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Objectives:


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Lack of accountability and oversight history:

  • A $1 billion shortfall because of faulty or deliberate accounting practices
  • Two security breaches - one which jeopardized the personal identifiable information of our 26.5 millions veteran's records which resulted in a 20 million dollars settlement for a laptop theft
  • Hefty bonuses to Senior Executives at the Central and Regional Office levels for failure
  • Over 1.5 million claims pending excluding the numerous claims that have not been accounted for
  • 41 of 57 Regional Offices (RO) shredding VA records - 72%
  • Cheating at VBA RO offices
  • Lack of standardization at the local Regional Offices
  • 10% of veteran's claims folders lost/missing - VA Office of Inspector General (VAOIG) report
  • Not so rosy picture of the conditions of VBA regional office during recent VAOIG inspections
  • See related articles at end

Assembly line approach vs. quality and service

  • Meeting Production quotas trumps accuracy
  • Leads to cheating

Creation of Resource/Appeal Management Centers

  • Relieves Local Regional offices of accountability/responsibility
  • Drains the VA budget of needed funds
  • Benefits FEDEX more than veterans
  • Creates a climate for more lost claims folders and service treatment records

Inadequate training of employees/supervisors leads to:

  • Poor communication with veterans
  • Inaccurate development of claims and rating decisions
  • Creates more appeals

No acknowledgement of the VBA initiatives
that should have offset the increase in claims

  • Increase budget and personnel
  • Improved technology
  • Improved service by third parties federal agencies (ex: NPRC, JSRRC, SSA - responses have been reduced from a high of 18 months to less than 30 days)
  • Imaging of service records by the DOD which allows VBA to receive records in hours according to former Under Sec Cooper
  • Overtime
  • Transfer of claims to Resource Centers
  • Consolidation of pension claims to the Pension Maintenance Centers
  • Consolidation of Remands to the Appeals Management Centers
  • Consolidation of special issues claims - radiation, mustard gas, Agent Orange Birth Effects
  • Creation of National Call Centers

History

Problems with the VBA

  1. VARO Autonomy/Lack Of Accountability
  2. Production Quotas trumps Quality and Customer Service
  3. The VBA cannot manage the three-headed monster
    - rating and non-rating end products and appeals
  4. The VBA continues to use an assembly line approach
  5. The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees
  6. Standardization of Operations
  7. Failure is still rewarded
  8. Unproven Transformation Initiatives
  9. Failed promises

#1 - VARO Autonomy/Lack Of Accountability

The Task Force identified it as a major problem

  • "The Task Force was surprised by the apparent lack of uniformity in interpreting directives, compliance and ultimate accountability at the vast majority of the Regional Office.... VBA's Central Office leadership gives the impression of neither demanding adherence to nor of being completely aware of the actual compliance to directives at the individual Regional Office level." VA Claims Processing Task Force Report, October 2001, pg 16 View Report

The GAO confirmed it

  • "VBA has taken a number of steps to implement the VCAA, including issuing guidance, revising and supplementing this guidance based on questions raised by regional offices, and reinforcing the guidance based on the results of its accuracy reviews. Despite these efforts, VBA has found problems with consistent regional office compliance with the law. GAO, Report to the Chairman and Ranking Member, Committee on VA, U.S. Senate, July 2002 View Report

#1 - VARO Autonomy/Lack Of Accountability

The 2 previous VBA Under Secs for Benefits acknowledged it

  • "VBA regional directors traditionally had a great deal of autonomy in running their offices, something Joe Thompson, (former Under Secretary for Benefits), was loath to change."
  • "Even more important to Admiral Daniel Cooper, Under Secretary for Benefits 'If there is one word ... we mention frequently in the [task force] report and I mention it ad nauseam in any talk I give - it's accountability,'"
  • "Cooper says. '...there was not sufficient accountability everywhere. I was convinced that when headquarters said 'everybody do this,' 57 different offices set up the polling machine and they all voted.'"
  • "Veterans organizations support Cooper's push for accountability. 'The regional office directors were very autonomous in the past,' says John McNeil, deputy director of the National Veterans Service at the Veterans of Foreign Wars." View Document

