newsI N S I D EMasterCard® Smart FleetOn Line: The FleetProgram Reporting ToolYou’ve Been Waiting For
Emerging PaymentSolutions: Automatic BillPayments
Meet Lisa Franklin,Customer AccountSpecialist
governmentCitigroup® Cash,Tradeand Treasury Services
W I N T E R 2 0 0 3
It is the start of a new fiscal year
for the Federal Government, and Citibank encourages
all purchase cardholders to renew their commitment to
supporting the Javits-Wagner-O’Day Program (JWOD).
The JWOD Program, established by Congress in 1938,
enables people who are blind or have other severe
disabilities to work through local community-based
organizations to provide quality, on-time goods and
services to the Federal government. Through
two Central Nonprofit Agencies—National
Industries for the Blind (NIB) and NISH (Creating
Employment Opportunities for People with
Severe Disabilities)—more than 600 nonprofit
agencies across the country, as well as in
Puerto Rico and Guam, employ nearly 40,000 people.
The purchase of JWOD products and services by Federal
customers helps battle the 70 percent unemployment
rate faced by this untapped labor resource.
The benefits of the JWOD program touch tens of
thousands of Americans who are blind or have other
severe disabilities. Employment is the single most
important factor that enables an individual to more fully
participate in society - it brings economic power and
independence. As a result, those non-profit
organizations operating in cooperation with
the JWOD program are the largest providers
of employment to Americans who are blind
or have other severe disabilities.
This dynamic program continues to enable federal
customers to purchase quality products and services,
such as SKILCRAFT®, through sources like www.jwod.com,
while also saving time and money on contracts
and paperwork. SKILCRAFT products including
office supplies (pens, pencils, binder clips,
notepads, and paper), environmentally friendly
cleaning supplies, military specific items,
medical supplies and much more, are produced
by employees of NIB associated agencies. These
products provide employment and training opportunities
for Americans who are blind in custom manufacturing,
packaging, assembly, sales, distribution, and marketing.
In addition, service opportunities performed under the
JWOD Program are expanding employment choice for
Americans with disabilities. Temporary administration,
computer document scanning, customer service, call
© 2003 Citicorp. All rights reserved.Commercial Cards GovernmentServices News is published byCommercial Cards, a business unit of Citibank N.A. and is intended foruse by the clients of its card issuingAffiliates. This publication may not be reprinted without the expresswritten consent of Citibank N.A.Citibank USA, N.A. issues commercialcards in the U.S. Citibank Canadaissues commercial cards in Canada.MASTERCARD is a registeredtrademark of MasterCard InternationalIncorporated. Visa is a registeredtrademark of Visa U.S.A. and VisaInternational. SKILCRAFT is a registeredtrademark of National Industries for the Blind. CITIBANK, CITIDIRECT,CITIMANAGER, CITIGROUP and theUmbrella Device are trademarks andservice marks of Citicorp and itsaffiliates and are used and registeredthroughout the world.
JWODWorksto Support America“All of our citizens should have the opportunity to live and work with dignity and
freedom. My Administration remains committed to helping America's more than 50
million disabled persons to obtain meaningful work and to achieve the ADA's promise
of equality of opportunity, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency.”
— President George W. Bush, October 1, 2002
The President’s Proclamation of National Disability Employment Awareness Month
commercial cards
(continued on last page)
Given the more than 500,000 vehicles under the Federal Government’s
management, it should not be difficult to understand the need for a
better fleet card program reporting and budgeting solution. One industry
rule of thumb estimates that fraud and card misuse can account for
as much as 15% of maintenance and fuel costs in Fleet programs.
MasterCard® Smart Fleet OnLine:
The Fleet Program ReportingToolYou’ve Been Waiting For
Thanks to a new solution from MasterCard®
Public Sector Payment Solutions, now there
is a better way to track exactly how your
agency’s fleet, fuel, and maintenance dollars
are being spent.
MasterCard® Smart Fleet OnLine is a Web-based,
ad hoc/query reporting solution that can
readily improve the performance of your
agency’s fleet, fuel, and maintenance program.
Smart Fleet OnLine, which was launched
in July at the Fed Fleet 2002 conference in
Kansas City, was developed in response to
the specific needs of government fleet
managers who requested a reporting tool with
ad hoc and query capabilities to assist with
overall fleet management. With Smart Fleet
OnLine, you can create the reports you need
right from your desktop — 24 hours a day,
seven days a week. Equally important, Smart
Fleet OnLine’s ability to support eight different
levels of hierarchy gives Fleet managers an
important, convenient resource for drafting
better budgets and regularly tracking
performance against budget.
