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Upgrading Citizen Services

Upgrading Citizen Services. Tony Trenkle October 13, 2004. Discussion Topics. SSA challenges Service Delivery Understanding on-line users Where are we going?. Social Security Challenges. Annually, SSA: Receives 260 million earnings items from 6.5 million employers

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Upgrading Citizen Services

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  1. Upgrading Citizen Services Tony Trenkle October 13, 2004

  2. Discussion Topics • SSA challenges • Service Delivery • Understanding on-line users • Where are we going?

  3. Social Security Challenges Annually, SSA: • Receives 260 million earnings items from 6.5 million employers • Sends out 140 million Social Security Statements • Issues 18 million new and replacement Social Security Cards • Pays benefits to 47 million people (not including SSI) • Processes 7 million new claims for benefits • Processes 90 million changes to existing records • Answers 50 million 800-number calls

  4. Social Security Challenges-Future • The coming Silver Tsunami • 1994- 42.8 million • 2004- 47 million • 2020- 75 million • SSA Employee Retirements • Changing Face of America

  5. In the Beginning there was the field Office • Baltimore Headquarters • Regional Offices in 10 Cities • 6 Program Service Centers • 1300 Field Offices • 132 Sites for Administrative Appeals • 54 State Disability Determination services • 30 million visitors

  6. Then came the national 800 number • Began October 1, 1988 • Live telephone service 7 a.m. to midnight (Eastern time) M-F • 38 answering sites • 4,060 teleservice representatives • Automated telephone service 24 x 7 • 54.6 million transactions handled in FY 2004

  7. Then came the Internet • SSA Online - May 1994 • FY 99 Customers - 8.5 million • Projected FY 04 website visitors- 36 million • Projected FY04 web claims (retirement, disability, spouse) 220,000 • Projected FY04 emails-500,000 • Projected FY04 Frequently Asked Questions- 20 million

  8. Web Transactions • Web Transactions are growing • Up 178% over the last two years • Still a small % of overall transactions • Retirements claims 6.9% • Disability Claims 2.44% • Change of Address .92%

  9. SSA Traditional Business Practices • Customer Interfaces With SSA Employee • SSA Physical Environment • Verbal Identity Authentication • Traditional Legal Issues • Sequential Processes • Technology as Support • Public Trust in Tradition

  10. New Business Realities • Self-service via web or phone • Multiple Service channel usage • Integrated Services • More collaboration with non-SSA organizations • Automated Authentication • Signature Proxy • Technology as Driver of Change • New Educational and Public Trust Issues

  11. Understanding the On-line Users • Who are they and how do they differ from the traditional customers? • What are their preferences? • What are their navigation patterns within socialsecurity.gov? • When and why do they move across service channels?

  12. Understanding the On-line Users (cont.) • Developing a Customer Insight Program • basic customer research and knowledge • inserting the "voice of the customer" more effectively and at an earlier point in the eServices developmental process • building a more effective "post-launch" feedback capability • Customer Insight Tools • Recognized Measurement Analysis • Improved management information • Real-time surveys

  13. Nielsen Net Ratings • Sample Findings • Traffic has increased by 16 percent in the past year • 3.3 percent of the Internet population accessed the SSA web site this year • Women, aged 55-64, are the most frequent visitors • The strongest growth in accesses of the site's major subject areas was in Disability and SSI content • Still, Retirement and Medicare subjects outdrew Disability/SSI subject by more than 6 times • Site visitors are spending more time, but visiting less often

  14. Pew Internet Study American Public Preferences for Contacting Government • Telephone 40% • Web 24% • In person 13% • E-mail 11% • Write a letter 10% Source: How Americans Get in Touch with Government (May, 2004)

  15. PEW Study (cont.)Preferred Means of Contacting Government by Level of Government

  16. Example: ACSI Retirement Planner survey • The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) methodology provides SSA a way to measure customer satisfaction • The ACSI has been in existence since 1994 and has been utilized in the Federal Government since 1999 • The ACSI technology has generic OMB clearance enabling government agencies to move through the clearance process more quickly Benefits of Standard Questions : Retirement Planner Standard Questions • A proven and credible measurement of Citizen Satisfaction • An accurate, reliable and precise measurement, with 10 years of empirical evidence • Gives SSA the ability to benchmark

  17. Custom questions can continually evolve to learn new things about SSA customers. Retirement Planner Custom Questions • The ACSI is an operational, strategic and research tool • The survey consists of two types of questions, standard (or model) questions and custom questions • The standard/model questions provide actionable insight as to where you are and how you move forward Benefits of Custom Questions • Provides an accurate measurement of where you are and how you are performing • Provides compelling insight of SSA user needs and expectations • Provides actionable insight to focus your efforts to improve citizen satisfaction and future behavior • The ability to segment data and validate customer segments

  18. Based on initial Retirement Planner survey data and analysis – we’re validating/learning several things. Illustrative • 83% percent are visiting on behalf of themselves or their spouse, 5% for a friend or relative • 36% percent tell us they are visiting to calculate their benefits, 26% to learn about factors that affect their retirement, 11% to decide when to retire, and 3% to apply for benefits online • 29% percent plan to file within 12 months, 25% plan to file in six or more years • 41% plan to file online, 36% plan to file in a field office Benefits of the ForeSee Tool: Illustrative • Understanding who SSA’s current visitors are and what they want to accomplish • Ability to probe deeper using custom questions • Identify what to change to impact behavior • Assess the success of marketing efforts and determine future marketing initiatives

  19. Goal-Reduce the Use of High-Cost Support Channels • Forester Research Estimates Cost of Services • Knowledge-Based Self Service: $1.17/incident • Telephone support: $33/incident • E-mail support: $10/incident • SSA Results for use of FAQs, shown by survey data • 65% reduction in calls to 800 number • 59% reduction in calls to local office • 62% reduction in e-mails • 120% increase in local office visits

  20. Tension PointsOld and New Business Practices • Culture shift Traditional Full Service vs. Self-Service • Defining true benefits and costs or a Dollar saved is a dollar taken away • Servicehandoffs/integration Who owns the keys to the kingdom

  21. Key Drivers of Service Evolution at SSA • Politics • Agency Political Leadership • Washington mandates • Budget • Culture Change • Employee Retirements • Public Expectations • Shift toward self-service • Boomer Retirement Wave

  22. Where are we going? • More service integration, especially web and phone • Technology a key driver along with self-service support needs • Increased service delivery complexity • More channels • More diverse population (digital spectrum) • Field offices will be handling more complex work. Easier work goes to self-service • Will create major issues in field operations • Major decisions will need to be made on service channel resource allocations. • Better customer data will help drive decisions.

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