#1 - VARO Autonomy/Lack Of Accountability

"The most effective way to measure performance is to ensure effective measurement systems are in place. To be effective, those systems must be measuring the same things. This cannot happen if each RO is allowed to organize the claims process differently from other ROs and create, post and fill positions different from those used in other ROs. Uniformity in decision-making and standardization in RO organizational structure are musts." Claims Process Improvement Task Team Report November 30, 2001

#2 - Production quotas trump quality and service

  • "I might quote Supreme Court Justice Brandeis who once stated: 'Every figure ...we have set down with delusive exactness is speculative.'" The Under Secretary for Benefits, Admiral Daniel Cooper, Congressional Testimony, June 6, 2002
  • The customer service is a reflection of our broken system. Sadly, all development is based upon unrealistic production quotas and percentages that are quite obviously the broken base of our broken system. Each claim is a specific case unto itself that represents a veteran, his country, and his family. KenS 7-14-12
  • "The current emphasis is 'let's get the work out the door,' says Oakland Regional Director Stout." Reversing Reinvention, Government Executive, June 15, 2003
  • "The almost exclusive emphasis on productivity concerns Thompson, who contends that VBA sacrificed quality and service in its past attempts to hit the numbers." Reversing Reinvention, Government Executive, June 15, 2003

#2 - Production quotas trump quality and service (cont)

  • "Joe (former Under Secretary for Benefits) used to say, 'Give the VBA a number, and they'll hit the number,' and that was because they would find ways to cheat,' Walcoff says. 'Joe made it very clear when he first came on that if there was one thing he was going to accomplish here, he was going to bring some integrity to the organization.'"
  • "...Ross, Director of the Cleveland Regional Office. '... Cooper has given us five to six areas to look at. That to me is what accountability means, when he tells me, 'Look, you've got to hit those marks.''" Reversing Reinvention, Government Executive, June 15, 2003
  • "VBA is under tremendous pressure to process claims and reduce the growing backlog. Without an effective and reliable quality assurance program, VBA leadership cannot adequately monitor performance to make necessary program improvements and ensure veterans receive accurate and consistent ratings." Assistant Inspector General for Audits and Evaluations Belinda J. Finn, Congressional Testimony, March 24, 2010

#3 - The VBA cannot manage the three-headed monster

  • The VBA uses a three digit code called end products to determine the types of claims pending.
  • The VBA currently has 13 different end products they use to determine inventory. It is further defined as rating and non rating end products. There are 8 rating end products and 5 non rating end products. Then, there are appeals.
  • The non-rating end products are claims for death pension for surviving spouses and children, adding of additional benefits for dependents of veterans who are 30% or more service connected, apportionment benefits for dependents of service connected veterans, burial benefits, due process, administrative decisions for home loans and hospital treatment, legislative increases for veterans that the system did not generate automatically, and a number of other benefit issues.
  • The Compensation and Pension Service is a three-headed monster and attention is only paid to rating end products while the non-rating end products and appeals just grow and grow. the three-headed monsterView Document

#3 - The VBA cannot manage the three-headed monster (cont)

  • "VBA's workload is normally discussed in terms of the number of pending claims or the backlog in VBA Regional Offices. Pending claims are generally assumed to be original and reopened claims for disability compensation. However, this shorthand description of the workload over-simplifies what is, in reality, a heterogeneous that consumes direct labor hours of the C&P workforce. To complicate matters further, these end products do not account for all categories of work required in the Regional Offices...," VA Claims Processing Task Force Report to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs dated October 2001

#3 - The VBA cannot manage the three-headed monster (cont)

  • "... We concluded that VBA contributed to the growing inventory and time delays by not assigning enough staff to process appeals, diverting staff from appeals processing, and not ensuring appeals staff acted on appeals promptly because compensation claims processing was their highest priority...." Witness Testimony of Ms. Linda Halliday, for Audits and Evaluations, Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Assistant Inspector General Veterans Affairs, US House of VA Hearing on 06/19/2012: Reclaiming the Process: Examining the VBA Claims Transformation Plan as a Means to Effectively Serve our Veterans

#4 - The VBA continues to use an assembly line approach

  • "Nappi, Thompson's former deputy, agrees. 'If you want government people to be clerks, then break up the process and make it an assembly line, and you will hire people who are just myopically concerned about their little focus,' Nappi says. 'If you want to attract people who are intelligent, who can use ingenuity, who can take pride in a product, then you don't want an assembly line.'" Reversing Reinvention, Government Executive, June 15, 2003
  • "Thompson regards case management as his most important innovation. He says the close relationship between worker and veteran fostered by case management allowed workers to 'see service to veterans as a noble experience, to make a difference in the lives of the people who sacrificed for this country.' Even some who disagree with other parts of Thompson's program concur with him on this point." Reversing Reinvention, Government Executive, June 15, 2003

