Online Program

323598
Applying Business Process Reengineering in Public Health for Workforce Development


Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Les Becker, MBA, Harris County Public Health, Houston, TX
Michael Schaffer, MBA, CPO, Environmental Public Health Division, Harris County Public Health & Environmental Services, Pasadena, TX
Brian Arenare, MD, MBA, MPH, Harris County Public Health & Environmental Services, Houston, TX
Gwen Sims, MEd, RD, LD, Nutrition & Chronic Disease Prevention, Harris County Public Health and Environmental Services, Houston, TX
Shweta Kullachanda, BE, Project and Business Technology, Harris County Public Health and Envrionmental Services, Houston, TX
The 2008 economic recession in the United States caused unprecedented budget cuts and workforce reductions in the public health sector both nationally and locally. Hence one of the key action strategies set forth in the Harris County Public Health & Environmental Services (HCPHES) 2013-18 Strategic Plan was to enhance investments in the HCPHES workforce and workplace environment that foster effective communication, professional and leadership development and improved employee relations and well-being.

The HCPHES Executive Leadership team firstly reviewed the complete Employee Development life-cycle and identified 11 key focus areas to be addressed:

  • Recruitment & Diversity
  • Pre-Employment Assessment
  • Open Position Skills Review
  • Job Descriptions & Postings
  • Onboarding & Orientation
  • Goal Setting & Performance Appraisal
  • Competency Evaluation & Development
  • Leadership & Individual Development Planning
  • Training, Coaching & Team Building
  • Employee Recognition
  • Exit Process Management

Using a unique concept of Business Process Reengineering, Project teams were chartered to move forward.  The process involved a phased approach: Define the Vision & Goals; Identify the existing processes that need to be reengineered; Analyze and measure the existing processes; Redesign the alternate process & identify enabling systems; Evaluate and select a process redesign; Implement the reengineered process; And Continuous improvement of the process.

Detailed recommendations from the Project teams provided valuable information in terms of what matters to Public Health recruits and how to streamline the existing processes to ensure better productivity and throughput from the Public Health Workforce. HCPHES is currently working on implementing the reengineered processes / systems and the results would be presented.

Learning Areas:

Administration, management, leadership
Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Diversity and culture
Program planning
Public health administration or related administration

Learning Objectives:
Explain how the concept of Business Process Reengineering has been used to review and streamline the Public Health workforce development at a local health department

Keyword(s): Workforce Development, Workplace

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: my role as the Harris County Public Health & Environmental Services (HCPHES) Deputy Director/Director - Operations & Finance Division has enriched me with a unique level of understanding of the organization and the Workforce & Workplace policies and processes in effect. In my experience building collaborative relationships and directing people, processes, and tools to align with the strategic directives of the organization I can better understand the needs of the Public Health Workforce.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.