Page 11 - FCW, November/December 2019

Making CX a priority
The push for better experience management is coming from multiple directions, including the top. In 2018, the fourth cross-agency priority goal in the President’s Management Agenda called on federal agencies to “provide a modern, streamlined and responsive customer experience across government, comparable to leading private- sector organizations.”
Lawmakers have also weighed in by passing a series of laws — including the Integrated Digital Experience Act, the Connected Government Act and the Taxpayer First Act — that put customer experience front and center for agencies.
At Performance.gov, the team that is working on the CX cross-agency priority goal stated that “every interaction between the federal government and the public is an opportunity to demonstrate the government understands and is working to meet their needs.” That means agencies have countless chances to improve CX — and improve other outcomes.
According to a recent McKinsey and Co. study on CX in government, satisfied customers are nine times more likely to say that an agency is delivering on its mission and nine times more likely to trust the agency providing the service.
Furthermore, “better CX helps government organizations spend less, smooth the rollout of legislation and avoid scandals,” said Rick Parrish, a vice president at Forrester, in a blog post that references the firm’s CX Index report “Why and How to Improve Government CX.”
In a recent survey of FCW readers, 61% of respondents said customer service is integral to daily operations, giving the statement 5 on a scale of 1 to 5, and 61% said their agencies have a comprehensive strategy for understanding and improving their customers’ experience. Furthermore, 72% have taken steps to monitor and improve the employee experience, recognizing the key role that employees play in the experience of all other customers.
CX is also a key objective for state and
local agencies. In the National Association
of State CIOs’ Top 10 Priorities list, goals include improving the citizen experience and enhancing internal customer service strategies.
A unifying force for change
This year, the Office of Management and Budget’s Circular A-11 on budget preparation features a special section
devoted to helping agencies establish structure and consistency for their CX efforts. Section 280, titled “Managing Customer Experience and Improving Service Delivery,” addresses measurement, strategy, organizational culture and service design, among other topics.
In addition, GSA has launched a CX Center of Excellence whose stated goal
is “to develop a better understanding of customer needs and help translate those findings into actions.” And the agency’s Digital.gov offers a comprehensive Customer Experience Toolkit that provides case studies and guidance on incorporating all the elements of a successful CX program, including mapping the customer journey, using plain language and soliciting ideas from customers.
Fortunately, new technologies can automate many customer-facing activities and provide analytics to drive data-based decisions and personalize services. Indeed, data is at the heart of any successful CX initiative. Experience data, or X-data, gives agencies insight into how employees and customers feel about their interactions with the government, while operational data, or O-data, helps quantify what is happening. Combining the two types of data is the key to understanding and transforming the customer experience.
Organizational resistance to change
can be a challenge, but advocates say employees are often energized by the opportunity to improve CX. In addition, incremental wins can bolster support
for such efforts and tend to have wide- ranging impacts. According to McKinsey, the Department of Homeland Security’s Trusted Traveler Programs, which expedite security screenings for preapproved travelers at airports and border crossings, have achieved multiple goals: Participants report high levels of satisfaction with the experience, and DHS has been able to reallocate resources to addressing greater potential threats.
Government leaders face many complex priorities related to mission attainment, operational efficiency and the need to respond to regulatory changes, but CX can often be a unifying force. McKinsey’s report concludes that “by investing in customer- experience programs, we’ve found that agencies can address the priorities that matter to every government leader.”
68.9
Federal government’s score on
the 2018 American Customer Satisfaction Index, out of 100 points
68
Local government’s score on the 2018 ASCI, down from 71.3 in 2017
66%
Public service leaders who say a personalized citizen experience is one of their top three priorities
72%
FCW survey respondents who said their agencies have begun monitoring and improving the employee experience
9 times

customers are to trust an agency
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Sources: Accenture, American Customer Satisfaction Index, FCW, McKinsey and Co.