Overview
Fairfax County Virginia surpassed a major milestone this past year experienced by only a few counties in the country - their resident population exceeded the 1 million mark. Providing highquality services to such a large citizenry requires a talented and diverse workforce. In order to staff its approximately 11,500 full time positions, the County aggressively competes to attract and retain some of the best talent available.

"Competing in a high-tech area such as Northern Virginia requires some creative, high-tech strategies," says Peter Schroth, Human Resources Director for the county. "We are consistently looking for ways to leverage technology to make our processes more efficient for HR staff and hiring managers, while at the same time providing a positive experience for our candidates."

The Need
Recognizing the need for change in order to stay competitive, the county first conducted a thorough review of existing processes and inventoried the tools already in place. A Business Process Redesign group comprised of staff from the Department of Information Technology, the Department of Human Resources and one "customer" department, the Fairfax County Park Authority, conducted this review. Since 1995 the county has been using a Resumix® ver. 4 commercial off the shelf applicant tracking system, a custom built web job posting application, and a telephone based interactive voice response (IVR) self-nomination system. In 2002 Fairfax added a web-based requisition builder and some additional custom integration between their HR and Resumix systems. Upon completion of the review, the county determined that much of what they already had in place would continue to work well for them as they modernized their hiring process. The core Resumix product had served Fairfax extremely well since 1995, but it no longer provided the flexibility that would be required to move forward and modernize the application process.

After the internal review, the group went on to evaluate many of the popular applicant tracking systems on the market. In the final analysis the county determined that their best choice would be to upgrade to a newer version of Resumix and continue to use it as the centerpiece of their staffing solution. "The decision to stay with the Resumix product not only allowed us to maintain our core organizational asset," states Rita Kayn, Fairfax's Employment Division Supervisor, "but it also allowed the county the much needed flexibility to develop and implement a customized solution specific to our needs." The key to this flexibility was the open Oracle® database, something the older Resumix product did not offer.

With the decision to upgrade the Resumix system firmly in place, Fairfax knew that it would need expert assistance in the design and development of customized add-on applications to support the county's hiring process. Overall cost was a key factor when considering the various alternatives. "Cost is always a consideration when approaching a project such as this," stated Kayn, "but expertise and a proven track-record are also critical decision factors. With a project as visible as this, we needed to get it right the first time." Fairfax offered a public solicitation and eventually turned to HRWorX, LLC to work with them on this project. HRWorX was able to offer the best combination of approach, price and proven expertise.

The Solution
Fairfax needed to create a set of web tools that would support their unique hiring process, end-toend. In order to fill in the existing gaps in their process, they focused on the design and development of a state-of-the-art applicant portal, a set of recruiter/hiring manager tools and an archive solution that would allow them to electronically preserve recruiting actions as they happen and later retrieve these cases as needed. In addition, Fairfax needed support expertise to set up and integrate the technical environment.

Applicant Portal
The key to making the entire process work was to design an efficient, applicant friendly portal that allowed applicants the ability to setup and manage their own account. In this way Fairfax could easily get applicant resumes into their system in a standardized format. Enter AIMS - Fairfax's Applicant Information Management System (www.fairfaxcounty.gov/aims). This webbased application has been a huge success. In the first 65 days of operation, more than 9,000 candidates established AIMS accounts, submitting more than 20,000 resumes. After setting up an account, applicants prepare a resume using either the step-by-step Resume Builder or copying and pasting an existing resume. The step-by-step Resume Builder is ideal for applicants who may not already have a resume or for those unfamiliar with how to put a resume together. The Resume Builder walks the applicant through the entire process and at the end of this process, the applicant has a professionally formatted resume.

For the applicant who already has a resume on hand, AIMS provides a quick and easy way to copy and paste an existing resume. In those cases, the applicant can establish an AIMS account and apply for a job within just a few minutes.

After submitting a resume the applicant gets immediate confirmation that the resume was received by checking the "My Status" page. Since AIMS is fully integrated with the Resumix system, Fairfax can provide applicants with up-to-the-minute status. The "My Status" page tells applicants that the resume was received, when the review process starts, and whether or not their resume was forwarded to the hiring department for further consideration. Applicants appreciate this feature because they know where they stand in the review process at all times.

