Human Resource Innovation Savings Exceed $150 Million Annually

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Aug 04, 2010, 05:58 ET

Web Leveraged to Provide 24/7 Access and Enhance Training

WASHINGTON, Aug. 4 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Enhancing human resource functions to serve 588,000 career employees supporting a network of 34,000 Post Offices while developing future leaders is no easy task. The Postal Service continues to invest in its employees and cultivate tomorrow's leaders by applying state-of-the-art technology to save more than $150 million annually.

"To help solidify the Postal Service's future, it's important now more than ever to invest in our most valued asset — our people," said Anthony Vegliante, Postal Service Chief Human Resources Officer and executive vice president.

Vegliante's vision of transforming the Postal Service's HR functions mirrors the transformation the organization experienced when it developed the world's most efficient mail system — it leverages technology to work smarter while minimizing labor intensive tasks.

The downturn in the economy and increased use of the Internet resulted in mail volume plummeting 20 percent since 2007. Annually through 2020, about 50 percent of Postal Service employees, nearly 300,000, will be eligible and are expected to retire. Today, nearly seven of 10 executives are eligible.

"Our goal of eliminating transactions and expanding 24/7 access to our human resource functions was achieved through Web-based business solutions," he added.

The Postal Service was recognized in 2009 with an "Excellence in Practice" citation from the American Society for Training and Development, the world's largest association dedicated to workplace learning. But it's not resting on its laurels. Just as it used the Internet to automate day-to-day HR transactions, the Postal Service applied similar strategies to enhancing its training and development functions.

"We are leveraging world-class learning technology to provide employees with easy access to individualized training and scheduling flexibility," said Susan LaChance, Employee Development and Diversity vice president, who oversees training. "This technology, and a learning approach that blends classroom, online, video and on-the-job training also places more information into our managers' hands in real time for identifying developmental opportunities."

Streamlining the business process and centralizing training product purchases saves up to $18 million annually. The Learning Management System, implemented just last year, manages all training administration and delivery processes within a single technology to save $10 million annually.

Developed just a few years ago, the Postal Service's Human Capital Enterprise System (HCES) — the world's largest and most comprehensive — automates numerous processes that occur during an employee's career to save $130 million annually. Eliminating paper transactions while increasing efficiency, the HCES provides 24/7 access to all employee data ranging from applying for job vacancies to planning for retirement. This frees HR professionals from repetitive, manual processes to focus on strategies to place the right people in the right job at the right time.

An integral aspect of HCES is the Human Resources Shared Services Center (HRSSC), based in Greensboro, NC.

"This is the centerpiece for processing HR transactions," said Deborah Giannoni-Jackson, Employee Resource Management vice president. "It leverages technology to process hiring, promotion and day-to-day HR transactions."

Employees can access the center online through self-service or by voice-prompted phone. On a monthly basis, HRSSC handles 145,000 employee transactions. The center's staff provides personal assistance on complex personnel issues requiring clarification, research or immediate attention.

A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 150 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service receives no direct support from taxpayers. With 36,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, the Postal Service relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses. Named the Most Trusted Government Agency five consecutive years and the sixth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $68 billion and delivers nearly half the world's mail. If it were a private sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 28th in the 2009 Fortune 500.

Background

Human Resource Innovations

Leadership Development

The Learning Continuum (LC) is the roadmap for training and development in the Postal Service. Utilizing a pyramid-shaped model, it provides a framework for employee development and talent management grounded in leadership competencies. Formal competency models outline desired behaviors at the supervisory, managerial, executive and officer levels. A series of leadership development programs use innovative, world-class curriculum to reinforce development against these competencies. Delivery is through a blended-learning approach: online self-study, classroom-based training, action learning team projects, simulations and coaching. An array of leadership assessment tools provide valuable insight and feedback participants use for honing their strengths and addressing development needs. The LC is paired with the Postal Service's formal succession planning and individual development planning processes that assist in identifying and developing high-performing and high-potential leadership talent. Together, they provide a holistic, structured approach to ensure future leadership needs are met efficiently and in a cost-effective manner.

Executive Leadership Program

The Executive Leadership Program is designed to equip executives with the knowledge and skills to handle the human aspects of organizational change and to lead others through large scale transformation. The program includes classroom training, one-on-one coaching, and 360-degree assessments — from the individuals themselves as well as subordinates, peers and management. An Organizational Culture Inventory also takes place to assess the current and ideal states of the Postal Service. In addition to the formal training sessions, a follow-up, six-month executive coaching program helps drive business results. The Postal Service also offers processes and programs for managerial and supervisory leadership development to strengthen the bench of potentials throughout the organization.

Corporate Succession Planning

Future executives are identified through the online Corporate Succession Planning (CSP) process. CSP generally operates on a two-year cycle, during which employees request to be considered as potential successors. If selected, they develop and pursue personalized individual development plans to prepare them for the additional responsibilities of executive assignments.

Learning Management System

The Postal Service's Learning Management System (LMS) is one of the largest job-training systems in the nation with a library of more than 3,000 classroom and 1,800 online courses that increase the blend of classroom, technology-based delivery and on-the-job training. In 2000, more than nine out of 10 courses were delivered in expensive, labor-intensive classroom settings. In only a year following LMS' June 2009 introduction, fewer than six out of 10 courses are taken in a classroom setting.

Employees can view a list of required training, scheduled training, or complete Web-based training courses by simply logging in from their desktop computers. Once there, they can review their training activities and book training with the click of a mouse.

Electronic Individual Development Plan (eIDP)

The eIDP was launched for employees who are not currently potential successors in Corporate Succession Planning or Executive and Administrative (EAS) Leadership Development processes. The online tool provides employee assessments and suggests on-the-job and course work training to increase skills in competencies as indicated by the assessment.

eLearning

Under the LMS umbrella, the eLearning catalog features Web-based training modeled after best practices from classroom training. It offers more than 1,800 courses ranging from the basics of electrical safety, to updates on new products and services, to achieving measurable and quantifiable financial results from Lean Six Sigma practices. Since LMS's June 2009 implementation, there have been nearly 300,000 Web-based training enrollments.

eCareer

In 2009, eCareer, an online hiring system, accepted and managed more than 400,000 online applications. An automated job bidding program offers employees represented by three labor unions the ability to view and bid for vacant positions online. Employees represented by a fourth union will have this ability later this year. More than 1.2 million electronic bids were processed in 2009. The environmental savings of these two programs eliminated the need for 10 million pieces of paper. Individuals seeking employment now can search a nationwide listing for jobs online by visiting usps.com and clicking "Careers."

eOfficial Personnel Folders (eOPF)

More than 800,000 paper official personnel folders have been scanned to electronic versions. In 2010, an estimated 1.5 million personnel action forms were electronically linked to personnel folders and are now available to employees online through self-service portals.

Automating On-the-job Accident Reporting

This Employee Health and Safety (EHS) management system automates accident reporting and manages injury claims. Accessible to 66,000 managers and supervisors, it eliminates or significantly reduces the use of more than 140 forms and reports. Postal Service will also see additional savings in travel costs by monitoring and performing case reviews remotely through EHS.

Telecommuting

Flexible work arrangements for headquarters and related employees allow employees to work remotely, reducing commuting costs. Approximately 2,500 employees now either telecommute or participate in the alternate work schedule program, saving an estimated 125,000 gallons of gas and 2.7 million pounds of greenhouse gas emissions annually.

SOURCE U.S. Postal Service