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Transformation Update – March 2007
Restructuring the Billet System of the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service
Transformation Background
On 5 January 2006, five Transformation Implementation Planning Work Groups, designated by the Deputy Secretary, began meeting. The charge to these work groups was to develop the detail that would be required to implement the Secretary’s 5 December 2005, transformation decisions with as much consensus from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) agency heads as possible. The work groups, including Readiness; Sizing the Corps; Recruitment, Training and Career Development; Assignments; and Classifications and Positions, completed their reports on 8 March 2006. On 19 October 2006, the Secretary endorsed the majority of the recommendations from these reports, and approved milestones to implement these recommendations.
 
The purpose of this month’s transformation update is to provide a status update on the billets and billet systems transformation components of these recommendations.
 
Billets Background
For some time, the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service (Corps) has struggled to define and manage the positions held by its officers. The Corps has lacked the tools it needs to manage its billets and facilitate effective and efficient force management.
 
The Secretary’s decision to restructure the billet system will serve the transformed Corps in multiple ways. An effective billet system will provide the foundation for recruitment, training, career progression, assignments, promotions, and compensation. The system will confer transparency, allowing planners and decision-makers to understand how specific personnel policies advance the mission of the Corps and affect its capabilities. Planned outcomes regarding the restructured billet system include: 
  • Development of individual billets, and guiding policy, for each of the 6,600 planned Corps positions; 
  • Two part billets consisting of standard and position-specific components:
  • Standard components (primarily developed by the Professional Advisory Committees [PACs]) which generically describe essential duties and corresponding requirements for education, training, and experience, designated functional group, and career track; and 
  • Position-specific components (primarily developed by the agencies) which provide more precise information about the duties, geographic location, and additional required or desired qualifications.
  • Electronically developed and maintained billets (eBillets) which describe the position (not the incumbent) but which are linked to electronic officer profiles;
  • Development of a system to approve all existing billets and to approve, adjudicate, and periodically review new billets; and
  • Development of an electronic system to monitor and announce billet vacancies for Corps officers.
Process
There are three phases to the billet system restructuring process. These are:
  • Policy/Design Phase – This phase includes the development of billet components, the billet template, and billet policy. In accordance with the Secretary’s milestones, this phase must be completed by 31 March 2007.
  • Initial Implementation Phase – This phase includes development of new, Excel-based billets for all active-duty Corps officers, with initial emphasis on category-specific billets for HHS officers followed by multidisciplinary billets and non-HHS agency billets. This phase will also include the development of a system to monitor and announce billet vacancies. In accordance with the Secretary’s milestones, this phase must be completed by 30 June 2007.
  • IT Phase – This final phase includes the development of software to integrate all of the eBillet information collected during the creation of the rewritten billets and provide a user-friendly process for developing future billets, monitoring and announcing billet vacancies, and integrating with the officer assignment system. In accordance with the Secretary’s milestones, this phase must be completed by 31 March 2008.
Status
The Billets, Officer Profiles, and Selection System (BOPS) Working Policy and Design Group (WPDG) was developed to provide recommendations toward meeting the transformation objectives for billets, officer profiles, and the selection system. Membership on the BOPS WPDG includes all professional categories and virtually all agencies. Each category self-nominated a member to the WPDG in response to a request from the Office of Commissioned Corps Operations to the Chief Professional Officers Board Chair. The BOPS WPDG has convened almost every Wednesday since 13 December 2006.
 
Policy/Design Phase activities completed or currently under development include:
  • A draft billet components model, with objective grading factors, was developed and has been reviewed and revised based upon recommendations from the BOPS WPDG;
  • The BOPS WPDG is currently drafting new policy to guide the billets process; and
  • A draft billet template, with accompanying instructions, is also under development.
Assistance from the PACs has been requested to develop the standard components for category-specific billets, with a due date of 13 April 2007. Approximately 2 weeks will then be used to work with one or more HHS agencies to beta test the draft restructured billet system. On approximately 30 April 2007, all HHS agencies will be tasked to utilize the restructured billet system to facilitate the development of new billets for all active-duty officers in category-specific positions. This process should be completed by 15 June 2007, and will be followed by the development of new billets for all non-HHS agencies and development of billets for all active-duty officers in multidisciplinary positions within HHS agencies.
 
At the completion of the transformation, the billet system will provide Corps officers with the ability to monitor position vacancies and immediately identify position announcements. The billet system will be integrated with the personal profiles of all officers to provide a dynamic avenue for identification of the most qualified officers for all available positions. The billet system will provide all officers and detailers with a simple process to locate and acquire a job in the Corps that meets their personal ambitions and concurrently supports the mission of the Corps.
 
The process for restructuring the billet system of the Corps is, admittedly, very ambitious and will require a significant commitment by all agencies and the officers they employ. The product of this effort, however, will be a strong foundation upon which the future of the Corps and its mission will firmly stand.
 
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