United States	Region II	March 1995
Environmental Protection New York
Agency
REGION II REINVENTION
IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
FOCUSING OUR ENERGIES, PRIORITIES,
AND RESOURCES ON THE FUTURE
4Tm
f
Region I I

-------
UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
REGION II
Ch 31, 1995
ion II's R
fn. ti7." F3sr " 14 '
Regional Administrator
to" Carol M. Browner
Administrator
I an pleased to forward to you Region II's Reinvention
Implementation Plan. The attached report is the culmination of
the collective efforts over the past nine months of managers and
staff across all divisions and all grade levels to map out a
coherent approach to achieving the Agency's goals of reinvention
and streamlining. The plan centers on our decision to
reorganize around an integrated multi-media design that we
believe will position the region to provide the most effective
environmental leadership in the future. I arc particularly proud
of the focus on customer involvement and feedback that has
characterized our reinvention efforts. Many of the comments
received from our customers — within the region, ift
Headquarters and externally — have impacted the final plan.
We conducted extensive outreach and communication with the
Assistant and Associate Administrators as we developed our plan,
and have also had an opportunity to discuss our proposed
reorganization with Fred Hansen. The feedback we have received
from the AA's has been quite favorable, however, in one instance
there is an AA-concern regarding our proposal. We intend to
continue the dialogue with this office and work with them on
their concerns.
As set forth in Headquarters guidance for implementation plans,
our report follows the required format, with:
an Introduction to reinvention in the region;
discussions of five overarching reinvention goals (Shared
Vision and Values, Customer Focus, Diversity, Working
Collaboratively, and Organizational Design);
a description of the ways in which our proposed organization
will address key attributes {Accountability; Communication
and Coordination; Customer Focus; Integrity, Efficiency and
Effectiveness; Measurement and Evaluation; and Reinvention
and streamlining);
a chapter on evaluation and measurements of success;
a composite milestone chart; and
REGION II FORM 132CM {>/«)

-------
2
a concluding chapter that discusses related issues.
The report describes how our proposed organizational structure
will support achievement of the reinvention goals as well as
satisfy the attributes identified by the Senior Leadership
Council. Subject to conceptual approval of the reorganization
part of our reinvention plan by the Headquarters' April 20, 1995
target date, we expect to submit our formal Green Border
reorganization package by July 31, 1995.
In this regard, we are now working on the operational aspects of
our comprehensive reorganizational package submittal. This
involves such activities as drafting new position descriptions,
soliciting placement preferences from current supervisory staff
for positions in the new organization - both supervisory and
non-supervisory, i.e., policy advisor or team leader, amending
regional delegations in line with the new organization, keeping
our employees informed of progress and assuring their continuing
participation, maintaining our outreach programs, and finally,
performing overall quality assurance on the entire initiative.
I would be pleased to respond to any questions about Region II's
Reinvention Implementation Plan that you may have. I look
forward to continuing to work with you, the Deputy Administrator
and the senior leadership in this important undertaking to
reinvent EPA.
Attachment
cc: Fred Hansen, Deputy Administrator

-------
U. 5. ENVIRONMENTAL
PROTECTION AGENCY
REGION II VISION
\\rc arc a team of dedicated people serving"
the public ivith the highest decree of integrity.
Our actions are credible, understood , ancL>
achieve a hgh level of public acceptance ancL>
trust. We work in an atmosphere that is challenging
rewarding and enjoyable. Weare effective irL
protecting public health and the environment!
*
In a retread on February is, 1986. in ^Wohonk.NewYork,
the senior managers or the region developed, a vision statement
tojuide u? in our day-to-day activities. nhe statement is
designed to help the people oj- EPA, Region 11, pull together
as a team , moving in the same direction.lt is a declaration
of our highest values and our'hopes for achievement1 by
the organization in which we work together. Some of the
vision we have realized already ; the rest we muststillj
strive to attain. We hope it will sent as a quide and a'
source oj- inspiration jor each- employee m the r^°Jl£)

-------
REGION II
REINVENTION IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
I.	INTRODUCTION 	 1
II.	REINVENTION GOALS 	11
A.	SHARED VISION AND VALUES 	11
B.	CUSTOMER FOCUS 	16
C.	DIVERSITY 	22
D.	WORKING COLLABORATIVELY . . . 		26
1.	Empowerment	26
2.	Teams	31
3.	Management Behavior 	36
E.	ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN	39
1.	Reduced Organizational Layers 	45
2.	1:11 Supervisor-to-Employee Ratio	49
3.	"Headquarters'VAdministrative Staff
Redeployment 	56
4.	Flexibility 	58
5.	Attributes	61
III.	EVALUATION	82
IV.	COMPOSITE MILESTONE CHART 	90
V.	CONCLUSION	93

-------
APPENDICES
I.	PROPOSED REGION II ORGANIZATIONAL CHARTS
II.	DRAFT REGION II FUNCTIONAL STATEMENT
III.	REINVENTION TASK FORCE AND DIVERSITY
WORK GROUP MEMBERS
IV.	REINVENTION REPORT TEAM

-------
I. INTRODUCTION
Need for Change, Expected Results and Challenges. Region II views streamlining
and reinvention as an opportunity to re-examine its priorities, to develop innovative
approaches to achieving its mission, to restructure its roles and operations to make
the most efficient use of our resources, and to improve the quality of service and
programs delivered to its customers. Our Reinvention Implementation Plan
presents an integrated, evolutionary approach that builds on the recommendations
and outcomes of the region's February 1994 Streamlining Plan, while positioning
the region to provide effective environmental leadership into the 21st century.
The centerpiece of our reinvention is the decision to organize around a
fundamentally different construct -- one of an integrated multi-media approach -
than is embodied in our current medium-specific design. For over 20 years, single-
medium, single-statute environmental service delivery has proven highly efficient.
Today's environmental landscape, and that just over the horizon, however, is very
different from that of the past. As the country is re-examining the relationship
between federal and state government while seeking more cost-effective solutions
targeted toward the highest risk problems, so too must EPA re-examine itself, and
where necessary, change. Toward this end, Administrator Carol Browner launched
a comprehensive effort to reinvent EPA. Common Sense, community and place-
based environmental protection, performance partnerships, regulatory reform,
customer service, permit improvements, strategic planning, national environmental
goals, national performance review and other initiatives, combined with an
accelerated schedule for reinvention are anticipated to transform EPA, and thus
enable it to continue to lead into the future.
Our Region II reinvention, centered on reorganization and redesign, embodies the
goals of organizational and workforce transformation identified by the
Administrator. It is responsive to the changing needs of our customers, it values
our employees and empowers them to do their jobs in the most effective and
efficient ways possible, it seeks to enhance diversity throughout our organization,
it assures that scarce federal resources will continue to be managed with the
highest integrity, and it seeks to provide for continuous improvement. These are
the results that we believe will accrue from the substantial changes embodied in
our plan.
We are highly cognizant, as we embark on this ambitious transformation, of the
challenges we face. Change is difficult under any circumstances. When combined
with the accelerated pace of reinvention, it is even more daunting. One of our
most immediate challenges is to assure that during this period of change we
continue to provide strong environmental protection. The concerns of our
employees, many of whom will be facing fundamentally different jobs in the future,
1

-------
Q Introduction
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
also need to be addressed. To that extent, it is critical that the lines of
communication between senior management and staff that were so effective as
we planned for reinvention, continue to be enhanced. As part of the federal
government, we are also facing budgetary challenges that will impact the
resources available to us. And there are other external factors, some not yet full
defined, that will likely impact the way we serve the public in future. To that V
extent, we will need to be flexible and responsive to change. We believe our ne
organizational structure, which features flexible, multi-disciplinary teams, will W
assure we have the skills and abilities needed to meet these challenges as well
Framework for Reinvention; Bui/ding on Streamlining. Building on the region's
February 1994 Streamlining Plan, over the past year, Region II, along with the re**
of EPA, has been working to improve itself through reinvention. With the
assistance of a Regional Reinvention Task Force and a Diversity Work Group the
region has been examining options for reorganizing for the future in keeping with
EPA Administrator Carol Browner's priorities, the Agency's Strategic Plan and th
principles of streamlining. Key among these was the President's directive that 6
federal agencies halve the number of supervisors, which for EPA requires achievir.
a 1:11 supervisor-to-staff ratio.	9
The region's 1994 Streamlining Plan included a series of 79 recommendations
made by the region's Streamlining Task Force in five specific areas: established a
1:11 supervisor-to-staff ratio and an optimal organizational structure; ensuring the
diversity of the workforce; delegation and decentralization; empowerment and
accountability; and improvement of work processes and implementation of the
National Performance Review recommendations. Shortly after the Task Force's
recommendations were made, they were evaluated by region's senior leadership
and an implementation action plan was developed. Since the Streamlining report
was issued in February 1994, the region has made substantial progress toward
implementing many of the recommendations, most especially in the areas of
delegation, empowerment and streamlining work processes. The actions we have
taken in these areas, as well as others recommended by the Streamlining Task
Force, are discussed in more detail in the sections on Customer Focus, Diversity
and Working Collaboratively in this Reinvention Implementation Plan.
It was with this solid foundation of analysis and concrete actions either taken or in
progress that, in August 1994, Region II initiated a comprehensive reinvention
effort. As the Administrator's August 8, 1994 memorandum to all EPA employees
on her decision to accelerate the process of organizational and management
2

-------
D Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Introduction Q
change at EPA stated:
Our goal for reinvention is to create an organization that is more responsive
to today's complex environmental issues and that is committed to
management for environmental results. Our Agency must be oriented
toward the people and places we must protect. Reinvention provides us an
opportunity to make this change. Although each organization in EPA must
address how it must change to meet these goals, as an Agency we must
share common values as we move forward. Paramount is service to
citizens, integrity and quality in all our work, and valuing the contribution of
each and every employee. Partnerships with all stakeholders will be
essential to our success.
Other Agency documents on reinvention emphasized flattening the hierarchy,
eliminating layers of bureaucracy, using teams as a way to approach work,
expanding non-supervisory career paths and increasing productivity. They stressed
that reinvention should be targeted at four major objectives:
•	creating a stronger customer focus;
•	building a more skilled and knowledgeable workforce (employee fulfillment);
•	achieving environmental results (effectiveness); and
•	creating an organization that works better and costs less (streamlining).
Agency guidance also suggested a number of tools that should be considered to
reach reinvention objectives, including multiple career paths, buy-outs and early
retirement incentives, re-engineering work processes, benchmarking, total quality
management and changing the role of management. Finally, Agency guidance
raised several important issues for regions to consider as they contemplated
reinvention, and most particularly if they opted for reorganization. These concerns
focused on the consequences of variation in regional organization structure and the
ability to communicate effectively with both internal (e.g., Headquarters) and
external (e.g., states, tribes) stakeholders. Variation in regional organizations also
raised issues regarding budget preparation, staffing, performance measurement,
delivering a national program and relating the change in structure to the needs of
customers, stakeholders and partners. To address these concerns, the guidance
identified six attributes -- accountability; communication and coordination;
customer focus; integrity, efficiency, and effectiveness; measurement and
evaluation; and reinvention and streamlining - that existing or proposed
organizational structures would need to satisfy in order for Agency management to
approve the reinvention plan for implementation.
