When we think of outstanding customer experiences, we rarely list local, state, and federal agencies as shining examples. In fact, until recently, most interactions with the public sector were in-person or on the phone, Monday through Friday, nine to five. However, as the private sector has moved towards 24/7/365 self-service customer experiences with multichannel options such as chat, email and voice, the gap between customer expectations and reality is becoming a big challenge for the public sector.
It's time we shine a brighter light on CX in the public sector. To do that, we first must understand that we are dealing with citizens, not customers. The difference is subtle but important: the public sector works for and is paid by the citizens. Citizens don’t have the choice of just picking another government to work with. For the purposes of this article, when you see CX, read Citizen Experience.
Why is there such a big gap between the private sector and the public sector when it comes to CX? Why is it often ignored? What are the opportunities for improvement?
I recently interviewed Joe Forte, senior vice president of Public Sector with NICE, to gain some answers to these questions.
In our discussions, Forte shared some of his insight from traveling the country and meeting with leaders throughout the public sector.
Forte says one of the biggest challenges is the sheer size of these governments and agencies. If state governments were included in the Fortune 100, they would make up a quarter of the list. So we aren’t just talking about big organizations; we are talking about really big organizations. They are comprised of incredibly diverse agencies, ranging from fish and wildlife to public safety to healthcare to, well, pretty much everything states do. Change can be very challenging with hundreds of agencies and groups as part of a single entity.
One concept that can help address this challenge is the “Digital Front Door.” While it isn’t a new concept, its application in the public sector makes a lot of sense. Popular in healthcare, the Digital Front Door is a strategy designed to allow customers, or citizens in this case, to access services digitally. It is an extension of an organization’s digital transformation strategy out to the citizen. Modern AI is an accelerator in this space, as it helps to connect citizens to the service they need.
In our interviews, Forte discussed an AI-powered assistant that could ascertain what a user was looking for, and walk them through a guided resolution across multiple agencies’ platforms, websites, knowledgebases, CRMs, etc.
To be clear, we aren’t just talking about a single-entry point with a visual IVR directing citizens to agency websites based on predetermined intents. The traditional chatbot strategy was all about deflecting calls at worst, and triaging calls at best. What Forte described was an AI assistant providing an end-to-end experience, one that can work across multiple agency digital assets to help bring resolution to the citizen, inside a single conversation thread.
Just as in other areas, AI is a massive enabler and accelerator. In this scenario, the agencies can maintain their own websites and use their own tools, and it does not require a massive forklift change.
A lot of government interaction revolves around forms—finding, understanding, completing, submitting, reviewing, and approving forms takes a lot of effort for citizens and agencies. AI can help in all phases, from helping a citizen find the correct form to assisting them in submitting a completed and audited form, drastically improving efficiency and reducing the number of resources required. This is a win for the citizen and a win for the agency.
One of the examples Forte provided was being able to chat with an AI-trained bot about SNAP benefits. Rather than trying to search for time- and location-sensitive information about their specific benefits on the government agency website, a citizen who is using the benefits would then engage with an AI-powered bot to check the balance on their SNAP card, check what groceries will be covered, find where the closest pathologist who takes their benefits is, and more. A genuinely proactive AI bot could also look at citizen records, alert them that their driver’s license is almost expired and walk them through the renewal process.
Another challenge is the legacy of “This is how we’re required to do it.” Government agencies are one of the few entities that still require you to meet with them in person or speak on the phone for many tasks.
There are good reasons for this, including statutory, legal, and privacy concerns, but for many citizen/civic offices, it is possible to enact secure data exchanges with a government agency without talking to a live agent. We just don’t because doing these things in person just the way it’s always been done. For example, I recently needed a letter from the IRS with my Employee Identification Number. My only option was to call them on the phone and have them fax or email the letter. While they answered my call quickly and were very polite, I no longer have a fax number and didn’t want to wait two weeks for the letter. This process probably made sense 20 years ago, but it doesn’t work in a digital-first world.
It would have taken a customer service chatbot just a few minutes to understand the document I needed, authenticate me, and provide a secure download link. It would have saved me and the IRS valuable time while delivering a better CX.
Despite all of this, Forte seems optimistic about the future. He said he sees more and more leaders nationwide who are motivated to provide a better CX wherever possible.
Where there is a will, there is now an AI-powered way that makes meaningful change more attainable than ever.
This post is written on behalf of BCStrategies, an industry resource for enterprises, vendors, system integrators, and anyone interested in the growing business communications arena. A supplier of objective information on business communications, BCStrategies is supported by an alliance of leading communication industry advisors, analysts, and consultants who have worked in the various segments of the dynamic business communications market.
