Revitalizing human resources management in state government: moving from transactional to transformational HR professionals in the State of Michigan.

This article illustrates how the State of Michigan transformed human resources in state government by developing HR leaders for the future. A transformational plan was developed in March 2000 to enhance the effectiveness of HR programs and services, foster a consultative approach to delivering HR programs and services, develop human resources as a strategic business partner and change agent with agency management, and create the capacity to incorporate HR best practices into state HR systems. This article also provides the HR vision for change, the training design to transform HR into a business partner and change agent, and the methodology and data that support this transformational plan. An innovative multiyear project-based learning design, featuring teams from state agencies, used workshop content to leverage system change across state departments. Finally, this article documents the change projects designed and implemented by agency teams, reports participants' reactions, communicates skill-set and mindset enhancements, and presents ideas for future diffusion.

HR specialists have typically been trained to perform transactional tasks in governmental settings. These transactional tasks include position classification, benefits, applicant tracking, and day-to-day labor contract administration. By performing these traditional roles, HR professionals provide valuable services to the department that they serve. Nevertheless, these services are often thought of as a cost to the organization rather than a benefit. A number of people have noted the need for HR specialists to move beyond these traditional roles and thus provide more valued-added services. (1) These services include helping government agencies decrease operating costs, improve work processes, and facilitate the smooth transition to new technology and other innovations in the workplace.

While a number of people have expressed the need for HR specialists to gain new skills and to be seen as more relevant and valuable within government agencies, there are few examples of wholesale efforts to make this transition from transactional to transformational HR professionals. (2) This article presents a case study of one such effort to transform the HR function within state government. First, it provides an overview of the drivers for making this change happen within the State of Michigan. Those drivers led to a multifaceted process for enhancing the skills of HR managers and specialists. Second, it describes the training plan that was developed to support this HR transformation. A unique aspect of the training plan was the notion of training intact HR teams (i.e., HR leaders, managers, and/or specialists from the same department). In addition, training was spread out, with three sessions of three days held every two to three months. This plan of training intact teams over time allowed for the development of an innovative action learning model for the training. Each HR team developed, worked on, and implemented a change strategy as the team was learning about organizational change issues in the training program. This just-in-time training model helped reinforce concepts by having participants work on issues from the training in intersession meetings.

This case study concludes with a discussion of indicators of training impact and future directions for State of Michigan regarding HR professionals.

Overview of Drivers for Transforming HR

The Michigan Department of Civil Service (DCS), Michigan Office of the State Employer (OSE--the official bargaining agent for the State of Michigan in collective bargaining activities), and each department human resource office (DHRO) jointly started the transformation process in March of 2000 in response to several trends. (3) External trends included a diminishing tax base, persistent sluggish economic growth in the state, changes enacted by state legislation that diminished tax revenues, and political support for a smaller government bureaucracy. These pressures and technological advances that included the adoption of more sophisticated HR information systems helped drive improvements in HR effectiveness and efficiency. The state also recognized the need for significant process improvement, which the new HR computer system could help deliver.

A third driver of HR change was the general shift from a transaction orientation to a consultative role for HR professionals within state government. (3) This has been caused in part by the need, and recognition of a need, for a business partner focus and changes in the needs and expectations of employees and line managers.

To determine what HR policies and practices would have to change, the DCS, the OSE, and HR management teams in each department collaborated in a massive needs assessment effort. After conducting an internal survey of 14,000 employees and analyzing the responses, key leaders in DCS, OSE, and the 20 line departments were clear about the fact that delivery of HR services in the Michigan state government required fresh thinking and new models.

The survey identified opportunities for improvement in a number of areas. Some of these opportunities included development of more consistent processes, communication and collaboration between HR areas, strategic business partnership with line management, employee and management training and career development, and best practice knowledge. The conversion to the new HR information system and the formation of an HR information technology management network at about the same time was also instrumental in raising issues about how HR and labor relations work was being done and how it should be performed. Thus, the State of Michigan Human Resource Training and Development Academy was born.

Through the academy, top HR leaders developed a transformation plan to establish renewed strategic direction, improved organizational alignment, and clarified roles to improve effectiveness and efficiency for the DCS, the OSE, and DHROs. The desire to create new direction and energy for state government also led to a refocusing of the mission of the Human Resource Council (HRC) on creating and implementing this new vision. The HRC is made up of leaders from the DCS, the OSE, and the DHROs. The council's vision for the future is presented in Figure 1.

[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]

As can be seen in the Figure 1, in the three bubbles of Collaborative HR Partners, Customer Driven HR Services, and HR Consultants, a mojor objective of this multifaceted process was to enhance the skills of HR managers and professionals in being more complete business partners with line managers, playing a more consultative role, and continuing to improve their capacity to drive improvement efforts across state government.

The Human Resource Training and Development Academy was established to foster state HR professionals' capacity to achieve this new vision. The academy identified five major training needs to drive the HR vision, which are identified in Table 1.

To achieve these purposes, the academy sought to promote two different but related action plans. The first was to provide general and targeted advanced training on technical subject matter in the areas of position classification, compensation, labor relations, benefits, equal employment opportunity (EEO), staffing, and career planning. This need for this training is presented in item two of Table 1.

The second action plan of the academy was to provide training opportunities designed to foster the development of a list of 15 core competencies that derived from the statewide HR needs assessment. The training was also intended to support achievement of the vision that HR managers and specialist would become partners in workforce excellence and to meet the four remaining training needs listed in Table 1. The action plan was to work with an outside transformational leadership team to create these training opportunities in such a way that leaders in the DCS, the OSE, and the DHROs could transform their operations in parallel with the stated purposes of becoming true business partners and change agents.

The 15 core HR competencies and definitions are presented in Appendix 1. Mastery and continuous learning and improvement along the lines of the 15 competencies are viewed as major desirable process enhancements in the delivery of personnel services in the State of Michigan.

The transformational leadership team was comfortable with the accuracy of these competencies, and they organized the competencies into a smaller number of themes for learning and training purposes. These competencies and themes were then incorporated into an overall training program designed to enhance the skills of HR managers and specialists in the State of Michigan in more effectively delivering their services and in functioning as true business partners and change agents.

Training in Support of HR Transformation

This training approach was taken in order to foster extensive skill and competency development among experienced professionals. Training was organized into the following three-day sessions:

* Session I: The HR Function as a Strategic Partner.

* Session II: The HR Professional and Change Management.

* Session III: The HR Professional and Service Improvement.

Two-to-three-month intervals between the sessions were included to allow for project team work between sessions and preparation for project completion with consultant support before the final presentation of change project reports.