2_Generic Application FEMA CX Survey

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for Improving
Customer Experience: OMB Circular A-11, Section 280
Implementation”
(OMB Control Number: 1601-0029)
TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: FEMA Customer Experience (CX)
Survey
PURPOSE OF COLLECTION:
What are you hoping to learn / improve? How do you plan to use
what you learn? Are there artifacts (user personas, journey
maps, digital roadmaps, summary of customer insights to inform
service improvements, performance dashboards) the data from this
collection will feed?
The purpose of the FEMA Customer Experience (CX) survey is to
ensure ‘excellent service’ as a focus in future strategic
planning efforts according to the March 2018 President’s
Management Agenda. This effort is supported by an interagency
team and guidance in Circular A-11 requiring the collection of
customer feedback data and increasing the use of industry best
practices to conduct customer research. These Presidential
actions and requirements establish an ongoing process of
collecting customer insights and using them to improve services.
This new request complies with FEMA’s ability to act under the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in accordance with OMB
Circular A-11 Section 280 to ultimately transform the experience
of its customers to improve both efficiency and mission delivery
and increase accountability by communicating about these efforts
with the public.
This collection is part of the government-wide effort to embed
standardized customer metrics within high-impact programs to
create government-wide performance dashboards. Data collected
from the questions listed will be submitted by FEMA to DHS to
OMB at a minimum quarterly for updating of customer experience
dashboards on performance.gov.
These surveys will be consistent with all the guidelines in 5
CFR 1320.5, especially those provisions in subsection (g) which
require that a statistical survey be designed to produce results
that can be generalized to the universe of study. There are no
special circumstances that would cause this information
collection to be conducted in an unusual or intrusive manner.
All participation will be voluntary from disaster survivors who
register for assistance and provide an email address.

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TYPE OF ACTIVITY: (Check one)
[ ] Customer Research (Interview, Focus Groups, Surveys)
[X] Customer Feedback Survey
[ ] Usability Testing of Products or Services
ACTIVITY DETAILS
1. If this is a survey, will the results of this survey be
reported to Touchpoints as part of quarterly reporting
obligations specified in OMB Circular A-11 Section 280?
[X] Yes
[ ] No
[ ] Not a survey
2. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)
[X] Web-based or other forms of Social Media
[ ] Telephone
[ ] In-person
[ ] Mail
[ ] Other, Explain
3. Who will you collect the information from?
Explain who will be interviewed and why the group is appropriate
for the Federal program / service to connect with. Please
provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential
group of respondents and if only a sample will be solicited for
feedback, how you will select them(e.g., anyone who provided an
email address to a call center rep, a representative sample of
Veterans who received outpatient services in May 2019, do you
have a list of customers to reach out to (e.g., a CRM database
that has the contact information, intercept interviews at a
particular field office?)
Respondents comprise a sample from disaster survivors who
register for assistance and provide an email address.
4. How will you ask a respondent to provide this information?
(e.g., after an application is submitted online, the final
screen will present the opportunity to provide feedback by
presenting a link to a feedback form / an actual feedback form)
A sample of disaster survivors who provide an email address
during registration will receive an email invitation to the
survey.

5. What will the activity look like?

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Describe the information collection activity – e.g. what happens
when a person agrees to participate? Will facilitators or
interviewers be used? What’s the format of the interview/focus
group? If a survey, describe the overall survey
layout/length/other details? If User Testing, what actions will
you observe / how will you have respondents interact with a
product you need feedback on?
Following registration, a random sample of respondents receive a
survey link via the email address they provided. The email
invitation contains a link to take the survey online. The survey
will take approximately 3 minutes to complete.
6. Please provide your question list.
Paste here the questions or prompts presented to participants in
your activity. If you have an interview / facilitator guide,
that can be attached to the submission and referenced here.
Please make sure that all instruments, instructions, and scripts
are submitted with the request.
These questions are about your experience applying for FEMA
assistance. Please use a rating scale of 1 (Strongly Disagree)
to 5 (Strongly Agree) to rate the following...
1. Applying for FEMA disaster assistance has increased my trust
in FEMA.
2a. What about the FEMA application process made the difference?
(Select all that apply.)
o My need was addressed.
o It was easy to complete what I needed to do.
o It took a reasonable amount of time to do what I needed to do.
o I understand what was being asked of me throughout the process.
o I was treated fairly.
o Employees I interacted with were helpful.
2b. What could have been better about the FEMA application
process? (Select all that apply.)
o My need was not addressed.
o It was difficult to complete what I needed to do.
o It took too long to do what I needed to do.
o I did not understand what was being asked of me throughout the process.
o I was not treated fairly.
o Employees I interacted with were not helpful.
3. Anything else you want us to know about your experience?
7. When will the activity happen?

