Discover the complexities of federal HR with a focus on Personnel Actions Requests (PAR), Payroll, and Benefits while exploring strategies to boost efficiency and effectiveness.
Human resources management in the federal government is a multifaceted and intricate process that involves various functions, including Personnel Action Requests (PAR), Pay, and Benefits. These areas play a critical role in ensuring the well-being and productivity of federal employees. However, the current processes for managing PAT, Pay and Benefits can be cumbersome and time-consuming, leading to inefficiencies and delays.
Challenges
One of the key challenges faced by federal HR departments is the manual and paper-based nature of the processing system. This can lead to errors, delays, and inefficiencies in managing PAR, Pay and Benefits. Additionally, the complexity of federal regulations and policies adds another layer of difficulty to the process, making it challenging for HR professionals to navigate and comply with all requirements. The Guide to Processing Personnel Actions (GPPA) from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) prescribes reporting requirements covering personnel actions in section 2951, title 5, United States Code, Section 9.2, civil service rule IX, and is based on that statute and extends this authority to all types of appointments and personnel actions. In addition, Executive Order 12107 delegates to the Office of Personnel Management the authority to prescribe regulations relating to the establishment, maintenance, and transfer of official personnel folders.
Recommendations
To address these challenges and enhance federal HR processing for PAR, Pay and Benefits, several recommendations can be implemented. One key recommendation is to streamline and digitize the processing system to reduce manual errors and increase efficiency. This can be achieved through the implementation of automated HR management systems that can centralize and streamline the processing of PAR, Pay and Benefits. Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) can also streamline the processes by examining the documents submitted and only allowing those completed properly to be submitted, thus eliminating the back-and-forth corrections that take place between the submitter and the processor. It is important to recognize that using AI in any form comes with its risks. AI is not 100% accurate. AI models have to be trained with data in order to generate results, similar to how humans go through training to learn. AI models are only as good as the data it is trained on. If the data used to train the model is inaccurate, results of the model will also be inaccurate. For example, if AI were used to examine the data in a CD-516 and the CD-516 had been revised, yet the model had not learned to include this revision, it is possible that the document would pass as accurate because the additional field was not included to be examined by AI.
Additionally, training and development programs can be implemented to ensure that HR professionals are well-equipped to navigate the complexities of federal regulations and policies. By investing in the skills and knowledge of HR staff, federal agencies can improve compliance and accuracy in managing PAR, Pay, and Benefits. Or another option is to choose a partner that specializes in this area and can provide the needed expertise, such as Golden Key Group.
Conclusion
Enhancing with HR specialists and/or automating federal HR processing for PAR, Pay, and Benefits is essential for improving efficiency and effectiveness in managing human resources within the federal government. By implementing the recommendations outlined in this white paper, federal agencies can streamline their processes, reduce errors, and ensure compliance with federal regulations and policies. Ultimately, these efforts will contribute to a more productive and engaged federal workforce.
Why Golden Key Group?
Target Insight – We are military veterans. Most importantly, we understand how to communicate about Federal HR Services in ways that resonate with target audiences. We understand how to speak their language. This enables us to connect with them in the most efficient and effective way possible and deliver expected outcomes.
Government Program Expertise – We have managed large government programs as former senior leaders in Military.com and Monster.com. We understand the nuances to make the program and our government partners most successful such as timely reporting and strict adherence to rules and regulations.
Cost Effective – We are not a large agency. We bring large business quality and effectiveness with small business innovation and cost savings.
Versatile Program Management – Our Program Managers are experts in Federal HR Operations and Human Capital Management bringing planning and execution expertise. This enables us to execute many deliverables without long staffing times and to find and exploit emerging opportunities as they are discovered.
Low Risk – GKG is an experienced business with unmatched expertise and past performance in successful Federal HR operational delivery and management.
The GKG Team
Established in 2002, GKG has maintained a strong and well-established business focus in full-lifecycle Human Capital and Hunan Resources, Talent Acquisition, Workforce Development, Training, Executive Coaching, Workforce Planning, Analysis, and advanced consulting services. As a Human Capital focused organization, GKG is committed to advancing DoD and Federal customers on their continuous journey to identify, prioritize and solve Human Capital Transformation, Training, and workforce development challenges. Our cadre of experienced Human Capital Transformation and Training professionals coupled with the depth and breadth of our past performance in support of large, successful mission, officer, and senior executive service training and workforce development and coaching programs enables us to continuously deliver high quality services, with efficient, effective results, at low risk. Our Team’s prior experience with the U.S. Army ROTC, U.S Air Force ROTC, US Army March2Success (M2S) program for US Army Recruiting Command (USAREC) and the My Service Benefits (MSB) program, in support of the Army Director Military Personnel Management (DMPM), Deputy Chief of Staff, G1; Air Force A1 – DCS for Manpower, Personnel and Services and department of Defense speaks to our expertise in designing, implementing and executing targeted marketing and media campaigns that attract quality, service-minded applicants with a focus on retention.
