DMVs get a bad rap, but the problem isn’t apathy. It’s ancestry. With processes designed in a pre-digital era—before we got used to instant everything—state Departments of Motor Vehicles have been known for long wait times and a less-than-seamless customer experience. It doesn’t have to be that way.
Already, some forward-looking states are embracing a customer-centric, digital-first approach to delivering government services. And they are seeing results. One state identified opportunities that reduced onsite wait times by 60% to 70% and doubled or tripled efficiency. Another was able to complete 10% more daily transactions by streamlining in-person processes. Whether it’s vital records, business permits, or driver licenses, states can deliver services more efficiently and more seamlessly—with the right combination of tools and mindset.
Reimagining how to meet the needs of communities is no easy task. States must know their starting point, what’s working and what’s not, where they want to go, and what to build to get there. And they need to steer the journey to maximize value and minimize disruption. DMVs would seem to face an especially daunting road with a host of challenges, including aging technology, overstretched facilities, manual processes, staff shortages, and low morale.
But in our work helping states modernize their services, we’ve seen that DMV transformation isn’t an oxymoron. The key is shaping the effort around customer-centricity—in designing, deploying, and providing services—and strategic implementation. Smartly conceived and well executed, transformation can deliver more value in less time than DMV leaders might expect.
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Reimagining—and Reinvigorating—One State’s DMV
No matter where they live, DMV users face common challenges: a lack of appointments, difficulty navigating services, and confusing documentation requirements. For one state, the way forward wasn’t revamping the DMV, but reimagining it. As they took on transformation for government services, state leaders asked how they could develop a new kind of DMV experience: quick, easy, and customer-centric. One that would shorten the time people spend at DMVs, broaden reach in underserved communities, and, by improving information flow online and in facilities, make interactions more efficient and more enjoyable.
But how to get there? How could the state realize its vision for a better DMV experience while ensuring accessibility, security, and efficiency—and do so in the most effective, least disruptive way?
Working with the state, we focused on how those key elements—customer centricity and strategic implementation—interact. We knew, for instance, that modernizing DMV services requires more than technology upgrades. It means rethinking customer journeys and empowering staff. It also means reimagining how DMVs work with data, so they can use that data faster, and to better effect, throughout the transformation and across the organization.
The first step was to understand the starting point. Through an agile sprint, we were able to assess the existing DMV operations—and lay out a plan—in just a couple of months. We looked at technology, cybersecurity, and data management, but also at ways of working, organizational design, physical space, and operating model. This holistic approach is crucial, as it enabled the DMV management to better understand the root causes of service bottlenecks and challenges. Our analysis revealed critical areas needing attention, such as outdated technology infrastructure, insufficient data governance, and process inefficiencies.
Just as important was zeroing in on user frictions by leveraging the perspective of people seeking or providing a DMV service. Here we applied techniques from human-centered design: interviewing employees and customers, shadowing them in facilities, observing and learning. We sharpened our insights—and gained new ones—by reviewing user feedback received through online and in-person channels.
This kind of in-depth assessment sheds light on the problems and solutions that matter most. In this case, the diagnostic helped us pinpoint more than 25 value-adding initiatives and order them based on feasibility and potential impact.
Ranking initiatives let us prioritize quick wins for a first wave of solutions: initiatives that would rapidly and visibly demonstrate value but didn’t require extensive infrastructure or technology changes. The idea was to drive early successes and generate momentum for further—and more challenging—solutions. For example, in digging deep into the DMV’s data during the diagnostic phase, we found that not all customers need to visit a DMV in person to receive the service they seek. Redirecting a significant number of these transactions to the DMV’s online platform would save these users time. Within 19 days of launching a digital-first initiative, the state migrated some 6,000 transactions online, saving customers an estimated 750 hours in combined waiting time and simultaneously reducing congestion in DMV facilities. (Later in the project, we applied the same data-driven approach to discover that a key reason for surges in call volume was customers—thousands of them—calling simply to retrieve missing PINs. By putting the same functionality online, the state quickly reduced call volumes by 15%.)