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Describe the time frame or number of events that will occur
(e.g., We will conduct focus groups on May 13,14,15, We plan
to conduct customer intercept interviews over the course of
the Summer at the field offices identified in response to #2
based on scheduling logistics concluding by Sept. 10th, or
“This survey will remain on our website in alignment with the
timing of the overall clearance.”)
FEMA has conducted the Customer Experience (CX) survey since
FY2021. This clearance will allow continuous surveying to comply
to quarterly reporting on CX measures to DHS and OMB.
8. Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses,
token of appreciation) provided to participants?
[ ] Yes [X] No
If Yes, describe:
BURDEN HOURS
Category of Respondent
FEMA disaster survivors registering for
assistance and providing an email
address.
Totals

No. of
Respondents
1,600 per
year
1,600

Participation
Time
3 minutes

Burden
Hours
80 hours
per year
80

CERTIFICATION:
I certify the following to be true:
1. The collections are voluntary;
2. The collections are low-burden for respondents (based on
considerations of total burden hours or burden-hours per
respondent) and are low-cost for both the respondents and the
Federal Government;
3. The collections are non-controversial;
4. Any collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions
from respondents who have experience with the program or may
have experience with the program in the near future;
5. Personally identifiable information (PII) is collected only to
the extent necessary and is not retained;
6. Information gathered is intended to be used for general
service improvement and program management purposes
7. The agency will follow the procedures specified in OMB
Circular A-11 Section 280 for the required quarterly reporting
to OMB of trust data and experience driver data from surveys.
8. Outside of the quarterly reporting mentioned in the bullet
immediately above, if the agency intends to release journey
maps, user personas, reports, or other data-related summaries
stemming from this collection, the agency must include
appropriate caveats around those summaries, noting that
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conclusions should not be generalized beyond the sample,
considering the sample size and response rates. The agency
must submit the data summary itself (e.g., the report) and the
caveat language mentioned above to OMB before it releases them
outside the agency. OMB will engage in a passback process with
the agency.
Name and email address of person who developed this survey/focus
group/interview:

CHAD E FABER Digitally signed by CHAD E FABER

Date: 2024.01.25 13:43:02 -06'00'
Name: ____________________

Email address: [email protected]
All instruments used to collect information must include:
OMB Control No. 1601-0029
Expiration Date: XX/XX/XXXX

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HELP SHEET
(OMB Control Number: XXXX-XXXX)
TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Provide the name of the collection that is
the subject of the request. (e.g. Comment card for soliciting feedback on
xxxx)
PURPOSE: Provide a brief description of the purpose of this collection and
how it will be used. If this is part of a larger study or effort, please
include this in your explanation.
TYPE OF COLLECTION: Check one box. If you are requesting approval of other
instruments under the generic, you must complete a form for each instrument.
CERTIFICATION: Please read the certification carefully. If you incorrectly
certify, the collection will be returned as improperly submitted or it will
be disapproved.
Personally Identifiable Information: Agencies should only collect PII to the
extent necessary, and they should only retain PII for the period of time that
is necessary to achieve a specific objective.
BURDEN HOURS:
Category of Respondents: Identify who you expect the respondents to be in
terms of the following categories: (1) Individuals or Households;(2) Private
Sector; (3) State, local, or tribal governments; or (4) Federal Government.
Only one type of respondent can be selected per row.
No. of Respondents: Provide an estimate of the Number of respondents.
Participation Time: Provide an estimate of the amount of time required for a
respondent to participate (e.g. fill out a survey or participate in a focus
group)
Burden: Provide the Annual burden hours: Multiply the Number of responses
and the participation time and divide by 60.

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