3

-------
Q Introduction
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
Proposed Organization. The framework for reinvention developed by Region II
embodies the goals of multi-media planning; enforcement balanced with
compliance assistance; a strong environmental response capability; stewardship;
and managerial excellence. It is an organizational structure that gives us an
enhanced ecological, multi-media program planning capability that is an integral
part of protecting public health and the environment, while achieving the 1:11
supervisor-to-staff ratio. The region's current and proposed organizational
structures are shown in the two Figures below.
REGION II - CURRENT
4

-------
O Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Introduction Q
REGION II - PROPOSED
The new proposed organization features a Division of Enforcement and Compliance
Assistance (DECA) that brings together all of the people working in the
enforcement arena with the exception of our attorneys, who will remain in the
Office of Regional Counsel, and enforcement for the Superfund, Oil and Emergency
Planning programs, which will remain in our Emergency and Remedial Response
Division (consistent with the alignment of enforcement programs in the
Headquarters structures). The new DECA will also include the entire Pesticides
and Toxics programs, the Underground Injection Control program and the
Underground Storage Tank and Leaking Underground Storage Tank programs,
based on our decision to keep the region's smaller programs intact rather than to
split enforcement and programmatic activities into separate divisions.
We also propose a new Environmental Planning and Protection Division (EPPD) that
brings together all of the major media programs, including air, surface water,
ground water, drinking water, wetlands, oceans, estuaries, municipal sewage
treatment, construction grants, solid waste, hazardous waste, and radiation. The
new EPPD will also include the environmental assessment, NEPA/309 review,
5

-------
Q Introduction
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
pollution prevention and risk assessment programs, and will be able to intearate
strategic planning for the above media programs.
Our Environmental Services Division, located in Edison, New Jersey, will be
restructured and renamed the Division of Environmental Sciences. A new senio
Science Officer position will be added to the DES to enhance the region's focus *
strong science. The region's other divisions-the Office of Policy and Managem °n
the External Programs Division, the Office of Regional Counsel and the Emergenc*'
and Remedial Response Division--W\W also be restructured. Their core functions
will, however, remain essentially the same.
Within the Regional Administrator's Immediate Office, an Environmental Justice
Coordinator position has been added, consistent with our high level of commitm
to this key principle. The other major change we are making is to strengthen the^
important role of the Caribbean Field Office, to be renamed the Caribbean
Environmental Protection Division (CEPD), phasing in expanded programmatic
responsibility over a three-year period. It is envisioned that by October 1 199a
staffing levels in the CFO will have increased from the current 23 to approximate
70. This will enable the office to perform all routine programmatic activities in
Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands from its office in San Juan. Only highly
specialized work, such as laboratory analyses, risk assessments and evaluations
requiring experienced hydrogeologists, will remain in the regional office. This shift-
is consistent with requests from the Governments of Puerto Rico and the Virgin
Islands, community groups and other non-governmental organizations in the
Caribbean for an increased local EPA presence. It should be noted that the phas*
in of this plan may be affected by budgetary constraints (i.e., costs for hiring 'n°
space requirements and other factors), it will also need to take into account the
ability of CEPD to effectively staff up to manage its significantly expanded
programmatic responsibilities.
Process for Reinvention. A key element of our reinvention was outreach to
customers within the Agency and to our external state and tribal stakeholders.
Using the Administrator's goals and guidance as a framework, the Regional
Administrator (RA) established the Region II Reinvention Task Force and the
Diversity Work Group in August 1994. The members of both groups are identifier*
in the Appendix to this document.	a
The Reinvention Task Force comprised representatives from all Region II offices
and included a mix of supervisory, non-supervisory, technical, administrative and
6

-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Introduction fl
legal staff. The group was charged with assisting the region's senior management
in developing options to revise our organizational structure consistent with the
goals of reinvention and streamlining.
The Task Force developed an "inreach" strategy that was designed to maximize
participation by division directors, supervisory and non-supervisory staff in the
analysis and development of reorganization options. Over a period of several
months, the Task Force, assisted by two consultants with experience in
government reorganization from Columbia University's School of International and
Public Affairs (Associate Dean Steven Cohen, Director of the Graduate Program in
Public Policy and Administration, and William B. Eimicke, Director of the Program in
Politics and Public Policy), reviewed relevant background documentation,
interviewed division directors, and held a series of reinvention forums with
management and staff, to seek their views on: what areas of functional overlap
currently exist in the region's organization; how should the region accommodate
the Headquarters (OECA) enforcement reorganization; and what types of
organizational options should the Task Force evaluate. The Task Force also
undertook a review of each division's functional statement to analyze where
specific functions were carried out, and to look for overlap and opportunities for
streamlining.
The Diversity Work Group, also chartered by the RA in August 1994, included
members from several divisions from the supervisory, non-supervisory, technical,
and administrative ranks. The Region II Equal Employment Opportunity Officer, the
Secretarial and Administrative Advisory Council Chair, Advisory Committee Chair,
the Black Employment Program Manager, the Hispanic Employment Program
Manager, the Federal Women's Program Manager and a representative from WISE
were also on the Work Group. The Work Group was tasked with making
recommendations to the Reinvention Task Force and the region's senior
management on how to protect and enhance diversity as the region proceeded to
reinvent and streamline itself. To develop its recommendations, the Work Group
undertook a review of some of the current literature on diversity, applicable laws
and regulations and regional employee profile statistics. They also met on a
periodic basis with the RA and other senior managers to keep them apprised of
their efforts.
In mid-November 1994, the reports of the Reinvention Task Force and Diversity
Work Group were submitted to the region's senior management. Shortly
thereafter, senior management held a two-day retreat at Rutgers, the State
University, along with the Task Force Co-Chairs, where they deliberated and
7

-------
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Introduction
reached consensus on the new organizational structure, as described above that
would incorporate accountability, customer focus, diversity an
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Introduction Q
These changes, along with the initial cuts at the sub-divisional structures, were
discussed and agreed to at a second senior management retreat at Rutgers in mid-
January.
Following this January retreat, the region's senior management continued to
capitalize on other opportunities to "roll out" the plan and obtain customer
feedback. In particular, in early February the RA conducted a series of end-of-year
program reviews in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. At each meeting she
discussed the reorganization proposal with the Commissioner and asked for his/her
feedback. During this trip, she also met with staff of Region ll's CFO and
discussed the reorganization, with particular focus on the plan to phase in over a
three-year period a significant expansion of that office.
In early February, a second round of RA-level letters and memos was sent to all
state commissioners, tribal leaders, the Administrator, Deputy Administrator and all
Assistant and Associate Administrators, updating them on our reorganization
proposal. The memos to the Assistant Administrators responded to comments that
had been received from their offices. An all-employees message was also sent via
the LAN from the RA, explaining the modifications and attaching organizational
charts for the new divisions. Employees were again asked for comments and
feedback.
During February and March the RA met with regional employees in a series of all-
hands meetings in New York, Edison and via telephone with the CFO. She also
had an opportunity to discuss the reorganization proposal with the Commissioner
of the New York State Department of Health and the Commissioner-designee of
the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. On February 28,
Region ll's DRA and several division directors held a 3-hour briefing in
Headquarters on the region's proposed reorganization. The briefing was attended
by most of the AA-ships. Earlier in the day, the DRA met with Deputy
Administrator Fred Hansen to discuss the proposal. The RA also personally
discussed the reorganization with the Deputy Administrator at an RAs' meeting in
early February.
The senior management team held its third Rutgers retreat on March 1 and 2 to
reach closure on the sub-divisional structures, and to lay out a timetable and
strategy for preparing the reinvention plan by March 31 and the formal green
border reorganization package by July, and then for for implementing the
reorganization. With the target implementation date set for October 1, 1995, one
of the most time critical steps will be to develop position descriptions for all of the
9
-------
~ Introduction
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Qj
new supervisory and non-supervisory GS-15, 14 and 13 positions identified in the
new su?e™f°ry -tmctured Dathway was laid out at this retreat by senior
management, designed to assure that the new organization will become fully
operational on October 1. 1995. Key steps along tNs pathway include:
developing the final divisional sub-structures; putting PDs in place for all new
posWcns: identifying employee preferences for placement; making placements for
T
-------
~ Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Shared Vision and Values Q
II. REINVENTION GOALS
A. SHARED VISION AND VALUES
Status before reinvention. Region II senior managers formulated a vision statement
in 1986 to guide regional staff in day-to-day activities. This declaration of our
highest values and hopes for achievement was designed to inspire all of us in the
region to work together as a team to accomplish goals that are consistent with
EPA's mission and mandates, as well as regional priorities. That vision statement,
which has been widely distributed to all regional staff over the past years, reads:
We are a team of dedicated people serving the public with the highest
degree of integrity. Our actions are credible, understood, and achieve a
high level of public acceptance and trust. We work in an atmosphere that
is challenging, rewarding and enjoyable. We are effective in protecting
public health and the environment.
In 1986, Region II also designed the Regional Administrator's Award for Excellence
to recognize the employee who best embodies the values contained in the regional
vision statement. Unlike traditional awards that are typically management-initiated,
candidates for this award must be nominated by a group of fellow employees. A
panel appointed by the Regional Administrator rates the nominations on the basis
of criteria derived from the vision statement. A representative from the nominating
group of each of the top three finalists is then invited to make a presentation
before the region's senior leadership team. The announcement of the final
selection is eagerly anticipated and is the highlight of the region's annual awards
ceremony. Past nominees for and recipients of the RA's Award for Excellence
have been selected from staff in technical as well as administrative areas, further
highlighting the relevance of our vision statement to aH employees' contributions to
Region ll's efforts.
What we have accomplished so far. Region ll's vision remains focused on striving
to achieve the fundamental values enunciated in 1986, because we feel these
continue to represent our highest standards and are as true and applicable today as
then. They are similarly consistent with the vision for the future articulated by
Administrator Browner in the Agency's five-year strategic plan, The New
Generation of Environmental Protection. At the same time, we understand that our
vision is a goal that we have not yet achieved and that requires us to continuously
re-examine ourselves, our processes and our relationships with our customers.
11
-------
Q Shared Vision and Values
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
Reinvention has provided us with another opportunity to reaffirm those values and
to refine them and make them an integral part of the way we 
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Shared Vision and Values Q
Cooperative team approaches to problem solving, Nearly all regional staff have
been introduced to team approaches through the total quality management training
program that has been in place since 1991. In the wake of training, staff in all
program divisions have participated in quality action teams to study and improve a
wide variety of regional processes. Participation on QATs has broadened our
perceptions of the ways we can work together to solve problems, and provided
ongoing opportunities for practical experience in team processes. We have also
implemented a number of successful multi-divisional, multi-disciplinary teams and
workgroups, most notably for multi-media enforcement, groundwater protection,
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) development, and Environmental Justice.
One barrier that we have had to address has been the existing divisional structure
that has sometimes made it difficult to cross organizational lines in order to deal
with multi-media problems in the most expeditious way possible. While we have
had some notable success, as well as some less successful efforts, in adapting our
current organization to deal with multi-media problems and issues, our
reorganization plan should simplify these efforts by facilitating cross-program
interactions. We will continue to examine our opportunities for use of teams and
collaborative approaches to environmental protection.
Enhanced outreach to customers. Surveys of internal regional customers have
brought about a number of benefits in many areas, including employee satisfaction
and enhanced communication. One direct result of a region-wide survey of
employees has been the creation of an innovative rotational program to allow
individuals to "trade" positions in order to develop new skills and learn more about
the workings of other divisions. Other surveys, in the areas of grants
administration, external programs, and personnel, have produced valuable
information about the quality of services we provide within the region so that
measures could be put in place to reinforce our ability to work as a team.
