BPS implements new web-based application and hiring system

BOSTON - The Boston Public Schools Office of Human Resources on Wednesday launched a new web-based hiring system, the first of many steps to "reinvent" its operations and improve its customer service to applicants, employees and hiring managers.

The new system is an online recruiting solution developed by Kenexa Corporation that streamlines the hiring process for both the candidate and the staff member doing the hiring, creating an interactive BPS Career Center.

The BPS Career Center simplifies the process for teachers and other candidates by providing them with the ability to browse, search and apply for current openings online. The new online system will reduce paperwork, speed the hiring process and increase customer satisfaction for both applicants and hiring managers.

BPS Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources Barbara McGann said the BPS Career Center will have an immediate impact on the district's hiring process.

"Our goal is to recruit, screen and hire the best possible teachers and staff who will help Boston achieve our goal of enabling all our students to reach academic proficiency," Ms. McGann said. "The new BPS Career Center gives us one integrated online system for all job posting and application processes. It's a big leap forward to help us hire new teachers earlier, improve principals' ability to effectively screen and communicate with candidates and reduce the amount of paperwork associated with the more than 20,000 applications we receive each year."

The new applicant tracking and management system is part of a bigger HR Reinvention plan underway at the school department. Superintendent Thomas W. Payzant last year hired Ms. McGann to direct the office. She is a retired Rear Admiral who previously oversaw recruiting for the U.S. Navy.

The HR initiative is funded by The Broad Foundation, a private foundation based in Los Angeles, whose mission is to dramatically improve K-12 urban public education.

"We have been impressed with the leadership of Boston Public Schools and the strong growth in student achievement that BPS has achieved over the last decade," said Eli Broad, founder of The Broad Foundation. "A simple tool like online recruiting is the kind of advance we need to implement in our urban school systems so that they can recruit, hire, and retain the best educators. We are pleased to support BPS as they improve its HR systems, and we hope that other local funders will recognize the link between the school department's ability to manage its human capital and improved student achievement and will join us in support of this important initiative."

The Broad Foundation made a $1.8 million challenge grant to BPS with the goal that the Boston philanthropic community will raise a matching amount. An anonymous local donor has already committed $1 million, and the district is seeking to raise an additional $800,000 to support the HR reinvention.

In addition to the web-based applicant hiring and tracking system, the ambitious plan to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of HR in the Boston Public Schools includes an on-line talent assessment to screen teaching candidates; employee self-service applications for personnel-related transactions; an integrated workforce planning tool to allow principals to manage their staffing plans for the upcoming school year; and improved hiring and support systems for new teachers and new school leaders. Each of these innovative programs will be launched between July 2005 and December 2006.

The Broad Foundation is a Los Angeles-based venture philanthropic organization established in 1999 by Eli and Edythe Broad. The Foundation's mission is to dramatically improve K-12 urban public education through better governance, management, labor relations and competition. The Foundations major initiatives include the $1 million Broad Prize, awarded annually to urban school districts that have made the greatest overall improvement in student achievement; The Broad Superintendents Academy, a ten-month executive management program to train working CEOs and other top executives from business, non-profit, military, government and education backgrounds to lead urban public school systems; and the Broad Institute for School Boards, an annual training program for newly elected school board members designed to increase student achievement through improved governance. The Broad Foundation's Internet address is www.broadfoundation.org.