Federal HR PAR Process
There are three initiation points for a PAR action depending on Agency delegations of authority and nature of personnel action requested, i.e., to be submitted by Agency HR Specialists, Agency Managers, or Employees. All actions flow into a central ticketing system and are queued (platformed) for processing in accordance with pre-determined timelines, with a notice generated for the customer.
Complex actions, such as corrections and settlements, are immediately routed to a team of PAR subject matter experts (SMEs) for special handling. These actions typically involve protracted processing with historical updates and record corrections.
All other actions receive immediate triage to validate that all necessary, supporting documentation has been submitted in accordance with pre-determined requirements. If actions lack information sufficient to process the action, the case is returned for corrective action. An exception to this process is made for actions involving new hires. Because there are inherent delays involved in obtaining all in-processing paperwork for entry on duty (EOD), the GKG team works closely with onboarding specialists to establish new employee records that are accurate and complete.
After passing triage, each action is coded into the Agency’s HR Information System (HRIS) in accordance with OPM’s Guide for Processing Personnel Actions (GPPA) and sent for quality control review by an HR SME prior to releasing for processing. For example, familiarity with Excepted Service appointments requires knowledge of the various hiring authorities which include Schedule A authorities for the hiring of Attorneys, Disability appointments, Veteran appointments, etc.
After system updates, the HR Specialist verifies that the action processed successfully and forwards all associated documents to a Records Management Specialist for filing in employee’s electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF).
Once all actions are complete, the ticketing system generates a notice to the person who submitted the PAR action and automatically closes the ticket as completed. This action generates a Customer Satisfaction Survey to the customer.
Federal HR Payroll Process
There are several initiation points for a Payroll action, i.e., submitted by Agency HR Specialist or employee submits directly through a web portal or self-service application, via telephone or email to customer contact center, or referred internally from another team (PAR, Benefits, or Time & Attendance). All actions flow into a central ticketing system and are queued (platformed) for processing in accordance with pre-determined timelines, with a notice generated for the customer. For Example, when a ticket is submitted for an issue with pay, that ticket is completed within the same pay period it was submitted in. Each action is reviewed by the Lead Payroll SME and assigned to a Payroll Specialist for processing.
The Payroll Specialist immediately triages each action to validate that all necessary, supporting documentation has been submitted in accordance with pre-determined requirements. If actions lack information sufficient to process the action, the Specialist initiates a customer reach out to obtain the missing information and will repeat this process twice more to attempt to gather the information needed. If unsuccessful, the case will be closed as incomplete, after 3 attempts, with a notice sent to the customer.
If the action is associated with a PAR, Benefits, or Time and Attendance action, the Payroll specialist will coordinate with that team to obtain the information needed to complete the Payroll action.
Upon validating that all information has been submitted, each action is input in the Agency HRIS and sent for quality control review by an HR SME prior to releasing the action for processing.
After system updates, the Payroll Specialist verifies that the action processed successfully and forwards all associated documents to a Records Management Specialist for filing in employee’s electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF), if needed.
Once all actions are complete, the ticketing system generates a notice to the person who submitted the Payroll action and automatically closes the ticket as completed. This action generates a Customer Satisfaction Survey to the customer.
Federal HR Benefits Process
There are three initiation points for a Benefits action depending on Agency delegations of authority and nature of action requested, i.e., to be submitted by Agency HR Specialists or Employees through the web portal or self-service application, or via email or telephone call with the customer contact center. All actions flow into a central ticketing system and are queued (platformed) for processing in accordance with pre-determined timelines, with a notice generated for the customer.
For example, if the employee wants to add a dependent and submits the request with all of the appropriate paperwork, the action is processed in the following pay period after submission and the coverage will begin at that time.
The Lead Benefits Specialist (SME) reviews each action and assigns it to a Benefits Specialist for processing. The Specialist then triages the action to validate that all necessary, supporting documentation has been submitted in accordance with pre-determined requirements. If actions lack information sufficient to process the action, the Specialist will initiate customer reach out to request the missing information and will repeat this process twice more to obtain the needed information. If unsuccessful after three attempts, the case will be closed as incomplete, with a notice generated to the customer.
Upon passing triage with all the necessary documentation present, each action is coded into the Agency’s HR Information System (HRIS) in accordance with OPM’s Guide for Processing Personnel Actions (GPPA) and sent for a peer or quality control review by an HR SME prior to releasing for processing.
After system updates, the Benefits Specialist verifies that the action processed successfully and forwards all associated documents to a Records Management Specialist for filing in employee’s electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF), if appropriate.
Once all actions are complete, the ticketing system generates a notice to the person who submitted the PAR action and automatically closes the ticket as completed. This action generates a Customer Satisfaction Survey to the customer.