Consultation with states and tribal nations has been essential to the development
of joint EPA/State strategic plans for the protection of Region ll's environment.
While we expect to continue to use survey and consultation techniques to maintain
awareness of customer needs, we will need to coordinate these efforts in such a
way as to not overwhelm customers with too frequent requests for information.
Streamlined work processes, and management integrity. As noted above, Region II
has already done considerable work in support of streamlined work processes.
Managers and staff are equally motivated, in an era of declining resources, to find
new ways to accomplish our environmental mandates more efficiently. For
example, we have already redelegated a number of authorities, such as issuance of
enforcement documents and approval of travel and training requests, to lower
13
-------
Shared Vision and Values	R» Re'^ntion implementation Plan
organizational levels so that actions in these areas can be exoed't ri n
to which we are giving careful consideration as we Pr°Ceed to st ^ i¦ e'erri®nt
processes is management integrity. We will assure that an aDDroream 'ne °Ur vv°*,k
management controls remains in place so that our work Proceeds^'3*6 Syst.ern °f
resources are adequately protected from fraud, waste and abuse 8pace w^"e our
Cultivating workforce diversity. Region l| has achieved a ^ .
workforce representative of the community served through purg dlverse
recruitment and outreach program. The region has also Worked1" °- 30 act've
recognize the contributions and develop the full potential Qf a)| .^ont,nuously
Examples of developmental programs supported include the Worn e?1p'0yees;
Leadership Program, the Greater Leadership Opportunities Proara ^ S ^xecut've
Certified Professional Secretaries Program. The region has also acti ^ I ^
encouraged and supported a full range of special emphasis nroora Y
Black and Hispanic Employment programs, Women in Science antU? 'n d'.n9
Secretarial and Administrative Advisory Council, and the Handica r\fl|[1eenn9. the
program.	pped EmP'°yrnent
Our commitment to workforce diversity was underscored by the R
Administrator's establishment in 1994 of a Diversity Work GrouD t89IOnal
ways to maintain diversity throughout, and subsequent to, the rei ° recommer,d
As noted above, this group reviewed the work of previous' grouDs^H*'0" proce^s.
pertinent and current literature on diversity, and laws and reaulation* S°me
Recommendations focused on assuring that the region's manaaerial n n
the demographics of the regional population and civilian labor workfnr m,rr°r3
there is an increased awareness throughout the region of cultural dive6 ^ that
recommendations were largely accepted by the region's senior	*V ""
Nevertheless, more needs to be done. One challenge to lucZsTinZ™™'
be the overall reduction in the number of managerial positions (leavinn a J®3 .l"111
pool available for opportunities to enhance diversity in th#»	• , sma"sr
we have instituted in line with federal government mandate™",ha»
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future n
past successes in team approaches will be replicated and strengthened !s w«r
continue to train staff at all levels in leadership and facilitation skilk r V
surveys and the creation of new positions within new nmanfratinn i st0m*r
enhance our ability to respond to new customer needs as they are Wentif T®* ^
staff settle into the new organization, they will be further pnrlir3n ©ntified. Ag
needs for process improvements and streamlining within new team struct*^®®®
consistent with assuring the continued integrity of
14
-------
D Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Shared Vision and Values ~
successful approaches to cultivating workforce diversity will be maintained,
including aggressive recruitment programs (contingent on our ability to fill vacant
positions), a broad range of developmental opportunities for current employees,
and continued training on diversity issues for all employees.
Specific deadlines and milestones. The spread and acceptance of shared vision
and values within an organization are not activities that can be tracked
meaningfully through deadlines and milestones. Senior management is committed,
however, to reinforcing our organizational values to all levels of regional staff, and
will continue to convey the importance of these values through all-hands meetings
and written communications, as well as by example, throughout the coming
months. Specific milestones are as follows:
October 1995: Implement regional reorganization.
October 1996: Conduct an assessment to evaluate the degree to which
the new structure embodies desired attributes, including an organizational
culture characterized by our vision and values.
15
-------
Q Customer Focus
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
B. CUSTOMER FOCUS
Status before reinvention. As its vision attests, the region has long recognized the
need to be customer-focused. The region has adopted the Total Quality
Management (TQM) philosophy which emphasizes the importance of strong
customer focus. More than 90% of Region II employees have received at least
three days of TQM training which includes modules on understanding our
customers' needs. This has resulted in numerous Quality Action Teams (QATs)
that have led to process improvements and enhanced customer service. For
example, we have implemented improvements to our process for responding to
FOIA requests, and have managed to reduce both our backlog and turnaround time
for RCRA requests. Through our strong links to the press and other media, we
have been able to provide customers with vital information quickly. We have
worked with our state and tribal partners to develop joint strategic plans and joint
priority-setting in the media programs. We have established a State/Local
Government Desk Officer in our External Programs Division; State Liaison and
Coordination support is also provided in our Office of Policy and Management. We
have been able to provide more direct customer service and community outreach
through our Caribbean Field Office, located in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and our
Niagara Field Office, located in Niagara Falls, New York.
We have had some notable success as well in working with our external customers
to develop and implement effective solutions to significant environmental
problems. Several of these efforts are identified below:
~	In mid-1993, to address public concern and to seek common ground with
interested parties regarding the appropriate disposal of sediment dredged from the
New York Harbor by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, Region II,
the Army Corps of Engineers and the States of New Jersey and New York,
established the Dredged Materials Forum. Some 60 representatives from the
regulatory, congressional, environmental and maritime community have
participated and helped to develop a dual-track approach to provide adequate
ocean disposal capacity for dredged materials while non-ocean disposal alternatives
are selected, designed and implemented.
~	Over the past two years, Region II has led a comprehensive, multi-media
effort to address the health and environmental concerns raised by residents of the
Catano community in Puerto Rico. Federal, Commonwealth and community-based
groups have been working together to: conduct and evaluate an ambient air
monitoring program focused on those Pollutants most closely associated with
-------
D Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Customer Focus Q
respiratory diseases; study potential water quality impacts on public health from
toxic contamination; evaluate the area's drinking water supply; sample for lead and
copper at all private and public schools serving the area; and survey the extent and
severity of asthma in school-age children in Catano. Region II also assessed five
potential Superfund sites in the study area and conducted multi-media inspections
to identify and address non-compliance situations. Catano area residents assisted
in some aspects of the initiative, including operating portable air monitoring
canister samplers on occasions when they detected unusually strong airborne
odors. All of the results have been communicated to the citizens of Catano
through public meetings convened by Region II, and information has been
translated into a user-friendly format for public release.
~ Under the Agency's Brownfields program, Region II is working to provide
both technical and administrative support to interested communities. An
educational program featuring hands-on training, a one-day seminar and one-on-one
interactions has been developed, and a pilot program sponsored by Jersey City, in
conjunction with Jersey City State College and Region II, is training approximately
40 unemployed local residents in the environmental field and will assist in job
placement at the conclusion of the training. The region is also providing funds to
support educational and technical guidance to local communities in Trenton and
Newark, New Jersey and Puerto Rico, and is hosting a series of Brownfields
Economic Redevelopment Workshops for community leaders to provide information
on how to incorporate environmental remediation into urban renewal efforts.
What we have accomplished so far. The region has begun to address customer
focus in a more systematic way. Draft reorganization proposals have been
evaluated using customer focus as one criterion. A cross-divisional group is being
formed to develop a customer focus plan that meets the requirements of Executive
Order 12862, Setting Customer Service Standards.
We have begun advance planning for a Public Information Center (PIC), which will
be adjacent to our regional library in our new quarters at 290 Broadway. The PIC
will offer a number of outreach services:
A well publicized 800 number, to be staffed by phone handlers who are
trained to provide one-call or one-transfer satisfaction to our customers.
A well stocked publications library. Publications will be available for hand-
out, mailing, and distribution at public outreach events (exhibits, trade
17
-------
~ Customer Focus
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
shows, etc.). We already have a publications collection, display racks
space and backup storage for this.
An information data base program that will allow phone handlers to use l-
words to get answers to most frequently asked questions. We plan to V
the regional programs, asking them to list the 100 most frequently askert°"
questions, the ten most frequently requested pamphlets, etc., and to hel
craft responses to the questions.	'	e,P
A "Yellow Page" data base, to direct callers with certain common
categories of information requests to the correct person, the first time
This reduces the bouncing of callers from desk to desk, which is anriov*
to the caller and wasteful to the Agency.	v,n9
An audiovisual library, for showing audiovisual materials in the PIC and f
lending to organizations, schools and industry. We have equipment and
space for a small audiovisual facility in space already dedicated for th*
Region II PIC.
We have redesigned our regional library to be more accessible to the
general public. The physical lay-out is more welcoming and there is more
and better equipment, including additional computer stations, available frf
the public's use.	'	r
We have already taken a major step towards implementing Public Electronic
Access, one of the high priority actions identified in the President's March 16
1995 statement on Reinventing Environmental Regulation. This month, March
1995, the Public Affairs Branch of our External Programs Division established tw
Listservers on the Internet, which will make public access to a great body of °
information about regional activities much simpler and broader. The two
Listservers are:
EPA-R2-PRESS, which carries all regional news releases, and
EPA-R2-INFO, which carries regional policy speeches, Highlights, the R2
Newsletter, and other materials of public interest including op-ed essavs
fact sheets, etc.	'
Once we have run these Listservers long enough to get potential bugs out, we nl
to publicize their existence widely.	' p|9n
18
-------
D Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan	Customer Focus Q
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. To develop
its customer service plan, Region II intends to follow the steps outlined in
Executive Order 12862:
Identify our customers: through the use of focus groups and other cross-
divisional techniques we will reach understanding and consensus on who
our customers are. We will distinguish our internal customers, external
customers, partners and stakeholders.
Survey our customers: rather than presume that we understand our
customers' needs and desires, we will develop survey techniques that will
clarify what our customers' expectations are. Our customer surveys will
help us determine the level of service (standards) expected of us.
Post service standards: for selected actions, customers will be advised
what level of service they can expect when requesting basic services from
Region II. For example, our Public Information Center might advise
customers that we will send out telephone requested literature within three
days.
Measure results against standards: we will maintain data on how well we
are responding in activities for which we have developed standards. We
will use this data to measure our performance, evaluate resource allocation
and help us focus on where our processes need improvement.
Benchmark against business: we will evaluate both our standards and our
processes against both private industry and other government agencies.
We will make use of information provided by Baldrige Award nominees and
winners.
Survey front line employees re: barriers and ideas: we will encourage front
line employees to discuss their ideas for improving customer service.
Managers will be empowered at lower levels to eliminate or reduce barriers
perceived by employees in their attempt to deliver better customer service.
Provide choice in service and delivery: our analytic processes will be
geared to generate alternative solutions to problems affecting our
customers. We will enhance our processes to include joint discussion and
evaluation with our customers at every possible opportunity.
19
-------
Q Customer Focus
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Provide easy access to information, service and complaint systems: in
addition to opening a Public Information Center, we will install 800
numbers to increase ease of access. We will also publicize more of our
information systems and data bases, so that customers can access
information directly. Standards will be developed on how to handle
customer complaints, and all front line employees will be advised on how
this system works.
Develop a means to address customer complaints: we will work with our
customers in developing an acceptable complaint system.
