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FirstGov.gov BUZZ
November 23, 2005
In This Edition:
- New Search on FirstGov.gov
- The CIO Spotlight: Rosita O. Parkes, CIO, U.S. Department of Energy
- FirstGov.gov Provides Critical Links in Response to Hurricanes
- FirstContact Provides Quick Access to Government Help
- Podcasting on FirstGov.gov
- FirstGov.gov Initiates New Hosting Procurement
- USA Services Unveils Customer Service Level Report
- U.S. and Mexican Government CIOs Explore Common Challenges
- E-Gov Events Calendar
Recent natural disasters have heightened awareness of the power of nature and the fragility of property and life. But help also appeared from many sources. This edition of the FirstGov.gov BUZZ focuses on some of the ways the GSA Office of Citizen Services and Communications, USA Services and FirstGov.gov have helped in disaster response and recovery. It also provides nondisaster-related information that can help other government agencies better execute their missions.
New Search on FirstGov.gov
Visitors to FirstGov.gov will be pleased to learn that a new search engine will be powering the U.S. government's official website next year. FirstGov.gov recently signed a $1.8 million contract with Vivisimo and Microsoft's MSN Search to provide it with greatly expanded search capabilities for FirstGov.gov.
FirstGov.gov's search previously accessed approximately 8 million federal Web pages. GSA expects the new service to index more than three times that many-over 24 million pages, include results from state, local, tribal, and territorial government websites, as well as all federal sites. It will offer unprecedented access to government information from a single source.
The technology behind the new search capability will be based on MSN Search and Vivisimo's Clusty search engine, which clusters search results in folders, grouping together similar items and making it easier to find information.
The new search capability is being acquired under a new $18 million blanket purchase agreement. Vendors in the BPA include, in addition to Vivismo, Fast Search & Transfer of Needham, MA, and Gigablast, Inc. of Albuquerque, NM.
The CIO Spotlight
Rosita O. Parkes
Chief Information Officer
U.S. Department of Energy
Rosita Parkes began her civil service career as a computer intern in 1970.
Today she directs the development, transformation, and management of the U.S. Department of Energy's $2.8 billion information technology portfolio.
Since her 2003 appointment as DOE's Chief Information Officer, Parkes has strived to simplify citizen access to energy-related government services, and to use technology to make DOE more responsive, transparent, and efficient.
"As technology continues to evolve, I expect there will continue to be a greater partnership and knowledge-sharing between the government and American citizens," says Parkes, a Santa Fe, NM native with skills honed at FEMA, another agency where responsiveness and efficiency are particularly critical.
Parkes joined DOE after serving as FEMA's CIO, Deputy CIO, and as Deputy Assistant Director for the Information Technology Services Directorate.
"As can be seen on the news every day, the challenges that FEMA must help address after natural disasters or other emergencies occur are extremely complex," Parkes notes. "FEMA is helping citizens with their basic needs."
"In contrast," she says, "DOE's core mission is focused in the areas of defense, energy, science, and environment. The mission is heavily dependent on the evolution of advanced science and technology."
Parkes says her years at FEMA helped prepare her for the challenges at DOE. "Working at an organization like FEMA reminds you on an everyday basis about the purpose of the government - to serve the people," she says. "As DOE identifies new opportunities to modernize its information technology environment, I recognize the importance of considering the needs of our customers and the public."
Those customers, she adds, expect results.
DOE's participation in Science.gov is one example. The website was developed by an interagency working group comprised of 17 scientific and technical information organizations from 12 major science agencies to enhance access to science information. "These agencies are committed to the information needs of the citizen, including science professionals, students, educators, business entrepreneurs, and members of the public with an interest in science," Parkes says.
The Science.gov web site makes available more than 47 million pages of government research and development project results to the public. DOE has contributed approximately 10 million pages of data.
Additionally, DOE has made it possible for citizens to comment on agency directives before they're published. "In this way," Parkes says, "citizens have a greater opportunity to ensure that the government represents their interests."
Other achievements, such as a new internal accounting and reporting system designed to consolidate and streamline department-wide financial and budgetary data, are less visible to the public.
As she approaches the start of her third year, Parkes says her focus remains fixed on helping DOE modernize its core business "by evaluating and applying new information technologies, transforming the way the department manages information technologies, and simplifying access to energy-related government services."
FirstGov.gov Provides Critical Links in Response to Hurricanes
As the online gateway to federal information, FirstGov.gov provides a critical link to essential information in a national emergency. As it did on 9/11, the FirstGov.gov staff stepped up in the wake of the hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma to provide ready information for victims of the storms and others needing a single source of current hurricane information.