#4 - The VBA continues to use an assembly line approach
(cont)

  • "'I would hope we go back to case management. There is a certain amount of goodwill that is generated by that. It is the care and compassion element,' says Ross (Director of the Cleveland Regional Office). 'We needed to put out a fire. Our backlog was so big. The timeliness was so poor. Something needed to be done immediately. Positive results are being generated. I would not want to return to the teams, but customer satisfaction and customer service, that's what we're about.'" Reversing Reinvention, Government Executive, June 15, 2003

#4 - The VBA continues to use an assembly line approach
(cont)

  • The VA Claims Processing Task Force observed that the current work management system in many ROs (Regional Offices) contributes to inefficiency and an increased number of errors primarily due to the broad scope of duties performed by decision makers. The Task Force felt that the scope of duties, over 10,900 tasks, was beyond the capabilities of the average VSR (Veterans Service Representative) to carry out effectively and efficiently. This, coupled with the "first-in-first-out" approach to claims processing was inconsistent with effective inventory management and was contributing not only to the increasing backlog of claims, but to their increasing age. Thus, the Task Force recommended a change in the claims processing model used by ROs (Recommendation S-8).

#4 - The VBA continues to use an assembly line approach
(cont)

  • This new model, as defined on pages 39 and 40 of the Task Force Report, would reduce the number of tasks each VSR must perform and would require an immediate analysis of each claim coming in to the RO. This "triage" would allow the RO to process those claims requiring little or no development in a more expeditious manner, thus reducing claims processing time and freeing direct labor hours for those claims requiring more development and time to process. ...The Task Team agrees with the Task Force Report and determined that the failure to address the claims process at the "front end" (that is, immediately upon arrival in the RO) is significantly contributing to the inability of the RO to process claims in a timely manner. ... Without changing this process we will never reach our goal of processing claims in 100 days. Further, the process must focus on quality as well as timeliness. Quality reviews must be conducted at each stage of the process. Claims Process Improvement Task Team Report November 30, 2001

#5 - The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees

  • "'Training is central to every quality organization. ... VBA is committed to ensuring all employees have the opportunity to learn and develop the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to be successful in their current roles and to prepare them for positions of increasing responsibility and leadership. Newly hired veterans service representatives (VSRs) receive a comprehensive and consistent foundation in claims processing principles through a national centralized training program called "Challenge.' After this initial centralized training, employees follow a national standardized training curriculum at their home regional offices. This 23-week curriculum... A consistent, nationally developed training program also is provided to newly appointed Rating VSRs ..." Mr. Michael Walcoff Associate Under Secretary of Field Operations, Congressional Testimony, September 13, 2006

#5 - The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees
(cont)

  • "AFGE in Cleveland says, 'Employees are being placed on case production shortly after the hiring process, and the only training many specialists receive...only covers the basics...'" Gov. Union Claims VA's Disability Benefits Employees Not Properly Trained, February 24, 2009, Posted VAWatchdog.com
  • There was little to no continuity between centralized training and regional office training. There were applications taught in centralized training that either was not applicable to regional office procedures or were simply changed altogether. When one returns from central training, you have to deprogram what you have learned there and reprogram what the regional office does. It can be very confusing for one to learn. Newly Trained Veterans Service Representative, March 2010

#5 - The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees
(cont)

  • The VA Claims Processing Task Force observed that the current work management system in many ROs (Regional Offices) contributes to inefficiency and an increased number of errors primarily due to the broad scope of duties performed by decision makers. The Task Force felt that the scope of duties, over 10,900 tasks, was beyond the capabilities of the average VSR (Veterans Service Representative) to carry out effectively and efficiently. Claims Process Improvement Task Team Report November 30, 2001
  • "The most effective regional offices have a clear integration of certain key practices into an overall philosophy of continuous improvement. These specific practices are: A highly competent and involved management team that includes the Office of the Director, the Veteran Service Center Manager, and every supervisory position in the Veteran Service Center (VSC). In the context of this study, these words have very specific meaning.