We are speaking with our customers in the regulated community, state
environmental agencies and environmental groups to help identify EPA regulations
that can be eliminated or modified to reduce the regulatory burden while assuring
that public health and the environment continue to be protected. This outreach is
being carried out in conjunction with the Agency-wide effort to respond to the
President's March 16, 1995 memorandum on regulatory reform. Our efforts to
involve citizens in decisions affecting their community will continue. We also plan
to increase communication and outreach at the local governmental level, including
holding a Small Town Task Force meeting this spring in Syracuse, New York.
Possible barriers to success include the difficulties inherent in developing a
satisfactory customer focus approach to the regulated community; we expect to
concentrate on carrying out statutory and regulatory mandates with clarity and
consistency, while developing and maintaining an awareness of the regulated
community's point of view. We are also concerned with developing a set of
meaningful measures of customer satisfaction that will not become a bookkeeping
burden. While there is currently a small cadre of regional staff with expertise in
the development of sampling and survey tools, benchmarking studies, and the like
additional training will be needed to increase the numbers of employees who have'
these skills. We also anticipate that training will be made available over time to
build on staff's research and analytical abilities. Our resources to devote to
customer surveys and initiati^es are limited, as is our budget for travel, survey
development consultation and training. Like all government agencies, we will be
constrained by OMB's restrictions on conducting surveys. Currently, each survey
will require OMB clearance-
Processes used so far to	goal; processes planned for future use. Region
II has been a charter member o the Agency's Customer Service Work Group, and
many of the approaches used y that group to identify customers, core business
20
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Customer Focus Q
processes, sub-processes and activities will be used in the region. We will use
both surveys and focus groups with employees and customers to develop
standards and appropriate measurement techniques. We will continue to use our
experienced community relations staff to assure citizens are aware of, and involved
in, decisions affecting their community.
Specific deadlines and milestones. The region's customer service plan will evolve
concurrently with the region's reinvention plan. Service standards for such
activities as answering telephones and mail will be in place. All employees will
have received basic training in the importance of a customer-focused approach.
Customers have already had input to the design of the new organization. Regional
employees will have a clear understanding of the value of customers, and the
region's customers will understand that they are valued. Specific milestones are as
follows:
June 1995: complete Customer Focus Plan.
July 1995: begin implementation of Plan.
December 1996: review/evaluation assessment.
21
-------
Q Diversity
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
C. DIVERSITY
Status before reinvention. The Region II workforce is highly diverse in many
attributes including age, gender, race, ethnicity and educational level, reflecting the
diversity of the larger community. With regard to the elements of race and
national origin in particular, the regional workforce is representative of the local-
area civilian labor market at senior staff level, or what we refer to as the
management feeder group. However, there is underrepresentation of minorities
and women in our management ranks, except at the SES-level. The following
chart illustrates the relative composition of the region's workforce in the current
organization at both the managerial levels and senior staff levels (grades GS-12
and 13).
r	PERCENT
ALL MINORITY ¦ WHITE WOMEN ^ WHITE MEN
_
NUMBER
OFEMPL
12S
7
REGION II EMPLOYEE PROFILE
MANAGEMENT POSITIONS
GS
GS
AREA LABOR
• 1990 Census Avatab®y Data (CAD) for N#w York & N«w J«cs»y (Professional Occupations).
Profit roflects «mp»oyo«» at all locations in Bog ion II.
22
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Diversity Q
Region II has shown a commitment to utilizing and valuing diversity through a
variety of programs and initiatives. Recruitment and outreach efforts have been
targeted to attract a high quality, diverse workforce representative of the
community served. The region has also worked continuously to recognize the
contributions and develop the full potential of all its employees. Examples of
developmental programs supported include the Women's Executive Leadership
Program, the Greater Leadership Opportunities Program, and the Certified
Professional Secretaries Program. The region has also actively encouraged and
supported a full range of special emphasis programs including the Black and
Hispanic Employment programs, Women in Science and Engineering, the
Secretarial and Administrative Advisory Council, and the Handicapped Employment
program. The region's special emphasis program encompasses outreach efforts
and cultural events in recognition of such occasions as Black History Month,
Women's History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, and Asian/Pacific Islanders
Heritage Month. The region has sought to achieve the Agency's goal of filling 1%
of its positions with severely handicapped individuals. The region just recently
hired an industrial hygienist with a hearing impairment, bringing to nine the number
of severely handicapped employees in permanent positions.
What we have accomplished so far. During this period of streamlining and
reinvention activity, the region has continued to make significant progress in
meeting affirmative employment goals in external hiring for staff level positions.
This has been achieved despite an overall climate of budget constraints and low
turnover during this period. The region has also presented a number of programs
aimed at increasing awareness of diversity issues. In addition to programs aimed
at the region's own workforce, the region has taken steps to increase sensitivity
and awareness to diversity issues with respect to the various communities served
by the region's programs. One key indicator of the importance given to addressing
community concerns was the establishment of an Environmental Justice
Coordinator position, reporting directly to the Regional Administrator, and which
has recently been filled through promotion of an African-American female attorney.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. The region
will pursue the action items identified in our Affirmative Employment Program. The
loss of supervisory positions resulting from the mandate to halve the total number
of supervisory positions across the federal government will mean that we have a
reduced pool of positions available for promotional opportunities. Promotional
opportunities to positions of influence, such as supervisors, team leaders, and
policy advisors, will also be constrained by the anticipated low rate of turnover in
23
-------
Q Diversity
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
these jobs in today's labor market. Some opportunities are anticipated as a result
of buyouts offered to supervisors which have stimulated some attrition in
cnnervisorv positions. Diversity awareness training vv.ll be extended to all regional
staff^^hich s^ould in itself do much to overcome barners.
Processes used so far to meet the goal? processes planned for future use. In
1993 94 the Streamlining Task Force formed a diversity sub-group which made
recommendations to senior management. In addition, a Diversity Work Group was
formed in 1994 concurrent with the establishment ot the region's Reinvention
Task Force to advise the RA on diversity issues. The Diversity Work Group has
recommended that the region seek to maintain the current managerial diversity
nrofile (23% of all managers) under the new organization while looking for
ooDortunities to increase diversity in the future. It has also made recommendations
with reaard to processes for placing former supervisors within the new
oraanization Other recommendations include the possibility of a pilot leadership
trainino program within the region, the convening of periodic group discussion
sessions to continue the dialogue between managers and employees on diversity,
continued support for the offerings of the Special Emphasis Programs, and
transition counseling for displaced supervisors, secretaries and other employees
whose positions are impacted by realignment. These recommendations have been
ig'eiy accepted by senior management, as noted elsewhere in this report (see
section on Organizational Design). The work group has also provided questions to
be used in informal discussions as part of the supervisory placement process.
Althouoh the work of the Diversity Work Group initially addressed issues related
specifically to the 1:11 ratio, it has begun to address other diversity issues relevant
to reinvention. These include.
innut to the new position descriptions for supervisors to assure the
inclusion of diversity concerns.
Inreach through a diversity program that would include: new employee
orientation; diversity training; diversity "events" (speakers, films,
performances, exhibits/ an-hands meetings, seminars and workshops).
Communication to ^ep employees up-to-date on issues related to
diversity.
Management performance standards that include issues related to diversity.
24
-------
O Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Diversity Q
Diversity training for managers and staff.
Specific deadlines and milestones. The milestones for meeting the challenges of
diversity are intertwined with the region's overall reinvention timeframe. A key
aspect of reinvention will be the consideration of diversity in the process for
placing individuals in supervisory positions and high grade non-supervisory
positions in the new organization. The other principal initiative will be to increase
awareness and appreciation of diversity among all employees through training and
special programs over the next two years. Specific milestones are:
July - September 1995: transition counseling for individuals whose
positions are impacted by realignment (in conjunction with the Employee
Counseling Service).
September 1995: diversity training program chosen and implemented.
January 1997: diversity training of all employees completed.
25
-------
Q Empowerment
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
D. WORKING COLLABORATIVELY
~ EMPOWERMENT
Status before reinvention. While offering employees the opportunity to exercise
initiative and broaden their responsibilities at different levels, Region II has in the
past been relatively conservative in its internal redelegation of formal statutory and
administrative authorities. Several years ago we established EPA's first regional
training program to incorporate core training curricula tailored to the needs of each
employee, at each stage of development, in order to assure that staff receive the
knowledge, skills and abilities necessary for advancement and the assumption of
expanded authority. Full implementation of these plans was hampered, however
by time and funding constraints and lack of consistent supervisory support. In
addition, various directives, handbooks, and user guides have been developed
within the region to enable employees to enlarge their capacity for performing
functions for which they have not received formal training. Developmental and
rotational assignments have also served this purpose for many Region II staff. The
advent of TQM has provided the opportunity for employees to undertake
systematic examinations of work processes and empowered them to implement
substantive changes. Traditional lines of reporting and the region's performance
management system have served as primary accountability mechanisms.
What we have accomplished so far. Specific achievements to date include the
following:
In early 1994, Region ll's Office of Policy and Management (OPM)
undertook a comprehensive review of the levels at which administrative
authorities are exercised, with a view towards redelegating authorities to
the lowest level at which accountability and consistency of application
could be maintained. This review was a direct outgrowth of the
recommendations of the region's Streamlining Task Force, and feedback
from all program divisions was sought. As a result, over 20 administrative
authorities in areas including training, conduct and discipline, time and
attendance, travel, and procurement have been redelegated to lower
managerial decision levels.
The Office of the Regional Administrator and all of the program divisions
have sought opportunities to redelegate statutory authorities as well. Since
January 1994, an additional 10 such authorities have been redelegated;
programs and activities affected include acid rain, underground storage'
26
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Empowerment D
tank, and custom fuel monitoring. Those occupying the authority levels to
which redelegation was proposed were included in the planning and
implementation process.
In September 1994, the region introduced an Employee Exchange Program
(EEP) pilot, open to both supervisors and professional/administrative staff.
The program offers six- to twelve-month details, during which employees
are able to learn about new programs and gain a fresh multi-media
perspective on the region's work. Several years ago, Region H's Office of
Policy and Management (OPM) invited all regional employees to complete a
retention and turnover survey. The EEP Pilot was developed as an
outgrowth of suggestions made in response to the survey.
We have republicized the procedure by which an employee may request
reassignment to another division and developed an applicant supply file so
that requests may remain under consideration pending an opening. As a
result, many more employees are deciding to change the direction of their
careers and a significant percentage of the requests are being
accommodated.
The region's Secretarial and Administrative Advisory Council undertook a
systematic review of policies and procedures and updated and expanded
the region's Administrative Support Guide, consolidating numerous tools
that our administrative support staff requires to do its job and revising out-
of-date procedures; input was sought from many offices during the revision
process. In June 1994, the region issued its first Audit Management
Manual to consolidate and update various policies and procedures.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them.
Region II has participated actively in the agencywide Superfund Delegations
Workgroup; our Emergency and Remedial Response Division (ERRD) is
preparing a comprehensive package of 30 CERCLA regional redelegations,
many of which flow from the changes made at the agency level. ERRD is
proposing that some of these authorities be exercised at the staff level.
The proposed Division of Enforcement and Compliance Assistance (DECA),
Environmental Planning and Protection Division (EPPD), and Division of
Environmental Sciences (DES) will each be encouraged to undertake a
review of existing statutory redelegations with a view to establishing lower
27
-------
~ Empowerment
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q|
authority levels without sacrificing accountability, and to include
representatives of all interdivisional programs in the review. A regional
workgroup will be formed to assure that these redelegations adhere to the
principles set forth in the introduction to the EPA Delegations Manual and
that all authorities required for the new divisions to begin operating are in
place by October 1, 1995. It is anticipated that these redelegations will be
reviewed within the year following the reorganization to determine their
effectiveness and that both management and staff input will be solicited
Further redelegations to lower authority levels within the divisions will be
considered once the divisions have been up and running long enough for
any necessary adjustments (to work processes, lines of authority, scopes
of team activities, etc.) to be made.
