Speech Analytics Technology In Use At SSA

     Social Security's Office of Inspector General (OIG) has issued a report on Controls over the Social Security Administration’s National 800-number Service During the COVID-19 Pandemic. It should surprise no one that the controls started off rough and got better with time. What I found interesting is information about a method the agency is using to evaluate telephone service:

... Speech analytics is a method, separate from service observation, designed to improve the efficiency and quality of service 800-number employees provide to the public. SSA’s speech analytics technology, which it began using in April 2017, converts recorded 800-number calls to a text format. SSA uses it to pinpoint patterns for further research and analysis via manual process. Employees in the Office of Customer Service and/or teleservice centers apply such criteria as words, phrases, or duration of calls to search the converted text to identify calls that should be referred to regional management for further evaluation. Calls can be identified through speech analytics based on the use of derogatory terms, a disconnected call that did not assist callers, and employees not responding to callers during the call. ...