#5 - The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees
(cont)

  • The term "competent" means managers understand claims processing at a very detailed level. Each person, from the Director to the Assistant Coaches, understands the details of claims processing and how the sum of the parts make up the whole. While there is an appreciation for tools, reports, and data, these are not the primary drivers of the process. Rather, they are validation that the process is working. There is a sense that without this understanding of process, tools are of little value. To be sure, not every director or assistant director must have followed a career path through the claims processing arena. However, successful engagement by senior leadership simply cannot take place without clearly "understanding the business." All of the high performing stations visited during the study exhibit this characteristic.

#5 - The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees
(cont)

  • The term "involved" means each manager works to support a culture of continuous improvement. Initiatives to improve, "stretch", recognize, and reward performance comes from all levels. The office is considered as having these two elements of management competency and involvement only when the employees themselves validate it."VBA Cycle Time Study, June 2003

#5 - The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees
(cont)

  • "We are confident that we have developed a valid assessment tool and certification process to raise the skill level of our VSRs. Both the instrument and process are constantly reviewed, updated, and adjusted to ensure the right skills are being tested and that employees who are successful on the test are successful on the job. We are in the process of expanding skills certification testing to the RVSR position for those seeking to progress from the GS-11 level to the GS-12 journey level." Michael Walcoff Associate Deputy Under Secretary For Field Operations Veterans Benefits Administration Department Of Veterans Affairs Before The Subcommittee On Disability Assistance And Memorial Affairs House Committee On Veterans' Affairs September 13, 2006

#5 - The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees
(cont)

  • We have ineffective training, and availability of current organized reference material for claims developers. Claims developers, (Veterans Service Representatives, (VSR) are the main initial processors. The training provided at first glance appears to be quite well constructed and adequate. Appearances can be quite deceiving. Our broken system is the result of what we are continuing to do with what we are provided and it is a mass of ineffectiveness and inefficiencies. There are numerous testimonies given before both congressional committees and numerous General Accounting Audits that point out the problem issues. Training continues to be centered on general issue rapid fire presentations. The complex specifics are left to going on the job and struggling with the complexities. Reference material which is inadequate and scattered all over in the Fast Letters, Training Letters, United States Codes, Local Letters, Regional Letters, Regulations and the list goes on and on.

#5 - The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees
(cont)

  • The Skills Readiness Certification testing is another part of the broken system recently developed. It focuses on how fast you can locate the scattered general reference material, rather than actual specific claims development of issues. Put it in centralized development templates versus every RO doing it their way. KenS 7-17-12

#6 - Standardization of Operations

  • "The Associate Deputy of Field Operations Michael Walcoff testified before Congress on September 12, 2006 that 'All VSRs and RVSRs are subject to national performance standards that are reviewed periodically and amended as necessary in response to changes in workload and claims processing procedures...'"
  • "The CPI Task Team Report, November 30, 2001, pg 25, states, 'The most effective way to measure performance is to ensure that effective measurement systems are in place, and to be effective, those systems must be measuring the same things,'"
  • Despite the testimony before Congress and the CPI Task Team Report, a review of the current RVSR performance standards shows that each RO is allowed to set their own performance standards   View Spreadsheet

#6 - Standardization of Operations (cont)

  • "The most effective way to measure performance is to ensure effective measurement systems are in place. To be effective, those systems must be measuring the same things. This cannot happen if each RO is allowed to organize the claims process differently from other ROs and create, post and fill positions different from those used in other ROs. Uniformity in decision-making and standardization in RO organizational structure are musts." Claims Process Improvement Task Team Report November 30, 2001
  • "Another VBA organizational cornerstone to improve the delivery of benefits and enhance accountability is our system of individual performance assessment. All VSRs and RVSRs are subject to national performance standards that are reviewed periodically and amended, as necessary in response to changes in workload and claims processing procedures. Managers use an automated tool called ASPEN to track work items completed and measure VSR and RVSR performance. Local accuracy reviews are conducted for all decision makers using the national quality criteria (Systematic Technical Accuracy Review or STAR)."

