Moody prepares to implement NSPS

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Eric Schloeffel
  • 23rd Wing Public Affairs
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  More than 295 of Moody's 350 government service civilian employees are preparing to convert to the National Security Personnel System, a new civilian payment and career advancement system that starts Jan. 21.

NSPS features a transition from a legacy to a pay-for-performance system, where civilians have increased accountability and opportunities to excel, said Wanda Todd, 23rd Mission Support Squadron civilian personnel flight chief.

"NSPS is a rewards-based performance management system," said Mrs. Todd. "It is designed to compensate and reward employees based on their performance and contributions to their organization's mission and strategic goals."

In the new system, government service positions will no longer hold general schedule grade designations or receive within-grade increases based on length of service. Each converted civilian will be assigned to a new classification system which includes career group, pay schedule and pay band, and advancement is dictated by performance.

These changes in classifications and career progression will ultimately lead to enhanced overall mission performance, and give civilians opportunities to advance by taking on tasks they previously may not have been able to perform given constraints in their position descriptions, said Maj. Donna Turner, 23rd MSS commander.

"It is going to be easier for managers, supervisors and employees to change duties and responsibilities," she said. "Under the old system, there were position descriptions for each job. Typically these were not updated to reflect changes in civilian positions simply because the updating process was lengthy and time-consuming. It will be easier for supervisors, managers and employees to adapt and accomplish more goals and objectives for the units."

Despite the overhaul of the previous system, no civilians will see a loss of pay when NSPS begins. Some civilians might actually see a slight increase, said Major Turner.

All civilians and military supervisors of civilian employees have undergone mandatory training to prepare for the changeover, which consisted of change-management briefings and courses dealing with human resources and performance management.

"The training of all Moody's managers, supervisors and employees is a top priority as we prepare for NSPS," said Mrs. Todd. "Both classroom and Web-based training has been provided within the last couple of months for all base members affected by the management system.

"This mandatory training included both soft-skills and NSPS-specific courses and focused on the performance management and human resource aspect of the new system," she added. "In addition, the Department of Defense also developed a NSPS 101 course and made it available at the DOD NSPS website."

Once NSPS is implemented, it is important all managers, supervisors and civilians learn the new system and recognize how their position fits into the wing's overall mission and goals, said Major Turner.

"The greatest challenge will be the mindset change we all must face," she said. "(Airmen) faced new officer and enlisted evaluation systems, and the Air Force is constantly changing. Our key to success is communication and letting all civilians know exactly how this system is different and making sure they know how they relate to their unit's goal."

For more information, call the civilian personnel flight at 257-3047 or visit the DOD NSPS Web site at: http://www.cpms.osd.mil/nsps/index.html.