TAXPAYER DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS PROGRAM
2021
SERVICE TO THE CITIZEN AWARD WINNERS
ANDREW CHIU
DAVID J.
LUNSFORD
KIRA PRIN
Director, Product Management & UX,
Internal Revenue Service
Product Manager/Development Internal Revenue Service
Product Development Specialist,
Internal Revenue Service
LORI ROBERTS
Director, Technology Solutions
IRS Small Business/Self-Employed Business Operating Division,
Internal Revenue Service
MICHELLE L. PENDZICK
IRS Identity Assurance e-Signature Program Lead,
Internal Revenue Service
DEBORAH GREGORY
Senior Operations Advisor, Case and Operations Support, Independent Office of Appeals,
Internal Revenue Service
CAROLYN MORTON
Director, Technology and Program Solutions,
Internal Revenue Service
JOHN D. BARKER
LB&I Technology and Program Solutions - Technical Advisor,
Internal Revenue Service
SRINIVASA R. PONAKALA
Senior Manager,
Internal Revenue Service
LINH MA-VU
LB&I Management & Program Analyst,
Internal Revenue Service
KEITH T. FLOYD
Management & Program Analyst,
Internal Revenue Service
HEATHER CHRISTENSEN
Product Manager,
Internal Revenue Service
KELLY D. GRAVELY
Program Manager, Technology Solutions
IRS Small Business/Self-Employed Business Operating Division,
Internal Revenue Service
ANTOINE D. BROWN
Program Manager,
Internal Revenue Service
MICHAEL LANDSMANN
Project Manager SBSE Exam,
Internal Revenue Service
NOT PICTURED:
SARVESH SHAH
Product Development Specialist
KIRK CRAWFORD
Product Development Specialist
MATTHEW LEIBNER
Product Development Specialist
JOSHUA JESSAR
Supervisory Program Analyst (acting)
ALCORA WALDEN
Technical Project Manager
JENNIFER AMARANTE
Supervisory Program Analyst
NANETTE DOWNING
Director, Identity Assurance
PAUL WIGHT
Supervisory Mgmt. & Program Analyst
COURTNEY RASEY
Technical Project Manager
ADRIENNE SMITH
Management And Program Anly
CODY THIERRY
Management And Program Anly
ALI CINDEE V
Project Manager
ROBIN KIDWELL
Director, Technology Solutions
JULIE MCCOLLUM
Management And Program Analyst
ANNEMARIE D'AMATO
Tax Analyst
MARIE SHADDY
Senior Tax Analyst
MARTIN SWANSON
Supervisory Tax Analyst
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, while supporting the operations and maintenance of existing TDC installations, the taxpayer Digital Communications (TDC) program team delivered four new installations, including Secure Messaging for specific needs within several divisions including Large Business; International, Appeals, and Small Business/Self-Employed (SB/SE). The TDC team expanded support for SB/SE Correspondence Exam and doubled the capacity of chat operations, in addition to adding the ability for authenticated taxpayers to send and receive attachments via chat. They implemented appropriate authentication protocols for users, including multi-factor authentication for business representatives.
In 2020 alone, 361 assisters serviced 431,296 chats – a 258% increase compared to the previous year. 74% of connected chats were successfully resolved, with customers rating their overall experience 4.1 out of 5 stars. 698 IRS employees were provisioned with Secure Messaging accounts, enabling IRS to receive 37,542 inbound messages and deliver 41,690 secure messages to taxpayers. There were 81,352 secure inbox sessions, which denotes the number of visits by external users (taxpayers, representatives, and corporations) who accessed their secure messaging inbox. These sessions represent a 68.8% increase from the previous year.
The success of the TDC program has provided IRS and taxpayers with more digital options as a reflection of IRS’ commitment to transformational digital experiences. The members of the TDC team went above and beyond, with limited resources, to deliver innovative technology to transform government services at a critical time when the public had a greater need for digital communications than ever before.Overall, this data demonstrates IRS agility in overcoming challenges and progressing toward improved methods for communications between IRS and taxpayers.