Critically, the state understood that digital-first did not mean digital-only. The most effective DMV model is a blended one, delivering positive experiences both online and onsite. To improve in-person accessibility, the state introduced mobile DMV and pop-up facilities in areas that historically were DMV “deserts.” It also streamlined processes to deliver services faster and more efficiently. A key enabler was cross-training in which employees learned to provide both vehicle and driver services. This eliminated the DMV pain point where one type of service might have a line out the door while another service—and the employee handling it—might see no line at all. Process improvements extended to call center operations, as well, with the introduction of more effective call-handling scripts and callback options.
The state also understood that customer centricity isn’t just about improving the user experience; the employee experience must also be improved. Efficiency, after all, depends on how organizations both design and execute a service. Targeted talent strategies, leadership development programs, and optimized program management improved staff capacity, morale, and retention. Optimized processes helped here, too. A revamped vehicle title procedure is expected to reduce the state’s backlog by 160,000 applications annually—freeing up staff for higher impact work.
While the program is still in progress, customers are already seeing benefits: reduced wait times, improved service accessibility, and more intuitive processes. Experiences are enhanced, but so, too, is public trust, as the DMV becomes a model of how government services can operate.
Five Keys to DMV Transformation
To help steer the journey, we applied a set of best practices, developed in our work with states across the US as they reimagine government services. These practices foster—and accelerate—the customer-centric approach crucial for DMV transformation. Together, they keep projects on point and on track, enabling any state to deliver on its vision for a better, faster, smoother DMV experience.
Strategically address customer pain points.
A DMV transformation should begin with an understanding of the frustrations users and employees currently face. Adopting a human-centered approach is critical here. The first step is to engage with users and staff directly—through interviews, surveys, shadowing, and facility visits—to precisely identify pain points. While the resulting list might seem overwhelming, the key is to group solutions into phases, instead of trying to solve everything at once. Give first priority to low-effort, high-value quick wins, such as enhancing self-service tools or simplifying intake processes—and to high-volume, high-impact services like issuing first-time driver’s licenses and renewals.
A phased approach allows DMVs to demonstrate immediate improvements, build momentum, secure stakeholder buy-in, and lay the groundwork—with respect to its people, processes, and technology—for more comprehensive systemic changes. It also mitigates risk, controls the pace of change, and fosters trust and engagement among users and employees.
Don’t wait to improve processes.
The legacy technology in place at DMVs presents numerous challenges. A big one: old tech often translates to slow, cumbersome processes. But independent of technology, there is much that states can do to streamline and enhance services. So process improvement can—and should—start right away.
For example, by providing cross-training, DMVs enable employees to handle multiple service types. And by improving queue flow management, DMVs can better triage customers entering a facility. Steps like these reduce in-person bottlenecks and spark faster, more straightforward interactions. There’s a lot of untapped potential in operational enhancements. DMVs should consider how to apply them to alleviate common frustrations, such as inadequate appointment availability for road tests, REAL ID issuance, and other critical services.
Another non-tech step DMVs can take is standardizing certain services across facilities. This consistency helps ensure that customers know what to expect when they visit and what documentation they need to bring. It minimizes “turn-aways” where customers can’t complete a service, reduces the need for repeat visits, and shortens appointment times—significantly improving the customer experience even before new technology is fully in place.
Systematically upgrade the tech foundation.
To be sure, modernizing the tech stack is vital—and urgent. Legacy systems typically mean mainframes that are difficult to maintain and upgrade, siloed data that is inconsistent or hard to access, organizations struggling to integrate and scale new digital services, and more. But modernization is a big, time-consuming, and resource-intensive task. How can DMVs do it most efficiently?
