Office of Human Resources

The Accelerated Hiring Process (AHP) has been developed to provide a well-defined, transparent process through strategic partnerships with hiring officials and servicing HR specialists. Timelines and standards have been developed, i.e., service level agreements, for various phases of the recruitment process. These timelines and standards provide recruitment goals for meeting the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) End-to-End Hiring Requirements. The accelerated hiring targets are possible through:

Program and human resources joint responsibility for a consistent process;
Pre-Recruitment Consultations; and
Accurate tracking and reporting mechanisms.

The benefits of the AHP include increased productivity in accomplishing program mission; reduction in re-work; reduction in hiring time; and enhanced quality of candidates with the usage of subject matter experts and in the development and utilization of better job analysis criteria and improved QuickHire questions.

Each hiring organization is required to submit requisitions electronically through the Enterprise Human Resources Program (EHRP)/Capital HR system. In the past, some organizations have not been doing this electronically but instead have submitted paper or email requests. This slows down the overall process and does not allow the appropriate tracking of actions. The use of EHRP provides for immediate transmission to the servicing HR team and the ability to track actions through the system.

A job requisition request (JR) is for recruitment actions for vacant positions and will be accompanied by a requisition number.

A personnel action request (PAR) is a "named action" that does not require formal recruitment. Named actions have a specific employee identified for the requested action. For example, a named action may be a request for a career ladder promotion, reassignment, change in duty station, name change, change in work schedule, change in hours of duty, etc. Typically, named actions do not require a Pre-Recruitment Consultation and can be sent directly to your servicing HR team.

Management officials are encouraged to utilize all available hiring flexibilities. These flexibilities, that oftentimes reduce the hiring process and possibility eliminate the need to announce or go through a lengthy recruitment process, will be discussed during the pre-consultation meetings. Some hiring flexibilities include Veterans' Readjustment Appointments, Disabled Veterans' Appointing Authority, Direct Hire Authority for Medical Officers and other specified occupations, intern programs [e.g., FCIP, PMF, etc.] and other authorities, etc.

As strategic partners, the hiring official and the servicing HR professional will create a Hiring Timeline Agreement at the beginning of the process. This hiring timeline and agreement, i.e., Hiring Contract, will calculate target dates for each phase of the classification and recruitment process for each individual recruitment action. These "contracts" are developed so hiring officials and HR staff are working together to develop a transparent process that will streamline and identify how long each phase of the recruitment process will take for each individual action. The agreement allows all partners in the process to plan and manage ahead so that the hiring process moves quickly and smoothly.

If the position is to be announced, a job analysis matrix, plus selected QuickHire questions, must be submitted. The Job Analysis Matrix is used to document the job analysis and selection of QuickHire questions. Accelerated Announcement Templates and Job Analysis Matrix for occupations/series that are more commonly utilized have been developed that hiring officials are encouraged to use. The servicing HR team will also collaborate with management officials in this process.

Once hiring officials have returned the Certificate of Eligibles identifying a selection, the servicing HR specialist will contact the selected individual and extend a formal job offer. Formal job offers may only be made by servicing HR professionals. This will be completed in no more than three workdays from receipt of the selection certificate.

KPI's have been developed to include all human resource (HR) steps within the end-to-end hiring process [i.e., classification, job announcement, certificates issued, job offer]. These KPI's monitor how well the servicing HR staff is meeting their goals for completing various phases of the hiring cycle in accordance with the hiring model timelines and standards.

A completed and signed OF-8 is required for all position descriptions, to include new classifications and for SPD's. The OF-8 is the official cover sheet for position descriptions.

The servicing HR team will not accept recruitment actions that do not have all required documents. An incomplete package will delay the recruitment process and cause unnecessary work on both the hiring officials as well as the HR staff. The pre-consultation meetings should prevent this from occurring.

A position description must be submitted for each action. Standardized position descriptions (SPD's) have been created for many of HHS' most common and critical occupations. The use of these SPD's is mandatory. Program specific information should be captured in QuickHire questions, specialized experience requirements and in performance plans. The benefits to their use include:

If a SPD does not exist for a series/grade, then program officials should submit an already established position description or a draft position description that clearly describes the duties and responsibilities for the position for which recruitment is requested. This should also be discussed with the servicing HR professional during the pre-consultation meeting.

