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AWARDS & RECOGNITION

2003 Awards: Digital Government: Government to Citizen (G to C)

WINNER:
Washington
INET Application

Seated, left to right: Doug Tanabe, Jason Sterling, Dorothy Gerard, Jerome Sweet Standing, left to right: Warren Kelly, David Amyakar, Brad Bingham, Jacqui Shrier, Sherrie Ilg, Rob Yarbrough, Gary Wilkinson. Not pictured is Bob Hahn.

Over the past decade recruiting and retaining a public sector workforce has been an increasingly difficult task. We have seen a national trend that includes a sharp rise (nearly 30% of the existing state workforce by 2005) in the number of retiring staff, an increase in the demands for public services, and massive budget reductions coupled with ongoing efforts to reduce the public sector workforce. All of these trends translate into a critical need to invent creative and effective techniques to hire qualified staff while reducing costs and improving processing efficiencies. The Washington State INET Application (INET App) project addresses this critical need.

The state Department of Personnel (DOP) has been recruiting applicants for many years using paper applications and manually reviewing the individuals' qualifications. However, the process of application has been a challenge for many individuals. Historically, applicants could only apply for jobs when a recruitment announcement was opened. The process required an individual to spend hours preparing an application for submission. Then, processing the applications often took weeks (frequently 35 days or more) before the applicants' names are available to hiring managers.

"The Internet Application system completely revolutionizes the state's 43-year-old cumbersome process for recruiting and selecting job candidates. By reducing hiring time from 35 days to 4 hours, it's convenience gives a tremendous boost to the state's ability to compete for the very best talent. This award underscores Washington State's commitment to using technology to make government more accessible to citizens and more efficient and cost effective." Marty Brown, Chief of Staff to the Governor, State of Washington

The application process should not be an obstacle for those interested in joining the public sector workforce. Through a variety of process changes, use of the Internet and new screening techniques, INET App removes many of the components that create this barrier. Individuals can now apply for positions anytime they desire because recruitments are open continuously. Individuals are processed immediately upon entering their application online, receiving their application results in seconds. Hiring managers have access to new applicants in a matter of minutes rather than days, weeks or months. Applicants can self-manage their availability for jobs.

In the short time this project has been operational, DOP has seen an 85% increase in applications, a major increase in customer satisfaction and a significant decrease in operational costs. In addition, DOP is better positioned to move in new directions for recruitment and assessment to meet the ever-changing needs of the public sector.

OTHER NOMINATIONS:
Click on the link to download program submission.

Arizona
Health-e-Arizona

Arkansas
Game and Fish Online Service Suite

California
CalPERS Empowers Its Members with Web "Self-Service"

District of Columbia
The District of Columbia Web Portal Redesign

Florida
Medical Quality Assurance Services website

Hawaii
Vital Records Ordering

Idaho
Internet Continued Claims System

Illinois
Illinois EBT Link System

Indiana
State of Indiana Online Legislative Services

Kansas
KS WebFile

Kentucky
Kentucky Telemarketing NoCall Program

Michigan
Customer Service Improvement Project (CSIP)

Missouri
Missouri State Park Camping - Available For Everyone

Montana
License Renewal Service

North Carolina
North Carolina School Report Cards

Oklahoma
Threat Level Notification System

Pennsylvania
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Application for Social Services (COMPASS)

Rhode Island
Rhode Island Emergency Bulletin System

Tennessee
Tennessee.gov

Texas
myMDAnderson

Utah
Utah Licensee Lookup and Verification

Virginia
Fairfax County e-Government

West Virginia
WVDNR goWILD! Internet Hunting and Fishing Licenses

Wisconsin
WiscJobs

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