The goal of the Service to the Citizen:  Champions of Change Program is to recognize those public servants who demonstrate excellence in their delivery of services that impact the public’s lives.  These public servants were recognized at an event on May 1, 2018 – in conjunction with Public Service Recognition Week at the Willard InterContinental.

The Environmental Protection Agency is taking the long view on how it serves its employees, state and local governments and businesses.

It launched a customer experience council that seeks to improve the entire interaction with its stakeholders from first contact to final resolution. The council is starting with its internal technology services and eventually will move to its private sector customers.

Dan Frank is one of a few industry leaders being recognized on May 1, 2018, for his use of innovation, data, and improvement in intergovernmental collaboration with Three Wire’s VetAdvisor® Program.

Public Service Recognition Week offers the opportunity to highlight the unique role the General Services Administration (GSA) plays in the federal government. We have the honor of not only serving the American people directly, but also supporting federal agencies whose missions help people in so many ways.

It is our goal to be trusted stewards of taxpayer funds by operating efficiently, effectively and securely. Accomplishing this goal would not be possible without our dedicated workforce. I cannot think of a better example of this dedication than the 13 GSA employees who recently earned Service to the Citizen Awards for their commitment to making government services better for the public.

Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue is the 2018 Service to the Citizen Awards' Government Executive of the Year -- an honor recognizing his leadership in pushing citizen-centric reorganization at the Department of Agriculture. 

Lisa Veith, senior vice president of Maximus Federal, was named Industry Executive of the Year, while former Federal Student Aid Chief Customer Experience Officer Brenda Wensil and former Department of Veterans Affairs Chief Veteran Experience Officer Tom Allin were recognized as Government CX Trailblazers.

A new award program, that recognizes Federal agencies that turn citizens’ frowns upside down, debuts in May. The Service to the Citizens awards, founded by Martha Dorris, everybody’s favorite former govie and a lady that always makes me smile, honors Feds for service to citizens and citizen experience breakthroughs.

The ceremony, two years in the making, is the passion project of Martha Dorris, a more than 30-year veteran of public service. A true turtle-topper and unsung hero, Dorris held various roles at the General Services Administration dedicated to the use of technology to improve citizens’ interaction with government.

Packing the ballroom at the Willard Intercontinental on Tuesday to honor those continuing that mission seems yet another example of her dedication.

Listen to the broadcast of the acceptance speech given by USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue