CIGNA Government Services
Company: CIGNA Government Services, LLC
Company Description: CIGNA Government Services (CGS) contracts with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to process Medicare claims for more than 16 million beneficiaries and more than 80,000 providers/suppliers. CGS exceeds CMS expectations with a focus on controlling costs to maintain the integrity of the Medicare Trust Fund. CGS must also comply with federal rules, regulations, and CMS requirements.
Nomination Category: Information Technology Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Information Technology Team of the Year
Nomination Title: Rising to the Challenge
Tell the story about what this nominated team achieved since January 1 2010 (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:
May 1, 2010, it started to rain in Nashville. When the deluge ceased, more than 13 inches of rain had fallen in 48 hours. The flood took the lives of 21 people and destroyed countless homes and businesses. As the rains lifted on Sunday, CGS was among those businesses left with the daunting task of either closing shop or continuing business on Monday. As a government contractor, closing shop was not an option. But with our headquarters swept up in the 31% of Tennessee declared a major disaster area, the simplest business transactions were now pieces of a complex business recovery operation. CGS management was informed that the flooded area surrounding our facility was closed to all personnel due to power outages and the instability of a nearby levee.
Immediately, upon learning that the facility was closed, CGS management
utilized our emergency notification system, Notifind, to update employees. This
system became a critical link to our employees who needed daily updates
regarding the status of the facility closure and their access to work. CGS
executive staff and key personnel quickly assembled in an alternate CGS office
in Nashville to conduct conference calls and assess the situation in the
context of our existing business continuity plan. Because of this existing plan
and workload management tools, this team was able to quickly identify the
critical services and systems necessary to meet customer needs with minimal
disruption. Recovery of CGS’s customer service functions, including the Call
Center and Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system, was top priority. The IVR
handles approximately 80% of incoming provider and supplier inquiries.
Given only a two-hour window to retrieve essential equipment, CGS IT personnel
raced to recover servers and computers. Due to the substantial phone line
requirements of the IVR, a CGS recovery team member personally transported the
IVR server from Nashville to CGS’s satellite office in North Carolina, where
necessary phone lines were available. By Wednesday morning, the IVR was
operating at near full capacity. With one employee traveling, the remaining
recovery team transferred computers and servers from headquarters to our
secondary location in Nashville. Utilizing all available space, employees were
relocated and equipped with computers and phones, ensuring continuity of
service to providers and beneficiaries served by CGS.
On May 13, we began transferring back to headquarters. Thanks to the
exceptional efforts of CGS management and the recovery team, CGS customer
service operations were fully-functioning within 48 hours. This fact alone
would have been a success story for any business in the affected area; however
CGS managed to meet this challenge and exceed customer service metrics goals in
all areas throughout the entire event.
MAY 2010 Results
Metric Customer Goal Actual Results
Part B Average Speed
of Answer (ASA) (Seconds) = 120 39
Part B % Knowledge 90.0% 94.2%
Part B % Customer Skills 90.0% 100.0%
Part B Provider Call Backs 99.5% 100.0%
DME ASA (seconds) = 60 20
DME % Knowledge 93.0% 95.0%
DME % Customer Skills 93.0% 100.0%
DME Provider Call Backs 99.5% 100.0%
List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:
http://www.cignagovernmentservices.com/
[http://www.cignagovernmentservices.com/jc/help/IVR.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFjaQoOdJvI&feature=player_embedded#!
http://www.facebook.com/CIGNAGovernmentServices#!/CGS.J15
http://66.103.133.58/article.aspx?id=182446&type=lifehealth
Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader(s) of the nominated team:
John Kimball is the Vice President of Operations. He has been with CGS for
over 15 years. He has a Bachelors and Masters of Science in Physics from
Appalachian State University. John recently moved from the CGS Systems
organization where he held the roles of Chief Information Officer, System
Security Officer and lead various IT teams including development, testing,
project management, system security and production support.
When not working, he enjoys leading his sons' Cub Scout pack and participating
in Scout outings with the boys. In 2010 John completed 8 Half Marathons, his
first Full Marathon and two Triathlons.