Human Resources and Labor Relations Centralization--What Next

Human Resources and Labor Relations Centralization

What's Next

Through the signing of Executive Order No. 2, Governor Lamont created a Human Resources & Labor Relations Centralization Initiative Steering Committee, co-chaired by the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) and the Office of Policy and Management (OPM). The Steering Committee is charged with providing governance for the initiative and oversight of the planning and implementation of a human resources centralization plan. Membership includes the state Chief Operating Officer and a combination of other agency heads who represent a cross-section of affected departments and agencies to ensure varying perspectives and operational needs are taken into account in the modernization and centralization process. If you have not done so already, please review this website to keep abreast of the Committee’s progress and review the information and other related resources about the initiative.

Executive Branch Workforce Recruitment Update April 20, 2023:

General Overview:

The Executive Branch continues to prioritize growing a diverse workforce and retaining our talented team through advancement, training, and development.
Strategic recruitment efforts, in a highly competitive economy, have resulted in the Executive
Branch workforce numbers remaining stable.
Recruitment has been a challenge for a myriad of reasons: a competitive economy, the aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic, a shrinking workforce nationally, a statewide retirement cliff, and continued inflation.
Connecticut’s trends are consistent with what is being seen nationally with high-need, tough to fill positions being in healthcare, engineering, and information technology.
Within the challenging labor force shortage landscape, here in Connecticut, we are using whatever means necessary to attract and retain employees to state service.
- Marketing Campaign attracting employees in health and human services fields
- Process Improvement Initiative
- Job Fairs, and more!

We are proud of the work we have achieved with our agency partners in turning over every stone to recruit talent, in particular, positions in the fields of healthcare, public safety, and other fields serving Connecticut’s most vulnerable residents.
For the latest Executive Branch workforce numbers, we encourage you to view and share the State of Connecticut’s Open Data Portal.

Achievements and Ongoing Initiatives:

1. Governor’s Bill SB 984 proposes adjustments to the State Personnel Act and other statutes to

bring meaningful change and improvement to the speed and flexibility of hiring;

2. Over $1M spent on statewide HHS advertising recruitment campaign ongoing

Utilizes digital, print, radio, television, OOH (out of home), and more platforms and broadcasts across the State of Connecticut. Highlights the values of public service along with benefits, job flexibility and growth.
Results show that:

Job board traffic is up +20% from the previous quarter
9,500+ applications completed from digital advertisements/conversion channels alone (social media, display ads, streaming, etc.)
84 million+ impressions spanning across all ad channels

3. Refreshed JobAps Website

4. Executive Branch Workforce Numbers on Open Data Portal

• The Executive Branch Workforce overall numbers are stable

• Monthly workforce reports continue to be generated per Section 199 of PA 22-118

5. Process Improvement Initiative - Deloitte, DAS HR, and a subset of agencies are
identifying areas in hiring process to increase speed and efficiency

6. Employee Pipeline/Apprenticeship Programs ongoing and expanding through partnerships with OWS, DOL, higher education, tech schools and others

7. Job Fairs and Targeted Academic/Professional Outreach (27 job fairs through 4/23 alone)

8. Created a custom LinkedIn Learning training path to help hiring managers create a LinkedIn profile and understand utilization to build their networks and optimize outreach efforts.

9. Created a "Hiring 101" custom LinkedIn Learning training path to help hiring managers navigate the process to fill positions.

10. DAS is in the process of procuring “Search and Selection” services (headhunter) to recruit qualified professionals for hard to fill positions within State employment, including but not limited to healthcare positions, STEM positions, and executive recruitments.

Continued Challenges:

1. Low unemployment numbers

2. National trend of low number of healthcare workers

• Example: Connecticut does not have enough RNs to fill all of the current vacancies.

3. Speed of hiring hampered by many requirements in statutes, regulations, and collective bargaining agreements

4. Competing with private sector talent pipelines and salaries

Updated March 6, 2023:

As you know, at our recent Commissioners’ meeting I updated you on plans to begin a Lean Initiative to review the state hiring process.

I’m excited to announce that this effort has now officially launched in partnership with seven agencies (DCF, DDS, DEEP, DMHAS, DOC, DOT, and SDE) and will be facilitated by Deloitte.

The Lean Initiative will assess the existing hiring process from start to finish, and identify the most efficient and effective processes possible to ensure our competitiveness while also maintaining hiring standards set in statute, collective bargaining agreements and other requirements. This engagement will continue until mid-summer, with a goal to have a process improvement implementation plan in place by July 31, 2023.

