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Special General Memorandum 16-03

SGM No. 16-03
May 24, 2016
TO: See Below

FROM: Principal Deputy Director

SUBJECT: Ensuring Consistency in Hiring

In an effort to establish consistency in the hiring process across the Indian Health Service (IHS) Areas and Regional Human Resources (HR) offices, the Office of Human Resources has developed the "IHS Hiring Toolkit" SharePoint site for use by hiring managers and HR staff.  This site has a considerable amount of information on the HR hiring processes as well as required forms.  The information found on this site will serve as guidance to assist hiring managers in the recruitment and hiring process.  The site also provides information on how to "Fill a Vacancy" and outlines the recruitment process beginning with a pre-recruitment consultation between the hiring manager and HR.  This first step will be documented through the use of the newly revised IHS Strategic Recruitment Planning Worksheet (attached), also known as the pre-recruitment consultation worksheet.  Hiring managers can gain access to the IHS Hiring Toolkit by contacting their local servicing HR office.

Effective today, I am requiring all IHS HR staff and hiring managers to use the End-to-End Hiring Process outlined in the IHS Hiring Toolkit.  This is a major step in establishing consistency in the hiring process throughout the IHS and will aid in establishing effective communications and processes between HR and hiring managers in order to fill positions effectively and efficiently.  In addition, it will help clarify the roles and responsibilities of the hiring manager, as well as HR, in the hiring process.  Hiring managers play a key role in filling a vacancy, including ensuring the accuracy of Position Descriptions, participating in the Fair Labor Standards Act determination process, conducting a thorough job analysis to identify the major duties, competencies, and specialized experience needed for a position, verifying the accuracy of vacancy announcements, conducting interviews and reference checks, etc.

The IHS is striving to improve the hiring process and I encourage all HR staff to engage fully in establishing recurrent strategic communications with their hiring managers.  Human resources management is an integral part of this Agency and we need your cooperation to succeed in our mission to raise the health status of American Indians and Alaska Natives to accomplish an efficient and effective hiring process.  Thank you for your cooperation.


/Mary Smith/
Mary Smith

Addressees:
IHS Supervisors and Managers
IHS Human Resources Staff

Attachment - IHS Strategic Recruitment Planning Worksheet [PDF - 162 KB]