GVRA Executive Summary

A person sitting on a chair
Description generated with very high confidence
FINAL REPORT

JULY 8, 2019

OPERATIONAL
REVIEW

PROJECT

GEORGIA VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION AGENCY

A close up of a logo
Description generated with very high confidence

APPENDIX

OUTLINE

ROADMAP & NEXT STEPS

ASSESSMENTS | OBSERVATIONS | RECOMMENDATIONS

GIB

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY

cid:image007.png@01D4ADC4.41800050
GVRA

GEORGIA VOCATIONAL
REHABILITATION AGENCY

•
Process evaluation of key administrative functions,
looking for inefficient and ineffective processes

•
Identification of duplicate or unnecessary roles
within the administrative organizational structure

•
Full evaluation of key processes and organizational
structure at GIB

•
Recommendations for new processes and
organizational structure of all administrative
functions

•
Recommendations for new processes,
organizational structure, and increased profitability
at GIB

Assessment of Vocational Rehabilitation, BEP, DAS, and other services
and programs was
not
in the scope of this assessment.

PROJECT OVERVIEW

Current State

Project Objectives

Accenture conducted the GVRA assessment over a period of seven weeks from

May 20
–
July 8, 2019

•
General Assembly substantively reduced FY20
administrative budget, exacerbated by a loss of
federal matching dollars

•
To address serious structural, training, workload,
and pay issues within Vocational Rehabilitation and
other services, GVRA must first address
administrative processes upon which those
solutions will rely
•
GIB is likely unsustainable with its current market
focus

•
Newly appointed GVRA Executive Director brings a
mandate to restore the Agency’s focus on the field

Why Now?

APPROACH

Accenture conducted interviews, workshops, and operational reviews to identify a
set of recommendations for GVRA to consider. These recommendations have been
further organized into a Roadmap for implementation.

Listen, Learn,

Discover

Evaluate and Envision

Recommend

Road Maps

Gain an in
–
depth picture of
the Agency’s operations, its
current pain points, and its
potential opportunities for
improvement.

Develop prioritized list of
improvement opportunities

Address specific concerns.

Define and validate
proposed administrative
organization and high level
future state process design.

Design road map

for implementation.

•
Separate interviews = 82
•
Design thinking workshop = 5
with 100 attendees
•
Operational and functional
process map flows = 28
•
GVRA locations = 6
•
GIB locations = 3
•
Document reviews = 300+

•
Total issues identified = 54
•
Weighed each against an
algorithm of weighted efforts
and benefits, including the
improvement of processes,
internal customer service,
Agency oversight and
controls; staffing
requirements; and cost
savings.

•
11 Quick Wins for GVRA
•
15 Opportunities for GVRA
•
15 Quick Wins for GIB
•
13 Opportunities for GIB

•
Provide GVRA with a
suggested timeline for
implementation of the
projects
•
Suggest PMO for
implementation phase

Group brainstorm
Head with gears
Checklist
Playbook

WHERE WE’VE BEEN

A group of people sitting at a table
Description generated with very high confidence
RWS

A group of people sitting at a table in a room
Description generated with very high confidence
Columbus

A picture containing building, tree, outdoor
Description generated with high confidence
Athens

GIB

Columbus

College
Park

Athens

Tifton

Warm

Springs

Warner Robins

Griffin

Bainbridge

GVRA Visit

GIB Visit

Tifton

Visits included input from Americus, Augusta, Canton, and Norcross.

Atlanta

GVRA: WHAT WE LEARNED

Culture

While GVRA team members understand the Agency’s mission, the day
–
to
–
day culture
exhibits widespread territorialism, fear, frustration, and mistrust, creating an environment
that is not focused on serving internal and external customers.

Two GVRAs

The chasm between the State Office administrative team and those in the field is stark.
With near uniformity, field staff report that the State Office neither understands their work
nor supports them in even routine matters.

