Citizen Experience (CX) continues to be a modernization focus across government, improving how citizens receive service from the government and how they feel about that service. CX efforts spurred by executive orders and mandates have helped raise customer satisfaction in government from a low of 63.4 percent in 2021 to 2023 levels measuring 68.2 percent. However, there is more work to be done as the government continues to lag behind other “industries” in terms of customer satisfaction.
The Biden administration is seeking $500M in funding for CX-related work in the 2025 budget. These funds will largely be spent on increasing the CX-focused workforce so agencies have dedicated and trained digital service teams that can implement new solutions and strategies. The budget includes a specific request for over 170 federal employees with CX and digital service skills to do work like mapping customer journeys, analyzing feedback, and leading design improvements. These efforts will be implemented not just in each agency, but across government to improve interaction at discrete life moments like retirement or starting a business.
Money devoted to CX is money well spent as evidenced by some recent CX success stories.
- The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services recently updated the Medicare.gov website, resulting in customer satisfaction scores climbing from 56 percent to 72 percent in just one year. These improvements were the first phase as CMS continues evaluating ways to streamline online processes. This success may be one of the reasons Health and Human Services has named CX an Agency Priority Goal, with simplified procedures as a key goal as well as measuring not just the digital experience, but the impact changes have on health outcomes and public health.
- The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) piloted the “Direct File” application this tax season, providing an online portal for taxpayers with simple tax situations to file directly with the IRS for free. Over 140,000 people filed via this system, besting the agency’s goal of 100,000. Of those who completed a survey about the experience, 90% rated their experience as “excellent” or “above average.”
- The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) launched the Federal Program Inventory, a tool that allows anyone to search federal programs that offer funds to support their specific needs. In addition to finding funding sources, the tool also details estimated and actual program spending, applicant eligibility, and objectives, increasing the transparency into program metrics.
To keep up with CX initiatives across federal, state, and local government, check out these resources.
- Elevating Government CX to Meet the Needs of Today’s Digital Citizens (eBook) – The U.S. government has recently introduced a set of initiatives aimed at improving the CX of its online public services. However, engineering teams intent on making government sites and user applications more user-friendly, trustworthy, and responsive face a unique set of challenges.
- Adapting to Change: Evolving Government in the Digital Age (white paper) – As technology accelerates and constituent demands increase, agencies face multifaceted challenges, including rapidly changing technology and an increased threat of cyber-attacks. In a recent roundtable discussion, panelists representing various federal agencies discussed the opportunities and challenges facing government agencies in this era of transformation.
- Delay Government: How Technology Can Fix Slow Federal Service Delivery (white paper) – There are many reasons why federal services tend to work in a delayed fashion, the principal ones being the lack of incentive to improve—if you don’t like passport services, it’s not as if you can go to another passport provider—and limited funding to staff up fully to meet service demand. In the private sector, when demand grows, a company hires more staff. In the federal government, when demand grows, the line for delay grows with it.
- Government Customer Experience & Engagement Summit (June 6, 2024; Washington, DC) – This event convenes top thought leaders and experts from government and industry to explore the state of government CX today and look ahead to the future. Participants will have the opportunity to follow two tracks – technology and culture. The technology track will include conversation surrounding the digital transformation of CX, its challenges, and opportunities, while also exploring the integration of new technologies. The culture track invites discussions on leadership, diversity, equity, and inclusion, and the importance of cultivating a positive work environment.
- ITModTalks (September 19, 2024, Washington, DC) – Join the top decision-makers from government and tech as they discuss ongoing efforts in federal IT modernization, the continued move to modern, cloud-based systems, and what is in store with emerging technologies like artificial intelligence.
- Imagine Nation ELC 2024 (October 27-29, 2024; Hershey, PA) – The government technology community comes together to discuss the issues facing the government and works together to develop practical solutions and innovative strategies.
For more on CX efforts in government, search GovWhitePapers and GovEvents.