Looked it over and it is all pie-in-the-sky. There is no technology today, or on the horizon, that can handle the volume and complexity of SSA workloads. The data centers and the OC-12 lines connecting them and the PSCs and FOs do not exist anywhere. Lastly, people coming to SSA want face-to-face contacts and do not want to spend long times listening to automated messages on a phone system. Ask anyone who has experienced Verizon's phone system to relate any positive reaction to it.
This hearing is an exact demonstration of why the old guard of democrats are continuing to lose. Nobody asked any relevant questions. Everything was about doge and social security offices. Nobody asked about staffing, services, wait times etc. My younger generation is done with them until they see that we see through the politics and want real answers. Just look at the NY mayor race. Y’all are cooked.
Frank was masterful today. Not sure why so many aren’t impressed. Perhaps jealous about a kid from Brooklyn making it on his own and rising to the top levels of business, finance, and now government? All my colleagues who watched with me agree Frank is exactly what the agency needs.
He was so disrespectful to the Representatives, especially women and minorities. I realize he's a New Yorkers and that it would be hard for anyone to not feel like they had the time to make their points, but if you're going to testify before Congress you can't just interrupt people or keep going when they reclaim their time or say "excuse me" to try and keep talking!
Bisignano with Dustin Brown sitting behind him as his wingman, well, that's the blind and clueless leading the blind bored Billionaire. Brune should be in the chair explaining the IT cluster of the last decade; or, Poist explaining why the agency was/is starved of staff; or, Evangelista explaining 15 years of policy simplification -- oh, but he was working his side gigs so there is no simplification!! Anyone with good business sense advising Frank would suggest they all need to go.
You don't know what you're talking about. Dustin being the head of LCA who helps prep the Commissioner for such hearings and the former COO for the agency has every right to be there! The individuals you named have all helped prepared the Commissioner for this hearing.
Recenly met Frank in our office and he presented himself as not interested in what was being done. He did not exude any sense of greatness and seemed bored.
Gotta get a new appointment scheduling tool. That will really help! We will be able to increase the number of slots so we can schedule more claimants. Nevermind that we have no one to conduct those meetings. Might as well fill out the slots to 90 days. That should do it.
Many things Frank said shows he has little to no understanding of what SSA does. He referred to “walk-ins” as “wait-ins” and his responses show he doesnt actually know what return to work incentives/policy look(s) like. Just like the representatives show they have little understanding and possibly concern of what is happening to the agency. Literally zero sharp questioning. I almost keeled over when the rep lauded him over his “omnichannel” approach service delivery. Imagine allowing customers to seek service via the phone, office and online?! What a cluster.
I’ve heard that Frank testified morale is significantly higher since he took over. Yes Frank, we love being in the office 5 days a week for no good reason. We also love being demoralized. It increases morale significantly. Also- did you take the stats down from public access because our stats have significantly worsened since January, and that goes against the narrative you’re trying to portray?
He also said that there were more people working at field offices and teleservice centers now than in January. I do not see how that could be true given the fork, VSIP, VERA, regular departures and retirements, a hiring freeze, etc. A few hundred reassignments from ROs and HQs can't make up for those losses. Hopefully a Congressional staffer asks about that in post-hearing questions. All I can imagine he meant is physically "in" those offices because of return to office...but not that more people are actually doing those jobs.
Frank was asked questions by social security works about hiding the transparency data from the website. He became beet red when he got called out on it. He is unable to speak with anyone outside of choreographed and friendly audiences. His town hall is how he controls the narrative. He can’t answer any pointed questions. He goes on Maria Bartiromo and friendly hosts who will ask him easy question. How he was a Fortune 500 ceo boggles my mind. He performs under scripted and controlled environments, otherwise he can’t handle any questions.
https://bsky.app/profile/kathleenromig.bsky.social/post/3lshlxvtiac2v SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano promised he'd run a "fact-based, rule-based org that can count." But something's not adding up. 1,244 fewer Social Security staff serve in field offices as of 5/1, per SSA. But Bisignano testified that "the reality is we have more people in field offices" ... Source of SSA field office staff numbers: Tables 3.17 and 3.18 https://www.ssa.gov/budget/assets/materials/2026/FY26-JEAC.pdf
At some point, the country -- and the audience for this blog -- needs to realize no one cares about Social Security. Obama couldn't bring himself to even nominate a Commissioner, and then Biden appointed Kijakazi, who couldn't manage herself out of a paper bag, let alone an operation like SSA. Bisignano sees a floundering company ripe for VC takeover. The goal here is to create such a distressed situation that public sentiment shifts in favor of a club deal by a consortium of financial institutions and investment firms. Full stop. A trillion dollars instantly infused into the market, and a benefits/payment entity to administer ongoing claims and outlays. It would be a stunner if SSI was not returned to the states or dramatically reformed.