Process Issues

Core HR and fiscal processes are inefficient and lack formality; others are duplicative and
misaligned within the Agency. Staff face significant delays in everything from hiring to
contract review. Budget controls, when existent, are lax and ineffective.

Agency Direction

Even though team members understand the mission, no unifying strategic goals or
direction exist. Inclusive, agency
–
wide strategic planning, KPIs, and performance
management are largely absent or, where present, often ignored.

Organizational Structure

Most recognize that substantive portions of the current administrative structure inhibit
success. The leadership
–
to
–
staff ratio is top heavy. Business functions are not aligned to
maximize efficiency.

Decision Making

Separate from process and structural issues, GVRA personnel lack clarity on who makes
decisions. Some decisions require too many approvals; others are left in limbo because no
one knows who holds authority. Many feel unempowered to make the simplest of decisions.

Gleaned through interviews, field visits, observations, and document reviews

GVRA SUMMARY (NON
–
EXHAUSTIVE)

Culture

•
150+ KPI measurements, largely developed without field input, lead to confusion, frustration, and apathy
•
Tension among directors directly impacts internal customer service

Governance & Structure

•
Extremely top
–
heavy organizational chart, with a 1:3 manager
–
to
–
team member ratio
•
Response times from administration to the field’s calls and emails routinely reported in as a matter of “weeks and months,” n
ot
in
hours or days
•
Directors fail to generate basic monthly reports on budget, contracting, personnel actions, litigation, help desk actions, et
c.,
that
would allow leadership to make more informed decisions

Human Resources

•
No one knows how many people work at GVRA; Human Resources, Finance, and department heads report different headcounts,
salaries, and position numbers, created conflicting, unreconciled employee census
•
6+ month process to recruit and hire new positions, including 3
–
4 month lag time on simple background checks
•
Hiring process requires 8
–
10 separate approvals, often resulting in 2
–
3 cycles with the same people
•
HR self
–
reported a one
–
year backlog on uploading already created training modules for employees to access and use

Finance & Budget

•
Lack of contract management system leads to delayed payments, payments for services not rendered, contracts not executed,
contracts not reviewed, and general vendor relations issues, some dating back as far as four years
•
No indirect cost allocation proposal since 2015
•
Constant reliance on “carryover” funds to balance the budget each year

Observations that point to just some of the issues facing GVRA

SUMMARY: KEY GVRA RECOMMENDATIONS

Develop GVRA Core Values as cornerstone of full
cultural change program

Promotes true team ownership of the beliefs,
principles, and aspirations that will guide all future
decisions

Redesign GVRA administration structure with specific
emphases on human resources, fiscal operations,
planning and budget, external affairs, and technology

Creates a nimble, customer
–
focused team with clear
functions and lanes of authority,
saving the Agency an
estimated $1,295,178

Streamline and modernize HR recruit
–
to
–
hire process
by leveraging State’s investment in HR technology
solutions

Reduces the 6+ month time now required to hire;
allows hire
–
to units to be more involved in selection
process, including interviews and reference checks

Consolidate dual procurement and contract offices;
institute a contract tracking system to ensure fiscal
controls throughout the process

Eliminates duplicative function and ensures that one
entity maintains fiscal controls over critical function

Link strategic planning with the budget both in
structure and in practice

Aligns GVRA goals with Agency’s priorities, policies,
budgets, KPIs, and other performance metrics

Essential Projects for Improvement

By doing this, GVRA…

We recommend a total of 15 GVRA
–
specific improvement projects and an
additional 11 “quick wins,” all of which are detailed throughout this assessment.

