eRecruit Field Readiness

Forest Service United States Department of Agriculture

AVUE Frequently Asked Questions As most, if not all of you, are aware, the Forest Service (FS) will be moving to a new Staff Acquisition technology solution, eRecruit, in September 2012. The contract with our current vendor, Avue Digital Services, is scheduled to end on September 30, 2012, and we will no longer have access to that system. The following are answers to some of the questions we have been hearing from the field. Q: Will my Position Description (PD) change when the new system comes online? A: No. Your PD will not change unless you change duties or positions. If you do change duties or position, any new PD will need to be initiated in eRecruit, without reference to the PD produced from the Avue system. Q: Can I change the coversheet of a PD in Avue and re-use a PD in the new system? A: Absolutely not! We are contractually prohibited from using any PD that was created in the Avue system in the new eRecruit solution. Even one violation of this standard may put the deployment of the new system in jeopardy. Q: Am I allowed to print and/or save a digital copy of my PD, or the PDs of my subordinates, from the Avue system? A: Yes. If you need to make a printed or electronic copy of a PD from the Avue system, you may do so in the normal course of your duties. In no event, however, can you use a PD from the Avue system, in whole or in part, to create a new or modified PD in the new eRecruit system. Q: If I begin to classify a position in the Avue system, can I move it over to the new system to complete? Is the cert still good? A: Absolutely not! You will need to start a new one in the eRecruit system. If you have a position that may not close and be completed until after September 30, 2012, you should make arrangements to have that position posted in the new system. All access to Avue services will be terminated on or before September 30, 2012. Q: If I have an Open Continuous Register (OCR) position in Avue, what should I do? A: You should make arrangements to have the OCR closed in the Avue system well before the September 30, 2012, contract end date, and open a new OCR in eRecruitthe current policy is to close all OCRs by September 21, 2012. Remember, however, you may not use the PD from the previous OCR, and you must create a new one without reference (e.g., cut-and-paste) to the Avue PD. Q: Will applicant data be moved from the Avue system to eRecruit? A: No. In the new system, applicant data will be collected and maintained in USAJOBS during the application process. This data will be passed to eRecruit from USAJOBS. There will be no data transferred from Avue into the new system. By maintaining the applicant data in USAJOBS, applicants will be able to re-use their information and documentation for any federal positions to which they apply. Q: Will the FS have access to records created in the Avue system? A: Yes. We are working to ensure the FS has complete archive records from Avue for purposes of litigation support, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, etc. These records, however, will not be made available as a general reference tool.

August 2012

Submit questions/comments regarding eRecruit to the eRecruit mailbox: erecruit@fs.fed.us.

eRecruit Field Readiness

Forest Service United States Department of Agriculture

Q: If I cannot use PDs from Avue as a reference, how will I create new PDs in eRecruit? A: We are working toward a goal of populating the new system with standard PDs for use with most positions. A substantial number of standard PDs will be available to you in the eRecruit PD Library when it first goes live, and we will add more standard PDs as they become available. Initially, the creation of new PDs will be limited to a group of Super Users. You may create a new PD in Microsoft Word format and submit it to this Super User group for uploading to the PD Library. Q: What about certain Law Enforcement and Fire PDs that cannot be changed? A: The team is working on bringing over these PDs by tracing the source documents to pre-Avue classified positions. When they are properly sourced, they will be uploaded into the PD Library. Q: I currently have an action for a career ladder promotion for a Purchasing Agent, GS-1105-07 who was hired in 2010 off an OCR. Her GS-07 is to be effective on October 7, 2012. Because of the instructions to no longer use Avue PDs, does this mean a new PD will need to be used for her action? A: No. You can use the Avue PD for the noncompetitive promotion action. Because this is a noncompetitive action and will not be initiated in the eRecruit system, it is permissible. In no event, however, can you use a PD from the Avue system, in whole or in part, to create a new or modified PD in the new eRecruit system. What this means is, if this position becomes vacant, or you want to use this PD to Recruit and Fill another position in eRecruit, it will need to be reclassified. Q: What will happen to Personally Identifiable Information (PII) that was entered in Avue? A: FS will be receiving a full archive record of all data in Avue, including PII data, at contract close out, and these archive records will be retained by FS for the proscribed amount of time, as required by law and/or judicial ruling. We have been informed that Avue will also retain these records for a period of time of no less than two years to ensure they can reply to any litigation or other official inquiry requirement. In addition, Avue is retaining PII data entered by applicants into their system for an undetermined period of time to facilitate applicants applying for other Federal jobs through the Avue system. If you do not wish Avue to maintain your PII data for any reason, you should contact Avue directly, to petition for the deletion of your PII from their system. Q: Is Avue completely going away? A: Personal profiles in Avue Central will be stored until such a time as the employee deletes. Avue profile data entered by applicants will be maintained to facilitate applicants applying for other Federal jobs (outside of FS) through the Avue system. NO Avue data will be transferred into the new eRecruit system. FS applicants must have a USAJOBS profile to apply for FS positions.

August 2012

Submit questions/comments regarding eRecruit to the eRecruit mailbox: erecruit@fs.fed.us.