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| From the CHART website |
We are saying goodbye to CHART, the Department of the Navy’s hiring system.
I was the very first workshop leader for Navy Resumix in the Southeast Region in 1999-2000. At that time, Navy Civilian HR recruiters were transitioning from paper / SF-171 / resume to Resumix. I taught a group of 35 Human Resources specialists that they would be using an automated system to query for keywords from the applicant resumes. And the keywords would be taken from the announcement, PD or occupational series for the position. This was world-class change in Federal HR Recruitment.
Now in 2011, we are leaving Resumix and the keyword query system behind. I wrote the first (and only) book on how to write a Resumix resume for the Navy/USMC system, the Electronic Federal Resume Guidebook – filled with keywords for many occupational series.
Navy and US Marine Corps are moving to USAJOBS.gov, which is an automated application system of resumes online, and a questionnaire system in Application Manager. The Self-Assessment Questionnaire was originally designed and developed by Bryan Hochstein, Founder of QuickHire. This Questionnaire is now the “valid, reliable assessment tool” that President Obama wrote about in his Hiring Reform Executive Order.
Below is a summary of the major differences between CHART and USAJOBS for your consideration when revising your resume and applying for jobs with the NAVY and USMC through USAJOBS. Please share the dates, times and access to USAJOBS info with your colleagues and federal job-seeking friends.
Key Points About the Transition:
- All resume information in CHART will be manually uploaded and transferred to a USAJOBS account by September 30 as USAJOBS will not be available October 6-12 (due to updates and maintenance).
- If you didn’t make the September 30 deadline, you can still try to access your CHART resume and move it to USAJOBS before October 6.
- If you have an electronic copy of your CHART federal resume, you can copy it into the USAJOBS Resume Builder after October 12.
- CHART will be taken offline on October 12 for external applicants.
- Current DoD or DON employees will have access to CHART via their CAC until December 30.
- Applicants should search for civilian Navy and Marine Corps jobs at USAJOBS.
At a recent training, we said our farewells to CHART with CAKE!
** Photo of our Bye Bye CHART cake taken at the Federal Career Training Institute in Baltimore, MD with the following class members:
Front Row: Felipe Gonzalez (Naval Submarine Base, Kings Bay, GA); Victor Johnson (Marine Corps Community Services, Arlington, VA); Kathryn Troutman (President, Resume Place); Lisa Bauch (Military and Family Support Center, Joint Base Anacostia Bolling, DC); Paul Alen Stewart (Naval Submarine Base, Kings Bay, GA); Pamela Sikora (Resume Place)
Back Row: Dong Kim (McConnell AFB, Wichita, KS); Stephen Petro, Monroe Community College, Rochester, NY); Walter Anderson (Laughlin AFB, TX); Coletha Cox (Hanscom AFB, Woburn, MA); Sharon “Dee” McCrae (Aberdeen Workforce Center, Havre de Grace, MD)
The Differences Between CHART and USAJOBS
DONHR Civilians and Navy Civilian Jobseekers will be getting used to the USAJOBS.gov resume builder and the Applicationmanager.gov questionnaire after October 13. The new combination USAStaffing application is a whole new world for Navy Civilian Job Applicants. DONHR Civilians and Navy Civilian Jobseekers will be getting used to the USAJOBS.gov resume builder and the Applicationmanager.gov questionnaire after October 13. The new combination USAStaffing application is a whole new world for Navy Civilian Job Applicants.
How Applications are Processed
CHART: No More Resumix! CHART was a Resumix System where the HR specialists searched for best qualified candidates with keywords and keyword phrases. Army CPOL is still using Resumix for some agencies and bases, but this will end very soon also. Resumix will be totally gone in 2012.
USAJOBS: This is a human system, where the keywords are important for the resume for the human HR specialists and the supervisors to read, but there will not be any keyword searches for the best qualified candidates.
Document Submission
CHART: Resume Only + Supplemental Data Sheet + Documents.
USAJOBS: Resume Builder + Applicationmanager.gov Questionnaire + Documents (including optional cover letter).
Closing Dates
CHART: Most closing dates in the job announcements were Open Inventory – open for a year or more.
USAJOBS: Most closing dates have a closing date of 5 days to maybe 1 year.
Vacancy Announcements
CHART: Vacancy announcements were short, generic and used to collect resumes for entire occupational series for the program or organization to consider. The Navy Civilian announcements were not very helpful for finding keywords for writing the best federal resume.
