The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is undertaking a transformative project aimed at modernizing and streamlining its data management systems. This ambitious initiative seeks to enhance decision-making processes by improving data accessibility and quality. Central to this effort are two major data platforms: Human Resources Insights (HR Insights) and FedScope. By creating an integrated, modernized database, OPM aims to consolidate data about federal employees from hiring to retirement, facilitating the generation of actionable insights for informed decision-making.
Enhancing HR Insights for Better Data Accessibility
OPM’s chief data officer, Taka Ariga, emphasizes the importance of building a “single source of truth” for all data related to federal employees. The HR Insights platform is at the heart of this initiative, integrating and advancing the existing Enterprise Human Resources Integration (EHRI) system. The goal is to improve data accessibility, reduce decision-making time, and provide modern features to the electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF) system.
The modernization of the EHRI system, a data warehouse over two decades in the making, ensures the maintenance and integrity of eOPFs. By enhancing this system, OPM aims to streamline human resources data management processes. This includes features that allow federal employees to access accurate information quickly, such as viewing their SF-50 form at any time, eliminating the need to wait for business hours. Through modernization, OPM seeks to offer more availability, uptime, and self-service options for users. This will make data access more efficient and reliable, ultimately improving the decision-making process within federal agencies.
Modernizing FedScope for Enhanced Data Usability
Concurrently, OPM is updating the FedScope platform, which integrates with EHRI to collect and provide specific employment and diversity data. The modernization of FedScope focuses on enhancing data accessibility and incorporating forward-looking capabilities. This will enable stakeholders to make informed projections and decisions based on both retrospective insights and predictive analytics. The updated FedScope platform aims to enhance the usability of data for both internal users and external entities such as researchers, policymakers, and media professionals. By providing more accessible and comprehensive data, OPM hopes to support a wide range of decision-making processes across the federal government.
A critical aspect of these modernization efforts is the iterative approach being employed. OPM plans to roll out new features progressively, gather user feedback, and continuously improve the platforms. This ensures that the evolving needs of users are met and that the latest technological advancements can be integrated promptly.
Cloud Migration and Technical Infrastructure Enhancements
Parallel to improving these data platforms, OPM is also enhancing its technical infrastructure. Recently, OPM completed a significant migration to the cloud, transferring over 50 applications and systems off-premises. This migration, which has moved roughly 90% of OPM’s infrastructure to the cloud, enhances data management capabilities and supports the broader modernization initiatives.
The cloud migration is a crucial step in ensuring that OPM’s data management systems are robust, scalable, and capable of supporting the enhanced features of HR Insights and FedScope. By leveraging cloud technology, OPM can provide more reliable and efficient data services to federal agencies. Despite these advancements, a notable challenge remains: changing the culture of data sharing among federal agencies. Traditionally, agencies have operated in silos, which impede the efficient sharing of information. Overcoming this challenge involves implementing robust privacy protections, effective governance strategies, and securing appropriate funding to support these initiatives.
Fostering a Culture of Data Sharing
To foster an environment where data sharing is seamless and aligned with privacy and governance standards, OPM is working to change the culture of data sharing among federal agencies. This involves implementing robust privacy protections and effective governance strategies to ensure that data remains reliable and valuable to its users. In May 2023, OPM began articulating its data strategy, outlining the goal of creating an enterprise analytics platform that breaks down data silos and encourages information sharing. A significant focus of this strategy is to leverage data analytics to enhance federal employee satisfaction and improve the customer experience across the government.
By fostering a culture of data sharing, OPM aims to maximize the value derived from its data modernization efforts. This will enable federal agencies to make more informed decisions and improve overall efficiency within the federal workforce.
Future Plans and Priorities
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is launching a significant project to upgrade and streamline its data management systems. This ambitious undertaking aims to boost decision-making processes by enhancing the accessibility and quality of data. At the core of this initiative are two key data platforms: Human Resources Insights (HR Insights) and FedScope. The goal is to create an integrated, modern database that consolidates data on federal employees, spanning from their hiring to retirement. This consolidated data system will enable OPM to generate actionable insights, ultimately aiding in making more informed decisions.
OPM’s modernization effort is expected to bring about efficiencies in how federal employee data is managed and accessed. By integrating these systems, OPM seeks to eliminate redundancies and inconsistencies, paving the way for smoother data analysis and reporting. This project underscores the agency’s commitment to leveraging technology to improve operations and support a more data-driven approach to managing the federal workforce. As a result, OPM will be better equipped to address the evolving needs of the federal workforce, ultimately benefiting both employees and the broader public.