The proposed reorganization will also localize considerable additional
authorities in the Region's Caribbean Field Office (to be renamed the
Caribbean Environmental Protection Division), which will be expanding from
its current staff level of 23 positions to approximately 70 positions. This
expansion will occur gradually over the course of three years (FY'95-98)
A strategic plan for this expansion is currently being developed.
We plan to make placements of the EEP applicants this May and assess th
effectiveness of the pilot a year later. As the program is dependent upon °
making two- or three-way swaps of employees, mismatches in the
qualifications or preferences of individual participants pose a potential
barrier to enabling all applicants to participate.
We plan to revise our branch-specific core training plans in the wake of the
regional reorganization and will encourage greater staff input. The Human
Resources staff will make available to all employees information on career
opportunities within EPA and will provide advice and counsel on career
planning to all employees who desire this service. We further plan to
encourage offices to employ such career development tools/techniques as
temporary assignments and informal mentoring, and we anticipate that the
team-oriented structure inherent in our proposed reorganization will
facilitate these efforts. Training in team-building is a means by which we
hope to surmount any barriers related to the transition to wide-scale team
approaches.
We plan to implement nonsupervisory career paths running parallel to
management career paths; our reorganization proposal includes various
28
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Empowerment Q
newly-established GS-13 through GS-15 nonsupervisory positions. We will
invite senior-level employees to designate preferences for reassignment in
the new organization and provide avenues for other employees to express
preferences to the degree feasible. As to the degree to which preferences
will be honored, the need to maintain program momentum during and after
the reorganization is a critical consideration.
We are participating actively in the work of the Task Force to Reduce
Internal Mandates (TRIM); our regional TRIM workgroup has inventoried
559 mandates (7997 pages). We anticipate that once the TRIM
elimination/ consolidation/ revision process is completed we will be left
with a more manageable body of directives. Documents will provide clear,
outcome-oriented guidance to employees, while empowering them to make
independent decisions as to how best to achieve those outcomes. Because
mandates will include measures for success, accountability will be
considerably enhanced.
We plan to undertake a review of our performance appraisal process, but a
barrier to immediate action here is that the Office of Personnel
Management has not yet finalized its new guidelines on the subject. We
also plan to use a team approach to evaluate performance assessment
products currently on the market and select, customize, and implement the
most attractive option. To the degree possible, we will incorporate
employee feedback of supervisors as a feature of the system.
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use. Past
processes have proven highly effective and will be continued in the coming years,
including:
employee surveys, to help determine staff preferences and concerns
regarding levels of empowerment and training needs;
involvement of affected staff in any teams or workgroups established
pursuant to decision-making on future delegations, procedures, etc.; and
training in team-building, to enhance all employees' skills in group problem-
solving, coaching, mentoring, and the types of leadership abilities that team
approaches rely on for their success.
29
-------
Q Empowerment
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Specific deadlines and milestones.
Redefegations of Authority:
April 1995: regional workgroup to be convened to develop redelegations
for the newly-established divisions and revise redelegations for continuina
divisions to reflect changes to those divisions' internal structures.
October 1995: new and revised redelegations signed by the Regional
Administrator.
October 1996: divisions solicit managerial and staff feedback regarding
the effectiveness of delegations implemented 10/01/95 and suggestions
regarding opportunities for further redelegation.
April 1997 and ongoing: further redelegations are implemented.
Employee Exchange Program (EEP):
May 1995: make Employee Exchange Program (EEP) pilot placements.
June 1996: solicit evaluations by EEP pilot participants.
September 1996: decide whether to establish EEP as a permanent
program and what program revisions are required.
Other Milestones Related to Empowerment:
October 1995: reorganization-related reassignments implemented,
honoring employee preferences to the degree possible.
January 1996: revisions to core training plans completed.
April 1996: revised performance management system initiated.
September 1996: TRIM process of eliminating/consolidating/ revising
mandates completed.
30
-------
~ Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Teams O
~ TEAMS
Status before reinvention. Region II has taken a number of steps to cultivate a
team culture that maximizes the talents of its employees and achieves results in an
efficient and cost-effective manner. Our vision identifies the goal we are striving
to achieve, i.e., that we operate as a team of dedicated professionals. We believe
that this is a desired goal shared by most Region II employees. Up until now, the
region has used teams primarily on an ad hoc basis, with a smaller number of
permanent teams created. When a special project, problem or initiative has arisen,
teams have been created to address the issues and present recommendations,
often to senior leadership. One of the region's early experiences in fielding a multi-
divisional team was our Comparative Risk Ranking Project, initiated in 1989. This
project brought together staff from across the region to research and rank the
comparative risks presented by an array of environmental hazards to public health,
ecosystems and the economy in Region II. Other more recent permanent teams
have been established to deal with ongoing issues such as multi-media
enforcement, ground water protection, risk assessment, environmental justice and
the Catano multi-media initiative in Puerto Rico. The region has used ad hoc teams
to investigate and formulate approaches to initiatives such as streamlining and
reinvention, and to review grant proposals for new programs such as
Environmental Education and Environmental Justice through Pollution Prevention
(EJP2).
These types of teams in Region II are almost always interdivisional, and
participants come from a mix of job categories. Our teams are characterized by
engineers, scientists, lawyers and administrative personnel working together to
address regional concerns. We are currently addressing the issues related to
diversity in a similar manner. Presentations to senior managers and regional
employees, and the writing of team reports, are the responsibilities of all team
members, not just the team leaders. Team members are responsible for gathering
ideas from their colleagues and including them in the team's deliberations.
In addition to the RA-chartered teams, the region houses a number of Quality
Action Teams. The region has quickly adopted one of Total Quality Management's
(TQM) most effective techniques, the Quality Action Team (QAT). QATs are
functioning in all divisions and across divisions. They are addressing process
problems as well as organizational culture issues. We have had approximately
forty QATs in the region, some of which have devised improvements to important
processes such as correspondence, responses to Freedom of Information Act
requests and employee orientation.
31
-------
Q Teams
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan (1
Other QATs have addressed very specific problems:
The Low Levels Metals QAT has designed the low levels laboratory space,
and identified the necessary equipment/ instrumentation and supplies to be
purchased. An evaluation of methods for aqueous samples has been
completed and is being tested.
The Contract Laboratory Program (CLP) Tracking System QAT has
imoroved the tracking system for field samples to address key elements of
the data review Process flow charts and a protocol have been developed.
Process analysis has resulted in a reduction in the number of data reviews
anri a streamlined process. The CLP data base has been placed on the LAN
and will be accessible for use. The QAT's success can be measured by the
roH.mtinn in the number of days, on average, to process field data, which
hasbeen Educed from 225 in 1991 «o 62 in 1994.
The Position Management System Development QAT was established to
riPveloD a user friendly position management system that meets all
Hiv/icinn«t' needs and eliminates the need for the Office of Policy and
Management to distribute printed reports. Version 2.0 of the On-Line
Position Management System is installed in every division. New User
Guides have been prepared and distributed, along with a new full-color
brochure/ready reference guide that describes the system's features and
screens.
The Trainina QAT focused on improving training in the Water Management
rv sion The team developed modifications to the Health and Safety
Course to tailor it to the program-specific needs of Water Management.
Annual updates are anticipated to keep pace with programmatic changes.
The Enforcement-of-°rders QAT was a cross-functional team composed of
papn and ORC staff working to improve the quality and consistency of
Potential Responsible Party (PRP) deliverables. The group analyzed the
ess used in	enforce compliance orders. Based on this
euahiation it developed a comprehensive "tool kit" to enable Remedial
Project Managers (RPM'S> to more effectively track enforcement action
progress.
The qamDlina AnalVsis Pr°ject Plan Action Team, consisting of ERRD and
Environmental Services Division (ESD) staff, analyzed the process of
32
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Teams ~
developing and approving sampling and analysis plans for federal facility,
remedial and enforcement lead sites. The group prepared standard
operating procedures for each type of lead to assist RPM's in managing
sampling associated with their sites; it recommended the use of
contractors to review sampling analysis plans and developed a checklist for
this review; it recommended that ESD conduct a one-day seminar on
Quality Assurance for regional employees and contractors; and it helped
develop a sampling plan tracking system accessible to both divisions.
The region's honor awards program is focused on the accomplishment of teams
rather than individuals. Virtually all FY'94 medals awarded by the region were for
team accomplishments.
What we have accomplished so far. The region's confidence in the team approach
pre-dates reinvention. We continue to refine our problem-solving tools and add
new ones to our repertory. We are training our TQM facilitators to work with fast-
paced, tight-turn-around teams. We are seeking training for team members in
problem-solving and inter-personal skills.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. Streamlining
and reinvention have created both the need and the opportunity to expand the use
of teams in the region. Until now, most teams have been issue-specific, created to
address a single problem or program area. The reinvented Region II will have
permanent teams in each division and across divisions. This will be a major
transition and will cause the way we carry out our day-to-day activities to change.
We are currently developing position descriptions for team leaders. Initially, many
of the individuals selected for these positions will come from our existing
supervisory cadre. However, it is anticipated that other teams will be created as
the reorganized divisions begin to function. As non-supervisors, team leaders will
facilitate the region's achievement of a 1:11 supervisory ratio. Our training office
is researching appropriate courses for our future team leaders. Another team is
investigating the availability of transition counseling for employees experiencing
difficulties with reinvention. All-supervisors meetings have been held to explain
the dynamics of transition to a team-focused organization. One barrier we will
need to address is how performance evaluations of team members will be done. In
the past, evaluations have primarily been based on the immediate supervisor's
assessment of the individual's work; evaluating team performance will bring a new
challenge to the region, one we have just begun to examine. Our planned review
of the region's performance appraisal process (see Empowerment section) will
address this issue.
33
-------
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Q Teams		
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use. As
described above, we will continue to identify the knowledge, skills and abilities
most needed by team leaders and team participants, and seek out appropriate
training courses-as well as practical experiences-to help all regional staff build
appropriate competencies.
Our proposed reorganization will make use of permanent teams for the first time.
Over 50 teams are anticipated to be established as part of the new regional
structure. Examples of the types of teams proposed are:
In the Environmental Planning and Protection Division, a Permits Integration
team will coordinate the activities of multi-media permitting and provide a
link with Headquarters on emerging permit issues. The team will also
create opportunities for a focus on efficiencies for the regulated community
and state permitting agencies.
Press and Writing teams in the External Programs Division will remove a
layer of management for these functions which require direct
communication with the RA and DRA.
In the Division of Enforcement and Compliance Assistance, we are
proposing media-specific branches, in addition to a branch for multi-media
compliance assistance. Each of the media-specific branches will have
special purpose teams that will report directly to the Branch Chief and will
focus on pollutants/areas of regional concern, including RCRA special
wastes, lead and asbestos (consolidating the NESHAPS and AHERA
programs). The Compliance Assistance Branch will also have teams,
including a data management team that will provide consolidated data and
file management for the enforcement programs.
In the Office of Regional Counsel, several teams are proposed. A
Superfund Cost Recovery team will coordinate cost recovery policy, review
of guidance or rules, and monitor cost recovery activities. Another team
for Superfund Administrative Improvements will work with the Emergency
and Remedial Response Division (ERRD), Headquarters and national
workgroups on development of policy and guidance, identification of
candidate sites in Region II, and implementation of the administrative
improvements.