No one cares about Social Security?! Obama never nominated a Commissioner?! Stupidity and lies. https://www.govexec.com/management/2014/06/obama-names-acting-ssa-chief-step-permanently/86905/
This is true. People care about their money but not about the underlying operation. Unfortunately with slow payments and excuses SSA has dug themselves into a hole. Everyone I know has had a bad experience with SSA. There may be truth to privatizing the field offices and payment centers and let some competent entity take over.
Too much fluff in that report. It’s mostly stuff we already have or are already working on that has been puffed up to seem like it is more than it is. I saw at least one project that is basically a rewrite of an existing system. The hard truths are that SSA data was severely compromised to an extent that is still unknown, the agency lost way too many people and replaced some of them with people who were great at their old jobs but now are facing an uphill battle to learn a new job and that we still don’t have enough money to do the stuff that the public wants us to do.
Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano has a “technology agenda” to improve productivity at the agency, which has shed thousands of staff since January, he told lawmakers Wednesday.
SSA announced a plan to shed 7,000 workers, or about 12% of its already historically-low workforce, in February.
At this point, SSA has lost nearly 3,700 employees this year, mostly through the Trump administration’s use of voluntary incentives to shrink the federal workforce, according to the commissioner’s written testimony. Apart from voluntary departures of staff, the agency also fully shuttered its civil rights and transformation offices, only to then later re-hire some of those employees.
Lot of BS in those prepared remarks
ReplyDeleteLooked it over and it is all pie-in-the-sky. There is no technology today, or on the horizon, that can handle the volume and complexity of SSA workloads. The data centers and the OC-12 lines connecting them and the PSCs and FOs do not exist anywhere. Lastly, people coming to SSA want face-to-face contacts and do not want to spend long times listening to automated messages on a phone system. Ask anyone who has experienced Verizon's phone system to relate any positive reaction to it.
ReplyDeleteThis hearing is an exact demonstration of why the old guard of democrats are continuing to lose. Nobody asked any relevant questions. Everything was about doge and social security offices. Nobody asked about staffing, services, wait times etc. My younger generation is done with them until they see that we see through the politics and want real answers. Just look at the NY mayor race. Y’all are cooked.
ReplyDeleteFrank was masterful today. Not sure why so many aren’t impressed. Perhaps jealous about a kid from Brooklyn making it on his own and rising to the top levels of business, finance, and now government? All my colleagues who watched with me agree Frank is exactly what the agency needs.
ReplyDeleteLeland, why are you on this blog while on administrative leave? Our taxpayer dollars at work.
DeleteHa ha. Literally no one but you thinks that. Nobody. GFY.
DeleteHe was so disrespectful to the Representatives, especially women and minorities. I realize he's a New Yorkers and that it would be hard for anyone to not feel like they had the time to make their points, but if you're going to testify before Congress you can't just interrupt people or keep going when they reclaim their time or say "excuse me" to try and keep talking!
DeleteBisignano with Dustin Brown sitting behind him as his wingman, well, that's the blind and clueless leading the blind bored Billionaire. Brune should be in the chair explaining the IT cluster of the last decade; or, Poist explaining why the agency was/is starved of staff; or, Evangelista explaining 15 years of policy simplification -- oh, but he was working his side gigs so there is no simplification!! Anyone with good business sense advising Frank would suggest they all need to go.
DeleteYou don't know what you're talking about. Dustin being the head of LCA who helps prep the Commissioner for such hearings and the former COO for the agency has every right to be there! The individuals you named have all helped prepared the Commissioner for this hearing.
DeleteAre those the stock charts of DJT and Tesla?
ReplyDeleteRecenly met Frank in our office and he presented himself as not interested in what was being done. He did not exude any sense of greatness and seemed bored.
ReplyDeleteGotta get a new appointment scheduling tool. That will really help! We will be able to increase the number of slots so we can schedule more claimants. Nevermind that we have no one to conduct those meetings. Might as well fill out the slots to 90 days. That should do it.
ReplyDeleteWe are going to become a digital organization. We will win.