Previously, Fairfax relied on scanning and OCR technology to get resumes into their system. This was not only extremely labor intensive, but often resulted in poor quality skills extraction. Even in the best of circumstances, OCR technology cannot always be relied upon to accurately capture 100% of the text from a resume. When variables such as small font size, unusual formatting, or poor image quality are added in, the OCR process is put at even more of a disadvantage. The resulting text files were often illegible. This meant that skills extraction from an applicant's resume, a key feature of the Resumix system, could not be relied upon when it came time to review the applicant pool. As a result, the vast majority of resumes were reviewed manually instead of allowing the Resumix system to perform skill searches.

With AIMS, plain text resumes are coming directly into the Resumix system with 100% accuracy. The results are a highly reliable skills extraction which in turn allows Fairfax to lean more heavily on the Resumix system's ability to provide meaningful searches based on skills and education.

Fairfax receives approximately 300 resumes every day. Since physically handling and scanning resumes is no longer part of the picture, and they can rely on the accuracy of the information coming in from AIMS, the processing time for getting resumes into the system has been slashed dramatically. Fairfax estimates that one full time equivalent (FTE) position has been reassigned to support more direct customer service activities since the implementation of AIMS.

One of the most significant strategic advantages realized by Fairfax following implementation of AIMS includes a much faster turnaround for the resume review process. Before AIMS, Fairfax accepted only hard copy resumes or self-nominations submitted via the web or IVR. Because of limitations of the old database, many of the self-nominations required manual processing. Of course, all of the hard copy resumes required physical scanning. Following an advertised closing date it was not uncommon for it to take an additional three business days to process all of the resumes received. With AIMS, processing is typically completed by 9:00 a.m. on the next business day following a closing date.

Recruiter/Manager Tools
Another Fairfax requirement was to provide an electronic resume review process that not only assisted Human Resources staff, but could also be easily deployed to include hiring managers in the review process. A manual "decentralized review" process has been part of Fairfax's effort to reduce the amount of time it takes to review resumes and fill vacant positions for quite some time. Adding the ability to review resumes electronically was seen as way to improve the process even further.

The tool needed to be highly intuitive so that training would not become an issue. To meet this need, HRWorX was able to create the software tool eStax™. With eStax, Fairfax recruiters can easily create "electronic stacks of resumes" and electronically push them out to hiring manager's desktops. This web-based tool requires no special client software, just a web browser. Resumes are presented to the manager one-by-one on the right side of the screen along with a scroll bar to facilitate easy viewing. On the left side of the screen are decision buttons that are totally configurable by the recruiter. Typically, managers are given the option of selecting GO, NO GO, or MAYBE for each candidate. These decisions are automatically recorded in Resumix. From there the HR recruiter can continue with finalizing the recruitment process. Eventually electronic "certificates" are generated and sent to the appropriate hiring authority whereupon a final hiring recommendation is made. An added benefit is that resumes and certificates are available in a printable format using Adobe's PDF file format. This allows the manager to save and print resumes as needed. Managers can go back later and record their decisions about the candidates. Fairfax estimates that using eStax can often shave one or two days off of the review process since managers no longer need to schedule an office visit to pick up or review resumes. Resumes can be reviewed and decisions recorded at the convenience of the hiring manager from their own computer.

"eStax is a very significant part of the overall solution for our organization. It allows us the opportunity to maintain a centralized recruiting function while at the same time providing a high level of service and support to all of our agencies," says Kayn.

HR/Administrative Tools
Like many other organizations, Fairfax needed a set of customized administrative tools which would allow them to have quick and easy access to vital information within their system. HRWorX was able to create several restricted views into their system so that HR support personnel could handle many of the routine questions presented by both applicants and managers. HRWorX also worked with Fairfax to create several custom reports required by management.

In order to maintain a meaningful history of their recruiting activities, Fairfax needed a tool that would allow them to create a "snapshot" of the entire recruitment process. This meant capturing large amounts of data related to each recruitment action. The "Archive" tool, as it came to be known, allows Fairfax to store the text of every resume submitted for consideration, plus all of the custom fields and skills extracted from those resumes. In addition, all of the information contained in the requisition, including the job announcement, the criteria used to evaluate the applicant pool, and notes and tracking actions are also captured. Once the recruitment "case" is closed, all of this information is stored electronically in a separate database and is removed from the active Resumix system. This allows Fairfax to keep its daily "working system" free of closed recruitment actions while still preserving historical records.

