US federal AI use case: SAC AI tools to automate application processing and data reporting
Agency: Department of Veterans Affairs - OALC: Office of Acquisitions Logistics, and Construction
Problem addressed: Longer response times and missed prioritization: Without automated NLP-driven sorting and predictive routing, incoming requests would sit in general queues or rely on slow manual triage, causing delays in getting issues to the right experts. Urgent or complex inquiries might not be identified quickly, for example, a critical contracting issue could remain unattended until staff notice it in an outlook folder, since no AI is in place to flag or escalate it based on content or sentiment. This increases the risk of SLA breaches on time-sensitive tasks and leads to program office frustration due to slow resolution. Inefficient use of resources and lost insights: In the absence of AI automation, skilled staff must continue spending a large portion of their day on mundane tasks, reading emails, categorizing tickets, data entry, instead of focusing on higher-value work. This manual workload is an inefficient use of human capital and can introduce errors or inconsistencies. Moreover, we would forgo the benefits of AI-driven process mining and analytics that reveal bottlenecks or compliance issues in our processes. Not pursuing this effort means continuing to operate with slower, labor-intensive workflows and missing an opportunity to free up our talent for more mission-critical activities. The SAC would remain reactive and prone to bottlenecks, directly impacting the timeliness and quality of support we provide.
Purpose and benefits: Implementing AI Builder will tangibly improve Veterans’ experience with the services supported by SAC. Veterans and other end-users will see their requests handled and resolved more quickly. E.g., the AI’s natural language processing will immediately categorize its urgency and topic, then route it to the right team or individual. This means shorter wait times and faster answers. A support ticket can be addressed in hours because the system automatically put it in the correct queue and even suggested likely solutions. Higher consistency and proactive improvements: AI Builder’s capabilities ensure that each request is understood in context. If a customer’s message expresses frustration or urgency, the system will recognize that sentiment, and tier level of service to prompt staff to prioritize that case. Additionally, the AI identifies common pain points or frequent questions. The SAC can proactively address these; for instance, if many customers struggle with a certain form, system, or if a particular procurement process causes delays, those insights will drive improvements in training, documentation, or process design. In the long run, this continuous improvement loop means better programs and services for Veterans: fewer errors, more transparent processes, and resources that get to the field faster. The end result is customers and indirectly the Veterans receiving quicker, more reliable, and more responsive support, which translates to higher satisfaction with VA services.
Topic area: Procurement and Finance Mgmt
Development stage: Pre-deployment