Generic Survey Performance Measurement SSA 2010_1

SUPPORTING STATEMENT

Performance Measurement Surveys OMB Control Number 3206-NEW

A. Justification

1. Circumstances Requiring Collection of Information

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) leads Federal agencies in shaping human resources management (HRM) systems to effectively recruit, develop, manage and retain a diverse, high quality workforce. We need to solicit input from our customers to evaluate our performance in providing services that are citizen-centered, results-oriented and market-based. Performance Measurement Surveys are valuable tools to gather information about our customers' view of our performance and services so we can design and implement new ways to improve our performance and services to meet their needs. This Generic Survey request includes 3 surveys that we currently use or plan to use during the next three years to measure our performance and ability to meet our customers’ needs. The survey instruments include direct mail, telephone contact, focus groups and web exit surveys. Our customers include the general public, Federal benefit recipients, Federal agencies and Federal employees.

2. Use of Information

The results of the information collected in these surveys will be used by OPM management to measure the effectiveness of a programs performance and with our services and to identify areas where corrective action might be needed to further improve services.

Some survey questionnaires will be mailed to a sample of randomly selected program customers, many of whom have had recent contact with OPM. Others may be mailed to all customers who have recently had contact with OPM. The participation in the surveys will be totally voluntary. In addition to mail surveys, OPM will utilize telephone surveys, Internet/web surveys and focus group discussions to collect customer information and feedback. All Interactive Voice Response (IVR) and Internet surveys will be voluntary for users of these systems.

Our past surveys have provided OPM management with ongoing findings on performance measurement. If the surveys are not conducted, a valuable source of customer feedback will be eliminated. This will limit OPM's ability to make informed decisions and will negatively impact the quality of service to our customers. Management has used the findings of past surveys to make improvement actions such as upgrading our telephone system for customers enabling them to readily speak to retirement offices and obtain services, considering changes in Federal Employee Health Benefits regulations, improving our agency web pages, improving our investigative services and improving Government-wide recruitment efforts.

3. Reduced Burden

Information on performance measurement can best be derived from direct questioning of program participants and customers. Because most customers conduct business with OPM by phone, mail and the internet, these are the primary ways we will collect the data for our surveys. These voluntary customer surveys are the most effective means to solicit customer feedback.

4. Duplication

There is no source for this information except direct contact with program participants and our customers. We will ensure that no survey or data collection effort approved under this generic clearance duplicates another.

5. Small Business

These data collections will not involve small businesses.

6. Consequences of Lower Frequency

Some voluntary performance surveys will be conducted as customers exit a particular OPM web page, others will be conducted on an as needed basis, and still others will be conducted on an annual basis. The attached survey list details each survey and how often it will be conducted. We will measure progress in service delivery by reviewing performance indicators generated from survey results. Conducting surveys on a less frequent basis will result in OPM losing touch with customer views on service.

7. Special Circumstances

This data collection is consistent with 5 CFR 1320.6.

8. Consultations

We published our 60-Day Federal Register Notice on June 21, 2010 at 75 FR 35092, notifying the public that we intended to request a new information collection for performance measurement surveys.

9. Payment to Respondents

No payment or gift is provided to respondents of voluntary customer surveys.

10. Confidentiality

Potential respondents of all voluntary customer surveys are told that their answers will be kept strictly confidential and will in no way affect their benefits or eligibility. Several surveys will provide each potential respondent with an assigned numerical identifier for the sole purpose of monitoring the return of the questionnaire, sending follow-up requests and preventing the possibility of double counting in the event the same respondent returns both the original and follow-up survey.

11. Sensitive Information

No sensitive information is being collected for any of the survey efforts.

12. Hour Burden of Collection

Web exit surveys, mailed questionnaires, Interactive Voice Response (IVR) telephone solicitations and focus group participation will be requested from thousands of customers who experienced a recent transaction or contact with OPM. The total number of respondents and the time needed to complete each survey effort will vary as shown in the attached survey list. We estimate the respondents and burden hours per fiscal year as shown below:

	FY2009	FY2010	FY2011	3 Years
Respondents	70300	70300	70300	210900
Burden Hours	23425	23425	23425	70275

13. Annualized Cost to Respondents

There is no financial cost burden to respondents resulting from this collection of information. OPM provides prepaid postage envelopes for mail surveys and uses toll-free lines for telephone surveys.

14. Annualized Cost to Government

Some voluntary customer surveys will be conducted in-house, while others will be contracted out. The cost will be approximately $200,000 per year. OPM will ensure that the lowest cost collection and analysis methodology is chosen for each survey so long as this is consistent with the purpose and need of the collection.

15. Reasons for Program Changes/Adjustments

This is a new request. In September 2009, OMB and OPM decided that the original control number for the Agency Generic Clearance 3206-0236 should be split up into 3 separate collections, the original Agency Generic Clearance would be renamed to Customer Satisfaction Surveys and would retain the 3206-0236 control number. 2 new collections would be created for Performance Measurement and Program Services Evaluations. Each collection will contain the individual IC’s and the appropriate burden specific to that classification of surveys.