Thank you for your continued partnership, and know that the findings of this Lean initiative will be applied Statewide, where applicable. If you have any questions, please contact Deputy Commissioner Nick Hermes at nicholas.hermes@ct.gov.

Update January 25, 2023:

DAS Commissioner Michelle Gilman announced the launch of the State of Connecticut Executive Branch Workforce Dashboard on the Open Data Portal, which provides live statistics and graphs highlighting Connecticut’s growing Executive Branch workforce.

Update January 24, 2023:

DAS announces the new, customized LinkedIn Learning training available to support Hiring Managers of in-scope Executive Branch agencies.

Update January 16, 2023:

In March 2023, DAS Learning & Development launches the rebranded and redesigned Aspiring Leaders Development Program. The nomination process runs from December 12 through January 9^th. Each in-scope Executive Branch agency may nominate up to two employees. For more information, contact your commissioner’s office. Nominations for the 2024 program will be formally announced in December.

Update December 12, 2022:

The Managers’ Guide is a reference document for Connecticut non-represented state managers to assist in understanding the most common statutory, regulatory, and policy considerations affecting their employment and their functional work.

Update August 15, 2022:

With Section 199 of PA 22-118, DAS now supplies monthly workforce reports to state legislatures. See these reports here.

Update June 29, 2022:

Lamont says CT state worker retirement ‘tsunami’ was milder than feared (ctmirror.org)

Updated, March 24, 2022

We recently rolled out two new pages on our ‘State of Connecticut’ LinkedIn site: Health Services page and Public Safety and Environmental Protection page. These pages will allow the State to further highlight, recruit and compete for talent in the health care, public safety and environmental protection fields.

Updated November 22, 2021

Appropriations Committee Informational Forum with DAS re HR Consolidation and Operations

Updated May 5, 2021

We are thrilled to announce that our Human Resources and Labor Relations centralization initiative has enabled DAS to leverage a technology solution that provides all in-scope employees access to a personalized self-service online portal within our UKG Human Resources Service Delivery (aka PeopleDoc) system. We anticipate that this online portal will bring new convenience and efficiencies to both employees and leaders.

Employees will have an improved work experience through greater access to helpful information and speed and transparency of service. This online portal houses all Human Resources related documents for employees and provides employees direct access to regularly updated information regarding common Human Resources topics. Additionally, this online portal enables employees to quickly route, check the status of, and receive responses to automated requests for Human Resources support (e.g., FMLA, intent to retire, military leave, workers’ compensation claims, etc.) on a device of their choice around the clock.

Leaders will observe that employees are more consistently informed via this single source for Human Resources-related information and have less need to contact or visit their Human Resources office during work time, resulting in greater productivity. Additionally, agency Human Resources Business Partner teams will not have to spend as much time fielding employee inquiries and coordinating support for individual requests. Instead, that time can be spent in support of agency organizational and staffing needs (i.e., more strategic initiatives).

As the next step, each agency Human Resources Business Partner will be contacted by Jeremy Kushin of the DAS Human Resources Policy and Information Systems team to plan and guide your rollout to employees. In preparation, your employees should update their email in Core-CT as this is necessary for them to be able to sign up and use PeopleDoc. Your employees will receive detailed instructions on how to set up their accounts when their portal is ready for activation.

Please inform your respective agencies of the anticipated PeopleDoc self-service online portal launch and to expect an email with instructions. More details and FAQ’s will be shared at the time of the launch. Please reach out to Nick Hermes at Nicholas.Hermes@ct.gov or Jeremy Kushin at Jeremy.Kushin@ct.gov with any questions.

Thank you in advance for your support of our new self-service online portal.

Updated April 20, 2021

News conference on Lamont administration's efforts to reduce bureaucracy in state government

Updated April 5, 2021

Thank you for your continued support during these challenging and uncertain times. Below is an announcement concerning the new Learning Platform for Executive Branch State Employees, which was shared with all centralized agency Commissioners today.

Earlier, we shared that going live with the Human Resources and Labor Relations centralization initiative has enabled DAS to begin forming a new functional area and leverage technology focused on the learning and development of our workforce. Over the last several months, DAS has conducted a soft launch of the LinkedIn Learning platform within DAS Statewide Human Resources, enabling the CORE-CT and DAS BEST teams to analyze and test the account activation and data feed processes. We are pleased to share that process was a success and we are now ready for a full launch to your agencies.

