CPM Student Projects

This project focuses on a demographic reality facing State government in general and in particular Audit and Collections (A&C) division. This is likened to a virtual “Age Wave” of retirees that will have repercussions throughout the Agency and state government. The division faces a severe shortage of highly trained managers beyond normally experienced attrition rates due to the early and normal retirement of “baby boomer” generation retirees. For the purposes of the project, a projected retirement date of age 62 for employees was used (with and without rule of 90 eligibility). A universe, totaling 75 employees, consisting of division managers, supervisors and senior auditors and collection employees was segregated.

Current events and patterns of Agency behavior were analyzed including systemic structures related to the current hiring life cycle and mental models (assumptions). Desired results, success factors and a variety of solutions were evaluated. An action plan was developed for the division with the following objectives:
a) The plan is tied to the Agency Strategic Plan
b) The plan must be simple in concept and execution
c) The plan will incorporate assumptions by the future organization
d) The plan, to be effective, must become part of the culture
e) The plan should meet the needs of Generation X employees
f) The plan will emphasize cognitive skills
g) The plan will reduce barriers across jobs

After implementation, the success and impact of the project was summarized and included the need to split the Principal Tax Auditor (PTA) into two positions (completed), changed the way they look at performance evaluations and they have espoused a greater need for documented performance as it relates to the proposed job descriptions, train managers on the ability to understand and evaluate employees based on emotional intelligent factors (completed), and establish a quantifiable method to select future CPM candidates within the division (completed).

Included are several attachments designed to improve on related divisional human resource issues such as new flow chart for career paths for auditors and collections personnel that did not exist (completed), a discussion of numerous future assumptions for the division, detailed career development plans for managers (completed), leadership and strengths worksheets for interviews, and a chronology of selected milestones.