KEY GVRA RECOMMENDATIONS

Implementing these essential recommendations addresses critical issues

Recommendations

Culture

Two
GVRAs

Process
Issues

Agency
Direction

Org
Structure

Decision
Making

Develop GVRA Core Values as cornerstone of full
cultural change program

Redesign GVRA administration structure

Streamline and modernize HR recruit
–
to
–
hire process

Consolidate dual procurement and contract offices;
institute a contract tracking system to ensure fiscal
controls throughout the process

Link strategic planning with the budget both in structure
and in practice, allowing GVRA to marry its goals with
its outlays

SUMMARY: ESTIMATED TIME TO IMPLEMENT

Develop GVRA Core Values as cornerstone of full
cultural change program

Quick Win (1
–
3 months)

Redesign GVRA administration structure with specific
emphases on human resources, fiscal operations,
planning and budget, external affairs, and technology

6
–
9 months

Streamline and modernize HR recruit
–
to
–
hire process
by leveraging State’s investment in HR technology
solutions

9
–
12 months

Consolidate dual procurement and contract offices;
institute a contract tracking system to ensure fiscal
controls throughout the process

6
–
9 months

Link strategic planning with the budget both in
structure and in practice

3
–
6 months

Essential Projects for Improvement

Estimated Times for Implementation

GIB: WHAT WE LEARNED

Fragmented Leadership

Split leadership structure inhibits effective decision
–
making. Two peer GIB Director
positions causes confusion among staff and complicates decision making and
accountability for achievement of outcomes.

Unhealthy Culture

Many GIB staff do not feel heard or respected by GIB leadership. Staff suggestions for
improvement are often discounted or dismissed out of hand by GIB leadership.
Leadership opportunities for blind employees appear limited. Staff are not informed by
management when they are eligible for retirement.

Diminishing Profitability

Current product mix has seen diminishing sales volumes. GIB operating reserve has
eroded from $1.99M in FY 15 to less than $1K in FY 19.

Lack of Transition to
Digital Economy

Product mix not focused on potential areas of growth. No clear growth plan for new
Services offerings which holds more promise for higher margins and growth.

Ineffective Marketing and
Product Development

Recent marketing efforts have limited reach. Success of box management operation at
Robins not being marketed to other organizations.

Gleaned through interviews, field visits, observations, and document reviews

GIB SUMMARY (NON
–
EXHAUSTIVE)

Fragmented Leadership

•
Tension between two current GIB Directors limits growth of Services offerings which holds more strategic growth potential
than legacy products.
•
Lack of cohesive strategy for operations at Griffin and Robins locations

Unhealthy Culture

•
In September 2018, GVRA received 255 separate complaints from 73 GIB employees out of 93 employees completing a
Customer Satisfaction Survey
•
Over 20 GIB workers have not been told they are eligible for retirement
•
Allegations of favoritism in HR decisions, a clear us/them delineation between management and labor

Diminishing Profitability

•
Operating reserve has fallen from $1.99M in FY 2015 to less than $1K in FY 2019
•
GIB employs a simplistic pricing strategy that applies standard profit margins across all products regardless of demand
•
GIB stopped the packaging of utensils for Military Meals Read to Eat (MREs) despite low overhead costs

Lack of Transition to Digital Economy

•
Not using popular sales/distribution channels (e.g., Amazon, eBay, Etsy) to sell products; lengthy order fulfillment
•
GIB heavily reliant on paper products which have seen decreased sales over time as federal government continues move
towards paperless processes

Ineffective Marketing and Product Development

•
Business Development Manager generated minimal sales during tenure with GIB; focus of GIB marketing efforts is centered
on 75 mile radius around existing GIB facilities; no formalized product development lifecycle with GVRA oversight
•
10% of customers (all associated with GSA purchases) account for over 80% of revenues

Observations that point to just some of the issues facing GIB

SUMMARY: KEY GIB RECOMMENDATIONS

Streamline and realign GIB organization structure to
consolidate the organization under a single GIB
Director

Reduces the number of managerial layers between the
GIB Director and front line GIB staff. Provides clarity
about decision making and accountability.

