Appendix E7

ASSESSMENT STATEMENT

SELF IMPROVEMENT FOR THE

HUMAN RESOURCES OFFICE

I. Mission

The Human Resource Office's overriding goal is continued enhancement of our service orientation in support of the overall mission of the College. To achieve this we continually question the processes by which we accomplish tasks. This means using technology to simplify the processes themselves and shorten time frames. This is an unending process, however the short term goals listed constitute a crucial first step.

1. Goals

1. Supplant the archaic, local Personnel Data System (PDS) with a local database system

interfacing with the Albany online Human Resource Management System (HRMS), and allowing immediate and accurate feedback from the Albany database.

2. Ensure that the local Management Information System is year 2000 compliant.

1. While completely paperless systems are "a consummation devoutly to be wished," the

current appointment, reappointment, promotion, leave, termination and retirement transactions should be rendered as paperless as possible to make them more efficient and above all, more timely.

III. Measurement of Goals

1. The establishment of an automated interface with the online Albany system will allow

production of more timely and accurate personnel reports and eliminate the duplicate inputting of personnel data. Presently data from Albany must be manually entered into the local system.

2. The most important and readily verifiable process is that of reappointment notification.

Tenure due dates must now be (and are) four digit.

3. Letters of appointment, promotion and reappointment will be in the hands of faculty and

staff in a more timely fashion. To accomplish this, the process will be decentralized to individual academic departments, initiating appointments and passing them on line to the appropriate offices (i.e. President's Office Academic Affairs, Budget and Human Resources). Additionally, the notification timelines for appointment, reappointment and promotion will fall on standardized annual dates per presidential directive, in the same way that professional and M/C evaluations are now set.

1. Results

a. Human Resources has developed a Y2k compliant personnel data system which grew out of

the original project of automating the archaic, hand updated pay card method of maintaining employee salary histories. All that is needed now is some programmer time to create the interface with the Albany FIRMS. This database is readily convertible to an ORACLE format, in keeping with the move to that database program projected for SUNY-wide Human Resources offices by the SUNY Business Officers (SUBOA).

2. The notice to individual supervisors of those subordinates who must be recommended for

reappointment continues to come from Human Resources in a timely manner, since we are now capable of handling the four digit dates necessitated by the start of the new century.

3. Human Resources has already implemented online forms which can be downloaded in

individual offices instead of maintaining a central supply of hard copy forms. A pilot project for an online appointment process is being planned for fall 1999 targeting the mid-year appointment/reappointment of adjunct faculty. While this might seem like a modest beginning, if successful we'll expand.

V. Feedback

1. In Human Resources, we tend to hear more when things are not going right. Proof of success will be faculty and staff going about their work with reduced frustration at how long things take.