As the next step, each agency Human Resources Business Partner or appropriate learning and development designee of yours will be contacted by Margaret “Peg” Hackett of the DAS Learning and Development team to plan and guide your rollout to employees and discuss learning needs and priorities.

We hope you will share in our excitement about the range of courseware offerings available in LinkedIn Learning to address workplace and societal issues, state mandatory topics, business, technical, and skill development. Feedback from employees who participated in the soft launch has been universally positive, such as:

“What I LOVE about LinkedIn Learning is that there’s something for everyone, whether you’re looking for professional development in the workplace or for improving soft skills, there are modules available for both and everything in between!”

“LinkedIn Learning is an exciting and modern way to learn from experts in their fields on topics you’re interested in and that can enrich your professional career.”

“I really enjoyed my overall experience using the LinkedIn Learning platform. I found it to be easy to navigate, the courses were interesting and there was quite an array of subject matter to choose from. There was something for everyone!”

Please inform your respective agencies of the anticipated LinkedIn Learning launch. More details and FAQ’s will be shared shortly by Peg Hackett as she makes contact and coordinates with your agencies.

Please reach out to Nick Hermes at Nicholas.Hermes@ct.gov or Peg Hackett at Margaret.Hackett@ct.gov with any questions.

Thank you in advance for your support and focus on the learning and development of our workforce.

Updated October 16, 2020

Going live with the Human Resources and Labor Relations centralization initiative has enabled DAS to begin forming a new functional area and leverage technology focused on the learning and development of our workforce. DAS is preparing to launch LinkedIn Learning, an online learning platform that offers modern and responsive courseware to address workplace and societal issues, compliance, business, technical, and skill development, with some content developed by thought leaders and industry-expert authors. Most importantly, the platform provides learning paths to help us each manage the profound changes brought about by COVID-19, and also initiate a process of introspection that we hope will widen our view of the world and address racial injustice.

Prior to the launch that will be announced in the near future, your employees will receive and should accept an email invitation to join LinkedIn Learning and follow the instructions to set up an account. In conjunction with this, the Employee Learning and Development page on ct.gov will be redesigned to provide guidance to employees with questions about account management and learning content. The page will also be used to access other mandatory statewide learning programs, such as compliance training.

Please inform your respective agencies of the anticipated LinkedIn Learning launch and to expect an invitation. More details and FAQ’s will be shared at the time of the launch. Please reach out to Nick Hermes at Nicholas.Hermes@ct.gov or Peg Hackett at Margaret.Hackett@ct.gov with any questions.

Thank you in advance for your support and focus on the learning and development of our workforce.

Updated August 27, 2020

Thank you for your continued support of this initiative during these challenging and uncertain times. Below is the progress update and what to expect next on the Human Resources and Labor Relations centralization initiative, which was shared with all in-scope agency Commissioners today.

We’re pleased to inform you that, in accordance with Executive Order No. 2, “go-live” for our centralized human resources and labor relations operating structure will occur as scheduled tomorrow, August 28, 2020. This is a great achievement and milestone for the Lamont/Bysiewicz administration in our efforts to standardize, streamline, and improve the state’s business functions. We thank you for your incredible partnership and professionalism to make this moment possible amidst the many challenges we are facing as a state and nation.

From the beginning of this initiative, we set out to capitalize upon the many benefits of specialization and also maintain an on-site presence to be in direct support of you and your leadership teams. While maintaining human resources business partner teams on-site at your respective agencies, we’ve built statewide teams that specialize in employee and labor relations, talent acquisition and other talent-focused programs, human resources policy and information systems, benefits and leaves administration, and workers’ compensation. These specialized teams have and will continue to grow professional excellence within their respective functional areas. This professional excellence will be evident through increased innovation, quality, productivity, scale, speed, and standardization while also decreasing cost, duplication, risk, and stress.

As we’ve discussed what is common with major initiatives in any size organization, there is still much to do to fully develop and realize the benefits of our plan. In the coming months, our human resources and labor relations teams will naturally face adversity as they implement change by exercising new processes and procedures with newly assigned employees. Your continued patience and constructive feedback will help these teams make the necessary adjustments and continue to improve their service to you and your employees.

For assistance with knowing who is supporting your agency for what function, please visit our website to review new information on specific points of contact by function and agency.

Thank you for your continued support of this important initiative. Should you have any questions or concerns pertaining to this initiative, please continue to e-mail them to HR.Centralization@ct.gov.

