BPS created a Q&A chatbot for HHS Grants.gov to improve customer service and reduce helpdesk costs. . For the HHS Grants.gov federal shared service with 2M+ registered users, we designed, developed, and implemented an intelligent Chatbot using AI/ML technologies and deployed in AWS cloud, significantly enhancing help-desk efficiency. The chatbot can answer frequently asked questions and currently handles about 4600 conversations per month at a small fraction of the cost of live phone support. It now handles 43% of total help desk call volume while operating at just 2.5% of the cost, reducing operational burden and improving service responsiveness.
BPS handled the entire chatbot project from inception through deployment, BPS defined the initial concept and obtained stakeholder buy-in. We collected and analyzed information from helpdesk scripts, call logs, FAQs, and the Grants.gov website to identify common support requests and appropriate responses. We developed the chatbot widget and server to manage conversations, format responses, and log diagnostic information. We supported security assessments and deployment processes. We coordinated and conducted a series of internal and public evaluations to assess the effectiveness of the chatbot and level of acceptance by users. We continue to operate and refine the chatbot, and provide the program with performance metrics that include usage and customer satisfaction.