News
Press Releases: Government to Citizen
April 26, 2006
GSA’s USA Services Wins Federal CIO Leadership Award
Cost Calculator Helps Agencies Improve Citizen Services
Washington D.C. - The U.S. General Services Administration’s (GSA) USA Services, a Presidential E-Government initiative, yesterday received the 2006 Chief Information Officers Council Leadership Award for teamwork for developing the Citizen Services Cost Calculator, a software tool that allows agencies to compare the current cost of operations with alternatives.
The CIO Leadership Award is given for innovative solutions that improve service to citizens by federal agencies and "for electronic government and information technology advancements that will have major impact on the way government conducts business on a government-wide basis."
The Citizen Services Cost Calculator assists the user to determine how to save time and money when estimating the expenditures required to establish and operate contact centers that meet citizen expectations for timely, accurate and consistent responses. It is designed to outline all the support costs involved in running a call or contact center, and the approximate cost for that support.
"This Cost Calculator was developed to provide federal agencies with the means to respond quickly and accurately to questions from the public, which is integral to the fulfillment of the President’s Management Agenda," said M.J. Pizzella, GSA’s Associate Administrator for Citizen Services and Communications, which manages USA Services. "In particular, the calculator is helpful to agencies that are establishing a contact center for the first time and want to ensure that every tax dollar is accounted for and spent wisely. It also helps agencies evaluate the cost-effectiveness of current contact centers."
USA Services, the citizen’s advocate in the Federal government, developed the software, working with 10 Federal agency partners and the MITRE Corp. of McLean Virginia, a non-profit, Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC).
USA Services, a Presidential E-Government initiative, received the award from the CIO Council on April 24, 2006, during the 45th Annual Interagency Resources Management Conference (IRMCO), held in Williamsburg Virginia. USA Services answers citizen inquiries online via FirstGov.gov, via email, phone at 1-800 FED INFO, and print publications from Pueblo CO.
To obtain a copy of the Citizen Services Cost Calculator, please visit the USA Services Web site, www.usaservices.gov/calculator.htm