34
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Teams ~
ERRD will utilize the team concept to achieve program goals in the smaller
programs/special emphasis areas, including the Oil Spills and EPCRA/Title III
programs, to provide timely and effective emergency response to
hazardous waste releases or oil spills that threaten human health or the
environment.
A Geographic Information Systems (GIS) team will cut across two OPM
branches, while working with all of the program divisions, to assure that
the region's GIS systems development and data acquisition are fully
integrated and compatible with the analytic needs of its user-community,
including regional programs, state and local partners, and Headquarters.
This team will be positioned to effectively utilize GIS capabilities in support
of Agency or region-wide analytic activities, such as those related to the
Government Performance and Results Act, Environmental Justice,
Environmental Indicators and State of the Region reports.
A series of overlapping teams in the Human Resources Branch, covering
such areas as training, recruitment and classification will be created. This
innovative arrangement responds to the need for a highly versatile staff
that can be deployed quickly to meet changing circumstances. For
example, a staff skilled in both recruitment and classification, traditionally
separate areas, can focus on recruitment when filling positions is a priority,
but can move into the classification mode when a major reorganization
necessitates the classification of large numbers of new positions.
Specific deadlines and milestones.
June 1995: position descriptions for team leaders will be completed.
July 1995: review of position descriptions of current supervisors, and their
requests to be reassigned, will be done.
September 1995: team-related training will begin.
October 1996: teams will be an integral part of the organization.
35
-------
D Management Behavior
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
~ MANAGEMENT BEHAVIOR
Status before reinvention. Before reinvention, Region II had taken some steps
toward a more streamlined work environment, especially with respect to the use of
teams and a more participatory style of management. Reinvention has provided an
opportunity to accelerate this process. In the past, our supervisors were selected
more for their program expertise than for their ability to coach and empower their
staffs. One reason for this was the rapid growth the region experienced in the
1980's which was accompanied by the promotion of some staff to supervisory
positions early in their careers. While it would be an exaggeration to describe the
region's systems as purely command-and-control, it would be accurate to say that
the systems were generally hierarchical.
In the past, the region has employed a variety of strategies to reshape and
influence the behavior of its managers toward a more participative style of
management. Steps have included use of Framework for Achieving Managerial
Excellence (FAME) criteria in making selections for supervisory positions; assuring
that managers receive appropriate training such as Understanding Supervision,
Keys to Managerial Excellence, and the Management Development Seminars
sponsored by the Office of Personnel Management; and modification of
performance standards of supervisors and managers to include the generic criteria
for management of human resources. Supervisors have been offered management
training developed by Zenger-Miller, and senior managers attended EPA's executive
course in TQM.
These actions, while for the most part not very recent, nevertheless have laid the
groundwork for further steps that we will undertake to encourage managers (many
of whom participated in the earlier training) to delegate authority, develop a sense
of empowerment within their staffs, and learn the skills to be effective facilitators
and coaches.
The increased use of teams, both ad hoc and more formal Quality Action Teams, in
which supervisors and non-supervisors work together as equal team members, has
allowed employees to benefit from the coaching skills that experienced supervisors
have to offer, and both staff and supervisors to become comfortable with the role
of coach. A number of supervisors have become TQM facilitators, including two
division directors and one deputy division director.
What we have accomplished so far. The reinvention process itself is perhaps the
best example of the transformation of management behavior in Region II. The
36
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Management Behavior Q
process has been characterized by managers actively involved in facilitating and
co-chairing the various reinvention activities that have brought us to this report.
As examples, managers have been active in our "inreach" programs, serving often
as co-facilitators of the focus groups held during streamlining and reinvention.
Senior managers have repeatedly gone out to all staff seeking ideas and opinions
on various reinvention issues. In this mode, they have viewed themselves as
processors and evaluators of ideas and suggestions. Within each division, branch
chiefs and section chiefs were encouraged to lead discussions with their
employees on how the principles of reinvention could be applied to their
organizational unit.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. Our
experiences with and research into Total Quality Management have opened the
door for us to innovations in supervisory techniques. Reinvention, and the need to
achieve a 1:11 supervisory ratio, have given us the opportunity to recreate
supervision in Region II. The region's supervisors will find it necessary to oversee
the work of twice as many people as before. Skills that may have been untested
in the past, such as the ability to delegate work effectively or to build consensus
and trust among larger groups of employees, must move to the fore if reinvention
is to work. We are developing a supervisory placement plan that will give
consideration to interpersonal skills and the ability to lead-rather than command-
one's staff. Position descriptions for both supervisors and team leaders will
emphasize the need to coach and facilitate. Commensurate critical job elements
will transform our concepts of effective supervisory behavior and show that the
region is taking its reinvention seriously. The region will also expand the sources
of input for performance evaluation. Peers and subordinates will be provided
opportunities to offer insight to a supervisor's performance.
We recognize that most supervisors will not be able to assume their new
responsibilities without training in their new roles, and we are preparing to deliver
the necessary training. Budgetary and time constraints may be a factor in our
ability to fully implement our training goals. In Region II, we will expect our
supervisors to serve as coaches and facilitators to our customers as well. We
hope that our new approach to supervision will enable our customers to work more
effectively with us.
We anticipate that some supervisors in the reinvented Region II will prove to be
more effective facilitators and coaches than others. Our intention is, therefore, to
work with all managers, supervisors, and team leaders to enhance their skills.
37
-------
Q Management Behavior
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use. We
know that a great deal of knowledge resides in our managers already. The
environment created by reinvention will allow skills heretofore under-utilized to be
tested and refined. Although some training will probably be necessary, discussion
and support groups may prove to be as beneficial and certainly more cost
effective.
Specific deadlines and milestones.
September 1995: assess coaching and facilitating skills.
Continuous: develop and/or procure necessary training in
coaching/facilitation skills.
September 1995: develop appropriate performance evaluation system for
supervisors in a reinvented EPA.
October 1996: evaluate performance.
38
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Organizational Design ~
E. ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN
Current Organization. Region II is currently organized primarily along media lines
with separate divisions for Water (drinking, ground and surface water programs),
Air and Waste Management (air, radiation, RCRA and UST/LUST programs), and
Emergency and Remedial Response (Superfund, Oil Spills and EPCRA Title III
programs). Compliance and enforcement activities are carried out in both the
media divisions and the Office of Regional Counsel which houses all legal
resources. The Environmental Services Division provides field monitoring,
laboratory analysis and quality assurance for the media programs; it also manages
the pesticides and toxics programs. The Office of Policy and Management includes
management, policy and planning components plus such diverse programs as
environmental impacts, Indians and pollution prevention. Press, intergovernmental,
congressional and community relations programs are carried out by the External
Programs Division. The Caribbean Field Office, located in Puerto Rico, supports
regional efforts in the water, air, pesticides and hazardous waste programs in
Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The current regional structure has been in place since the early 1980's and most of
its basic components existed in the mid-1970's (in the early 1970's when EPA
was created, integrated program divisions were in place in Region II, but this was
more a factor of size and the fact that we were implementing only two major
pieces of environmental legislation -- the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act; as
other major environmental legislation was passed the region moved to its current
medium-specific design). Since the early 1980's, there have been a number of
sub-divisional realignments and some shifting of smaller programs or components
thereof, among divisions. The divisional structures, most particularly the addition
of ERRD, have also undergone change as a result of growth in the mid-to-late-
1980's, and more recently, changes have been considered as the region's resource
levels have begun to decline.
Analysis of the Need for Change. The current organizational structure has proven
highly efficient to-date for single-medium, single-statute program delivery.
Increasingly, however, the region has needed to integrate its activities across
programs, and this has necessitated establishing a number of organizational
overlays, primarily multi-divisional workgroups, to bridge the single-medium
divisional structures. Key examples are the Comparative Risk Assessment Work
Group, the Ground Water Steering Committee, the Multi-Program Enforcement
Steering Committee and the Enforcement Management Council. Some of the new
organizational constructs have worked better than others, and we have used the
39
-------
Q Organizational Design
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
experience gained from our most successful ventures to guide other similar efforts.
Staff involved in these multi-program workgroups have also gained valuable
experience in other disciplines and in working in teams.
With a view toward the future, however, it has become cfear that more and more,
the Agency must be able to provide integrated environmental program delivery.
Increasingly our focus both now and in the future will be on enhanced community
and place-based environmental protection, risk reduction, environmental justice,
integrated pollution prevention, compliance assistance as part of a comprehensive
compliance assurance program, and performance partnerships with our states and
other program grantees. These strategic themes will require more effective ways
of integrating our single-medium program activities and working with our state and
local partners.
It was with these concepts in mind that the decision was reached to reorganize
Region 11 around a fundamentally different construct than before - one of an
integrated multi-media approach. As described in the introduction, the
reorganization proposal for Region II centers on two new multi-media divisions --
Enforcement and Compliance Assistance and Environmental Planning and
Protection - that will give us an enhanced ability to provide enforcement balanced
with compliance assistance, and ecological multi-program planning that is an
integral part of protecting public health and the environment. Charts showing the
new organizational structures within each division are included in the Appendices
to this report, along with a draft regional functional statement that more fully
describes the'roles and responsibilities of each division.
Reinvention Task Force and Diversity Work Group Recommendations. The
recommendations of the Reinvention Task Force and the Diversity Work Group
were an important consideration of senior management as it developed the
reorganization proposal and framework for reinvention of Region If.
The Reinvention Task Force analyzed four reorganization strategies: media-based;
functional; geographic; and ecosystem. Within these constructs, further
consideration was given to whether there should be a separate enforcement
division (with or without attorneys) or enforcement units (with or without
attorneys) located within the programmatic divisions. Each option was then
evaluated against five criteria: the extent to which it was mission-related; its
implementability; the impacts on human resources; the extent to which it promoted
streamlining; and its enforcement effectiveness.
40
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Organizational Design Qj
The Task Force's evaluation of the four strategies led it to recommend as its
preferred option, a modified status quo -- i.e., retain the media-specific focus but
with an enhanced enforcement unit within each media division. The Task Force
concluded that the media approach offered the most benefits to the region by
minimizing risks while allowing maximum flexibility for future changes. It was also
identified as the option most compatible with EPA's Headquarters structure and
those of the states (although the Task Force did not so note, the New Jersey
Department of Environmental Protection is structured along functional lines as
well). The functional approach, which is the one that most closely aligns with the
reorganization proposal that has been selected by Region ll's senior management,
was ranked second by the Task Force. Its key positive feature was that it could
provide increased capacity for ecosystem protection, multi-media program
development and cross-media enforcement; its most significant challenge would be
the difficulty of implementation.
The Task Force also recommended that the region establish cross-media teams to
address high priority goals in areas such as environmental justice, pollution
prevention, multi-media enforcement, state/tribal relations, federal facilities, GIS
and risk assessment. Implementation of a multiple career-path program, leading up
to the GS-15 level for team leaders, experts, advisors, consultants, coordinators,
etc., was also suggested to facilitate the change from the current hierarchical
organization to a more flattened structure at the 1:11 supervisor-to-staff ratio.
The Diversity Work Group made five recommendations to the Reinvention Task
Force and senior management:
~	To maintain diversity while streamlining, it recommended that conversions
into non-supervisory positions be made from the entire management pool (i.e., GS-
13/14/15) so as to maintain the current percentage (23%) of minorities and
women remaining supervisors after reorganization.
