Personnel Director Kenneth Hermon, Jr. to Provide Overview of Division's Budget and Goals

Division of Personnel Director Kenneth Hermon will present testimony Thursday before the 28th Legislature about the status of the agency responsible for managing all government employees, and its financial requirements going into fiscal year 2011.

The Division of Personnel is responsible for ensuring the Virgin Islands government has an effective workforce, essentially functioning as the Governor's Office's Human Resources department. In that role, the Division administers the Personnel merit system, insurance benefits for all government employees and retirees, employee records management and archives, and the Government Employee Development Program. 

Hermon will inform members of the Legislature that the Division is at a crossroads. Government revenues are down, the workforce is aging, and many Virgin Islanders remain on the U.S. mainland after completing their higher education, increasing private sector competition in attracting talent.

To meet these challenges, Personnel officials are working to transition the Division into a more efficient and modern agency with enhanced oversight of classification, benefits and compensation; more comprehensive training and development programs for government employees; and an improved system for hiring the best candidates.

To fulfill its obligations and continue modernizing the division, Hermon will request Legislators approve a budget of $3,552,183—a decrease of $78,150 from 2010's funding for the Division of Personnel.

The past fiscal year has been challenging for Personnel, as it has for all government agencies. The Division is faced with the need to reduce spending while striving to meet performance goals. Despite those challenges, the Division of Personnel has moved forward on several of Governor John P. de Jongh's mandates and initiatives. 

In 2010, the Division of Personnel completed some major projects, most notably a full transition to an electronic system for processing personnel actions. The system, fully implemented in March, has eliminated most paper documents, greatly reducing lags in the processes of hiring and paying new government employees.

The Division recently took over the Donated Leave Program and drafted new rules outlining responsibilities of employee, employer and medical professional. The revamped Donated Leave Program rules are currently under legal review.

Another development was the V.I. government in 2009 being granted active status with the National Certified Public Managers Consortium, a program for developing leadership among public sector managers. The Territory's participation with the NCP Consortium will go far in developing a new generation of public sector leaders.

In May of 2010, the Division of Personnel undertook the task of conducting the first government-wide employee satisfaction survey in order to ascertain true sentiments of the government's workforce. A media campaign to encourage participation accompanied the survey. While participation ultimately proved low, those employees who did answer the survey shed much light on opportunities for improvement in the Territory's government workforce. Those results will be used to develop programs to improve communication and morale issues.

Hermon will tell lawmakers he envisions the Division of Personnel evolving into a 21st Century Human Resources department over the next three years. To achieve that goal, the Division plans several new initiatives.

A succession management program will be launched to attract, develop and retain talented employees. This program is of critical importance in light of the government's aging workforce.

Programs are being developed to improve employee relations, motivated by the theory that happy workers are more productive workers.

The Division will also seek implementation of shared services—essentially consolidating administrative and support functions from multiple government departments in one entity that is equipped to efficiently and effectively provide services across the board. The evolution of shared services will free resources from other departments and provide organizational flexibility. Herman believes this model can be implemented in next two years. 

These programs and initiatives will ensure in the coming years the Personnel Division can maintain a talented and productive workforce for the entire Virgin Islands government on a leaner budget and with a smaller, more efficient organizational structure.

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