Establish new leadership and culture at GIB; new
leadership should bring a “business operator” skill set
and champion new culture with all GIB staff

Improves quality of decision making regarding pricing,
staffing, and investments. GIB staff feel like valued
members of a cohesive team working.

Establish new focus on marketing and seek to
develop new, profitable product and service offerings

Raises visibility of the GIB brand and drives new,
profitable lines of business that can be used to grow
opportunities for visually impaired Georgians.

Streamline GVRA involvement in GIB HR process;
explore leveraging the capabilities of State
investments in HR technology solutions

Reduces the length of time required for GIB to fill
vacant positions. Allows GIB to be more nimble to
respond to changes in the digital marketplace.

Formalize GVRA oversight of GIB operations and
focus on key risk areas such as budget and new
product development

Ensures that GVRA leadership is aware of GIB
performance and risks and can assist with strategic
decision
–
making.

Essential Projects for Improvement

By doing this, GIB…

We recommend a total of 13 GIB
–
specific improvement projects and an additional
15 “quick wins,” all of which are detailed throughout this assessment.

KEY GIB RECOMMENDATIONS

GIB can improve its overall performance and reverse declining sales through targeted
interventions

Recommendations

Fragmented
Leadership

Unhealthy
Culture

Diminishing
Profitability

Lack of
Transition to
Digital
Economy

Ineffective
Marketing and
Product
Development

Streamline and realign GIB organization structure to
consolidate the organization under a single GIB Director

Establish new leadership and culture at GIB; new
leadership should bring a “business operator” skill set and
champion new culture with all GIB staff

Establish new focus on marketing and seek new, profitable
product and service offerings

Streamline GVRA involvement in GIB HR process; explore
leveraging the capabilities of State investments in HR
technology solutions

Formalize GVRA oversight of GIB operations and focus on
key areas such as budget and new product development

SUMMARY: ESTIMATED TIME TO IMPLEMENT

Streamline and realign GIB organization structure to
consolidate the organization under a single GIB
Director

9 months

Establish new leadership and culture at GIB; new
leadership should bring a “business operator” skill set
and champion new culture with all GIB staff

6 months

Establish new focus on marketing and seek to
develop new, profitable product and service offerings

6 months

Streamline GVRA involvement in GIB HR process;
explore leveraging the capabilities of State
investments in HR technology solutions

6 months

Formalize GVRA oversight of GIB operations and
focus on key risk areas such as budget and new
product development

6 months

Essential Projects for Improvement

Estimated Times for Implementation

ORGANIZATION
& WORKFORCE

cid:image007.png@01D4ADC4.41800050
GVRA

GEORGIA VOCATIONAL
REHABILITATION AGENCY

GVRA

Hexagon
Hexagon
Hexagon
Hexagon
Hexagon

ORGANIZATION CHART
–
CURRENT STATE

Managerial Bloat

•
Ineffective performance management and inaction on
moving bottom
–
performing managers ‘out’ of the
organization.
•
Tenure based promotion and/or the use of title
promotions to drive compensation increases.
•
An excessive number of management layers.

GVRA Organizational Stats

•
Average Span = 1:3
•
Layers = 6

GVRA’s organization has too many layers and manager
–
level personnel compared to
industry benchmarks

Ideal Headcount Distribution of Role Levels Based on an Overall Average Span of Control of 4

Assuming an overall average span of control of 4
yields an ideal proportion of roles within an
organization.

The ideal organizational pyramid implies that level
of roles represents layers (i.e. All Senior
Leadership report to Executive Director, all
Directors report to Senior Leadership, etc.)