If a PD is less than 5-years old, it does not have to be reclassified. If the supervisor of the position indicates that the duties in the position description are still valid, the HR Specialist will simply recertify the classification of the position description on the OF-8.

Pre-Recruitment Consultation Meetings Between Hiring Officials and HR Professionals

Establishing strategic partnerships between hiring officials and HR specialists is key to the success of the hiring process. Your assigned HR professional will establish and conduct regular reoccurring meetings [called Pre-Recruitment Consultations] to discuss current and future position classification and/or recruitment actions and processes. The purpose of pre-recruitment consultations is to ensure that the recruitment needs of the respective programs are met in a timely and efficient manner. This will be accomplished through strategic planning and partnerships between human resources and program management officials. This will be an opportunity to discuss options and the best ways to proceed to achieve your desired results. These meetings should have an overall objective to:

Reduce the steps in the hiring process;
Discuss strategic recruitment efforts and ensure recruitment packages are complete and accurate prior to submission to the servicing HR professional;
Reduce/eliminate re-work, cancellation, and late actions; and
Promote and encourage HR/customer partnerships.

During these collaboration meetings, a Pre-Recruitment Consultation Worksheet will be completed on all upcoming actions. Together, you and your HR professional will work on completing the necessary paperwork and required documents so that your personnel action will move quickly through the process. These meetings have proven to streamline the overall hiring process and ensure joint accountability for all phases of the hiring process.

A Pre-Recruitment Consultation is not required for all actions. A Decision Table will be provided to assist hiring officials in the determination of when a Pre-Recruitment Worksheet is required and whether an in-person or teleconference meeting with the servicing HR specialist is required or not required.

An SME is someone recognized as possessing a mastery-level of knowledge and skill on a particular subject area. SME's play an integral role in the hiring process and the HR staff welcomes and strongly encourages the involvement of SME's and strongly believes that hiring efforts are vastly improved through their use. SME's are used in the hiring process to:

While the use of an SME is not mandatory, it has been found that using SME's shortens the recruitment timeline and improves the quality of certificates. Selecting officials must identify SME's in advance. [NOTE: If an SME is not utilized, the HR specialist will complete the review and move forward with producing the certificate of eligibles]. It is extremely important that the same SME is used throughout the entire process.

Once a position closes, applicants are qualified, rated and ranked, hiring officials will receive a Certificate of Eligibles. These certificates will be valid for 30 workdays. Selection officials need to be prepared for the selection process. Prior to the issuance of certificates any interview/rating panels should be established, calendars confirmed with panel members, consultation meetings set with servicing HR specialists, etc. These upfront actions ensure timely selections are made from the certificates within this 30-day period. It is important to note that if the certificate(s) will not be used, the program must provide justification for the reason for not using the certificate(s).

Extenuating circumstances that cause delays and warrant time extensions will only be considered on a case-by-case basis. The request for extensions must be initiated and completed prior to the original expiration date of the certificate. Proposed extensions will require approval by the Director of the organizational unit holding the certificate. If approved by the Director, justification will be provided to the Client Services Director [or designated representative] for final decision.

Hiring officials, in consultation with the servicing HR specialist, will decide on the appropriate opening period for vacancy announcements. This is typically decided during the pre-consultation process. The open period can be as few as five calendar days and up to 30 calendar days, depending on the pool of availability and quality of candidates. The open period is also subject to meeting the conditions of any local governing bargaining unit agreements and merit promotion plans. Typically, any position announced externally through delegated examining procedures must be open a minimum of five business days versus calendar days.

Some customers like to review the vacancy announcement before it is actually posted to ensure that it meets overall expectations and needs. If hiring officials choose to exercise this review, they will be provided, by email, the vacancy announcement in advance of the opening date, with a required two-day turnaround. If comments and/or edits are not received within the two-day turnaround period, the announcement will be released and posted and will not be retracted for minor edits or changes

We recommend that program officials try to solve issues with the hiring process at the lowest possible level. However, if the desired answer or response is not received, please contact the supervisor or team lead over the assigned servicing unit. If hiring officials are not satisfied at this level, then please elevate to the Client Services Director. We are here to provide you with the necessary support, guidance, and direction while striving to provide the best possible customer service.

Office of Human Resources

Accelerated Hiring Process (AHP)

A-Z Definitions