Pre-Employment Screening Program ANNUAL REPORT 2014
INSIDE Maturing Audit Process Touts Impressive Results............... 2 PSP Customer Service Team Earns Another Award........... 3 PSP Education for Drivers and Carriers....................... 3
PSP Enhancements Launched I
n August, FMCSA’s adjudicated citation policy went into effect. As a result, the PSP record
was enhanced to reflect the new policy. The FMCSA, NIC, and Volpe teams worked together closely to verify that changes to the MCMIS data feed and PSP record were planned, tested, and implemented
FMCSA Wins Collaborator of the Year for Pre-Employment Screening Program
I
t was another busy and productive year for the Pre-Employment Screening Program (PSP). In 2014 the NIC and FMCSA teams celebrated various accomplishments including enhancing the PSP website, completing year one of the FMCSA
Continuous Monitoring Program, and being honored with several awards! In October, FMCSA was named “Collaborator” of the year at the GovDelivery
successfully and on schedule. Many PSP account holders choose to auto-
Outreach & Impact Awards, which recognize the best in public sector communications
matically receive their PSP records through
efforts. Shashunga Clayton and Jeff Secrist accepted the award for FMCSA. The win
Web service requests. Therefore, NIC worked
was based on extensive education and outreach campaigns that have resulted in PSP’s
with each Web service user to ready them for
impressive growth: since 2010, account holders have increased 1,800 percent, and PSP
the receipt of new adjudicated citation data.
now has more than 40,000 individual users!
To prepare account holders, NIC launched an
Collaboration between the PSP and FMCSA teams was also the key to success in the
education campaign that included webinars,
full redesign of the PSP site in accordance with the new and improved FMCSA Web
emails and letters, and individual testing efforts
standards. Martin Erb was particularly helpful during the relaunch process, verifying
with each account holder.
that the FMCSA and NIC redesign efforts were closely coordinated. The teams’ hard
NIC and FMCSA also worked together closely
work paid off, and both the PSP and FMCSA sites debuted their brand-new look on
on a communications plan to help all PSP users
April 1. Jeremy Decker of Mennel Milling shared feedback on the new site: “I used the
understand the new policy. New frequently
PSP website this week and liked the changes that have been made! The site is easier to
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Maturing Audit Process Touts Impressive Results I
FMCSA Wins Collaborator of the Year for Pre-Employment Screening Program | continued from page 1 |
navigate and more user-friendly. Our company relies on PSP for hiring safe drivers. It’s great to see the constant improvements to the program!” During the relaunch, the NIC team ensured the website continued to be fully respon-
n accordance with federal law, PSP account
sive. Users can visit the PSP site from any device – such as a tablet, mobile device,
holders must receive a driver’s written
or laptop – and the site automatically adjusts according to the user’s screen size and
consent prior to requesting their PSP record. Each
browser. PSP’s responsive design makes it easy for carriers and drivers to access PSP
month, the NIC PSP team conducts audits on
records on the go.
behalf of FMCSA to verify that account holders can demonstrate the consent was obtained. During an audit, account holders are randomly
Top priority is placed on PSP security and privacy. In 2014, a significant project evaluated PSP against the security and privacy controls detailed in the DOT Continuous Monitoring Program (CMP). Findings of the assessment were presented to the FMCSA
selected to submit specific driver consent forms.
Privacy and Security teams in August, and PSP earned its Authority to Operate (ATO)
Each submission is carefully reviewed to confirm
through mid-2015. A special thanks goes to Jeff Secrist, Vivian Oliver, Bunmi Ogunlade,
that it meets agency standards.
Elizabeth Varghese, Pam Gosier-Cox, and Shannon DiMartino for help navigating the
The majority of account holders — 97
complex and dynamic CMP process. n
percent — successfully produce a driver consent form. The PSP customer service team has a phone consultation with those who do not pass the audit, educating them on the agencyapproved method for gathering consent. In the majority of cases, the account holders who didn’t “pass” the audit did capture the driver consent, but used an outdated version of the FMCSA consent form. The PSP customer
Collaborator of the Year! Back Row, L-R: Ilya Krifman, James Hill, Jeff Secrist. Front Row, L-R: Laura Fredrickson, Elizabeth Pemmerl, Shashunga Clayton.
service team works with these companies to make sure they update their form. Each audit failure results in a penalty. Compa-
PSP Enhancements Launched
nies failing audits are automatically included in
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an upcoming audit. This ensures that they have
asked questions (FAQs) were added to the PSP website and NIC generated emails
corrected their processes and comply with the
for all current account holders. Overall, the rollout was seamless, and the proactive,
driver consent standards. After receiving the
detailed communication helped decrease calls and emails to both the FMCSA and PSP
one-on-one outreach from the customer service
customer service teams!
team, 87 percent of customers pass their follow-
NIC also helped to spread the word about the new policy at various events, such as
up audit. Companies that repeatedly fail audits
the National Private Truck Council (NPTC) annual safety meeting. “We want to thank
eventually become suspended and terminated
NIC for your participation as a speaker at the 2014 National Safety Conference,” said
from using PSP.
