The past successes of DAS and the budget challenges facing the agency in the future were discussed at the 2002 All Hands Meeting. The theme was “Operation Success: Focusing on Service, Support, Solutions.”
A highlight of the meeting, held June 11 in the Riffe Center’s Capitol Theatre, was the success stories shared by 15 DAS employees. Also speaking were Racquel Graham, assistant director of the Ohio Office of Quality who shared tips on delivering quality to our customers, and DAS Director Scott Johnson.
“Today’s group of speakers offered several great examples of ways they provided services or improved services to our customers, and many showed us they’ve done so without expending a lot of capital,” Johnson said.
Such solutions will continue to be crucial because of the state’s tight budget, a result of a projected shortfall of $1.7 billion in revenue this biennium.
“The state’s chief economist predicts that the Ohio economy will improve at a slow pace. However, he also predicts the next biennium will be challenging as well. I tell you this so that you understand that Ohio’s budget problem isn’t going away anytime soon,” Johnson said.
Johnson encouraged DAS team members to continue to provide training opportunities for our customers, to market our services, to develop methods to help our customers work more efficiently and to initiate more programs that directly benefit our fellow state employees. The director also emphasized the importance of measuring our successes to prove our value, justifying our funding.
“I challenge each of you to think beyond your day-to-day tasks and your routine,” Johnson said. “In the words of Madeline Hunter, ‘If you want to feel secure, do what you already know how to do. If you want to be a true professional and continue to grow, go to the cutting edge of your competence, which means a temporary loss of security. So whenever you don’t quite know what you’re doing, know you’re growing.’”
The
2002 DAS All Hands Meeting speakers and their topics were as follows:
• Michael Ashford of State Purchasing talked about the new vendor
registration system, a self-serve system that allows vendors to update their
files online and receive bid notices via e-mail.
• Landa Brown Bates of the Equal Opportunity Division shared her
division’s outreach efforts, including attendance at trade shows and
hosting retreats.
• Jane Baughn of Employee Services told how she is proud to be
part of an agency that routinely surpasses goals for charity donations.
• Eric Glenn of Acquisitions Management explained the plan to
consolidate the Web sites of his office and State Purchasing.
• Steven Gray of High Performance Workplace Services explained
the selection process for the DAS Superior Accomplishment Award.
• Mike Henkaline of Benefits Administration Services discussed
the agency-wide preparation effort for the open enrollment period for health
benefits.
• Shelley Iulianelli with the Multi-Agency Radio Communications System
Office shared the progress and successes of the project.
• Barb MacIvor of Benefits Administration Services spoke about
the state’s new military leave policy.
• Todd McGonigle, the Management Information Systems programmer
specialist assigned to EOD, discussed the outcomes of the Ohio Predicate Study
and the immediate changes resulting from the study’s recommendations.
• Jerry Miller of Payroll Administration explained the savings
employees can receive by participating in the pre-tax commuter benefits program.
• Michelle Pickering of eGovernment Development and Deployment
demonstrated the Ohio Business Gateway, a Web-based application through which
small businesses can pay their taxes and workers’ compensation premiums.
• Amy Shuman of Benefits Administration Services discussed the
state’s wellness initiatives and encouraged everyone to take advantage
of wellness opportunities.
• John Thornton of State and Federal Surplus Property discussed
the use of eBay.com for auctioning state surplus property.
• Julie Trackler of the Director’s Office shared how the
DAS safety and security plan has become a model adopted throughout state government.
• Nadine Williams of IT Planning spoke about ePlanningIT, an online
planning application used by state agencies.
This portion of the DAS eNewsCenter is for DAS employees.