FirstGov.gov's "Hurricane Recovery" page became the prime and most current source for help in finding missing persons and answers to Frequently Asked storm-related Questions. Through links to agency Web pages, it directs citizens to survivor assistance, health, and safety information, and other forms of government support, such as:
At the height of the crisis, the page got about 200,000 visits per day. All tolled, in the month of September 2005, FirstGov.gov had 1.22 million visitors, who viewed more than 4.2 million pages on the portal.
The Spanish-language version of FirstGov.gov, www.espanol.gov, posted its own hurricane recovery page, which was quickly recognized as the best single source of hurricane-related information for Spanish-speakers. It linked to Red Cross and FEMA pages in Spanish and to many other sources of essential information.
FirstContact Provides Quick Access to Government Help
As the extent of the devastation from hurricane Katrina became evident, calls for information and assistance began to pour into FEMA, which quickly realized it needed to expand its call center to provide a round-the-clock response center to handle the high volume of calls. FEMA turned to GSA, which tapped one of five vendors on the FirstContact contract to do the job. Within days, FEMA had a functioning round-the-clock contact center. Over 3,500 customer service representatives at state-of-the-art contact centers in five states responded to calls to 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) for information and assistance. The service was expanded later to accommodate calls related to Hurricanes Rita and Wilma. More than 843,000 calls have been received to date.
Since many of the calls coming into the center were from individuals seeking to send donations, FEMA recognized it needed--and GSA created--a donations hotline to handle just those calls from prospective donors.
USA Services' National Contact Center (1-800-FEDINFO) also provided expanded service during and after the hurricanes. Information specialists were available 24/7 to provide the most current information and to answer questions from storm victims. By the end of October, the Contact Center had fielded more than 300,000 hurricane-related inquiries.
The 2005 hurricanes were just the latest of many occasions the FirstContact contract has been used to provide citizens access to government information in an emergency. Using this contract, the National Contact Center has helped the State Department's Overseas Citizens Services Office provide essential emergency information for U.S. citizens abroad. During the London subway bombings, hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico, and the bombings in Jordan, the National Contact Center remained open 24/7 so citizens could contact the government to get information about friends and relatives in disaster locations.
FirstContact is a multiple-award contract that helps agencies acquire contact center services quickly from any of five pre-vetted vendors without conducting a lengthy procurement. GSA, which manages the contract, provides experts in contact management services, customer service, and e-government to work with agency staff to create solutions that meet an agency's mission. For more information, contact Carole Dobbs at 202-219-1680, or carole.dobbs@gsa.gov.
 ing on FirstGov.gov
FirstGov.gov, now features a podcast library a central place to find the ever-increasing number of government podcasts online and an easy to use source of government information.
Until now, government podcasts have been scattered across government websites leaving the public no central place to find them easily. Citizens had to know what agency provided a particular feed and then go to each individual website to subscribe to the feed. The new FirstGov.gov podcast library brings it all together in one central location.
Podcasting is a method of publishing audio and video broadcasts via the Internet, allowing users to subscribe to a feed of new files, usually MP3s. Listeners may subscribe to feeds using "podcatching" software (a type of aggregator), which periodically checks for and downloads new content automatically.
So, if you didn't have time to hear the President's radio address on Saturday morning, you could find it later on FirstGov. Although "podcasting" combines the words "broadcasting" and "iPod," any digital audio player or computer with audio-playing software can play podcasts; there is no need for an iPod or any other portable music player.
The FirstGov.gov podcast library can be accessed at http://www.firstgov.gov/Topics/Reference_Shelf/Libraries/Podcasts.shtml
Contact: Joanne.McGovern at 814-686-1881 or joanne.mcgovern@gsa.gov
FirstGov.gov Initiates New Hosting Procurement
The GSA Office of Citizen Services and Communications (OCSC) has been sharing the technical infrastructure and the applications that power the FirstGov portal with several other customer-facing or e-government initiatives, such as govbenefits.gov.
Hosting services are provided under an OCSC contract with AT&T. When that contract expires in August 2006, it will be replaced by a procurement that will provide FirstGov and the other initiatives with the option of obtaining similar services from a common vendor.
Working with GSA's FEDSIM procurement office, OCSC's FirstGov Technologies Division is building requirements for a task order against an existing GWAC contract, through which subtasks may be issued for specific customers. The task order will have a menu of services that could include simple hosting, managed application hosting, software development, professional services and consulting.
