INSIDE

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4601 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 1160 | Arlington, VA 22203(877) 642-9499 www.psp.fmcsa.dot.gov

PrE-EmPlOymEnt sCrEEnIng PrOgram annUal rEPOrt 2014

Maturing Audit Process Touts Impressive Results .............. 2

PSP Customer Service Team Earns Another Award .......... 3

PSP Education for Drivers and Carriers ...................... 3

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PSP Enhancements Launched

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 successfully and on schedule.

Many PSP account holders choose to auto-matically receive their PSP records through Web service requests. Therefore, NIC worked with each Web service user to ready them for the receipt of new adjudicated citation data. To prepare account holders, NIC launched an education campaign that included webinars, emails and letters, and individual testing efforts with each account holder.

NIC and FMCSA also worked together closely on a communications plan to help all PSP users understand the new policy. New frequently

It was another busy and productive year for the Pre-Employment Screening Program (PSP). In 2014 the NIC and FMCSA teams celebrated various accomplish-ments 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

Outreach & Impact Awards, which recognize the best in public sector communications efforts. Shashunga Clayton and Jeff Secrist accepted the award for FMCSA. The win was based on extensive education and outreach campaigns that have resulted in PSP’s impressive growth: since 2010, account holders have increased 1,800 percent, and PSP now has more than 40,000 individual users!

Collaboration between the PSP and FMCSA teams was also the key to success in the full redesign of the PSP site in accordance with the new and improved FMCSA Web standards. Martin Erb was particularly helpful during the relaunch process, verifying that the FMCSA and NIC redesign efforts were closely coordinated. The teams’ hard work paid off, and both the PSP and FMCSA sites debuted their brand-new look on April 1. Jeremy Decker of Mennel Milling shared feedback on the new site: “I used the PSP website this week and liked the changes that have been made! The site is easier to

FmCsa Wins Collaborator of the year for Pre-Employment screening ProgramI

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2 | PSP ANNUAL REPORT 2014

Maturing Audit Process Touts Impressive Results

n accordance with federal law, PSP account holders must receive a driver’s written

consent prior to requesting their PSP record. Each month, the NIC PSP team conducts audits on behalf of FMCSA to verify that account holders can demonstrate the consent was obtained.

During an audit, account holders are randomly selected to submit specific driver consent forms. Each submission is carefully reviewed to confirm that it meets agency standards.

The majority of account holders — 97 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 agency-approved method for gath-ering 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 service team works with these companies to make sure they update their form.

Each audit failure results in a penalty. Compa-nies failing audits are automatically included in an upcoming audit. This ensures that they have corrected their processes and comply with the driver consent standards. After receiving the one-on-one outreach from the customer service team, 87 percent of customers pass their follow-up audit. Companies that repeatedly fail audits eventually become suspended and terminated from using PSP.

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-sive. Users can visit the PSP site from any device – such as a tablet, mobile device, or laptop – and the site automatically adjusts according to the user’s screen size and browser. PSP’s responsive design makes it easy for carriers and drivers to access PSP records on the go.

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 Privacy and Security teams in August, and PSP earned its Authority to Operate (ATO) through mid-2015. A special thanks goes to Jeff Secrist, Vivian Oliver, Bunmi Ogunlade, Elizabeth Varghese, Pam Gosier-Cox, and Shannon DiMartino for help navigating the complex and dynamic CMP process. n

Collaborator of the Year! Back Row, L-R: Ilya Krifman, James Hill, Jeff Secrist. Front Row,

L-R: Laura Fredrickson, Elizabeth Pemmerl, Shashunga Clayton.

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FmCsa Wins Collaborator of the year for Pre-Employment screening Program

asked questions (FAQs) were added to the PSP website and NIC generated emails for all current account holders. Overall, the rollout was seamless, and the proactive, detailed communication helped decrease calls and emails to both the FMCSA and PSP customer service teams!

NIC also helped to spread the word about the new policy at various events, such as the National Private Truck Council (NPTC) annual safety meeting. “We want to thank NIC for your participation as a speaker at the 2014 National Safety Conference,” said 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

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PSP ANNUAL REPORT 2014 | 3

PSP Customer Service Team Earns Another Awardhe 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 more than 40,000 individual users, the five-member customer service team collaborates with PSP software developers to continuously improve the self-service options available on the PSP site. For

example, a “live chat” platform was inte-grated into high-traffic areas of the PSP website. This service allows users to quickly and easily get in touch with a customer service representative via an instant message chat box. Since chat implemen-tation, call volumes have decreased 40

percent compared to the same period in 2013. PSP users rave about the chat option. Charukeshi Chogal from M&M Carriers summed up the experience: “[Live chat is an] excellent service. Helpful and to the point. It’s a nice addition to the PSP program … online chat is the way to go.”

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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.

NIC participates in numerous events each year to spread the message about PSP and to encourage truck and bus companies to enroll in the

program. In 2014, outreach focused on explaining how the adjudi-cated citations policy impacts PSP, sharing the great results of the PSP Safety Impact Analysis study, and participating in FMCSA’s “Get Road Smart” campaign.

NIC was invited by FMCSA to assist in manning the Get Road Smart booth at the Mid-America Trucking Show (MATS) and the Great Amer-ican 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 ques-tions answered from seasoned experts in each program area.

The NIC team also attended meetings of the National Association of Professional Background Screeners, American Trucking Associations’ Safety Management Council, American Bus Association’s Bus Industry Safety Council, National Private Truck Council, National Association of Chemical Distributors, Association of Equipment Manufacturers, and many state trucking and bus associations. At each event, NIC’s team was able to share information and promote the program’s exciting positive impact on safety while gathering feedback to make the program even better! n

PsP Education for Drivers and Carriers

InsIghts is published by NIC Technologies. Your questions and comments are welcome. Please contact us at:

4601 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 1160 | Arlington, VA 22203(877) 642-9499 www.psp.fmcsa.dot.gov © 2014 Trozzolo.com

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 Korean War veterans as they arrived at Reagan National Airport through the Honor Flight Network. In November, the NIC team participated in the 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 honors Veterans, the Community, and Each Other

NIC team members bagging tomatoes at the Arlington Food Assistance

Center, which currently serves 3,481 families. L-R: Megan Uhrich, Laura Groat

and Laura Fredrickson.

NIC team members and families celebrate a great race after the VIVA VETS!

5K for veterans.

Lisa Funkhouser greets an Honor Flight Veteran from Iowa.

As part of Wreaths Across America, NIC team members placed remembrance

wreaths on some of the 230,000 headstones at Arlington National Cemetery.