(SBA)– Office of Field Operations (OFO) Customer Experience Data

Appendix C: Recruitment Materials

Notification Email for Customers of SBA OFO

Dear [NAME]:

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is looking for ways to improve customer experiences with the Office of Field Operations (OFO) and has contracted with 2M Research to conduct a study of customer experiences with the OFO District Offices. A member from the 2M Research evaluation team may be reaching out to invite you to participate in a focus group about your experiences with OFO.

Participation in the focus group is voluntary. Your input about the OFO is important and will be used to identify recommendations and improve customer experiences at the District Offices. Focus groups will take place over the course of the next few weeks. This focus group will center on your experiences with the program, how SBA can improve customer experiences, and how SBA gathers information to understand customer experiences.

I thank you in advance for your willingness to participate in this evaluation. If you have any questions, please contact Shay Meinzer, Lead Program Evaluator, at shay.meinzer@sba.gov or at 202-539-1429.

Sincerely,

Victor Parker

Deputy Associate Administrator for Field Operations (Acting)

Office of Field Operations

U.S. Small Business Administration

Recruitment Email for Customers of SBA OFO for Focus Groups

Dear [NAME],

I am writing on behalf of the Small Business Administration (SBA), to invite you to participate in a focus group with other customers regarding your customer experiences with the Office of Field Operations (OFO) District Offices.

SBA has contracted 2M Research (2M) to conduct an evaluation of customer experience with the OFO District Offices. As part of its evaluation efforts, 2M will be conducting a focus group with OFO District Office customers. This focus group will ask about your experiences with the program, how SBA can improve customer experiences, and how SBA gathers information to understand customer experiences.

Participation in the focus group is voluntary, and there will be a limited number of spots available. Your input about you experience with the OFO District Office is critically important and will be used to increase understanding of customer experiences, identify recommendations for SBA, and inform SBA’s work moving forward.

Your personal information will be kept confidential. We will organize responses into general themes, and no individual respondents will be identified by name in reports.

Focus groups will take approximately 1 hour and will be conducted by remotely using an online conferencing platform to minimize burden on your schedule. If you are interested in participating in a focus group, please send us your availability for the weeks of [ ] and [ ], and we will follow up with you to schedule a time that works best for all participants.

Thank you in advance for your willingness to participate!

Sincerely,

William Rodick

Research Analyst

2M Research

PLEASE NOTE: You are not required to respond to any collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB Approval number. The number for this collection of information is 3245-0404. The total estimated time to participate in this collection of information (focus group), is 70 minutes. You may send comments or questions regarding this estimated time or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing the time or other burden to: Director, Records Management Division, 409 Third Street, S.W., Washington, DC 20416; and/or Desk Officer for the Small Business Administration, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Room 10202, Washington, DC 20503.