Category: Administration

Doug Smith opened the meeting for a vacationing Dave Hansen and he immediately asked the new CVB Director for an update on Labor Day Weekend.

• Brad provided some comic relief for the group and noted ECSC, AMF & R’R would be here soon.
• Bi-weekly payroll reminder
• Health Care sign up deadline 11/4 at 5:00 p.m. Sign up or you won’t be covered.
• November 18^th deadline for performance reviews

United Way presentation

• City’s goal is $250,000
• City Manager is hoping to pass that goal with the new 26 pay periods
• City Golf Tournament to benefit United Way September 23
• VBCC’s Diane Harrison is again serving on the City-wide United Way team
• City Manager and DCM’s starred in a video featuring a number of United Way agencies that support Virginia Beach cititzens

Inclusion and Diversity presentation

• Leadership wants to train trainers
• Approximately 750 employees were provided training last year and another 250 +/- this year
• There is a vetting process for trainers

Restrictions on Political Activities by City Employees – Assistant City Attorney Rod Ingram

• City Code section 2-90 applies to all City employees and appointees, but not elected officials and their staff
• City staff can’t support or hinder  a candidate in any way.
• We can’t provide funds or equipment or other City resources to candidates. This means the internet as well. VBGov addresses should not appear in messages supporting or disparaging candidates. Rod also suggested that you should not even use your personal email during working hours to for these purposes.
• City staff should not appear in City uniform while supporting or opposing a candidate
• Violations can result in dismissal
• Sometimes candidates are unaware of these restrictions, so if approached, kindly refer to your limitations as a City employee
• Referendums – such as Light Rail. Same restrictions apply. You can’t endorse or oppose in your capacity as a City employee.
• Questions – Rod Ingram 8212
• Images – While City images such as what Multimedia Services provides (Craig McClure) may be available to candidates, required releases say they can’t be used for commercial purposes.

Other Announcements

• Hurricane Season is here. Brush up on your plans. Update phone trees. Decide who will support EOC from your department.
• Voter Registrar is looking for workers to support elections. City staff can take the day off and work poles. Long hours – 5:00 a.m. – 11:00 p.m. People skills and computer skills required.
• The Volunteer Office is looking for volunteers who can read to elementary school children in certain schools. Contact volunteer@vbgov.com

Doug Smith said farewell as this was his last DLM. He stressed the importance of work and home life balance. And his leaving was twofold, start a new business of his own, and be able to spend more time with family.

CLICK HERE to check out the meeting minutes from last week’s Advertising Advisory Committee Meeting.

The CVB Culture Team is back at it and has planned an awesome schedule of events for the remainder of the year!

Next up, we will be meeting at Murphy’s Grand Irish Pub, at 30th Street and Atlantic Ave, for some good food, drinks and camaraderie. The meetup will take place on Thursday, June 23, from 4:30 p.m. – 7 p.m,. and all CVB staff (including CVB, VBCC, VIC , all contractors, etc.) are invited to attend. We will see you there!

Be sure to check back here on the CVB Life Blog for all future events!

Congratulations are in order for Ron Kuhlman and Courtney Dyer – Ron for 25 years of service and Courtney for 40! Way to go, guys!

Dave Hansen, City Manager, opened the meeting with the following comments:

• Budget passed with a little bump in revenue
• City Council is comfortable with the organization and in a good mood
• A Leadership Retreat was recently held with City manager, deputies and department directors and the following themes emerged
  • Compensation
  • Recruitment and retention of high performers
  • Resources, technology and staffing
  • Employee performance
  • Policies and procedures
  • Culture

The top 8 issues that emerged included

1. Create a new performance appraisal system
2. Increase spending in IT & HR
3. Review Administrative Directive for administrative increases
4. Define our Culture
5. Hire a consultant to redo or recreate the City’s compensation system
6. Create a learning environment, even if it means shutting down for a short period to get the entire team together
7. Establish an innovation center
8. Change City Council Workshop format (1 year budget, 3 yr., 15 year, 2040 Vision) too complicated and conflicting.

• Dave challenged the organization: Balance the status quo or Challenge complacency and move forward with courage, candor and ambition. He was clear that the ladder was the route he was taking.
• Dave encouraged everyone to think about what it would take to always say YES, and only allow department directors to say NO. What does it take to say yes? Staff, other resources? Example: I need you to bring 100,000 more visitors to the beach each week. Response: YES, we can do that with 100,000 gas cards at $1,000 each. OR, Yes I can rehabilitate the aging water infrastructure with $800 M and three years’ time.

