Supporting Exporters Access to Reduced Tariff Rates Through Integrated Services

The department had developed several bespoke systems to administer tariff rate quotas over time. These met needs when built, but effectively resulted in multiple models delivering the same core need. The challenge was to address export business needs with an elegant service design, enabled by a single place for DAFF staff to administer quotas. The solution needed a design for both the present and future, enabling flexibility to onboard new quotas when required without major customisation. Previous attempts had not addressed that problem, inadvertently increasing fragmentation as a result. A design-led approach was needed to deliver on the task.

The team led a comprehensive design process that challenged the long-held approach of delivering quota systems as IT projects. Collaborating with DAFF colleagues, and informed by research with export businesses, a roadmap and strategy was developed. A unified approach for administering quotas was designed, distilling underlying requirements to streamline workflow and remove differences from years of fragmentation. Designing core functionality to work for all quotas, ensured the solution worked for current and future quotas. Throughout delivery, the team ensured each decision aligned to the strategy. Continuous discipline was possible as the team that created the strategy was executing the strategy.

The strategy solved the problem in a comprehensive way that wasn’t achieved in the past. The foundation for delivering quota services has fundamentally changed. All quotas can be administered from one place and a manager can configure the system with less involvement from developers. The flexibility of the design approach is proven, with new markets onboarded within the first 6 months of development without the need for custom features. Some exporters are getting their quota certificates faster. The solution is ready to deliver additional benefits as other parts of the agricultural exports ecosystem come online in the Export Service.

The solution has delivered a range of core features and positive outcomes: •A reduction in complexity. Where administering various quotas had bespoke processes before, they all share a common approach. •A human-centred workflow to administer exporter requests to access a tariff rate quota, with consistent steps for all quotas. •A manager can now administer most aspects of a quota via configuration, including adding new quota markets, where previous systems required more developer input. •Integration with the wider Export Service allows exporters to self-serve parts of their quota use that previously required direct contact with DAFF.