part of trends. Responded to promptly and courteously.

Surveys that ask more than “Do you think your principal is (a) well above average, (b) outstanding, (c) unbelievably fantastic?”

Matt Goodlaxson says Quik Trip trains managers to respond to every customer complaint with, “What can I do to make this right with you?”

And that 90 percent of the time mere listening is enough. (The federal report agrees.)

Should the district “give in” to every request, however irrational (or even illegal)? Of course not.

But we, too, can at least become good listeners.

Not defensive. Constructive. Record the comment. Respond. Trends may show we have a real district-wide problem. If so, let’s fix it.

The Gore group reported that 40 percent of the time, problems could be traced to inadequate communication and information. (Sound familiar?)

We’re responding, in part, with open, televised public meetings, the district’s Web page and my own, documents available in schools’ media centers – even this column. But clearly we all know we can do better.

If the Board will let the community know that we want “complaints,” and then show we take them seriously, we can ride a crest of never-ending improvement in our already excellent school system.

Nicholas Johnson is a member of the Iowa City School Board.