06 SEPTEMBER 00 | With the successful execution of the Berkeley Financial System this summer, work now commences on the second cornerstone of the Berkeley Administrative Initiatives - the Human Resource Management System, or HRMS.

And David Scronce, who joined the Berkeley campus this past June as associate director of Human Resources, is the person in charge of implementing this next phase. In his new position, Scronce, who previously worked for the Office of the President, oversees such areas as hiring and employee training and development. But his biggest project for the next year involves the HRMS implementation.

"For those staff who handle human resource information, the work will change," said Scronce. "Instead of hunting through paper records, information will be available online in a more timely manner."

One of the major goals of the conversion will be the replacement of the Personnel Action Form, or PAF, the document that records vital work-related information for staff, such as hire dates, pay increases and title changes.

Currently, personnel information is typed onto a paper PAF form at the departmental level. The form is then sent to the central offices, where the information is re-typed into the computer. This doubling of efforts greatly increases the chance for error, said Scronce.

By putting the form online, information need only be entered once and will reflect an employee's updated records instantly. The new program will also help check the accuracy of information as it's being submitted.

A similar replacement will be done for the Academic Personnel System. Both conversions, he said, will give managers and supervisors better data about their workforce, such as types of training received, length of appointment and salary information, allowing for better planning and quicker responses.

Improvements to recruitment will also be facilitated by HRMS, including online applications and job requisitions as well as applicant tracking and referral.

"Once the system is fully operational, we'll have much better data to use in managing the campus," said Sandy Haire, assistant vice chancellor for Human Resources. "We'll also know the information in the system is accurate and up to date, and managers won't have to look in four different places to get a complete picture."

Scronce and his team are currently in the fact-finding phase, gaining a thorough understanding of campus business processes before customizing the system to automate the process. "We need to know how people and the work will interact with the system," he said.

A comprehensive communication plan is in the works to keep the campus updated on the progress of HRMS and to promote feedback from staff. The plan includes focus groups, forums and other meetings as well as updates in the Berkeleyan, Supervision, HR Links and the BAI Web site.

The system is projected to be operational by the fall 2001, said Scronce, with training beginning next summer.

"Staff will not come into the classroom cold," said Scronce of the training sessions that will ensue. "Most will have had a preview of the screens during the testing phase and provided input into how those screens were developed."