#6 - Standardization of Operations (cont)

  • "Teams were chartered and charged with creating national VSR and RVSR standards. The standards focused on the key elements of quality, productivity, customer service, and timeliness. The performance standards were tested at several pilot sites and revised based on feedback from those tests. Agreements were reached with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) prior to implementation. The current VSR performance Standards have been in effect since October 2005. A team of regional office directors, service center managers, rating coaches, and Headquarters staff is currently considering revising the RVSR standard based on recent business process changes, such as the consolidation of the pension maintenance and Benefits Delivery at Discharge workloads." Michael Walcoff Associate Deputy Under Secretary For Field Operations Veterans Benefits Administration Department Of Veterans Affairs Before The Subcommittee On Disability Assistance And Memorial Affairs House Committee On Veterans' Affairs September 13, 2006

#7 - Failure is still rewarded

  • Even though the VBA fails to deliver timely and accurate benefits to veterans, the VBA Central Office staff and field Directors shared $3,444,073 dollars in bonuses over the past 5 years
  • The top VBA official and his spouse received $141,785 in bonuses over the last 5 years
  • One Director received a Presidential Meritorious Award of $30,400 in FY 2006; during this period, his RO paid over 1/2 millon dollars to employees in 2 EEO judgements and a civil settlement
  • Another Director received a bonus of $18,000 in 2009 and $33,060 Meritorious Presidential award in 2010 despite the fact that the VA Office of IG reported that his RO failed inspection in 6 of 14 operational areas   View Spreadsheet

#7 - Failure is still rewarded (cont)

  • Senior Executive Service personnel, by definition, hold leadership positions of great responsibility and trust. And VA approves bonuses for these men and women based on one and only one criteria-demonstrated performance. Greater amounts are awarded to career executives who receive higher performance ratings for successfully carrying out complex responsibilities in positions with broad spans of control. Senior Executive Service (SES) Bonuses: Ensuring VA's Process Works, Statement of The Honorable Gordon H. Mansfield, Deputy Secretary, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, US House of VA, 6-12-07

#8 - Unproven Transformation Initiatives (cont)

  • "..., the Task Force believes that VBA Central Office decisions regarding choices about how to improve the processing of claims has exacerbated the claims backlog crisis. VBA has also created many problems through poor or incomplete planning and uneven execution of claims processing improvement projects. VBA Central Office choices have essentially served to reduce the availability of skilled labor for processing claims, while diverting experienced staff to implement unproven process changes that were poorly planned or managed. At its core, the Veterans Benefits Administration serves the veteran best by getting claims processed expeditiously and in a quality fashion." VA Claims Processing Task Force Report to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs dated October 2001
    View PDF

#9 - Failed promises

Proposed Solutions to the Following Problems within the VBA

  1. VARO Autonomy/Lack Of Accountability
  2. Production Quotas trumps Quality and Customer Service
  3. The VBA cannot manage the three-headed monster
    - rating and non-rating end products and appeals
  4. The VBA continues to use an assembly line approach
  5. The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees
  6. Standardization of Operations
  7. Failure is still rewarded
  8. Unproven Transformation Initiatives

#1 - Major Problem: VARO Autonomy/Lack Of Accountability

  • All brokered work should cease. Veterans' claims are all over the Country and no one is accountable for inaccurate work.
  • Each VA Regional Office (VARO) should be held accountable for they own work. If a (VARO) cannot perform the work then an evaluation should be conducted by the IG to determine the root cause(s). A plan needs to be devised to fix the problem(s) with short, medium, and long term goals. If the Director cannot manage his VARO or follow orders then he/she should be held accountable.
  • The VA Central Office (VACO) should conduct real site visits and evaluate VAROs. All deficiencies should be noted and follow-ups should be made to ensure all deficiencies are corrected.

#1 - Major Problem: VARO Autonomy/Lack Of Accountability (cont)

  • The VACO has to be able to hold VAROs accountable. The current structure of area directors and the Office of Field Operations (OFO) do not have any power to hold VARO Director's accountable. The areas directors and OFO leadership play the role of coordinators and collectors of information instead of providing oversight. All positions (VARO directors, area directors, and Deputy Assistant OFO) are held by Senior Executives who are equals.
  • The BDD and Quick start programs need to be eliminated because they have proven to be ineffective because of the number of soldiers separating is unpredictable and there will never be enough trained employees to keep up with the demand. There is also a lack of accountability since these programs are isolated to two VAROs and Development Brokered Centers.
  • National Call Centers (NCC) should be abolished and VARO call center should be reinstituted to establish accountability.

