Selected Agencies' Customer Service Efforts

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on four federal agencies' customer service efforts, focusing on: (1) the extent that these agencies incorporate customer satisfaction into their strategic plans and missions; (2) how these agencies determine customer satisfaction; and (3) whether the agencies' methods of hiring, training, and evaluating employees address the issue of customer satisfaction. GAO noted that: (1) the four agencies have emphasized customer service in their strategic plans or mission statements to varying degrees; (2) each agency has published required customer service standards; (3) the agencies' efforts to assess public satisfaction with their services vary in scope and formality; (4) all four agencies are developing or refining mechanisms to obtain required customer feedback; (5) all four agencies have included customer service requirements in their vacancy announcements and employee performance plans and evaluations; and (6) three agencies provide employee training in courteous service and the fourth agency is developing such training.