16. Tabulation, Statistical Analysis and Publication

The statistical analysis of these voluntary surveys will include simple frequency distributions for each question. Comparisons will be subjected to appropriate tests for validity and reliability. The findings and analysis of all surveys will be reported to OPM management, and possibly for some surveys, to the public, during FY 2009, 2010 and 2011.

17. Display of Expiration Date for OMB Approval

Voluntary surveys approved as a result of this clearance will display OMB's approval number in the Public Burden Statement and prominently at the beginning of each survey instrument. We request exemption from displaying expiration dates due to the quantity of surveys involved and the costly administrative burden in changing all dates.

18. Exceptions to Certification Statement

OPM is not seeking any exceptions to the certification statement identified in Item 19, Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions, OMB Form 83-I.

NOTE: OPM will submit any revised surveys and proposed surveys in the attached survey list to OMB as the survey instruments become available. OMB will review the survey instruments and notify OPM within two weeks of receipt if there is a question or issue to be resolved. OPM will begin administering the survey after two weeks if there is no notification from OMB, per the terms of OMB Memorandum M-93-14.

Survey List

A Table of Contents for the survey list is below. It is followed by a detailed survey list which is a comprehensive summary of our generic IC’s. If OPM substitutes or wants to add a new survey that falls under the umbrella of this generic clearance, OMB will be notified and will be provided a copy of the survey instrument, the number of expected respondents and burden hours involved if different from that included in this list. For the proposed survey instruments that are in development at the time of this submission (Clerical Central Register Applicant Survey and Website Customer Satisfaction Survey), but are included in the request list, we will submit an OMB Change Worksheet to reflect these changes when the survey instrument(s) are sent for approval. Our survey respondents may include current Federal employees (as defined in the Paperwork Reduction Act Guidelines of 1995), Federal agencies, Federal benefit recipients, and the general public.

Survey No.	Survey Title	Survey Information
Performance Measurement Surveys
PMS1	Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) – Adults	Purpose of survey: To evaluate members’ satisfaction with their health plan   How is information used and analyzed? We have a contractor who gathers the data from the health plan survey vendors and does the analyses. They calculate average satisfaction scores for the following measures: Overall plan satisfaction Getting needed care Getting care quickly How well doctors communicate Customer Service Claims Processing Plan information on costs Intended Audience?  Federal employees and retirees   One-time survey?  No.  This is an annual survey.   Is this “adhoc” and tied to an already existing form? No.   At what point is the information collected? After applying for benefits and being in program one year. Survey is sent out in March and April   Voluntary or mandatory? Voluntary   Approximate time needed to complete: An average of 20 minutes for a respondent to complete the survey   Number of estimated Respondents for 2009, 2010, and 2011 2009 – 70,000 2010 – 70,000 2011 – 70,000
PMS2	Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) – Child Survey	Purpose of survey: To evaluate members’ satisfaction with their health plan How is information used and analyzed? We would look at the survey internally. We would not publish the results to the public. Intended Audience?  OPM One-time survey?  If NO, how often?  Annually? Etc…  This is an annual survey. We do not require the CAHPS child survey. If health plans administer it for their other lines of business then we request that they send us the results. Is this “adhoc” and tied to an already existing form?  No. At what point is the information collected? Respondents must be enrolled in the plan at least one year. Voluntary or mandatory? Voluntary Approximate time needed to complete: An average of 20 minutes for a respondent to complete the survey Number of estimated Respondents for 2009, 2010, and 2011 2009 – 200 2010 – 200 2011 – 200
PMS3	OPM Leadership 360	Purpose of survey? The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) developed the OPM Leadership 360™ to provide feedback to Federal supervisors, managers and executives on the 28 OPM leadership competencies that comprise the Governmentwide Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs). The purpose of the assessment is to help Federal managers identify their leadership strengths and developmental needs. How is information used and analyzed? The results are used primarily by the individual assessed. Agencies find an aggregate report of the results useful for assessing broad areas of leadership strengths and challenges. The feedback—both individual and aggregate—displays the results for the 28 Competencies in the OPM leadership model and for each item. At least three peer and subordinate ratings are needed to see results for those groups; only one self and supervisor rating is needed. In many cases, participants are provided with individual leadership coaching. In other cases, participants receive instructions during a group feedback session. Intended Audience?  The primary audience is Federal supervisors, managers, executives, team leaders, and management candidates, although agencies may request to administer the survey to contract employees. In addition, although the participant may be a Federal employee, he or she may request that a non-government peer or former coworker complete the assessment. One-time survey?   If No how often?  Annually etc.  The survey is generally one-time, although many people will complete it at multiple times throughout their career (e.g., as part of agency-wide administrations, as part of various courses at the Management Development Centers). Is this “adhoc” and tied to an already existing form? Ad hoc At what point is the information collected? The survey is administered when agencies request it or when Management Development Centers begin a course.   Voluntary or mandatory? Voluntary  Approximate time needed to complete: 15 minutes   Number of estimated Respondents for 2009, 2010, and 2011 2009: 100 2010: 100 2011: 100

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