Wednesday, January, 16, 2008
Governor Minner Announces 2007 Team Excellence Recipient
Dover– Governor Ruth Ann Minner announced today that the Delaware Employment Link (DEL) team from the Office of Management and Budget, Human Resource Management is the 2007 recipient of the Governor’s Team Excellence Award.
“Our state employees go above and beyond each day to provide all Delawareans the best services possible,” Governor Minner said. “A key part of our success is our hiring system, and I commend the team that developed our new DEL system. It has been of great benefit to us and to those who have used the program to find a job in state government.”
The Governor’s Team Excellence Award encourages teamwork by recognizing groups of state employees who excel in leadership and team operation, use best practices and superior customer service, and produce tangible results. This year 19 teams representing the efforts of 257 state employees were nominated for the 2007 Governor’s Team Excellence Award, and four teams were selected as finalists.
The 14-member DEL team was chosen for successfully launching the new comprehensive online recruitment and selection system for state employment and modernizing the merit system hiring rules. Within five months, the DEL team implemented a system that allows job seekers to request notification of future job openings, apply online anytime, create profiles that can be saved and reused for future openings, and track jobs through the interview and hiring process. Since implementation, the team has processed more than 73,000 applications, yielding an average of 237 recruitments per month, and the typical posting time has decreased from 15 days to seven days.
“The implementation of DEL is an excellent example of how we are working to simplify our services to the public and state agencies. The very significant results achieved represent some of the accomplishments of OMB and build on the successes of the Minner-Carney Administration,” said Jennifer “J.J.” Davis, Director of the Office of Management and Budget. “The DEL team is truly deserving of this prestigious award.”
Four teams were recognized as finalists. The Comprehensive Aftercare Program, developed by the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families, reduces caseload size to 25 youths per probation officer, resulting in a higher level of supervision for youth returning from placement. It also provides opportunities for families to become actively involved in the planning process. The Department of Transportation’s Cone Placement Trailer Project was the result of 16 DelDOT employees combining their efforts to produce a prototype cone-setting trailer, providing a safer method for setting and removing work zone cones on roadways. The DuPont Nature Center Core Team at the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control created an educational center containing exhibits devoted to the Delaware Bay’s unique natural history and ecology. And finally, the Department of Health and Social Services was recognized for their You Deserve a Shot Team, which planned and implemented the largest vaccination/medication dispensing site in over 20 years, while simultaneously exercising a preparedness concept called Neighborhood Emergency Help Centers
