GovernmentExecutive.com

The managers of the federal Thrift Savings Plan have stepped up their customer service efforts in recent years, but lack a system to measure whether the new approaches are meeting the needs of participants, according to a new report.

The TSP, which consists of tax-deferred savings accounts for federal employees - similar to the private sector's 401(k) plans - provides customer service through telephone call centers, Web sites, and on-site representatives at federal agencies.

In the report (GAO-05-38), the Government Accountability Office found that TSP managers have taken several steps in recent years to improve customer service, including setting up a new call center in Cumberland, Md., (in addition to one already operating in New Orleans, La.) and providing toll-free service.

The report found that TSP managers assess call center operations on the basis of efficiency, through such quantifiable standards as the time it takes to respond to incoming calls, the percentage of callers who hang up before receiving service, and the average call length.

But managers of large private sector 401(k) plans interviewed by GAO "downplayed the importance of quantitative measures and instead focused on ensuring that service representatives fully satisfied each customer's needs efficiently and politely in one call," the report stated. TSP managers get only indirect feedback about the quality of service provided, and should develop a more systematic evaluation effort, GAO recommended.

The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, which oversees the TSP, told GAO auditors that the board intends to survey plan participants on various issues, including customer satisfaction. But in February 2004, board members said such a survey would not be conducted for at least two years.

TSP Board members also told GAO that the high participation rate in the plan among employees, recent increases in the number of transactions processed, and a low account withdrawal rate among former federal employees and retirees indicate rising customer satisfaction.

The report also noted that the TSP relies more heavily on retirement counselors at federal agencies to deliver information and provide customer service than private plan operators. Web sites are the primary vehicle for delivering information to participants in private plans. Those sites "provided participants more flexibility and options for managing and learning about their retirement accounts than did the TSP Web site," GAO found.

Both the TSP and private-sector plans have shifted to Web-based systems to process the vast majority of transactions. During the first eight months of 2004, the TSP Web site received an average of 15.7 million hits per month and processed about 217,000 transactions monthly.

COMMENTS

• I have never had or seen any teaching on the TSP in the 9 years I've been here. I have asked others for help and they all say the same thing. "I don't understand it, I just leave it alone." TSP could be a helpful tool if we only knew how to use it. COELET HAMMEN Posted February 7, 2008 5:17 PM
• The biggest complaint I have is when they complete transactions. My statement never agrees with what I find on the website. And I do track value on a daily basis. That doesn't occur with my other investment accounts. I've found that when I reconcile my statements to what I see daily (easy to track on an excel spreadsheet)they never match. One should not try to time the market but one should be vigilant with the money one invests. And in the long run if they aren't clearing transactions as advertized then the whole concept of dollar cost averaging goes out the window. KVK Posted March 12, 2005 11:18 AM
• To: Taxpayer DoD With respect to your remark "...so far it does not sound like you have followed proper procedures. You need to protect yourself by doing things the proper way.", you are WAY off base. I followed TSP instructions and procedures TO THE LETTER. I dealt with supervisors at both call centers and the Congressional Correspondence Liason Unit in New Orleans. When both of these avenues failed to produce results, I involved my local congressional office. I know full well better than to seek resolution of a thorny problem with a first-line telephone rep. Unfortunately for me, this was a two-way comedy of errors, because the private-sector financial institution that I was transferring the funds from also had terrible customer service. I was forced to escalate the matter on that side also. I know how to get results in a bureaucracy, having been in one for so long myself. My transaction is done now, and I just want to put it all behind me and move on with my life. So yes, private sector institutions have room for improvement also, but that does not mean that the TSP should not address its very real service deficiencies. That said, I think the TSP is the best benefit that we have in the Federal service, people who do not contribute enough to at least get the full Government match are missing out on free money. It's a way for average earners to build real wealth and save on taxes to boot. AlSO A TAXPAYER Posted March 3, 2005 4:25 PM