Garry Petty, NPTC President and CEO. “Thanks [for] your contribution and insightful presentation. We look forward to working with you again at future NPTC events.” n
2 | PSP ANNUAL REPORT 2014
PSP Customer Service Team Earns Another Award T
he PSP customer service team continued its great work assisting
drivers, carriers, and industry service provider users during the year. The number of PSP accounts grew to more than 11,000; driver record requests increased 18 percent compared to 2013; and users visited the website an unprecedented 67,000 times per month, on average! This means the PSP customer service team receives thousands of phone calls and emails during the year. In 2014, the average call wait time remained less than 30 seconds, and the customer service team responded to almost all emails on the same business day. In recognition of these strong metrics, the PSP customer service team was awarded the Bronze Stevie Award for the Contact Center Team of the Year in 2014. To support the growing user base of
PSP customer service team displaying its Stevie Award for Contact Center Team of the Year. Back Row, L-R: Allison Krones, Joan Kalvaitis, Madeleine Estevez. Front Row, L-R: Shanda Goulbourne, Robin Grant.
example, a “live chat” platform was inte-
percent compared to the same period in
grated into high-traffic areas of the PSP
2013. PSP users rave about the chat option.
more than 40,000 individual users, the
website. This service allows users to quickly
Charukeshi Chogal from M&M Carriers
five-member customer service team
and easily get in touch with a customer
summed up the experience: “[Live chat
collaborates with PSP software developers
service representative via an instant
is an] excellent service. Helpful and to
to continuously improve the self-service
message chat box. Since chat implemen-
the point. It’s a nice addition to the PSP
options available on the PSP site. For
tation, call volumes have decreased 40
program … online chat is the way to go.”
PSP Education for Drivers and Carriers
NIC
participates in numerous events each year to
The NIC team also attended meetings of the National Association of
spread the message about PSP and to encourage
Professional Background Screeners, American Trucking Associations’ Safety
truck and bus companies to enroll in the
Management Council, American Bus Association’s Bus Industry Safety
program. In 2014, outreach focused on explaining how the adjudi-
Council, National Private Truck Council, National Association of Chemical
cated citations policy impacts PSP, sharing the great results of the
Distributors, Association of Equipment Manufacturers, and many state
PSP Safety Impact Analysis study, and participating in FMCSA’s “Get
trucking and bus associations. At each event, NIC’s team was able to share
Road Smart” campaign.
information and promote the program’s exciting positive impact on safety
NIC was invited by FMCSA to assist in manning the Get Road Smart
while gathering feedback to make the program even better! n
booth at the Mid-America Trucking Show (MATS) and the Great American Trucking Show (GATS). While FMCSA representatives fielded questions about CSA and the National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners, the NIC team helped with specific inquiries about PSP. This joint approach made it easy for drivers to get all of their questions answered from seasoned experts in each program area. PSP ANNUAL REPORT 2014 | 3
NIC Honors Veterans, the Community, and Each Other
NIC
believes that the success of PSP is built upon our employees’ well-being and dedication to their work, their colleagues, and their community. As a result,
our team participated in many activities during the year, from the Crystal City 5K Friday race to our annual ArtJamz summer painting party. Throughout the year, NIC gives back to the greater Washington, D.C. community. NIC provided financial support, food donations, and warehouse help to the Arlington Food Assistance Center each quarter, helping to put food on the tables of our community’s most needy families. Proximity to our nation’s capital has allowed us to focus on several unique veterans’ events. Our team was delighted to greet visiting WWII and
NIC team members bagging tomatoes at the Arlington Food Assistance
Korean War veterans as they arrived at Reagan National Airport through
Center, which currently serves 3,481 families. L-R: Megan Uhrich, Laura Groat
the Honor Flight Network. In November, the NIC team participated in the
and Laura Fredrickson.
VIVA VETS! 5K run/walk for veterans, which NIC also sponsored. And, in December, we remembered our nation’s heroes by laying wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery as part of Wreaths Across America. n
NIC team members and families celebrate a great race after the VIVA VETS! 5K for veterans.
As part of Wreaths Across America, NIC team members placed remembrance Lisa Funkhouser greets an Honor Flight Veteran from Iowa.
wreaths on some of the 230,000 headstones at Arlington National Cemetery.
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