National Archives

Management experts today stress that if organizations--both private and public sector--are to succeed, managers should deliver quality services as defined by the customer. Although the National Archives and Records Administration has tried to understand its customers and their needs, it has not done so systematically. As a result, Archives lacks complete information on quality service as defined by its customers. From 1988 to 1992, Archives documented the needs of about 41,000 customers--less than 1 percent of the 14.5 million individuals that Archives served during that time. From all of the surveys it did during the 5-year period, Archives identified 87 potential improvements. Archives mainly relies on workshop evaluations, surveys, and informal feedback to understand its customers' needs and satisfaction. Archives does not use these tools to provide agencywide information on customers' needs and satisfaction because it is not a management requirement. Archives offices could devise a plan to regularly contact a representative sample of their customers and use other tools, such as customer interviews, customer follow-up surveys, and complaint tracking systems to obtain information on customers' needs and satisfaction. GAO believes that Archives should undertake an approach similar to that used by the National Archives of Canada, which surveyed customers on services they wanted, compared those needs with services being offered, and addressed any unfulfilled needs. Archives also needs more complete information from its customers before it continues its strategic planning initiatives and should use its strategic plans to address customer needs.

GAO found that: (1) NARA does not systematically identify its customers' needs; (2) although NARA has attempted to increase its understanding of customer needs, it has only surveyed a limited number of its customers and implemented minimal improvements; (3) NARA customers believe that NARA needs to conduct more comprehensive surveys to better understand their needs; (4) although NARA relies on workshop evaluations, surveys, and informal feedback for its customer information, it is not required to provide agencywide information on customers' needs and satisfaction; (5) NARA could improve customer satisfaction by regularly contacting customer representatives, adopting the National Archives of Canada's customer satisfaction approach, and using other data collection methods, including customer interviews, customer follow-up surveys, and complaint tracking systems; (6) NARA has responded to most of its customers' suggested improvements; and (7) NARA should implement a more systematic and agencywide approach to collecting information from its customers before it implements its strategic planning initiative.

Recommendations

Our recommendations from this work are listed below with a Contact for more information. Status will change from "In process" to "Open," "Closed - implemented," or "Closed - not implemented" based on our follow up work.

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