Updated June 29, 2020

Thank you for your continued support of this initiative during these challenging and uncertain times. This is to provide you with an update on the Human Resources and Labor Relations centralization initiative and what to expect next.

Considering the progress made over this past year, we will “go-live” with our centralized operating structure effective August 28, 2020. Until then, final preparations include the following:

Executing MOUs to assign Human Resources and Labor Relations employees and positions from other agencies to DAS and OPM respectively until such time they are moved via legislative action;

Continuing the filling of approved positions in Human Resources and Labor Relations within the financial plan and centralized structure;

Human Resources and Labor Relations functional area team meetings and solidifying reporting structures;

Finalizing assignments and workflows for the centralized structure;

Issuing laptops and other equipment to Human Resources employees moving to specialized functional areas;

Having Human Resources employees assigned to the specialized functional areas clear out their agency workspaces and maintain full-time telework with their DAS issued laptop and equipment (Note: After “go-live”, these employees will eventually transition to a mixture of telework and work at 450 Columbus Blvd once the office space is configured in accordance with re-opening guidelines); and

Adjusting Human Resources employees’ system access to match their assignments.

The ongoing efforts to finalize assignments and workflows for the centralized structure are particularly complex and important. Many Human Resources and Labor Relations employees have historically performed and, in some cases are still performing, other tasks beyond what their assignments are in the centralized structure.

To finalize the transition of assignments, please direct your agency Human Resources Business Partners to complete the attached Agency Transition Planning document and return to Nicholas Hermes and David Krayeski by July 8, 2020. This report will help focus preparations so that we appropriately assign employees and support agency operations in the manner designed by the centralized structure.

Please visit our website to review the updated slide deck and other documents which includes more specific information about our status and next steps.

Thank you for your continued support of this important initiative. Should you have any questions or concerns pertaining to this initiative, please continue to e-mail them to HR.Centralization@ct.gov.

Updated April 30, 2020

Thank you for your continued partnership as we all work incredibly hard to support our State and citizens in response to COVID-19. This is to provide you with an update on the Human Resource and Labor Relations centralization initiative and what to expect next.

Over the past number of weeks, we’ve received inquiries as to how the State’s efforts against COVID-19 would affect our work on the Human Resources and Labor Relations centralization initiative. After much feedback and thought, we will not “go-live” with our centralized operating structure as planned on April 30, 2020 in recognition that our immediate energies must be dedicated to supporting the effort against COVID-19. We will announce an anticipated “go-live” date once we are able to make that determination as part of an adjusted implementation timeline.

Moving forward, we greatly appreciate your collective support to reinforce with your agency leadership and Human Resources and Labor Relations employees that work associated with planning, training, and ensuring our employees’ work is being assigned in line with what their assignments will be under the new centralized structure should continue wherever possible. Your support in this endeavor is critical and, when done collaboratively and thoughtfully, we believe will also better support daily operations.

Thank you for your continued support of this important initiative. Should you have any questions or concerns pertaining to this initiative, please continue to e-mail them to HR.Centralization@ct.gov.

Updated February 28, 2020

The Human Resources and Labor Relations Centralization Initiative Steering Committee met again on February 24, 2020. Below is the progress update shared with all in-scope agency Commissioners today.

This is to provide you with an update on our Human Resources and Labor Relations centralization initiative. Our functional area leaders have brought together their respective teams and they continue their operational planning and training. The following is to update you on what’s occurred over the past month, by functional area:

Labor Relations:

This Month:

OLR is coordinating the hiring of Agency assigned Labor Relations positions:

DCF
DDS
DEEP

The Agency Labor Relations Program Managers conducted Grievance Training at DAS for over 60 HR professionals through the International Public Managers Association.
On February 27, 2020, Agency Labor Relations Managers met concerning a significant Agenda around Labor Relations topics, LR Centralization Update and a planning session regarding service rating training.
The OLR Program Managers continue to visit their assigned Agencies and develop working relationships with each Commissioners’ leadership teams and Labor Relations staff.
Agencies are reminded to direct all Labor Relations questions through their assigned Program Manager to avoid duplication of effort.

Next Month:

Joint DAS/OPM discussion on roles and responsibilities for the centralized organizations.
Finalization of the upcoming training for service ratings.
Establishment of Supervision Meeting structure for Agency Labor Relations staff.

