Nextgov Event: Improving Customer Satisfaction in Government

The Rolling Stones had it right.

By almost any measure, 300-plus million citizens and customers of the federal government can’t get no satisfaction, a problem the Obama administration picked up on that now falls to the new President Donald Trump.

While the Obama administration elevated customer service to its management agenda, there’s an air of uncertainty regarding the level of import Trump will place on customer service. Will the billionaire mogul make customer service a priority for government—much as it is in the private sector and business world—or are his proposed budget cuts and hiring freeze a signal that dollars matter the most to this administration?

» Get the best federal technology news and ideas delivered right to your inbox. Sign up here.

When it comes to customer service, can the government really do more with less?

We’ll discuss these issues and others Thursday, March 9, at our Federal Customer Experience Summit of 2017. We’ve themed this event—our fifth since 2014—on building a citizen-centric government, with an emphasis on discussing how some agencies have improved customer satisfaction.

We’ll hear how the National Weather Services is forging partnerships with other agencies to save lives during serious weather events, and similarly, how the U.S. Postal Service developed a division to end its backlog of EEOC complaints so successfully it started processing claims for two dozen other government agencies.

In addition, we’ll review case studies from two of the most successful federal agencies in providing customer satisfaction. Aileen Smith, program management and operational support director for the State Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs, will address how the agency responsible for issuing U.S. passports made the biggest jump in Forrester’s Customer Experience Index last year. Matt Sullivan, deputy undersecretary for finance and planning at the National Cemetery Administration, will speak to his administration’s place atop the American Customer Satisfaction Index. The U.S. Census Bureau’s new chief customer experience officer, Michele Bartram, will detail how the bureau is tweaking its customer service to ensure a successful 2020 Census.

In addition, Stephanie Thum, who formerly served as the Export-Import Bank’s vice president of customer experience, will share how she helped keep customers satisfied amid sometimes precarious times at the agency. Rick Johnson, director of JD Power & Associates government and health care practices, will provide a preview of customer service under the Trump administration and outline “what not to do” in customer experience for federal agencies.

For more information and to register, visit our event website.