The Fairfax process is based upon a "one resume, one job" principle. This allows an applicant to tailor a resume for a particular job and, if they wish, use a different resume each time they apply for a job. Of course, this means that there are generally multiple resumes in the system for each applicant. To manage these multiple records for the same applicant, Fairfax needed a tool that could consolidate them into one view. HRWorX created the "Applicant Lookup" tool which provides a simple web-based interface that provides a consolidated view of an applicant's record. This tool is ideal for staff in the Application Center because it provides them with only the information that they need to answer basic questions from applicants. They do not need the complexity of the full Resumix client.

Another tool is a "Mass Untracking" feature that permits a user to reverse tracking actions that may have been done in error, better known as one of those "oh-no" moments. Using the standard Resumix system, untracking can only be done one record at a time. Generally, that works out fine. However, if someone accidentally tracks 200 applicants to a requisition, the mass untracking tool can reverse all of these tracking actions with one mouse click—a real time saver.

A special "EEO Lookup" tool was created to provide Fairfax's Office of Equity Programs a view of race/gender information related to each recruitment action. As with the other tools, there is a simple web interface that provides the user with a customized view of the required information on an as-needed basis. Previously, staff from the Equity Programs office made daily visits to the Employment Division to pick up paper copies of certification lists that were filed away and accessed as needed. The "EEO Lookup" is totally paperless and has proven to be a tremendous time saver by providing information only when it is needed.

The last tool added to the mix was a "User ID and Password Lookup" utility for the AIMS system. Despite the provision of a password reminder function for AIMS account holders, Fairfax found that many applicants still needed assistance when they forgot their User ID or Password. The lookup tool has greatly enhanced the positive customer service reputation enjoyed by the AIMS project in Fairfax.

Implementation
The decision to move from a paper-based system to an all-electronic submission process seems like it would have been an easy one. However, Fairfax was concerned about the perception that it might be excluding applicants who did not have easy access to a computer or who were not particularly computer literate. After all, Fairfax is a municipal employer with a wide range of job categories and the system had to be designed to accommodate the novice as well as the more experienced user. While AIMS has an intuitive interface and the vast majority of applicants have no problem using the system, Fairfax recognized that it would need to plan for those applicants who might require additional assistance with an electronic resume submission process.

As a result, the County set up several PCs in its Application Center and anyone requiring assistance is invited to come in during regular business hours. There, staff can work with applicants one-on-one to establish an AIMS account and create a resume. For those applicants walking through the door with a hard copy resume, Fairfax staff is on hand to scan the resume and provide the applicant with a text version on a diskette. From there they will assist the applicant in setting up their AIMS resume account. The big advantage for the County is that 100% of the resumes in the system are coming through AIMS. For the applicant with limited computer skills, they know that they can get personal assistance just by walking in the door.

Fairfax initially anticipated that there would be some negative responses in their decision move to an all-electronic submission process. Much to everyone's surprise, there have been virtually no complaints about the change from a paper-based system to an electronic system. This can most likely be attributed to the wide acceptance of computers as a part of every day life. Whatever the reason, it has certainly worked in Fairfax's favor.

Additional advantages accrue from the goodwill generated by the overall positive reception from Fairfax hiring managers. They have quicker access than ever to pools of applicants. And, with the ability of HR recruiters to provide electronic resumes using eStax, managers no longer have to travel to HR's main office. Resumes are now available right on their desktops.

Summary
"The key words for us throughout this project have been flexibility and collaboration," according to Steve Waller, Fairfax's AIMS Project Manager. "It makes a big difference when a vendor works closely with you to really understand your process, and has the experience to implement your vision. Beyond that, however, is having the flexibility to adjust to unforeseen circumstances. We had that with HRWorX. After going live, it was not unusual to recognize the need for a change, have a discussion about the need and how to move toward a solution, and have that solution in production within a day or two."

For example, about 30 days after going live with AIMS, Fairfax realized that modifications to the applicant's "My Status" page would be required. Feedback from applicants indicated that they wanted more details on the screen. Following a meeting to discuss the best way to provide this information, HRWorX was able to move the necessary changes into production within 6 business days. Because of the flexibility offered by the open database and the mutual desire for a successful project, these changes were quickly and easily implemented.

Resumix® is a registered trademark of Yahoo! Inc. Oracle® is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation eStax™ is a registered trademark of HRWorX, LLC