Smart Fleet OnLine allows fleet managers
and program administrators to create reports
online, view card and program summary
activity, identify purchasing trends, or download
MasterCard Government Fleet Card transaction
data into Microsoft® Excel, Access, or other
proprietary software. With Smart Fleet
OnLine, your agency can combine (through
data uploads) custom data elements such
as driver name, fuel type, tank capacity,
and license plate number, with transaction
data from the MasterCard Government Fleet
Card to create enhanced exception reports.
The analysis, summary, and exception reports
that Smart Fleet OnLine makes possible
can readily help fleet program managers
budget, identify fraud and card misuse,
and spot other opportunities to increase
the efficiency of their organization’s
Government Fleet Card program.
Smart Fleet OnLine is supported by the
MasterCard Global Central Data Repository,
which stores up to 15 months of transaction
activity. It allows authorized users to run
ad-hoc queries on purchases, drivers, vehicles
or a combination of variables. All information
is protected from unauthorized access with
SSL 128 bit strength encryption. And, Smart
Fleet OnLine reports are easily e-mailed
between users to save time and reduce errors.
Smart Fleet OnLine supports eight levels
of organizational hierarchy, making it
extremely easy to segregate information,
and defines three types of users:
Administrator – has access to all program
capabilities, and defines program access for
other users;
Power User – can create, edit and access
reports; and
General User – can access reports only.
“Smart Fleet answers the needs of the
Government’s Fleet managers,” says Dan
Rose, Director of Global Product Development
at MasterCard International. “With large
Fleet programs, you really need to manage
by exception. Smart Fleet OnLine, with its
ad hoc reporting capability, lets Fleet
managers do just that and in the process,
helps them improve the performance of
their Fleet programs.”
Smart Fleet OnLine features online help
and documentation, as well as online account
set-up and maintenance. This flexible and
easy to use reporting solution will assist Fleet
managers and program administrators in
creating budgets and reports so that their
MasterCard Government Fleet Card
programs can generate excellent results.
New Password has you stumped? As you know, the CitiDirect® Card Management System recently
changed its password rules to ensure proper security of your information. What many people
may not realize is that the CitiDirect® Card Managemet System no longer allows a person to change
passwords more than once every 24 hours. To further ensure that no one can compromise a
password, and change it several times in a day, the system will not allow a password change
more than once per day. So, when changing passwords, be sure to remember it!
attributed to automatic bill
payments in 2001, a sharp
rise from $4 billion in 1995.
Khachadourian compares
automatic bill payments to
consumer use of credit cards
at the supermarket 10 years
ago. “At first, consumers were
slow to adapt, but once they
did, it became their preferred
payment method.”
In addition to its growing popularity in the
private sector, great opportunities for automatic
bill payments exist within the government
with office equipment and furniture leasing
and rental, as well as residential property
management for government personnel.
Government Personnel Applications
Automated bill payments can be especially
appealing to military and government
personnel who are often required to relocate.
By now most GSA SmartPay participants and administrators know
that Visa® and its member financial institutions are continually searching
for ways to cut costs, save money and improve the timeliness of
bill payments. It has also been noted that some of the most effective
solutions originate in the private sector. In the past Visa has taken
these best practice learnings and introduced them to its GSA
SmartPay Solutions program.
Emerging Payment Solutions:
Automatic Bill Payments
One such payment solution that is being
made available to government personnel
and agencies is automatic bill payments, or
recurring payments.
How Automatic Bill Payments Work
In the private sector automatic bill payments
allow customers to authorize companies they
interact with on a regular basis (i.e., utility,
telephone, cable) to bill their Visa credit card
or Visa check card account at specified time
periods (i.e., weekly, monthly, quarterly). More
and more, consumers are seeking these
types of timesaving conveniences. In fact,
a recent Visa survey found that 51 percent
of cardholders cite the convenience of not
writing and mailing multiple checks as a
reason for establishing automatic bill payment.
According to Armen Khachadourian, Senior
Vice President, Merchant Sales & Integrated
Solutions, Visa U.S.A., cardholders are quickly
adopting this payment option. In fact, Visa
surpassed $30 billion in sales volume
Visa has the ability to direct these personnel
to property management companies that
accept recurring payments for rent payments.
For instance, AIMCO, the largest property
rental company in the United States, is one
of the companies currently working with Visa
to implement a payment card acceptance
program. The service provided by AIMCO makes
it more convenient and easier for residents
to make monthly rent payments with a credit
or debit card on an ongoing basis.
In fact, residents in more than 250,000 rental
units throughout the U.S. currently have the
option of automatically paying their monthly
rent with their Visa credit or debit card.
