Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (VA OIG) Website Redesign Project 2023

Redesign Goals:

• Mobile ready modern design with restructured navigation that brings important work products more front and center in less clicks. On a mobile device, the site orients to size of screen and stacking information thereby eliminating the pinch and zoom on the previous website.
• Improved site search both at the high level (“top search box”) and on the reports main page with the addition of new filters and options to sort results. Also, better search returns on major browsers through URL renaming and standard SEO tactics.
• Multimedia functionality that provides ability to embed video and audio files; also embed content from other sites such as YouTube.com. 
  New features to improve access to content. Examples included a US map that serves as a visual way to view reports by state and linking related investigative updates so viewers can track cases easier from indictment to sentencing.
• Improved content management system that provides control of the design and content and reduced the time content moved from the production side to live from over 30 minutes to almost instantaneously. 
   

Website History and Path to Redesign

• The VA OIG website (formerly www.va.gov/oig) resided under the IT infrastructure of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
• The website’s last major redesign was 2011 with minor updates in 2017 due to restrictions related to the page template/design options and CMS that managed website data.
• In late 2022, planning for a redesign started due to increasing limitations related to 508 compliance, inability to post multimedia content such as animated files and audio/video files, inadequate search and content filtering, no mobile readiness, and a requirement to move away from the VA’s network to an independent model with complete oversight and site management.
• Through 2023, a small VA OIG team comprised of members from the Office of Communications and Public Affairs and the IT office worked with a small project team from another Federal Inspector General office through a partnership established under a website management initiative established by the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency
• Successfully launching in October 2023 under the new URL: www.vaoig.gov, the new website includes new and highly desired features, reorganizes important content, meets 508 compliance standards, and better informs the Veterans Affairs, Congressional members, veterans, veteran organizations, and the tax-paying public of the important oversight mission of the VA OIG.

Former Website (2017 through October 2023) www.va.gov/oig

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New Website (Launched October 2023)
www.vaoig.gov

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Former Website: Example of Search Return Results
www.va.gov/oig

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New Website: Example of Search Return Results
www.vaoig.gov

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Improved accuracy and organization of results, prioritization of results, for example reports are displayed over other work products

Former Website Mobile View: “Pinch and Zoom”
www.va.gov/oig

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New Website Mobile View:
www.vaoig.gov

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Content renders to fit screen size; elimination of “pinch and zoom”