USAJOBS: Vacancy announcements are usually more specific for a particular position or positions. The announcements will include better descriptions of duties, Knowledge, Skills and Abilities, specialized experience and questionnaires. Some announcements collect resumes for future consideration for a number of programs or organizations; some are for locations throughout the US or the world.
Character Counts
CHART: You could write up to 6,500 characters for each of your Work Experience job blocks.
USAJOBS: You can write only 3,000 characters (including spaces) for each of your Work Experience job blocks.
Resume Format
CHART: Big Block format. The Work Experience blocks were typically written in Big Block format with the 6,000+ characters in one paragraph, which is difficult for HR reviewers and supervisors to read. It was commonly thought that “since a computer reads the resume, the big block of type is just fine.”
USAJOBS: Small paragraphs with Accomplishments. No computers are reading the resumes, only people. Therefore, the Big Block paragraph format is not a competitive style for the USAJOBS HR reviewers and supervisors. For USAJOBS, the federal resume should be written in small paragraphs, 6 to 8 lines long; should include accomplishments to support the KSAs in the announcement; and should include keywords that match the duties and questionnaire questions. This combination of small paragraphs, keywords and accomplishments will be easy for HR reviewers and supervisors to read.
Resume Selection
CHART: The first cut was made by Resumix and keywords. The HR specialist review was done bykeywords with the Resumix system. The HR specialist and supervisor would agree on 5 to 7 keywords to “pull” the best qualified candidates. The applicant had to show minimum qualifications and have the keywords in order to get referred.
USAJOBS: The first cut is made by the Questionnaires. The HR specialist review is done by getting the score on the multiple-choice, self-assessment questionnaire. Therefore, you should give yourself all the credit that you can on the questionnaire. Your questionnaire score is added to your resume score, and that will determine if you are Minimally Qualified, Qualified or Best Qualified.
Why is DONHR Moving From CHART to USAJOBS and USA Staffing?
The Department of the Navy (DON) continues to reform and improve hiring processes across the organization. With a focus on improving the applicant’s experience and reducing the time to fill vacancies, the current push includes the transition to USAJOBS and USA Staffing which involves changes in the hiring tools and systems backbone.
“These improved tools and processes are just one part of the DON’s response to critical hiring reform initiatives,” says Jean Mercer, the DON’s HR Systems and Business Transformation Director. “Our application process has become more streamlined and easier to understand. Also, USAJOBS provides one-stop shopping for our applicants to seek out federal jobs within the DON as well as with other agencies.”
For hiring managers, senior leaders and HR professionals, Mercer says USAJOBS and USA Staffing offer ready access to tools and information about candidates right on their desktop. Managers now will be able to directly view the applicant certificates and immediately see what actions have been taken. “We will know if candidates have been selected, accepted or declined job offer, or if we haven’t heard from them. Managers also will be able to print application materials.” Mercer noted that panel members interviewing candidates also will be able to view candidate information.
“This makes hiring decisions quicker and reduces the time it takes to fill the vacant positions,” says Mercer. “The changes also support increased collaboration among hiring managers, senior leaders and HR professionals. Our experience tells us that this produces the best results – that means we get the best candidates for the position.”
USAJOBS and USA Staffing replaces cumbersome legacy systems known as CHART and RESUMIX. Hiring manager Alfreada Brown, who is with an activity of Commander, Navy Installations Command (CNIC), and long-time user of the former systems, praised the new tools. “My first experience with the new system was a good one,” says Brown. “The whole process is much simpler and faster.”
Brown and the CNIC activity are customers of the DON’s Human Resources Service Center – East and among the first customers transitioned to USAJOBS and USA Staffing. The next phase of transitions is scheduled for May 2011. The DON expects to complete the transition within the year.
The DON offers comprehensive training and information on the transition and related hiring reform initiatives. Information is available on the Hiring Reform site.
All resume information in CHART should be manually uploaded and transferred to an USAJOBS account by September 30 as USAJOBS will not be available October 6-12 (due to updates and maintenance). CHART will be taken offline on October 12 for external applicants. Current DoD or DON employees will have access to CHART via their CAC until 30 December 2011. A DON fact sheet outlines the key steps to transfer information. Applicants should search for civilian Navy and Marine Corps jobs at USAJOBS.
Moving Resumes from CHART to USAJOBS for DON and DoD Employees
You have all heard by now that the USAJOBS 3.0 transition did NOT go quite as well as we had hoped. The devastating result this has caused today for job seekers is that currently there are VERY FEW positions being posted.