#2 - Production Quotas trumps Quality and Customer Service

  • VA Claims cannot be measured in production quotas, but must be measured in timeliness and accuracy.
  • Relax all RVSR and VSR performance standards until an outside VA control Time and Motion Study is conducted.
  • Review the National STAR program for effectiveness and to determine whether they are setting policy.
  • Ensure that the policy staff and the STAR staff are working from the same Quality playbook.
  • Redirect the focus of the newly formed Quality Review Team conducting only nonpunitive and second signature reviews and training employees
  • Review the effectiveness of National Call Center - reading from scripts is not customer service.
  • Acknowledge the effects that over 1.5 million claims have on customer service.

#3 - The VBA cannot manage the three-headed monster
- rating and non-rating end products and appeals

  • Ensure the Triage team is reviewing claims properly and routing claims to their proper destination
  • The VBA should focus on a short term goal and that is to stop the hemorrhaging of the claims backlog by working the front and back ends of the claims process and then work to improve the claims process day by day.
  • Devote the time in developing technology to simplify and expedite nonrating claims that consumes direct labor hours (burial, dependency, death pension, administrative decisions, etc.) Most of these claims can be menu driven and quickly worked.
  • Properly staff appeals team and VACO should provide real oversight to ensure this happens

#4 - The VBA continues to use an assembly line approach

  • Claims must be reviewed and established within 1 to 2 days of arrival in the VARO
  • Claims not requiring development must be processed immediately
  • Claims must be processed when all evidence has been obtained
  • Managers and employees must be taught how to use workload management reports effectively
  • Triaging of clams must be a priority

#5 - The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees

  • The Quality Review Teams mission must change by providing second signature reviews and ensuring employees are doing quality work.
  • Authorization and Decision Review Officer Specialists should be responsible for providing training to ensure RVSR and VSR employees understand their portion of the claims process.
  • RVSR and VSR Challenge courses should be redesigned to ensure employees know the basics (currently too much information to absorb in a short period of time)
  • VARO should be held responsible for effective training and following the course curriculum
  • The 85 hours of annual technical training should focus on reinforcement and not on repeating training courses that employees have proven to be proficient

#5 - The lack of quality training for VBA managers and employees

  • VSR Skill Certification Tests must be redesigned (VSR are passing the test, but do not have the skill set necessary to perform all essential duties of the VSR position)
  • Review and update the training website curriculum
  • M21-1 should be the instruction manual and easily updated as changes occur (too many other sources of instructions i.e. fast letters, training letters, Veterans Service Center Conferences, local instructions ad nauseam)
  • Manager's skill certification test must be a priority

#6 - Standardization of Operations

  • All performance standards should be Nationalize and must take into account the diversity of operations in the Veterans Service Center and other consolidated claims processing functions in VBA.
  • All performance standards should be fair, equitable and measurable.
  • A Time and Motion study needs to be conducted for the Rating and Veteran Service Representatives positions by a source outside VA control.
  • VACO should have copies of each VARO organizational chart and ensure that VAROs are in compliance with directed organizational structure.

#7 - Failure is still rewarded

  • Stop rewarding Senior Executives for failure.
  • Stop using the excuse that VA must keep these SES because they can be lost to the private sector
  • Stop rotating the Presidential Meritorious Award
  • Review the performances of the recipients of VBA SES bonuses for the past 6 years
    • Director received Presidential Meritorious Award (VA Office IG reported that his RO failed inspection in 6 of 14 operational areas)
    • Director received Presidential Meritorious Award (cost the taxpayers over 1/2 million dollars in EEO judgments and a civil settlement)

#8 - Transformation Initiatives

  • Stop the Transformation initiatives its taking claims processing to the abyss View Document

Conclusion

  • VA must provide employees with leadership, effective training, equitable performance standards, standardization of operations, and a work environment that timely and accurate benefits are priorities.
  • The work environment must be conducive to really promoting employee's ideas, improving employee morale, and labor-management relations.
  • Integrity and accountability at all levels must be the cornerstone of the organization.
  • VA must change its culture.
  • Keeping VA's promise and delivering the best quality service to our Nation's Veterans must be at the heart of VA service to veterans
  • Employees must be treated as a valued human resource.
  • Results must be seen as well as being heard.

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