Human Resources Business Partners (HRBP):

This Month:

Held HRBP Leadership Kickoff meeting February 7^th to discuss roles, expectations and a timeline of the next three months.
Held onsite Agency Meetings (ongoing and to be completed by March 13^th)

1:1 with HRBPs to set individualized direction on how to begin and manage centralized workflow
Group meetings to drive the message of centralization and job expectations
When possible, agency leadership meetings to discuss any challenges as well as continued expectations from the HR partnership

Next Month:
Continue to hold onsite Agency Meetings.
HRBP structure & design review and redesign.

Reviewing organizational charts to understand current and future workflow states
Reviewing job-specific documents (may reconvene Generalists in a group meeting to discuss)

Training and work activity coordination discussion with Talent Solutions.

Talent Solutions:

This Month:

Held Kickoff meeting on January 27^th to discuss roles, expectations and a timeline of the next three months.
Met on February 10^th to discuss job expectations and what the future role of a State recruiter will look like and future involvement in supporting the State’s “Employer Value Proposition”, Employer Brand, future pro-active sourcing of candidates, and review of all modules of the JobAps system.
Met on February 20^th to begin a regular coordination and training rhythm where recruiters will meet once a week with their manager and supervisors for the next 11 weeks at 450 Columbus Blvd. Each meeting entails a training component in the morning and a working group in the afternoon where recruiters will work together on current agency job openings, practice the shortlisting of eligible lists, etc.

Next Month:

Training for recruiters will continue on a weekly basis. DAS’ EEO Director will educate the recruiters on how to write appropriate preferred qualifications on a job posting that are in compliance with EEO.
Other training topics will include, reviewing applications to determine if applicants meet minimum qualifications of the job they are applying to; how to use JobAps to build recruitment pools and how to write effective job postings using Textio.
Meetings will be held with the HRBPs to discuss operational procedures concerning recruitments, freenames and classification/position management topics.
Research and discussions will continue with vendors who specialize in Artificial Intelligence (AI) for recruitment screening and shortlisting eligible lists; recruitment sourcing and learning management.

Human Resources Policy & Information Systems:

This Month:

Held Kickoff meeting on February 24^th to discuss roles, expectations and a timeline of the next three months.
Held 1:1 meetings with employees moving into the unit. Determined placement based on skills discussion and workload needs.
Made job code/title changes per previous notifications to all affected employees and positions except for two in-scope agencies (reminders sent to those agencies to process).
Made adjustments in Core-CT for HRBP functional area to assume DAS approval authority in the position workflow process for all in-scope agencies.

Conducted a survey of physical location and other logistical considerations for the upcoming scanning of Human Resources related files.
Developed an “Archival Plan” for our Human Resources related files. This will provide the standardized structure for all of the State’s digitized Human Resources related documents.
Held Kickoff meeting on January 25^th for HR Service Delivery project with vendors ScanOptics, who will digitize files, and PeopleDoc, who will build the platform to access these files and serve as the case management system.

Next Month:

Identify Core-CT security impacts based on new staff assignments (Phase 1 anticipated 4/30/2020) and upon transfer of staff to DAS (Phase 2 anticipated 7/1/2020) and develop a Security Implementation Plan.
Begin work on Transfer Implementation Plan.
Provide anticipated task lists for new employees.
Begin approximate 18-week PeopleDoc implementation project.
Finalize “Archival Plan” with HR Administrator and HRBP input.
Work with HRBP’s to determine the schedule for the digitization of Human Resources related files.

Benefits & Leaves:

This Month:

Held Kickoff meeting on January 31^st to discuss roles, expectations and a timeline of the next three months.
Met on February 13^th with a more in-depth discussion of the agency processes and procedures related to leaves. Future meetings will be held to conduct training and develop consistent practices.
Met with OSC Central Payroll and Workers’ Compensation to clarify roles.
Mapped out the processing of FMLA requests.
Coordinated for future training on FMLA administration.

Next Month:

Meet with Kronos and Human Resources leadership teams to discuss impacts of centralization on both initiatives.
Benefits & Leaves Team Meeting to be held March 5 to continue discussions of processes and procedures related to leaves and receive an overview of PeopleDoc.
Benefits & Leaves Team will receive CT FMLA Compliance Training on March 20^th presented by the CT Department of Labor legal division.