~	To enhance diversity in the management ranks, it recommended the region
select a vision for the future to increase the affirmative employment profile from
23% to 34%.
~	To overcome resistance to streamlining, it recommended that, to the
degree possible, the region provide attractive career choices to current supervisors
and senior support staff who would be affected by reductions in the managerial
ranks; it also recommended that the region provide a comprehensive plan for career
and transition counseling for those affected by job conversions.
41
-------
Organizational Design	»' Reinvention Implementation Plan
».	To assure continued involvement of the Diversity Work Group, it
recommended that the group review and provide input to any new organizational
structure so as to make recommendations for increased diversity.
».	To assure continued communication it recommended that senior
management report back to the region on the impacts of reinvention on the
affirmative employment program demographics, once decisions on management
placement had been made.
Decisions of the Senior Management Team. As noted in the Introduction, the
senior management team, accompanied by the Co-chairs of the Reinvention Task
Force (the Diversity Work Group was also represented as one of its Co-chairs was
the Emergency and Remedial Response Division Director) held a two-day retreat in
mid-November where it debated various organizational options. As directed by
Headquarters, the region needed to decide, at a minimum, how it would adapt to
the new Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assistance (OECA). Regions had
been given a series of options ranging from designating an Enforcement
Coordinator unit reporting to the DRA, with enhanced enforcement units within
each media division, to creating a fully integrated multi-program enforcement
division (with or without attorneys).
After much consideration of the pros and cons of the various enforcement options,
the senior leadership decided that the optimum choice, with a view toward the
long-term, would be to most closely align the region's structure with that of OECa
by integrating all of the media enforcement programs (i.e., except Superfund, Oil
and EPCRA Title III) in a new enforcement division. This new division would also
be better able to focus on compliance assistance, consistent with the Agency'
strategic plan and the intent of the Administration's current regulatory reform
efforts.
With respect to the placement of attorneys, it was decided that the region should
retain a separate legal division. This is an organizing principle that has worked
effectively in Region II over a long period of time, and it was deemed critical that
regional lines of reporting for legal activities be from attorney to attorney. The
region was able to accomplish this by maintaining an Office of Regional Counsel,
reporting to an SES-level attorney, that was separate from its programmatic
enforcement and compliance activities.
Once these decisions were made, the effect of shifting each of the media
enforcement branches out of its current division enabled the region to achieve
42
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Organizational Design 0
another strategic goal of rei'nventiorr - to create ar, integrated multi media program
division Among ttta factots tha; made this a logical and attractive opiior were the
opportunities it presented to move the region toward enhanced mufti-media
program planning and community and place-based environmental protection,
consistent with the themes identified in the Agency's Strategic Plan. A critical
7ac\cr affecting this decision was trie higrh degree to which Region 11 programs are
cie egated to very capable states. From a "numbers" perspective alone, once the
enforcement units ware removed, the remaining cadre of staff ir. some divisions
was insufficient to maintain a full divisional structure. Accordingly, it was decided
ta also crEate a mult-media environmental program division 
-------
D Organizational Design
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
focus be maintained to assure accountability and effective program
implementation.
The recommendations of the Diversity Work Group were largely accepted by seni
management. Specifically, it was agreed that: (1) conversions to non-supervisor^
positions would be made from the entire management pool (GS-13/14-/15)
although the conversion percentages of employees at each grade level would not
be equivalent; (2) as a goal, the region would seek to maintain its current
managerial diversity profile of 23% and to achieve greater diversity over the lonq-
term; (3) the new organizational structure would be designed to provide attractive
career choices to current supervisors and senior support staff; (4) the region woulri
provide career and transition counseling for employees affected by job conversion .
(5) the Diversity Work Group would continue to be consulted on diversity issues S'
with respect to the new organizational structure; and (6) senior management
would report back to all employees on the impact of reinvention on the region's
affirmative employment profile after decisions on management placement were
made.
In addition, senior management agreed to use some of the questions provided bv
the Diversity Work Group for the informal discussions that will be part of the
supervisory placement process. The questions are designed to assess sensitivity
to diversity issues.
The following sections lay out in more detail how the organizational design
selected by the region will achieve the goals of reinvention and streamlining.
44
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Reduced Organizational Layers Q
~ REDUCED ORGANIZATIONAL LAYERS
Status before reinvention. The most common organizational pattern within Region
II provides for three layers of supervision between the line worker and the Regional
Administrator. The layers consist of a section chief, branch chief and division
director. In the case of the Emergency and Remedial Response Division (ERRD)
there are four levels, a section chief, branch chief, a deputy or associate division
director (responsible for a segment of the program) and the division director.
Previous organizational decisions gave principal weight to achieving a appropriate
span of control rather than to reducing layers of supervision. The additional layer
of supervision in ERRD was approved as a consequence of several considerations:
the large size of this division (it has more employees than any other in the region);
the geographical separation of the Remedial Project Managers (New York City) and
the On-Scene Coordinators (Edison, NJ); and the managerial focus achieved by
establishing separate deputy division directors for New York programs and New
Jersey programs.
What we have accomplished so far. The region's February 1994 Streamlining
Report recommended that there be no more than two layers of supervision
between the line employee and the Regional Administrator. The Report also
recommended that supervisory positions be structured in such a way that they
perform only essential supervisory and managerial functions.
Building on the February 1994 Report, the region's reinvention task force and the
region's senior leadership team developed the concept that a new category of high
grade non-supervisory positions should be established that would perform
functions such as serving as a policy advisor, participating in national workgroups,
or "managing" a project or program without direct supervisory responsibility over
project members.
Establishment of these new "positions of influence" would enable the region to
achieve the goal of structuring supervisory positions to perform only essential
supervisory and managerial functions. Supervisors would accordingly be freed up
to manage a larger number of employees, thereby requiring fewer layers of
supervision. To-date, we have identified and are (or have) filled some new
"positions of influence," including the Environmental Justice Coordinator and
Special Projects Coordinator positions located in the Regional Administrator's
Office, a Virgin Islands Liaison position to be stationed in the Virgin Islands, and for
the interim period until our reorganization is in place, an Enforcement Coordinator
reporting to the Deputy Regional Administrator.
45
-------
~ Reduced Organizational Layers	Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. The reai
senior leadership team has agreed upon a new organizational structure which
reduce layers of supervision. While the total number of branches region-wide w II
not change dramatically, there has been a significant reduction in the number of
deputies (from 11 to 6) and a major reduction in the number of sections (from 83
to 38).	^
The proposed consolidation of the four deputy/associate director positions in ERi*n
to a single deputy will effectively eliminate a layer of supervision in that division
In the current structure, each deputy/associate is responsible for a portion of th *
program and thus represents an intervening reporting level. By contrast a full °
deputy with authority to act for the director on all aspects of the division's
programs constitutes a single reporting level with the director. With regard to all
the larger divisions we have recognized the need for a deputy who is empowereri
to direct operations in the absence of the director.
Under the proposal, the External Programs Division will eliminate a deputy and
consolidate the current three branch structure into two branches. The Office of
Policy and Management will reduce management layers overall by elimnating
sections and promoting use of flexible work teams. The Division of Environment
Science will consolidate eight sections into three. The Division of Enforcement
Compliance Assistance will rely heavily on team based work units below the 9nd
Branch level. Reducing layers has proven more difficult in the Environmental
Planning and Protection Division because of its large size relative to other divisio
and the large variety of program segments included. Still, the division will utilize^
team structures on a broad basis to reduce the need for subordinate supervisors
wherever possible. Throughout the proposed structure, a high percentage of
employees will work in team based work units rather than in the traditional sectir*
level organizations characteristic of the current organization.	n
Under the new organization, sections will largely be replaced by a variety of team
based structures. These new structures will be of varying types ranging from
those overseen by matrix managers to self-directed work teams. Work is under
way to complete development of new position descriptions defining the revised
role of supervisors and managers in the new structure and to develop position
descriptions for the new category of high grade positions which will serve as noli
advisors, matrix managers and team leaders.	V
Examples of these new positions include three senior policy advisors-for the air
water and RCRA programs respectively--in the Environmental Planning and
46
-------
~ Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Reduced Organizational Layers Q
Protection Division, and three matrix managers--for strategic integration,
accelerated clean-up/stabilization, and remedy selection/design and contruction--in
the Emergency and Remedial Response Division.
Barriers to reducing organizational layers include concern that a decreased
supervisor-to-staff ratio may not be appropriate for a highly technical agency such
as EPA and that such a decrease may lead to a decline in internal controls and the
quality of the Agency's work product. The reduction in supervisory postions and
new reporting relationships are also expected to have a negative impact on
employee morale at least in the short term.
The tendency to replace first-line supervisors with team leader positions as the
most expedient way of achieving the 1:11 supervisor-to-staff ratio may also serve
as a barrier of sorts to fully achieving the goals of a flatter organization if the team
leader positions continue to perform numerous pseudo-supervisory functions and in
effect constitute an intervening layer between staff and the officially designated
first-line supervisor. For this reason, steps are being taken to establish non-
traditional structures such as cross-divisional teams for environmental justice and
pollution prevention, a self-directed technical support team in ERRD, a system of
overlapping teams in the Human Resources Branch, and teams for geographical
information systems and analytical projects which combine personnel from the
Policy, Planning and Evaluation Branch and the Information Systems Branch. We
also need to devise appropriate ways for supervisors to evaluate the performance
of team members.
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use.
Reduction in organizational layers has been a principal theme of the region's
reinvention effort and has been addressed continuously throughout the process.
The region has actively sought out ideas and suggestions for achieving a flatter
organizational structure from its employees.
The Streamlining Task Force, established in 1993, offered numerous creative
suggestions, and the region's Streamlining Plan of February 1994 laid out the basic
strategy for achieving this goal. The Plan implemented a set of interim position
management guidelines and recommended a number of organizational principles
including greater use of team leaders and the piloting of self-directed work teams.
The Reinvention Task Force built on this earlier work and developed formal
organizational options for consideration by the region's senior leadership team. To
assist the Reinvention Task Force in its work, the region hired two management
47
-------
~ Reduced Organizational Layers	Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
consultants, one familiar with EPA programs and the other a participant in the V|c
President's National Performance Review. The consultants provided the group
with background information on the experiences of other organizations as well as
their expert opinion on organizational principles.
Throughout the entire process, staff were kept informed of the work being done
and their suggestions were sought through focus groups, all employee meetings
and the anonymous LAN suggestion box. As the final organizational details are
worked out, the region will continue to communicate fully regarding all steps of the
process and provide additional opportunities for employee feedback.
Specific deadlines and milestones:
March 1995: distribute placement plan to all supervisors inviting them to
indicate their preferences for positions in the new organization.
May 1995: announce proposed GS-15 placements.
June 1995: announce proposed GS-14 placements.
July 1995: announce proposed placements for current GS-13 supervisors
July 1995: submit formal reorganization plan to Headquarters.
October 1995: implement regional reorganization.
48
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
1:11 Supervisor-to-Employee Ratio Q
~ 1:11 SUPERVISOR- TO-EMPL 0 YEE RA TIO
Status before reinvention. When the Region II Streamlining Plan was issued in
February 1994, there were (excluding the Office of Regional Counsel based on an
Agency decision to count these positions in the OECA totals) 134 supervisors and
749 other staff on board, a ratio of 1:5.6. In order to achieve the target ratio of
1:11 in the Agency's streamlining plan, based on staffing levels as of February
1994, the region estimated it would have to reduce the number of supervisors and
managers from 134 to 74, a total of 60 positions.
