Achieved an 84.88% resident satisfaction rate with Contact Center AI
Reached a 93%+ satisfaction rate for the automated voice virtual agent
Resolved 42% of inbound calls using an intelligent virtual agent (IVR)
Decreased abandoned call rates down to 0.17% using automated callbacks
Simplified digital footprint from 7,700 web pages down to 250 with agentic search capabilities that help resolve queries directly
Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) partnered with Google Public Sector to transform resident services and elevate public trust, resolving 42% of inbound calls using an IVR and reaching resident satisfaction scores of ~85% with Gemini Enterprise.
Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) partnered with Google Public Sector to transform resident services and elevate public trust, resolving 42% of inbound calls using an IVR and reaching resident satisfaction scores of ~85% with Gemini Enterprise.
Modernizing service delivery for residents and small businesses alike
The Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) serves a vital mission: protecting residents while ensuring a level playing field that promotes fair business competition across the state. Overseeing everything from financial institutions and insurance to professional licensing and business registration, DCCA manages responsibilities across multiple state entities. Maintained over 15 years, the department’s legacy website had expanded to more than 7,700 pages, with an estimated 35% of all site links broken or inactive. Faced with legislative scrutiny and evolving expectations from local residents and businesses alike, DCCA recognized the urgent need to shift from an outdated and static web presence to a more responsive experience.
Rather than making incremental fixes, DCCA partnered with Google Public Sector to completely reimagine their digital presence and engagement. The department selected Google Cloud for its enterprise-grade search capabilities and integrated, full-stack approach to AI. With Gemini Enterprise, DCCA was able to integrate web search, conversational virtual agents, and contact center modernization into a unified ecosystem that empowers residents and local businesses with intuitive self-service tools.
We realize that our industry is changing, and our business community expects modern, accessible digital interaction. That’s why we partnered with Google Public Sector to leverage their search engine, Gemini, and AI tools to create a seamless customer experience that serves our residents efficiently and elevates public trust.
Dean Hazama
Deputy Director, Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs
Deploying Gemini Enterprise to transform complex workflows into seamless digital interactions
To execute its modernization strategy, DCCA adopted Gemini Enterprise—an open and comprehensive platform that empowers organizations to rapidly build, scale, govern, and optimize enterprise-grade agents grounded in their organizational data. Alongside this, they adopted Contact Center AI Platform, Customer Experience Agent Studio, and Cloud Storage.
The department was able to replace rigid site navigation with an intelligent search interface and a conversational virtual agent, backed by a unified content repository that grounds responses directly in public information. This allowed DCCA to consolidate its web footprint from 7,700-plus pages to 250, with a roadmap to reach less than 100 pages as agentic search resolves queries directly.
Additionally, DCCA’s modernized contact center environment transformed high-volume inbound interactions. During a seven-month evaluation period, DCCA managed more than 149,000 inbound calls and 151,000 total cases. By leveraging automated routing, intelligent FAQ handling, and estimated wait-time updates with an automated callback feature, the system successfully resolved 42% of inbound calls using self-service through the IVR virtual agent while driving abandoned call rates down to 0.17%.
With Google Cloud, we shifted our entire paradigm. Instead of trying to guess where a user wants to navigate, we give them self-service tools like Gemini so they can tell us exactly what they need. It has saved immense staff hours and fundamentally improved how we engage our community.
Dean Hazama
Deputy Director, Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs
Beyond these resident-facing interactions, DCCA expanded its use of the Gemini Enterprise to automate internal administrative processes, including generating draft meeting minutes for 52 state boards and commissions, and scanning documents for ADA compliance remediation.
- Simplified Digital Footprint: Transformed DCCA’s web properties and web navigation so residents can find what they are looking for, faster
- Rapid Self-Service Resolution: Resolved constituent inquiries faster by automatically routing and resolving 42% of calls through the IVR virtual agent, while automated callbacks cut abandoned call rates to 0.17%
- Reclaiming Time: Streamlined operations and reduced manual work across 52 state boards and commissions by deploying agents to generate draft meeting minutes
Scaling agentic workflows to drive resident experience satisfaction
The DCCA’s digital transformation delivered immediate, quantifiable results for Hawaii’s local residents and small business community. Resident satisfaction reached 84.88%, with Interactive Voice Response Customer Satisfaction (IVR CSAT) hitting 93.03%. By offloading repetitive routing and basic questions to virtual agents, DCCA freed frontline personnel to focus on higher-value cases, boosting internal staff morale and accelerating turnaround times for business licenses and consumer inquiries.
If other agencies are hesitant, start with a relatively less complex use case, implement it, and go from there. Phase things in, stay focused on the mission, and remember that technology now allows us to keep pace with changing community expectations.
Dean Hazama
Deputy Director, Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs
Building on this success, DCCA is establishing a blueprint for AI adoption across Hawaii state government. Following positive feedback from residents and the state legislature, internal divisions are queuing up new use cases for Gemini Enterprise. Over the next 12 to 18 months, DCCA plans to deploy agents to modernize its 11-step administrative rulemaking workflow—a manual process that historically took up to five years to complete.
By starting with focused, high-value use cases DCCA is showcasing how to successfully deploy agentic solutions with Gemini Enterprise to transform resident experiences and elevate public trust.
The Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) is a state government agency dedicated to protecting consumers and supporting local businesses. DCCA fosters a fair, marketplace environment by upholding legal compliance, resolving fair-trade issues, and providing public regulatory education.
Industry: Government
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
Products: Contact Center AI, Gemini Enterprise, Cloud Storage, Customer Experience Agent Studio, Google Cloud Data Agent Kit
