TECH508 Presentation Champion/Define October 3, 2013 Jeffrey Bailey

Project Selection This Project (Program) was already identified by the VA-CASE Director as being a viable solution to be developed and implemented for the good of the Service Line.

TECH508- Champion Step From your project charter document: – Stakeholder list – Business Case – Problem statement – Goal Statement – Project Scope – Project Objective – Project Deliverables – Project Schedule

Principal Stakeholders Heather Woodward –HAAG VA-CASE Director Emily Goben Pathways HR Coordinator VA-CASE Associate Directors VA-CASE Administrative Officers Service Line Managers

Business Case The goal for this mentorship program is to increase the number of interns transitioned in into full time VA employees upon their graduation. By increasing this number, the organization will spend less time in recruitment efforts as well as reduce the cost of training associated with the hiring of new personnel. The primary goal for this process is to increase the retention rate and transitioning to full time all interns brought on thru the pathways program upon graduation to 80%. The secondary goals for this program is develop improved on-boarding process, mentorship activities designed to keep interns engaged and provide ample opportunities for learning, and to increase the overall retention rate of all interns to include the ones that do not take the opportunity to transition upon graduation by 50%.

Problem Statement The rapid expansion of VA-CASE has reduced the attention given to new interns brought on board to be involved with the program, as a result the retention of and transition to full time status of interns has dramatically declined. VA-CASE has historically had a retention / transition rate of approximately 90%, in the last year and a half this retention / transition rate has fallen to approximately 40%. There are many areas which are impacted by this lack of retention and transition a few of them are: – Financial – Time and money spent on recruiting and training – Employee Morale – Having less interns to rely on, full time staff take on extended responsibilities that would normally be tasked out – Staff Development – Interns provide full time staff with interpersonal development skills for job progression.

Project Objective and Scope Objective Increase the percentage of Pathways Interns Transitioning to full time staff upon graduation and the Pathways program to 80% by September 30, Scope This process begins with notification from HR that an Intern has been accepted and an orientation date has been set. The process ends with an exit survey if the intern leaves VA employment or is transitioned in to a full time VA employee.

Goal Statement \ Deliverables Goal Statement Increase the percentage of Pathways Interns Transitioning to full time staff upon graduation and the Pathways program to 80%. Deliverables Increase the retention rate and transitioning to full time all interns brought on thru the pathways program upon graduation to 80%. Develop an improved on-boarding process and improved handoff for those interns being assigned to other services thru out the facility Mentorship activities designed to keep interns engaged and provide ample opportunities for learning Increased overall retention rate of all interns to include the ones that do not take the opportunity to transition upon graduation by 50%.

Project Schedule TaskOwnerWeek Milestones Define x Measure x Analyze x Improve x Control

Stakeholder Analysis Stakeholder AnalysisProject Relationship Communication Strategy Stakeholder Impacted By project Can Influence Project Outcome Content/ Proces Expert Controls rescs Has dec. Auth. Meet With Reg. Invite to Meetings Copy Of mins. No Comm needed Resp. for comm. VA-CASE DirectorXXX XXXxx PM Pathways HR Coordinator XXXPM VA-CASE Associate DirectorsXX X PM VA-CASE Administrative OfficersXX XX X PM Service Line Managersx x X PM

SIPOC SuppliersInputsProcess(es)OutputsCustomers HR Pathways CoordinatorNew Hires New Employee Orientation On-Boarding of Intern to VA-Case and handoff to Service Lines vetted Pathways InternService Lines Intern MentorMentorship ActivitiesEngaged InternVA-Case VA-CASE Associate DirectorsProject assignmentsIntern TrainingProject Managers VA-CASE Administrative Officers sFeedback / status updates Associate Directors VA-CASE DirectorTransition AuthorityRetention / Full EmploymentPathways Intern

Voice of the Customer Analysis Key Stakeholders surveyed: – VA-CASE Director – VA-CASE Administrative Officer – System Redesign Chief – Current Pathways Interns – Service Line Managers – VA-CASE Associate Directors – HR Pathways Coordinator

Voice of the Customer Analysis- Strengths Internship Program Flexible schedules Training opportunities Full time positions available for intern transition Dedicated upper management to success of Program

Voice of the Customer Analysis- Weaknesses Lack of awareness of who VA-CASE is particularly when interns are assigned to other service lines Lack of communication with Interns Service Line managers not understanding the needs of the Interns Retention Rate of current Interns No standardized on-boarding procedures

Voice of the Customer Analysis- Opportunities Improve on-boarding process to be a more standardized process Develop better inter Service Relationships Mentorship of Interns Develop a skills inventory of all interns to match with possible projects within VA-CASE

Voice of the Customer Analysis - Threats Service Lines not committed to the Mentorship of assigned Interns Policy changes to the Pathways Program Available funding for the Intern program Quality of Interns due to screening process Staff realignment

Voice of the Customer Analysis - CTQ In this project the true identified Critical To Quality measure that has to happen is Communication. Communicating with the Services within the facility that an Intern is assigned to. Communication with the Intern, keeping the Intern engaged and aware of all opportunities. Communication with VA-CASE staff with placement of Interns. Communicating a Standardized process for on-boarding Funding is a Threat but is an uncontrollable aspect outside the realm of this project.

Rough ROI Analysis Increasing the number of interns transitioning to full time status will significantly reduce the costs associated with hiring new employees to fill vacant positions. Interns that accept full time status know the expectations and are already familiar with the staff thus reducing acclimation period associated with new hires which has historically proven to produce a financial savings to the organization. Providing these types of opportunities to interns develops a sense of loyalty and thus a more productive employee which will make the organization as a whole more productive. Having a pool of interns allows the organization to take on more work thus making the service a more viable entity. These are only a few examples and not an all inclusive list of the potential ROI associated with intern retention and transition, the upfront cost is negligible as the greatest factor to make this possible is a clear and open line of communication. The cost to implement is 1 person working at approximately.75 FTE to coordinate and streamline these activities along with a couple of employees to support the Project manager at approximately.20 FTE. The anticipated gains from the projected goal significantly out weigh the committed resources to implement the program.