The State of Customer Experience
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Federal agencies had been working to improve service delivery—then the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
The COVID-19 pandemic is changing the way federal agencies deliver services to citizens.
As millions of federal employees and contractors adjust to a new normal of telework and remote operations, Americans—used to conducting government dealings in person—face increased needs for critical government information, benefits payments, medical screenings and other government services. To meet new customer demands under unique circumstances, agencies have invested money in IT, cloud infrastructure, virtual services and remote operations.
The Department of Veterans Affairs, for example, used CARES Act funding to augment its telehealth capabilities, allowing for a tenfold increase in the number of virtual medical appointments the agency was able to keep without forcing patients to risk wait rooms. Faced with a 100-fold increase in call volume from a concerned public, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention quickly contracted for hundreds of call center employees, even as the physical facilities that traditionally housed those professionals shuttered due to social distance requirements.
In this ebook, Nextgov examines the state of customer experience, and what COVID-19-related trends might continue.