Individual Contributor

Managers/Supervisors

Directors

Senior Leadership

Executive Director

Current Org

Recommended Org

THE ‘IDEAL’ ORGANIZATION PYRAMID

Ideally, GVRA’s organization should align to leading practices on the number of layers in
the Agency and the span of control of managers/supervisors at each level

GVRA ORGANIZATION
–
CURRENT/FUTURE STATE

Area

Current
Staff

Current
Vacancies

Total
As Is

Total

To Be

Transfers

Transfers
Out

Eliminated
Vacancies

Hard
Delete

Executive Office

Human Resources

Finance

Fiscal Operations

Planning & Budget

Facilities

Coms & Marketing

External Affairs

Information Technology

Business Applications

General Counsel

Strategy & Innovation

VR Leadership

Total

114

Vacancies do not include staff out on FMLA. Analysis based on current organization chart. Proposed organization results in a
red
uction of 22
total positions (10 vacant and 12 filled) for a forecasted annual cost savings of approximately $1,295,178.

3 Admin
Assistants
(1 Facilities,
2HR)

Bus Apps
Sup and
Analysts

Bus Apps Not
Included in
Cost
Reduction

Finance is
divided
between
Fiscal Ops
and
Planning
and
Budget

Estimated based on HR,
Budget, and Department
documents

KEY RECOMMENDATION: NEW ORG CHART

•
Organizes admin around six (6) functional areas
–
human resources,
fiscal operations, external affairs, planning and budget, property and
facilities, and information technology
–
with each led by a single
director
•
Simplifies the core leadership structure, with an executive director, a
deputy over administrative operations, a deputy over services and
programs, and a general counsel
•
Creates an internal Office of Planning and Budget, which will
purposefully links agency
–
wide strategic planning and performance
metrics with the budget process
•
Reshapes Finance into Fiscal Operations with a clear focus on day
–
to
–
day transactions and accounts
•
Places heavy emphasis on training
•
Consolidates Business Applications into IT; melds together two
contracting units; unites all outward
–
facing team members
•
Through mission and FTE realignment and consolidation, reduces
the total administrative staff by 22 positions (10 vacancies and 12
presently filled), saving an estimated $
1,295,178

Reset administrative functions to serve the field more nimbly and more efficiently

GVRA RECOMMENDED ORGANIZATION CHART

Accenture has developed a future state organizational structure that GVRA could
adopt to address several of the challenges identified during this study

GVRA Organization Stats

•
Average Span = 1:4
•
Improved Manager: Individual Contributor ratio

•
Forecast annual cost savings of approximately $1,295,178
•
Layers = 5
•
Eliminated “Chief” layer
•
Consolidated multiple manager and supervisor positions performing similar functions

*GVRA presently has three competing and conflicting
sets of data relative to its administrative employees:
one from Human Resources, a second from Finance
and Budget, and a third from each unit. We have
reconciled these difference to the best of our ability.
The budget numbers represent our best estimate.

RECOMMENDED STRUCTURE: LEADERSHIP TEAM

RECOMMENDED STRUCTURE:
DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS

CHANGES RECOMMENDED

•
Eliminate “Chief” layer of management
•
Move Business Applications under IT
•
Separate Fiscal Services into Fiscal
Operations and Planning and Budget
•
Merge Communications and Marketing
with external liaisons into External
Affairs
•
Link strategic planning process with
budgeting

RECOMMENDED STRUCTURE:
DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR SERVICES

CHANGES RECOMMENDED

•
Have a single lead over all services
and programs, reporting directly to
the Executive Director
•
Maintain VR as a discrete and
unique service
•
Give GIB, BEP, and DAS the same
status within the structure
•
Create a Performance and
Professional Development unit
responsible for professional
training and individual performance
plans and goals for VR team
members

*A full assessment of the organizational structures
of VR, BEP, and DAS falls outside the scope of
this present project. However, to be consistent
and mission
–
oriented, as well as reduce the
number of direct reports to the Executive Director,
we recommend that the “Services” side of GVRA
eventually be led by a Deputy Executive Director
and that all services and programs be housed
underneath.