Workers’ Compensation:

This Month:

Held Kickoff meeting on January 30^th to discuss roles, expectations and a timeline of the next three months.
Developed training programs for staff new to workers’ compensation; ex. WC 101, claim processing, 1^st check reconciliation, EPM queries, etc.
Met with OSC Central Payroll and Benefits and Leaves to clarify roles.
Mapped out the processing of Less Arduous duty from agency survey responses and the interaction with Human Resources Business Partners, Talent Solutions, Benefits & Leaves, and Workers’ Compensation.
Conducted desk audits of in-scope agency staff identified to transition to DAS Centralized WC.

Identify existing duties and tasks of employees in their current role
Which tasks are relevant to WC centralization and which duties belong with another functional area

Reviewed and revised Statewide WC manual and WC processing manual.

Next Month:

Continue to identify staffing roles and assignments, in the WC service delivery teams (i.e., Pods).
Clarify and standardize processing practices for Selective Duty, LAD and WC claims.
Map out interaction/communication between Third Party Administrator and Pods
Further training and development.
Continued field desk audits and standardization of work.

We extend our continued thanks for your understanding that employee involvement in planning meetings, process improvement events, policy and procedure writing, and information system project management, etc. will have time and effort requirements. As mentioned previously, employees are occasionally off-site or otherwise engaged in activities that are separate from their normal duties and responsibilities. However, please rest assured that every effort will be made to ensure that these activities are communicated and that daily operations do not falter.

Thank you for your continued support of this important initiative. Should you have any questions or concerns pertaining to this initiative, please continue to e-mail them to HR.Centralization@ct.gov.

Updated January 28, 2020

The Human Resources and Labor Relations Centralization Initiative Steering Committee met again on January 27, 2019. Below is the progress update shared with all in-scope agency Commissioners today.

This is to provide you with an update on our Human Resources and Labor Relations centralization initiative. As mentioned earlier this month, our newly appointed Human Resources and Labor Relations leaders who started on January 17^th are in the midst of contacting the employees assigned to their respective functional areas to begin operational planning. Some meetings have already occurred, others are scheduled for later this week, and the HR Business Partner meetings will occur in the coming weeks once Erica D’Angelo, our administrator for that group, officially arrives from UConn Health this Friday. Moving forward, meetings and other activities will continue to occur on a periodic basis to ensure there is as much employee involvement as possible in planning and preparation.

Thank you for your understanding that employee involvement in planning meetings, process improvement events, policy and procedure writing, and information system project management, etc. will have time and effort requirements. On occasion, employees will be off-site or otherwise engaged in activities that are separate from their normal duties and responsibilities. However, please rest assured that every effort will be made to ensure that daily operations do not falter.

Another critical activity that is underway is the backfilling of vacancies created by the appointment of our Human Resources and Labor Relations leadership. Job openings have been or are currently posted and the selection processes will commence shortly. DAS and OPM are actively partnering with agency leadership on the selection of individuals for roles in direct support to agency operations (e.g., Agency Labor Relations and Human Resources Business Partner positions).

Lastly, DAS staff will soon be contacting your Human Resources teams about the upcoming scanning of various Human Resources related files. Critical information about where the files are located and other logistical considerations are needed to ensure our plan to physically move, scan, and return the files is well organized and as efficient as possible. Your knowledge and support of this survey effort is greatly appreciated as we approach the kick-off of this project in the near future. When this project begins, please know that files will still be accessible within 24 hours of the request for access.

Thank you for your continued support of this important initiative. Should you have any questions or concerns pertaining to this initiative, please continue to e-mail them to HR.Centralization@ct.gov.

Updated January 13, 2020

The message below was shared with Agency Heads earlier today by Fae Brown-Brewton, Undersecretary for Labor Relations and Nick Hermes, Chief Human Resources Officer.

At its monthly Agency Labor Relations meeting scheduled for Wednesday, January 15, 2020, the newly appointed Human Resources and Labor Relations leadership will introduce themselves to your respective HR Administrators. They will share preliminary thoughts about meeting with their assigned employees who currently report to your respective HR Administrators and answer any resultant questions.

Please consider Wednesday as the formal “kick-off” to operational planning. Soon after, Human Resources and Labor Relations employees will be involved in meetings and planning sessions to begin the transition from their current roles within your agencies to their assigned roles in centralized functional areas.

Updated January 2, 2020

The Human Resources and Labor Relations Centralization Initiative Steering Committee met on December 23, 2019. Below is the progress update shared with all in-scope agency Commissioners today.

Thank you for your continued partnership as our transition plan for centralized Human Resources and Labor Relations in the State of Connecticut progresses. This is to provide you with an update on our progress and what to expect next in the near future.