In many tech transformations, the best approach is a systematic, continual one, where the organization builds what it needs for a specific initiative (say, a high-priority solution), then builds on that with the next initiative, and so on, until it has reached its target state. The idea is to start generating value—and momentum—early and keep moving. Systematic doesn’t mean slow. In fact, organizations that take this approach tend to gain speed as they go, as they have greater confidence in the direction they are headed.
In some cases, however, the steady approach isn’t the right fit. For example, in updating a major system, a DMV might need to do a “big bang” implementation to ensure it upgrades in a coherent and consistent way. But even here, there are ways to simplify the effort, such as by employing low-code or no-code fixes as they go.
In all cases, DMVs should start by undertaking a comprehensive diagnostic of current systems, assessing the maturity of data management, cybersecurity, enterprise architecture, IT service, and change management practices. Understanding the existing state helps leaders develop a strategic roadmap that outlines both immediate, practical solutions and long-term transformation objectives. There are powerful tools that teams can now leverage, including generative AI-based engineering tools, to help reveal and understand the processes, business rules, workflow logic, and other important components deeply embedded in legacy code.
Early improvements might include hiring skilled IT staff to address capacity gaps and training teams in agile methodologies. Another step we recommend is creating an architecture review board. We’ve found these boards invaluable for enforcing best practices and ensuring consistency across modernization efforts.
Finally, while transformations evolve, it’s critical to commit to a long-term roadmap that ultimately will replace the old legacy tech with modern, fast, modular, and customer-centric technology capable of supporting the entire suite of DMV services. Without relentless focus on the lengthy and difficult technology transformation behind the scenes, people and process changes are likely to lose steam.
Harness data for decision making.
Effective DMV transformation relies heavily on data-driven decision making. Accurate, timely data provides crucial insights, enabling DMV leaders to pinpoint inefficiencies (such as how missing PINs were driving high call volumes in the state example above) and develop their overall strategy and vision.
Robust data also supports an agile approach to transformation, enabling rapid assessment and adjustment of implemented changes based on real-world performance metrics. We’ve found that creating a central hub to coordinate data collection, interpretation, and action can be helpful here. By managing the data—and drawing insights from it—this central body serves to prioritize work, define timelines and milestones, and ensure that all stakeholders remain informed, engaged, and heard. In conjunction with a clear, comprehensive data strategy, the data hub helps DMVs identify issues early and points to solutions that mitigate delays, cost overruns, and disappointment.
Empower DMV staff.
No DMV transformation can succeed without engaging and empowering the workforce. Employees play a dual role. They implement improvements, but at the same time, they provide valuable insights into operational challenges and opportunities. These insights can significantly enhance transformation efforts and improve customer service by identifying practical solutions grounded in real-world experience.
Establishing accessible channels for staff feedback—such as onsite suggestion boxes, frequent leadership visits, and open forums—encourages employees at all levels to share their perspectives. But it’s not enough to invite input. Leadership needs to demonstrate that it hears and acts upon the feedback. Indeed, savvy leaders recognize that employees are an invaluable resource, as they know the issues inside and out—so much so that we recommend including staff in a co-creation process in developing solutions.
Investment in ongoing training programs is also essential. DMVs should provide regular, milestone-based training sessions tailored to critical roles, equipping employees with updated knowledge, skills, and tools. Having clear career progression pathways is important, too, as these can help DMVs retain experienced personnel—fostering institutional knowledge and ongoing improvement.
Finally, celebrate the successes. Publicly recognizing employee efforts, achievements, and outstanding service boosts morale and reinforces a positive transformation narrative—strengthening internal buy-in and encouraging sustained engagement.
Successful transformations are about balance. As DMVs reimagine the way they work, they need to find the optimal mix of digital and physical services. They also need to effectively integrate old and new: identifying what is working and building upon sound practices where they exist.
The old days of long waits at the DMV may soon be behind us. Through customer-focused transformation, DMVs are well-positioned to become truly responsive and accessible providers, offering faster, better, more seamless experiences for those they serve. DMVs are poised to gain a whole new reputation, and some are already on the way. We are excited to see more states embark on the journey.
