Agenda

1. U.S. Nuclear Regulatory CommissionMapping Tacit Knowledge as a Foundation for Knowledge Management7th Annual Meeting of NERSSeptember 24, 2004 – Vienna, AustriaJames E. Morris – Office of Human Resources

2. Agenda • Brief background • Action plan • Strategic workforce plan development • Knowledge mapping • Pilot program • Results • Using the knowledge map information

3. Brief background • October 2000 – Chairman Meserve requested the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) staff to prepare a plan of action to address maintaining the core scientific, engineering, and technical competencies (tacit knowledge) needed to perform NRC’s technically-based functions.

4. Action plan • The NRC developed an integrated approach called Strategic Workforce Planning (SWP) to address maintaining its core competencies.

5. Workforce Trends Workforce Capacity Nuclear Waste Safety Internal Data Nuclear Reactor Safety “Resource Supply” Nuclear Materials Safety External Data International Nuclear Safety Support Labor Market Trends Corporate Management Strategic Workforce Planning Development Phase 1 - Understand Nature of Organizational Mission & Business Requirements Phase 2 - Define Workforce Capacity Profile to Support Organizational Mission & Business Requirements Phase 3 - Identify Availability of Human Resources to Support Business Requirements Phase 4 - Compare ‘Supply’ to ‘Demand’ & Develop Strategies to Address Gaps & Surpluses Strategic Arenas KSAs Proficiencies, Attributes Positions People Current Capacity Workforce Capacity Gap Analysis Future Needs “Resource Demand” Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, Proficiencies & Other Attributes of Interest Key Outcomes & Outputs Sourcing Strategies Competencies

6. SWP development • A fundamental step was developing a knowledge map • Defining the knowledge that needs to be managed • identify tacit knowledge critical to the agency’s mission • locate where in the agency the knowledge resides (people)

7. Pilot program • Identified three organizational units to participate in the Skills Assessment • Fuel Cycle Licensing Branch – Office of Nuclear Materials Safety & Safeguards (NMSS) • Plant Systems Branch – Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR) • Safety Margins & Systems Analysis Branch – Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research (RES)

8. Knowledge competencies • Communications plan • Interviewed selected branch chiefs and supervisors in the selected branches • Program offices identified critical workforce knowledge, skills, and other attributes

9. Competencies (continued) • An essential piece of knowledge management initiative • Required the right level of detail • If the knowledge items identified were too broad then the information would not be useful • If the items were too detailed then the information would be too cumbersome • “Narrow down” not “pinpoint” knowledge

10. Self-assessment survey • Second component was the self-assessment survey • Divided into 4 sections • Personal background information • Language proficiencies • Knowledge, skills, and abilities • Leadership competencies

11. Self-assessment approach • Employees access the on-line database and rate their level of expertise for each of 1000 different knowledge competencies • Supervisors receive an electronic message whenever employees update the database • Supervisors review the employee ratings to ensure consistency

12. Levels of expertise • Expert: I am looked to as an expert in this knowledge or skill • Extensive: I have extensive knowledge of/training in this knowledge or skill and am comfortable serving as a technical advisor in this area • Applied: I have participated in multiple assignments requiring the application of this knowledge or skill • General: I have a general understanding via training or some work experience • Limited: I have a limited understanding • None: I have no knowledge or skill in this area

13. Results • The Strategic Workforce Planning (SWP) we developed is an intranet-based system • Collects personal background information, approximately 1000 skills in 15 categories, leadership competencies, and language proficiencies • Voluntary participation • Has a high participation rate (84%)

14. Using the information • Managers and supervisors are able to search the database to locate critical competencies • Used for human capital management – forecasting “gaps” • Identifies individuals possessing unique knowledge that may be lost • Candidates for knowledge transfer strategies • Timely identification (through forecasting) provides increased options

15. Planned uses in the near-future • Identifying communities of practice • Two groups establishing online communities • Use the knowledge map to identify additional communities • Publishing an electronic directory of experts • Intended as a tool for the staff • Consensual publication • Supervisors “look ahead” for knowledge transfer options

16. Summary • Linked to the strategic mission • Dynamic • changes in the agency’s mission • changes in individual competencies • Obtaining participation is an artifact of each agency’s culture • Self-evaluation results need validation • Very powerful tool – but still only a tool

17. Example • 14 competencies under the Electrical Power/Power Distribution category • Control Panels Electrical Support Systems • Equipment Protection Studies Equipment Sizing Studies • Fuel Cycle Facility Systems Load Flow/Voltage Regulation and Protection • Motors and Generators Onsite Power Supplies • Power Bus Duct Power Distribution Equipment • Raceway Penetrations Reading Electrical Drawings • Short Circuit Studies Transformers

18. Experiences of other agencies informed process development • Centered around highly technical knowledge, skills, and competencies • Inventory of employee skills to attain strategic goals • Determine net capacity gaps and surpluses • Well-defined process enabled by technology