The ACSI Federal Government Report 2016 reports that "following three years of steady erosion ending in an all-time low score, citizen satisfaction with the U.S. federal government rebounds in 2016." That's very good news for agencies. An infograph in the April 2017 issue of The Public Manager offers some highlights from the annual report from the American Customer Satisfaction Index, which provides individual ratings for agencies interested in exploring how they can improve how they interact with customers and citizens. 

Meanwhile, Doug Taylor, program director for training at HighPoint Global, focuses on how scenario-based learning programs can equip new and seasoned employees to more effectively help their citizen customers in “Training to Boost the Citizen Experience,” an April 2017 TPM feature article. 

"Citizens may not always get exceptional service they expect and deserve," Taylor writes. "This reality has driven a heightened interest in improving the citizen experience. U.S. citizens have higher customer service expectations than ever before, thanks to the rise of fast, simple online experiences in the commercial space. Yet, for a variety of reasons, the federal government has not kept pace with the private sector. As a result, the lack of attention to the citizen experience (or CX) is adversely affecting citizens' view of government." 

That's where scenario-based learning has come into the picture. "Scenario-based training has been proven to be more effective in improving employees' skills than some more traditional approaches. It also addresses the changing needs and preferences of today's digital learner. No doubt, it should be a central component of your training strategy to support the citizen experience," Taylor adds. 

For a deeper dive into this topic, check out Alex Moore’s interview podcast with Taylor.