On July 1, 2005, new civil service rules and collective bargaining agreements went into effect for all of state government. The following summarizes some of the key changes resulting from personnel reform.
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Competencies/Skills and Abilities
The new personnel system integrates competencies (under the rules) and skills and abilities (under the bargaining agreements) across all HR processes, including recruitment, assessment, selection, development, performance management, compensation[1], layoff, and succession planning.
This more holistic approach will help managers, employees, and job applicants have a shared understanding of the important attributes needed for success in a particular job.
Classification
The consolidated job classes that are being phased in over the next several years will focus on the requirements of specific positions, rather than generic job classes. The more broadly defined job classes will give managers greater flexibility to make changes to duties and responsibilities in response to changing business needs. Focusing on the requirements of specific positions will help managers better match the skills of employees with the needs of the position. Employees will be able to gain broader skills that will enhance mobility and career advancement opportunities.
Hiring
Key improvements to the hiring process include: broadening the candidate pool, using position-specific qualifications when hiring and providing screening flexibility.
A larger, more diverse candidate pool will help managers find the best candidate for the job. For positions covered by bargaining agreements, agencies will be able to consider twenty candidates in each referral, with at least five of them being external candidates. For nonrepresented positions (those not covered by a bargaining agreement), agencies will be able to determine how many candidates to consider.
Rather than recruiting for a position based on generic qualifications for an entire job class, agencies will use their own agency-specific job descriptions to guide recruitment efforts.
To screen candidates, agenci