ReplyDeleteMany things Frank said shows he has little to no understanding of what SSA does. He referred to “walk-ins” as “wait-ins” and his responses show he doesnt actually know what return to work incentives/policy look(s) like. Just like the representatives show they have little understanding and possibly concern of what is happening to the agency. Literally zero sharp questioning. I almost keeled over when the rep lauded him over his “omnichannel” approach service delivery. Imagine allowing customers to seek service via the phone, office and online?! What a cluster.
ReplyDeleteI’ve heard that Frank testified morale is significantly higher since he took over. Yes Frank, we love being in the office 5 days a week for no good reason. We also love being demoralized. It increases morale significantly. Also- did you take the stats down from public access because our stats have significantly worsened since January, and that goes against the narrative you’re trying to portray?
ReplyDeleteHe also said that there were more people working at field offices and teleservice centers now than in January. I do not see how that could be true given the fork, VSIP, VERA, regular departures and retirements, a hiring freeze, etc. A few hundred reassignments from ROs and HQs can't make up for those losses. Hopefully a Congressional staffer asks about that in post-hearing questions. All I can imagine he meant is physically "in" those offices because of return to office...but not that more people are actually doing those jobs.
DeleteI see why ODA is being made Schedule F. Case exhibiting/prep work, decision drafting, medical evidence summation, all coming.
ReplyDeleteWho's left? ALJs to satisfy the statute, I guess.
If Imagen is any idea of what AI can do for OHO we are 90 years away from anyone losing their jobs to that pile of crap.
DeleteFrank was asked questions by social security works about hiding the transparency data from the website. He became beet red when he got called out on it. He is unable to speak with anyone outside of choreographed and friendly audiences. His town hall is how he controls the narrative. He can’t answer any pointed questions. He goes on Maria Bartiromo and friendly hosts who will ask him easy question. How he was a Fortune 500 ceo boggles my mind. He performs under scripted and controlled environments, otherwise he can’t handle any questions.
ReplyDeleteI remember someone exactly like this!
ReplyDeletehttps://bsky.app/profile/kathleenromig.bsky.social/post/3lshlxvtiac2v
ReplyDeleteSSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano promised he'd run a "fact-based, rule-based org that can count." But something's not adding up.
1,244 fewer Social Security staff serve in field offices as of 5/1, per SSA. But Bisignano testified that "the reality is we have more people in field offices"
...
Source of SSA field office staff numbers: Tables 3.17 and 3.18
https://www.ssa.gov/budget/assets/materials/2026/FY26-JEAC.pdf
At some point, the country -- and the audience for this blog -- needs to realize no one cares about Social Security. Obama couldn't bring himself to even nominate a Commissioner, and then Biden appointed Kijakazi, who couldn't manage herself out of a paper bag, let alone an operation like SSA. Bisignano sees a floundering company ripe for VC takeover. The goal here is to create such a distressed situation that public sentiment shifts in favor of a club deal by a consortium of financial institutions and investment firms. Full stop. A trillion dollars instantly infused into the market, and a benefits/payment entity to administer ongoing claims and outlays. It would be a stunner if SSI was not returned to the states or dramatically reformed.
ReplyDeleteNo one cares about Social Security?!
DeleteObama never nominated a Commissioner?!
Stupidity and lies.
https://www.govexec.com/management/2014/06/obama-names-acting-ssa-chief-step-permanently/86905/
This is true. People care about their money but not about the underlying operation. Unfortunately with slow payments and excuses SSA has dug themselves into a hole. Everyone I know has had a bad experience with SSA. There may be truth to privatizing the field offices and payment centers and let some competent entity take over.
DeleteToo much fluff in that report. It’s mostly stuff we already have or are already working on that has been puffed up to seem like it is more than it is. I saw at least one project that is basically a rewrite of an existing system. The hard truths are that SSA data was severely compromised to an extent that is still unknown, the agency lost way too many people and replaced some of them with people who were great at their old jobs but now are facing an uphill battle to learn a new job and that we still don’t have enough money to do the stuff that the public wants us to do.
ReplyDeleteSocial Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano has a “technology agenda” to improve productivity at the agency, which has shed thousands of staff since January, he told lawmakers Wednesday.
ReplyDeleteSSA announced a plan to shed 7,000 workers, or about 12% of its already historically-low workforce, in February.
At this point, SSA has lost nearly 3,700 employees this year, mostly through the Trump administration’s use of voluntary incentives to shrink the federal workforce, according to the commissioner’s written testimony. Apart from voluntary departures of staff, the agency also fully shuttered its civil rights and transformation offices, only to then later re-hire some of those employees.