At peak overload, the Department of Homeland Security reportedly administered 190 million hours’ worth of forms and data collection from the general public. In 2022, it was able to cut that back by 21 million hours for the year, but they’re looking to make bigger reductions through the efforts of a newly established customer experience office.
The office is a function of DHS’ Office of the Chief Information Officer and is headed by Dana Chisnell, a civic design specialist who has worked to bring improved user experience across a variety of industries. President Biden issued an Executive Order in 2021 that stressed the importance of customer experience — commonly referred to as CX — and the DHS directorate comes as a result of the EO.
Chisnell will give attendees a peek inside the new DHS office at the Potomac Officers Club’s CX Imperative Forum. Sponsored by Radiant Digital, the Jan. 25th event will provide a space for the private company execs and government officials like Crisnell to devise new ways to make technology navigation and bureaucratic processes more user-friendly. Register here now!
“While the executive order catalyzed that, now we’re in a place where everybody across the department is seeing the benefits of really understanding customer needs and designing proactively better experiences for better outcomes for them,” Chisnell shared with Federal News Network.
“We’re really here to inject customer experience design, human-centered design, product management, digital services and skills into everything across the department from service delivery to acquisitions and procurement,” Chisnell continued.
The day-to-day operations of the office are mainly devoted to help with existing efforts, the office director shared, as, despite the recency of the EO, the department has been involved in CX “for a long time.” The challenge, Chisnell reported, lies in taking the enthusiasm that a lot of the leadership has for strengthening CX and operationalizing it into new initiatives.
Chisnell hopes to alter the approach of DHS agencies like the Transportation Security Administration, in how it communicates (or doesn’t) with Pre-Check applicants. (The TSA, Federal Emergency Management Agency, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and Customs and Border Protection have been singled out as the DHS components most in need of CX reform.) Ultimately, Chisnell says she wants to inspire a cultural shift throughout the department.
To further explore Chisnell’s vision for modernized CX processes at DHS and in the federal government at large, be sure to register for the Potomac Officers Club’s CX Imperative Forum. The breakfast event will be hosted at Falls Church, Virginia’s beautiful and delicious 2941 Restaurant on Jan. 25th. In addition to Chisnell’s keynote, there will be a panel discussion, Q&As and multiple networking opportunities. Don’t miss out!