We’re excited to announce that the following State employees have been selected through a competitive process to serve in key leadership roles.

Human Resources:

Erica D’Angelo – HR Administrator (HR Business Partners)

Michael Cosgrove – HR Administrator (Talent Solutions)

Debra Atkinson – HR Administrator (HR Policy & Information Systems)

Nancy Harnick – HR Administrator (Benefits & Leaves)

Robert Giuditta – HR Administrator (Workers’ Compensation)

Labor Relations:

David Krayeski – LR Administrator

Michael Carey – LR Program Manager (General Government)

Sarah Cook – LR Program Manager (Healthcare)

Kristina Grodzicki – LR Program Manager (Public Safety/Law Enforcement)

All administrators will transition to their new roles beginning January 17^th with the exception of Erica D’Angelo who will begin January 31^st. Please join us in congratulating them on this achievement as they prepare to assume leadership of our centralized Human Resources and Labor Relations functional areas. Once on board, these individuals will make contact with employees assigned to their respective functional areas to begin operational planning. Their intent is to be as inclusive as possible. Beginning in mid-January, Human Resources and Labor Relations employees will be assigned to participate in planning sessions and perform other work associated with setting up their future operations. This phase is crucial to the success of this initiative, thank you in advance for your patience and cooperation.

In addition, DAS and OPM/OLR are prepared to transition Human Resources and Labor Relations employees to their new job classes in Core-CT not later than February 3, 2020. In early January, DAS’ Core-CT unit will be communicating with your respective Human Resources teams to outline the technical steps necessary to implement the new job class codes within Core-CT. As shared previously, the job class changes apply to situations where the current and future job classes are at the same salary level. In situations where incumbent employees are currently in higher job classes than planned for the future organization, those employees will be administratively “red-circled” by DAS in their current job class and the level of pay maintained. When vacated, those positions will be filled using the appropriate new job class as deemed necessary. Future promotional opportunities will be posted and handled through a competitive process.

The following crosswalk reflects the changes in job class titles associated with assignment to specific functional areas:

For employees assigned to the Agency Human Resources Business Partner functional area:

Current Job Class Title	Future Job Class Title
Human Resources Associate/ Human Resources Consultant 1	Human Resources Generalist 1
Human Resources Specialist/ Human Resources Consultant 2	Human Resources Generalist 2
Principal Human Resources Specialist/ Human Resources Consultant 3	Human Resources Generalist 3
Human Resources Manager	Assistant Human Resources Business Partner

For employees assigned to the Talent Solutions, HR Policy & Information Systems, Benefits & Leaves, and Workers’ Compensation functional areas:

Current Job Class Title	Future Job Class Title
Human Resources Associate/ Human Resources Consultant 1	Human Resources Associate
Human Resources Specialist/ Human Resources Consultant 2	Human Resources Specialist
Principal Human Resources Specialist/ Human Resources Consultant 3	Principal Human Resources Specialist

For employees assigned to the Agency Labor Relations functional area:

Current Job Class Title	Future Job Class Title
Human Resources Associate	Position to be red-circled
Human Resources Specialist	Position to be red-circled
Principal Human Resources Specialist	Agency Labor Relations Specialist
Human Resources Manager	Agency Labor Relations Manager

The following job classes will be red-circled and abolished upon vacancy:

Job Class Title

Human Resources Administrator 1

Human Resources Administrator 2

Human Resources Administrator 3

Assistant Human Resources Administrator 3

Human Resources Manager (except where transitioned per above)

Personnel Aide

Statewide Workers’ Compensation Program Director

Lastly, please visit our website to review the updated slide deck which includes more specific information about the next steps. Please note that we adjusted our anticipated “go-live” date to April 30, 2020. This is to ensure that our functional areas have sufficient planning and preparation time to be absolutely ready to operate within the new centralized structure.

Thank you for your continued support of this important initiative. Should you have any questions or concerns pertaining to this initiative, please continue to e-mail them to HR.Centralization@ct.gov.

Updated October 31, 2019

The Human Resources & Labor Relations Centralization Initiative Steering Committee convened for its second meeting on October 28, 2019. Below is the progress update shared with all in-scope agency Commissioners today.

Thank you for your patience, support and optimism as we work to formalize our transition plan for centralized Human Resources and Labor Relations in the State of Connecticut. We are excited about this initiative that is underway and your partnership and role is critical to its success. We would like to provide you with an update on the progress to date. First, this letter is to inform you that DAS and OPM have completed a detailed multi-year financial plan for our Human Resources and Labor Relations centralization initiative as directed by Executive Order No. 2.