The process also accommodates
variable expenses, such as utilities,
by having the resident identify the
maximum monthly amount on the
initial authorization form.
Aside from individual benefits to
government personnel, automatic
bill payments are also a convenient
and easy way to pay for leased or
rented office equipment and furniture.
“Cardholders benefit by using
recurring payments to streamline bill
payments,” said Khachadourian. “They
receive fewer bills, which in turn results in
fewer late payments.”
For More Information
Government personnel and GSA SmartPay
participants who are interested in learning
more about automatic bill payments should
contact their Citibank Client Development
Manager or visit visa.com.
TechieTip
It takes extraordinary dedication to
consistently excel at serving multiple
clients, while maintaining a high level
of productivity and professionalism
under pressure. Lisa Franklin, Client
Account Specialist for the Department
of Transportation (DOT) does just
that, on a daily basis. Lisa's dedication
to meeting and exceeding customer
expectations is clearly demonstrated
in her work with the newly established
Transportation Security Administration.
Lisa worked tirelessly to serve this DOT
bureau, created in the wake of 9/11
to oversee the new federal Air Marshal
and Airport Security programs,
ensuring that all new marshals got
their Citibank government cards as
quickly as possible. This meant
processing hundreds of cards a week
and handling rush requests, as well
as serving the program administrators
in 16 other DOT divisions at the
same time.
Lisa’s efforts produced high-level praise
directly from the DOT Office of the
Secretary, who commended her
for doing “a great job … handling
rush requests related to the new
Transportation Security Administration.
She was very responsible, diligent
and professional as we worked
through the issues.”
The fact that five separate clients
within DOT nominated Lisa for this
award is a testimony to her world-
class dedication and stellar customer
service skills. “What an outstanding
job Lisa Franklin has been doing.
She has always been gracious and
professional, and responded in a timely
manner to any problems, questions
or concerns. She provided exceptional
support… (which) has often resulted
in our asking her to satisfy requests
in a short period of time. She has
always responded efficiently, promptly
and professionally. Overall her
performance and support have been
truly exceptional and it is a real
pleasure to work with her,” wrote
Rick Aveleyra (former travel card
administrator, DOT).
In addition, Lisa's site in Jacksonville,
FL was awarded the CAS Manager
Team Site Award for providing round-
the-clock assistance to 500 FEMA
and Department of State employees,
as well as countless other government
employees who were stranded in the
aftermath of 9/11.
“It was an excellent match when Lisa
was hired to manage the DOT accounts,
especially considering their vital role
in the safety and security of our nation
since 9/11,” said Jackie Robinson,
(CAS Unit Manager).
Meet Lisa Franklin, Customer Account Specialist
newsgovernment
Publisher:
Bridgette D. Jennings
Citigroup® Cash, Trade
and Treasury Services
Marketing
203.975.6087
bridgette.d.jennings
@citigroup.com
www.citimanager.com
center and switchboard operations are only a few of the
services that are being successfully accomplished by
these non-profit agencies.
At the GSA Smart Pay Conference in August, NIB shared
some of the powerful stories of the dedicated JWOD
employees behind SKILCRAFT products and services.
You may recall hearing about Ron Harris, who began
his career driving tanks in the Army and now replicates
CDs to serve his country. Thirty-one years after leaving
the armed services, Ron recently lost his job at a large
manufacturing company where he produced plastic
packaging. He was unable to continue his employment
due to the deterioration of sight in one of his eyes from
a rare condition called Ocular Histoplamosis Syndrome.
Because of purchasing support from cardholders like
you, Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired (ABVI)/
Goodwill Industries in Rochester, New York was able to
offer Ron employment. In his first year at ABVI, Ron has
been able to apply his previous manufacturing experience
to improve production rates and enhance the agency’s
safety record.
NIB Conference Speakers also shared a variety of
educational and communications tools available to help
Citibank cardholders understand why it is so important
to choose SKILCRAFT to meet purchasing needs. By
putting these tools and your purchase dollars to work,
you will be ensuring the success of the JWOD program
and creating endless possibilities for people who are
blind or severely disabled.
Together, we have a great opportunity to save your
organization time and money. But most importantly, if you
decide to choose quality JWOD products and services,
you will be instrumental in providing employment
opportunities for Americans who are blind or severely
disabled. As President Bush said in his January 29th
State of the Union address, “Offer every American the
dignity of a job.”
To learn more about how NIB can assist you in
achieving your training and compliance goals call (800)
433-2304 or e-mail [email protected].
JWOD Works(continued from first page)
commercial cards
Top Related