RECOMMENDED STRUCTURE: GENERAL COUNSEL

Function:

Legal

Led by:

General Counsel

Reports to:

Executive Director

# of FTEs:

Est. Staff Budget:

$ 361,939

CHANGES RECOMMENDED

•
Reduce staff by one
•
Require that one of the attorneys be
exclusively dedicated to VR issues and
required in his/her job description to
have particular legal knowledge in VR

RECOMMENDED STRUCTURE: PROPERTY &
FACILITIES

Function:

Property, fleet, and asset
management

Led by:

Director of Property &
Facilities

Reports to:

Deputy Executive
Director for Operations

# of FTEs:

Est. Staff Budget:

$ 576,201

CHANGES RECOMMENDED

•
Shift one project manager to RWS (VR)
•
Consolidate multiple coordinators and
managers into a smoother operating
structure
•
Move Administrative Assistant to the
AA pool
•
Reduce total staff by four

RECOMMENDED STRUCTURE: EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

Function:

Manage external
relationships and
communications

Led by:

Director of External
Affairs

Reports to:

Deputy Executive
Director for Operations

# of FTEs:

Est. Staff Budget:

$ 531,633

CHANGES RECOMMENDED

•
Consolidate all external/outward
–
facing
functions within the administration
•
Remove position of Program Marketing
Coordinator
•
Require that the Marketing Manager or
Communication Manager has a
background in effective social media

RECOMMENDED STRUCTURE: INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY

Function:

Network and Asset
support

Led by:

Director of IT

Reports to:

Deputy Executive
Director for Operations

# of FTEs:

Est. Staff Budget:

$ 1,613,081

CHANGES RECOMMENDED

•
Consolidate Help Desks
•
Merge all software applications
support and network/asset support
under one department

RECOMMENDED STRUCTURE: HUMAN RESOURCES

Function:

Recruiting, onboarding,
employee relations,
enterprise training

Led by:

Director of HR

Reports to:

Deputy Executive
Director for Operations

# of FTEs:

Est. Staff Budget:

$ 1,076,012

CHANGES RECOMMENDED

•
Consolidate HR managers into two
•
Divide HR into Talent & Classification
(recruiting to onboarding) and
Operations & Employee Relations
(post
–
onboarding
–
day
–
to
–
day)
•
Move 2 Admin Assistants to AA pool
for assignment
•
Transfer Training Manager and 3
Training Specialists to VR
(professional development training
only)

RECOMMENDED STRUCTURE: FISCAL OPERATIONS

Function:

Day
–
to
–
Day transactional
financial matters

Led by:

Director of Fiscal Ops

Reports to:

Deputy Executive
Director for Operations

# of FTEs:

Est. Staff Budget:

$ 1,623,494

*This organizational structure is predicated on a single contracting and
procurement unit for the entire Agency. Our recommendation is to
dissolve the duplicate unit currently resident in Vocational
Rehabilitation and subsume that work in Fiscal Operations. We do not
anticipate the need for additional personnel provided that the Agency
uses a contract management and tracking system.

CHANGES RECOMMENDED

•
Focus unit solely on day
–
to
–
day
transactional matters such as
accounting and procurement
•
Eliminate four current vacancies
•
Enhance the Accounting Manager
position by placing revenue, general
ledger, disbursement, payroll and
accounts payable under his/her
leadership

RECOMMENDED STRUCTURE: PLANNING &
BUDGET

Function:

Strategic and budget
planning, preparation,
and management

Led by:

Director of Planning &
Budget

Reports to:

Deputy Executive
Director for Operations

# of FTEs:

Est. Staff Budget:

$ 779,598

CHANGES RECOMMENDED

•
Focus unit solely on budget
preparation, prioritization, and
management
•
Connect strategic planning to the
budget and anticipates the
development of KPIs and other metrics
from this unit
•
Create new positions of Budget &
Performance Manager and Strategic
Planning Project Manager

GVRA Executive Summary

GVRA Executive Summary

Subscribe To Our E-newsletter

Contact Us

Connect with Us