We encourage you to review the updated information on our website that includes new and updated details of each functional area and our attached implementation timeline. A critical component of our plan development included a comprehensive review and revision of the job classes needed to implement the centralization of Human Resources and Labor Relations. The new and/or updated job classes that DAS and OPM/OLR will be utilizing are available for view on the State’s Online Employment Center.

To begin, DAS and OPM/OLR will be posting job openings for the leadership roles within the DAS and OPM/OLR operating structures on or about November 4. Recruitment for these leadership roles is scheduled to occur between November 4 and 12.

While such recruitment is underway, DAS and OPM/OLR will immediately begin work to notify and transition affected employees to the new job classes in situations where there is no impact to current pay levels. In situations where affected employees are currently in higher job classes, those employees will be administratively “red-circled” in their current job class (i.e., level of pay saved). When vacated, those positions will be filled using the appropriate new job class. Future promotional opportunities will be posted and handled through a competitive process. Through this process, all employees will be notified of their transitioned role in the new centralized structure. Please take some time to familiarize yourself with the updated organizational structure and its functional areas.

As you will note, this plan takes into account that, like our State workforce as a whole, we will experience the attrition of approximately one-third of our in-scope Human Resources and Labor Relations workforce by July 1, 2022. As we have expressed before, this is both a risk to mitigate and an opportunity to capitalize upon with proper planning. While we presently have approximately 350 Human Resources and Labor Relations employees, we expect that number to decrease through natural attrition over the next three years, offset by the filling of approximately one position for every two to three vacancies created, and then stabilizing at approximately 280 employees by FY 22-23. We believe this is the appropriate staffing level for an employer of our size when also factoring the benefits of centralization and additional technology and digitization that increases self-service and reduces certain labor-intensive tasks.

Please be assured that we will continue to provide timely updates and solicit your feedback as this transition is implemented. Thank you for your commitment to our great State and your contribution to the success of this important initiative.

Should you have any questions or concerns pertaining to this initiative, please continue to e-mail them to HR.Centralization@ct.gov.

Updated September 25, 2019

The Human Resources & Labor Relations Centralization Initiative Steering Committee held its first meeting on September 16, 2019. Below is the progress update that was shared with all in-scope agency Commissioners following the meeting.

Over the past several months DAS and OPM staffs:

•Have identified, drafted, and are in the process of finalizing the necessary job classes to support the proposed structure

•Continue to work through a detailed multi-year financial plan aimed at delivering the best possible services at the lowest possible cost

•Have begun the internal facilities work and property coordination necessary to move the Human Resources employees identified to move to 450 Columbus Blvd in approximately the Fall of 2020. As a reminder, this includes about 2/3 of in-scope employees, with approximately 1/3 staying on-site at their agencies serving as your HR business partners and labor relations support in our hybrid model.

•Have drafted an IT Investment Program application that enables the physical centralization of operations and provides automation for manual, repetitive tasks. A key aspect of this application is the State’s pursuit of a Human Resources Delivery System that will 1) digitize HR records to enable online file maintenance and use from any location and 2) provide case management functionality so that work can be consistently and efficiently routed in accordance with future workflows.

In the coming weeks, we expect to begin recruiting for key leadership roles for each functional area. Once identified, these selected individuals will work to form their respective functional areas within the framework of the financial plan and job classes. Please be reassured that once the leadership teams of the DAS and OPM portions of the human resources centralization are complete, they will begin to assign and involve existing employees in the operational planning process for the functional areas they are assigned. All such communications will begin with agency heads, followed by the affected employees.

We are mindful that recently vacated Human Resources and Labor Relations positions are on hold for refill pending the rollout of the HR centralization. Our teams are aiming to complete the centralization planning process as thoughtfully and expeditiously as possible. In the interim, if there are specific challenges your agency is facing that warrant attention, please do not hesitate to bring to our attention.

Looking forward, resource impacts associated with the human resources centralization will be addressed as part of the process of developing budget adjustments that will be presented by the Governor in February. While OPM will be centrally developing any required budget adjustments over the coming months, agency input is welcomed and should be communicated directly to the agency’s assigned analyst.

We want to ensure that the lines of communication remain open. If you have questions or concerns pertaining to this initiative, please e-mail them to HR.Centralization@ct.gov.