Filling the Gaps
Continued
"Principals get equal access to the candidates," Rao says, which reduces some of the competition within the district to keep the performance of all of Richardson's schools at the same high level. Candidates apply to the RISD central office, not to one particular school, and they are free to interview with any interested principal. Candidate preferences in school placement are considered, but no principal can hoard candidates. Users perceived the system as inherently fair and efficient, which helped a great deal in gaining their acceptance. "Initially people had to get used to the look and feel of the system, but overall the majority of the principals and managers find the system easy to use," says Barbara Hargrove, director of salary administration for RISD.
Before the system was put into place, principals generally had to go to the central office to read through résumés, or else they had to wade through envelopes of photocopies received via interoffice mail. That system not only took up a lot of time better spent in the school, but it also increased the likelihood that teachers with unique skill sets would fall through the cracks. For example, in the paper system, it might be easy to overlook a high school Spanish teacher who was also qualified to be a diving coach. Using the Oracle system, principals would be able to flag that résumé easily and bring the candidate in for an interview.
Beyond seeing whether a candidate is interested in the position and has certifications, principals can also see the type of certifications the candidate has earned, the universities he or she has attended, years of experience, and HR interview score. "This has made good candidates more visible," says Rao, a five-year employee of RISD who was involved with the implementation. "One of the biggest challenges was making sure we were giving principals enough information to select qualified candidates for the open positions but yet not making it too cumbersome to use," Hargrove adds. Once a candidate is hired, RISD can use the data collected during the hiring process to set up a personnel file and track the employee through his or her career with the district, up to retirement.
The No Child Left Behind Act, signed into law in 2002, includes provisions intended to ensure that students are taught by "highly qualified" teachers—which the act defines as those who have at least a bachelor's degree in the subject taught, have demonstrated knowledge of that subject, and are fully certified by the state. The percentage of highly qualified teachers in a school is one of the measurements used to judge compliance with the No Child Left Behind Act, so that metric affects a school's reputation and its funding. This in turn puts pressure on the school district to collect data on the qualifications of its hires for permanent and substitute positions, adding an additional complication to an already tough task. Like most school districts, RISD receives most of its operating budget from property taxes, so local voters are paying close attention to the district's financial and academic performance—just one more reason why HR management is so important.
"One of the great things about this system is that we continue to find ways to improve upon the original product," Hargrove says. That's important given changing regulations and evolving knowledge about how best to generate strong student performance, and it's one reason why RISD will rely on Oracle to improve student achievement and employee satisfaction.
