The School District of Philadelphia, Pa., has rolled out a new customer service platform called Let’s Talk.
The cloud-based, AI-powered customer service platform provides a way for families, students, staff, and community members to engage with the district.
The new platform is part of the district’s new five-year strategic plan – Accelerate Philly – which was approved by the district’s board of education in June 2023. The strategic plan is intended to improve outcomes for all students and achieve the board’s “Goals and Guardrails.”
“Partnering with parents and families is critical as we Accelerate Philly, and Let’s Talk serves as the essential platform for providing families timely, accurate, and accessible information,” said Tony B. Watlington Sr., Ed.D., Superintendent for the School District of Philadelphia. “More engaged parents, guardians and community members can promote student achievement, so we are pleased about the work we are doing with Let’s Talk to improve communication and customer service.”
The district said it partnered with K12 Insight to launch Let’s Talk and improve the district’s culture, communications and customer service, which aligns with one of the priority areas of Accelerate Philly. The district noted that the new platform has automated key processes within the district’s workflows and K12 Insight has trained more than 600 staff members to use Let’s Talk to deliver better customer service.
“Prior to implementing Let’s Talk, we heard frustration from families and community members that their concerns and issues were not always addressed in a timely manner. In an effort to provide a timely and accurate response, in line with our five-year strategic plan, Accelerate Philly, we are excited about launching this two-way communication system with multilingual capabilities,” said Alexandra Coppadge, the District’s Chief of Communications and Customer Service. “Introducing Let’s Talk to our District supports our goals and K12 Insight was a valuable partner in shifting our District’s culture, enhancing our efficiency, and transforming our customer service strategy.”
The district noted that the new platform offers automatic translation features in the district’s ten key languages including Arabic, Albanian, Chinese (Mandarin), English, Khmer, French, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Vietnamese and Hindi. This was a priority for the new platform as 20 percent of the district’s students are English Language Learners.
The district initially piloted the new platform back in September of 2023 within the Office of the Superintendent and the Board of Education. The district noted that by the end of the 2023-2024 school year, the platform was implemented across all District Central Offices.
In December of last year, Let’s Talk was expanded to include all district schools. For the 2024-2025 school year, the district has already received nearly 35,000 messages. The district noted that it currently has an average customer service score of 7.9/10 and an average response of 3.2 business days, surpassing its goal to respond within four business days.
