Technology is being by federal agencies to improve processes and address inefficiencies. But Position Management teams are often at a disadvantage. Sitting outside of the formal HR team, many of the tools they could use are not compatible with existing systems. Frequently, it’s easier to continue using spreadsheets and otherwise manual processes.
Because of this and the numerous other challenges faced by Position Management, it is difficult to integrate what could be game-changing new technologies. It’s why 61% of federal employees who responded to a recent survey saw limitations in organizational resources as holding them back from utilizing advanced technologies like AI.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the specific challenges these departments face and how they can be addressed.
Integration with Other Tools Across Departments
Whether it is a new platform for HR that only addresses a small number of specific use cases or a legacy system that has never been updated, Position Management often makes software decisions based on how it will interface with the rest of the agency.
If these tools won’t fully integrate, the time savings can be minimal. Frequently in these cases, it’s easier to keep using what they already have, which in many cases is nothing at all.
Outdated Information in Existing Systems
Many legacy systems are out of date, filled with obsolete data for position descriptions that are no longer used. Some agencies have more positions listed than they do employees. The result is a tangled web of old data that makes it more difficult to find and work with the right descriptions when a new recruitment request comes in.
This is a common problem with NFC and other systems that are not explicitly designed for position management. The result is a lack of transparency and accountability, leading to messy, disorganized records.
Siloed Systems that Create Inefficiencies
There is a lot of data in position descriptions that could be reused or repurposed for related positions, but siloed systems often make this difficult. Some systems, for example, lack the ability to transfer commonly used descriptions and data between records, requiring specialists to rekey that data repeatedly.
Systems that support parent/child relationships help address this by enabling easy import and export of new positions in the system, modifications to cascade to child records, and master records for common changes that will impact a large number of positions descriptions.
Selecting a Better Position Management Solution
The right software addresses these three challenges and several other known deficiencies in existing platforms. From version history retention to easy-to-pull staff reports that provide greater transparency, the right position management software can significantly increase performance and efficiency.
In our eBook, The Benefits of Enterprise Software in Federal Talent Acquisition and Position Management, we look at the key features that make for a more robust Position Management platform, the challenges faced in talent acquisition and position management, and what an enterprise system can do to address these challenges. Download the eBook to learn more.