Other Presentations

• 19^th Annual Mayor’s Cup blood drive is coming soon and we want to win the trophy back from Chesapeake. Power Red Cell donations are now viable where only red cells are donated and plasma is returned to the donor. Rapid Pass in a new online registration system that can save donors time at the donation site.
• Monica Kopin presented an update on Taleo, the City’s new web based employment application system. This application will replace WAVE.
  • Taleo Learn Live available June 1
  • Taleo is an applicant tracking system
  • Cloud based
  • Oracle based similar to InSite.
  • Why change?
    • Integrates with InSite
    • Two sided – Applicant and Hiring Manager
    • Applicant creates candidate profile
    • Applications can be reviewed online
    • Hiring process remains the same
  • Differences
    • Visually different, dashboard view for hiring managers
    • Candidate notification when an action occurs
      • Automatic email once hiring manager has reviewed application
      • Appointments and resumes can be sent to panel members
      • Offer letters can automatically be generated (but conversations should first be conducted with successful candidate)
    • Candidates must have an email address to build an account
    • PCN will pull directly from InSite
    • Closing will be 12:01 a.m. on the date the position closes – Meaning, you can’t submit an application on the closing date. BIG CHANGE, BEWARE.
    • Working title field will be available
    • Applications can go straight to departments w/out HR review for lesser qualification positions.
    • Data tracking and reporting
    • New Feature – Onboarding
      • Planned for August or September
      • Allows for candidates online information filing of forms, background checks, tax information. Information is automatically populated in InSite
      • Departments must still follow onboarding process
      • All onboarding must be complete one working day prior to employee start date
    • Key Dates to remember
      • June 14 – last day to advertise current openings
      • June 25 – Last day to access WAVE
      • If you have a current profile in WAVE, you should print it since access will be closed after June 25 and your information will be retired to the cyber universe of scrambled bits and bytes.
      • July 1 – New WAVE goes live
      • No position advertising June 15-30
    • ZIKA Virus – Heidi Kulberg, M.D. Public Health Director
      • 80% of people with Zika don’t know they have it, 20% experience minor symptoms
      • No medicine available for treatment (other than for symptoms), no vaccine
      • Discovered in 1947
      • 544 documented cases in US from people who had visited areas of transmission
      • Complications include microcephaly and other brain abnormalities to unborn children during pregnancy from exposed mothers
      • Guilain-Barre – an auto-immune nerve disorder
      • Who is at risk?
        • People traveling to 39 countries where specific mosquito and virus lives
        • Imported vs. local exposure
        • Not spreading in VA
        • 15 cases identified in VA, all were travel related
        • Mosquitos can bite an infected human during the 15 day illness cycle then transmit it to another mosquito.
        • Sexually transmitted from infected partner
      • Stop breading mosquitos by eliminating standing water in your yard
      • Mosquitos sense CO2 we exhale
      • Fight the Bite – Day time biters, use insect repellent, wear long sleeves and pants, close screens

For more information see www.vbgov.com/mosquito

This past week, Brande Rumpf, Executive Assistant to the Director, was accepted into the Master’s Program for the annual International Association of Administrative Professional’s Leadership Summit, which will take place in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida this summer.  The Master’s Program will consist of fifty professionals from across the world that will come together to collaborate, learn and network. The program creates unique opportunities in addition to reviewing case studies, participating in group discussions, and team based problem solving to challenge current knowledge into deeper understanding of issues that face administrative professionals.

Congratulations, Brande!!

DCRT – Departmental Communications Representatives Team

Upcoming Member Conversations

July 28, 2:00 pm – 4:30 pm, Advanced Technology Center (ATC)

Anyone can attend as long as there is room, register through Karen Kephart

Topics to include Benefits Update for 2017

FY 16/17 Budget

On July 1, 2016 (effective June 22)

• Full time employees get a 2.34% increase, of which 1% is to cover the last year of State mandated employee contributions to VRS
• Part time employees will receive a general increase of 1.34%
• Compression adjustments:

o   Horizontal – $2.1M to about 3,000 employees (when senior employees with several years’ experience in their title are earning the same salaries as newly hired employees in the same title)
o   Vertical – $850,000 to around 200 employees (when supervisor makes less money than those who report to them

On December 1, 2016

• 1% merit increase will be provided to FT employees based on the midpoint of their pay range
• Employees will receive the same dollar amount whether they’re at the bottom or top of their range (up to the pay range maximum)
• Accountability

o   All FT employees must receive an annual performance evaluation that “meets expectations” in calendar year 2016. No evaluation = no merit increase (until the evaluation is completed)
o   Evaluations must be completed AND entered into InSITE no later than November 30, 2016

• New hires are only eligible for a merit increase if they’ve completed their probation in 2016 and have received their first annual performance evaluation by November 30, 2016 (with a “meets expectations” rating)
• December evaluations will need to be completed early

 

Misc Updates

• Two new Deputy City Managers: Tom Leahy (now) and Ken Chandler (July 7)
• Taleo Learn rolls out June 1 – access and manage you own training
• New WAVE begins July 1 – last day to print or save current application is June 25; help is available
• Benefits Focus begins August – open enrollment all online and starting from scratch – must have a vbgov email account
• Virgin Pulse taxes will be deducted monthly from now on
• Biweekly pay begins May 2017 – communication begins June 22 via DLM and Member Update and will continue for next year – lots of resources will be available including calculator, pay examples. $1.2M for transition to biweekly pay
• Reviewing current performance evaluation

Last week, former Virginia Governor, Doug Wilder, the first elected African-American governor in the United States, was inducted into the Virginia Legends Walk at the Virginia Beach Resort area. CVB Director, Brad Van Dommelen, took to the stage during the ceremony to congratulate the Governor on this wonderful achievement, and to speak to the importance of historical experiences such as the Virginia Legends Walk in regards to tourism in Virginia Beach, and the state of Virginia as a whole.  By offering the opportunity to explore the great Virginians of both yesterday and today, free of charge, The Virginia Legends Walk aids in the efforts to ensure that everyone who visits Virginia Beach is able to do just that.