The new arrangement will offer many advantages, such as customized services and a direct relationship, through FEDSIM, with the service provider. Contact Mary Sue Deffily, 202-219-1372 or mary.deffily@gsa.gov.
USA Services Unveils Customer Service Level Report
USA Services unveiled the recent Customer Service Level Interagency Committee (CSLIC) report, Proposed Performance Measures, Practices and Approaches for Government-wide Citizen Contract Activities. The report was produced under the leadership of Darryl Covey (National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration) and Mary Lamary (Office of Personnel Management), focused on developing standards, guidelines and recommendations for serving citizens in the following areas:
Telephone
Email
Traditional (walk-in and postal mail)
Cross-Channel Issues (Foreign Languages, Customer Complaints, etc.)
Future Methods (video, Instant Messaging, Web Chats, BOTs, etc.).
Contact Karen Trebon at 202-501-1802 or karen.trebon@gsa.gov.
U.S. and Mexican Government CIOs Explore Common Challenges
The GSA Office of Citizen Services and Communications recently arranged for a group of U.S. officials to meet and share their experiences with a contingent of about 20 CIOs representing state and federal levels of the Government of Mexico. Three Federal CIOs-Daniel Matthews, Department of Transportation; Ira Hobbs, Department of the Treasury; and Lisa Schlosser, Department of Housing and Urban Development-discussed the role of the CIO in transforming government.
State and local government IT leaders--Douglas Robinson, executive director of the National Association of State CIOs; Suzanne Peck, chief technology officer of the District of Columbia, and Fairfax County's (VA) manager of Public Access Services, Gregory Scott--addressed issues confronting state and local governments and how they are innovating to meet the challenge.
The Mexican officials also heard presentations on the challenges of implementing customer relationship management (CRM) in government. The speakers were Karla Timmons, Director, Enterprise CRM Program Management Office, GSA Office of Citizen Services and Communications; Mary Davie, leader of the GSA Federal Technology Service's CRM effort; and Bill Gibson, the CRM program manager for the Defense Logistics Agency.
All the speakers stressed the importance of improving business processes before implementing technological solutions. They described the need for organizational change and cultural barriers as the primary issues to confront in their roles as technology leaders in government. Contact: Darlene Meskell at 202-501-1092 or Darlene.meskell@gsa.gov.
E-Gov Events Calendar
Enterprise Architecture Transition Planning
Monthly meeting of the IAC Enterprise Architecture SIG will feature a government panel representing DoD, NASA and the Department of Education and moderated by Anne Armstrong of Federal Computer Week
12/01/05, Willard Intercontinental Hotel, Washington, DC
7:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., $50.
19th Large Installation System Administration Conference
The annual LISA conference is the meeting place of choice for system, network, database, storage, security, and all other computer-related administrators.
12/04/05 - 12/09/05, Town & Country Resort and Convention Center,
San Diego, CA
IAC Lines of Business Panel
12/06/05, Willard Intercontinental Hotel, Washington, DC
2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m., $25
IAC Executive Luncheon
Luncheon features a panel of CIOs from organizations that look after the well-being of the American investor--FDIC, SEC, PBGC, CFTC.
12/07/05, Willard Intercontinental Hotel, Washington, DC
11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. $75
IAC West Holiday Extravaganza
Annual holiday celebration of the American Council for Technology's Industry Advisory Council
12/9/05, Sheraton Denver West, Lakewood CO
9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Todd Grams Executive Luncheon
Sponsored by the Industry Advisory Council
12/14/05, Willard Intercontinental Hotel, Washington, DC
11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. $75
AFFIRM Luncheon: Contingency Operations and Transformation
Monthly luncheon of the Association for Federal Information Resources Mgmt
Speaker: Greg Rothwell, Chief Acquisition Officer, Department of Homeland Security
12/15/05, George Washington University, Marvin Center, 800 21st Street NW
Networking Reception 11:30; Lunch 12:00; Program 12:30
An archive of previous FirstGov.gov BUZZ editions is available at
http://www.usa.gov/Federal_Employees/USA_Buzz/Archive/Buzz_Newsletter.html.
About FirstGov.gov BUZZ
FirstGov.gov BUZZ is an email newsletter published by GSA's Office of Citizen Services and Communications. It was created to keep opinion leaders, policy makers, IT professionals, and others interested in FirstGov.gov aware of the latest developments and achievements relating to USA Services and FirstGov.gov, the federal government's award-winning Web portal.
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