It was noted at that time that by focusing only on EPA on-board staff, the ratio did
not reflect the total demand on supervisors for oversight of work performed by
other personnel such as Senior Environmental Employment Program (SEEP) staff,
volunteers, and contractors. At that time, Region II had 45 SEEP staff and
approximately 73 contractor staff working on-site. The ratio also did not reflect
full utilization of the region's authorized FTE ceiling; in February 1994 the region
estimated its authorized ceiling would support 40 additional positions (which were
vacant due to budgetary constraints).
In examining its ability to achieve a 1:11 ratio, the region noted that the current
low rates of attrition it had been experiencing for the last several years were likely
to continue. Therefore retirements were not viewed as likely to achieve the
needed supervisory reductions. The implementation of a federal buy-out program
combined with an early-out option, which was under consideration by the
Administration, while expected to help, would still not enable the region to meet
the required number of supervisory reductions.
The region identified a three-tiered approach focused on voluntary actions to
achieve the 1:11 ratio that included: developing an incentives program to
encourage voluntary movement out of supervisory positions; applying interim
position management guidelines as vacancies occured in the management ranks;
and ensuring a comprehensive look at organizational redesign and reengineering
based on streamlining principles and Agency guidance.
The incentives component was to include encouraging voluntary managerial
reassignments to non-managerial positions as well as capitalizing on government-
wide incentives programs (buy-out). Based on supervisory feedback, the region
was aware that alternatives offered to current supervisors would need to be
accompanied by an assurance that reassignments would be into meaningful
positions that were accurately classified.
49
-------
~ 1:11 Supervisor-to-Employee Ratio Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
Interim position management guidelines were imposed that required all newly
vacant managerial/supervisory positions to be reviewed for possible elimination or
consolidation with other positions. All permanent promotions into
management/supervisory positions were frozen, and management vacancies were
to be filled through reassignments where-ever possible. Temporary promotions
were to be utilized under carefully defined conditions to provide essential
management support and developmental opportunities for employees with high
potential for future management positions.
What we have accomplished so far. Since the Streamlining Report was issued,
incremental progress has been made toward achieving the 1:11 goal. Under the
Buyout Authority issued to Region II, 10 supervisors/managers accepted buyout
offers (of these, 9 were with retirement or early out authority). One supervisor
opted for the buyout without retirement eligibility. Under the second window
opened in March for additional buyouts, Region II anticipates one other supervisor
to take the buyout option. It should be noted that the majority of the 10
supervisory buyouts were asked to extend their employment in the interests of the
Agency and only 2 have actually been separated; a third has been reassigned into
a non-supervisory position pending retirement. All of the remaining 7 buyouts will
be separated by January 1997 (some are scheduled to leave by January 1996).
As of January 1995, not including Regional Counsel, the region had 125
supervisors. In addition to the buyouts, there has been some limited attrition in the
supervisory ranks since February 1994, with 4 employees having left the region's
rolls. Also, 2 employees who had been temporarily promoted to supervisory
positions have reverted to their permanent non-supervisory status. Thus, since
February 1994 the number of supervisors has been reduced by 9, and another 7
are scheduled to leave, for a total of 16. It should be noted that not all of the
supervisory positions vacated through buy-outs or attrition will be eliminated; those
positions anticipated to remain in the new organizational structure will be
backfilled.
One other major change that has also occurred is the Agency-wide contractor
conversion initiative, which added 54 positions to the region's on-board staffing
authority, thus improving our supervisor-to-staff ratio.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. In
developing our reorganization, and in particular, in identifying the number of
supervisors that could be supported at the 1:11 ratio, we recognized that given the
continual movement of staff both into and out of the region, we needed to
50
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan	1:11 Supervisor-to-Employee Ratio Q
establish a consistent baseline of positions to calculate the ratio. Accordingly, we
identified in this baseline all on-board employees as of January 1995, all contractor
conversion positions not yet filled, and all other permanent positions authorized for
hiring. Using this position baseline, the region's current ratio (excluding ORC) is
1:6.8. To achieve 1:11, we need to reduce our supervisory staff (and authorized
level of supervisory positions) to 82.
Table 1 identifies the the supervisor-to-staff ratios and numbers of employees in
each category as of February 1994, March 1995 (using the constructed position
data base) and September 1995 (after reorganization again using the constructed
position data base). As indicated, we will achieve a 1:11 ratio under our new
structure. Using the February 1994 supervisory counts as the starting point, we
will have cut 52 supervisory positions.
TABLE 1

ON-BOARD
FEBRUARY
1994
MARCH
1995
PROJECTED
SEPTEMBER
1995
SUPERVISORS
134
125
82
STAFF
749
860
903
SUPERVISOR TO STAFF
RATIO
1:5.6
1:6.8
1:11
To achieve the 1:11 ratio, our new organizational design includes a body of
technical experts, team leaders and matrix-managers. All current GS-13
supervisors and a significant number of GS-14 and 15 supervisors will be
reassigned to non-supervisory positions. We have embarked on an ambitious
schedule to develop appropriate and supportable position descriptions for all of the
new supervisory and non-supervisory GS-13, 14 and 15 positions identified in our
reorganization and to fill these positions. We are committed to meeting the goal of
fully implementing the new organization by October 1, 1995.
To pilot the new team leader approach, we have developed an Environmental
Engineer/Scientist position description at GS-14 level, for a New York City
Watershed Project Coordinator, and will use the experience gained under this pilot
to help guide our future team efforts, and to help craft other non-supervisory GS-
14 and GS-15 position descriptions identified in our new organization. This pilot
51
-------
~ 1:11 Supervisor-to-Employee Ratio Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
will also provide valuable insight into how our new teams can most efficiently
function within the newly designed organization.
As indicated in the attached schedule, we have also developed a placement plan
for our current supervisory staff. Under the plan, the current GS-15 supervisory
employees will be asked first to rank their top six -- three supervisory and three
non-supervisory-- placement preferences. Placement decisions for GS-15s will b
announced, after which current GS-14 supervisors will be asked to express their 6
preferences. GS-13s will be asked for their preferences following the placement
GS-14s. At a minimum, there will be informal discussions with all supervisors °*
regarding their highest priority placement choice. Management will consider thes
preferences and attendant discussions as key factors in determining the Dlacem» e
of current GS-15, GS-14 and GS-13 employees.	n*
A plan for placement of administrative assistants and secretaries who will be
impacted by the reduction in the number of supervisors is also being developed
The secretarial title has long been associated with serving as the principal clerical
assistant to the chief of an office. Indeed this concept is inherent in the grade
level criteria applicable to classifying secretarial positions. As work teams replace
the more highly structured, traditional organizations, the role of the clerical suppo
positions will also change to a more interactive relationship with all team member^
These changes will further redefine the role of support staff whose work has
already been significantly impacted by office automation technology. These
changes represent an opportunity to create positions that more fully integrate
support staff into the mission of the organization, develop greater team spirit, and
provide new career opportunities. The role of support staff in developing high
performance teams has been addressed in the Agency's Administrative Support
Career Management System. Building on this guide, and working with our regional
SAAC, our placement plan will call for distribution of template position description
which can be used by managers to develop revised position descriptions for S
secretaries who will be displaced as the result of elimination or consolidation of
organizational units. We anticipate greater use of the Environmental Protection
Assistant title as a result of this process.
One of the possible impacts of the reduction in the number of supervisors is a los
of diversity in the remaining ranks of supervisors. As discussed elsewhere in thisS
report (see section on Diversity and Introduction to the Organizational Design
section), senior management has agreed, as a goal, to seek to maintain the current
diversity profile in the managerial ranks after reorganization. Another impact of th
supervisory reductions will be the doubling in the span-of-control for the remaining^
52
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
1:11 Supervisor-to-Employee Ratio ~
supervisors, which will necessitate changes in how they manage and interact with
staff and the reassignment of some policy responsibilities to non-supervisory
managers. Changes will also be needed in the expectations of senior management
with respect to lower-graded supervisors, particularly on interactions dealing with
project or site-specific issues where expertise will now be vested primarily in the
new technical experts, team leaders, etc.
There is a high level of concern among the current supervisory cadre, at all grade
levels, about the import of these changes on their careers. The senior leadership is
continuing to take special efforts to respond to employee's questions about future
promotion potential if they are no longer supervisors; the definitions of adverse and
voluntary as they apply to reassignments into the non-supervisory ranks; and the
extent to which an employee's status under a future RIF situation (noting that none
is planned or anticipated at this time) would be affected. With respect to scenarios
about how a RIF would work, employees are concerned that reassignments to non-
supervisory positions not be considered "voluntary" actions, to the extent that
such reassignments could impact their retreat and bumping rights. Employees
have also asked whether retreat and bumping rights of current supervisors could
somehow be "grandfathered" should a RIF occur. These are difficult questions to
answer because of the complex nature of how a RIF would actually be
implemented -- many of the most determinitive factors cannot be identified in
advance. To the extent possible, we are continuing to try to be responsive to the
concerns of employees with respect to these questions.
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use. As
noted elsewhere, we have used a collaborative process involving non-supervisory
and supervisory staff, at all grade levels, working with division directors to develop
the divisional substructures. In some instances, the identification and location of
teams, technical experts and matrix-managers reflect the recommendations of this
knowledgeable group of individuals, i.e., those most closely involved on a day-to-
day basis with the activities and projects to be assigned to the new teams.
Because the region is both reorganizing and reducing the number of supervisors,
the total number of new positions that must be developed is quite daunting. To
that extent, our success depends on the involvement of supervisors, working
closely with staffing specialists in our Human Resources Branch (HRB), to craft
appropriate position descriptions. Teams have been established in each of the new
divisions to develop the new PDs, and classification specialists from HRB have met
with each division's cadre of supervisors to explain the requirements for developing
appropriately graded PDs. Care will be taken to ensure that the grades of team
53
-------
Q 1:11 Supervisor-to-Employee Ratio
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
leaders are supportable based on their technical expertise and project management
responsibilities.
The placement plans for all current supervisors and for administrative staff affected
by the reorganization also reflect stakeholder participation. As the region
implements the reorganization, this high level of interaction and communication is
expected to continue, and to have an impact on future decisions and outcomes.
Specific deadlines and milestones. The most crucial component of achieving the
1:11 ratio is the development in a timely fashion of supportable position
descriptions both for new non-supervisory positions and new secretarial positions
We intend to follow the following timeline:
March 1995: distribute generic PDs for supervisors via LAN; distribute
placement plan to all supervisors.
April 1995: completion of all GS-15 PDs (supervisory and non-
supervisory); distribute copies of new GS-15 PDs to all supervisory 15s;
GS-15s return preferences; conduct informal discussions with GS-15s.
April 1995: develop placement plan for displaced secretaries.
May 1995: announce proposed GS-15 placements; completion of all
GS-14 PDs (supervisory and nonsupervisory); distribute copies of new
GS-14 PDs to all supervisory 14s; GS-14s return preferences.
May 1995: distribute template position descriptions for secretarial
positions at grades GS-5, 6 and 7.
May - June 1995: conduct informal discussions with GS-14s.
June 1995: announce proposed GS-14 placements; distribute copies of
nonsupervisory GS-13 PDs to supervisory GS-13s.
June 1995: complete revised position descriptions for support staff.
July 1995: GS-13s return preferences; conduct informal discussions with
supervisory GS-13s; announce proposed placements for current GS-13
supervisors.
54
-------
~ Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
1:11 Supervisor-to-Employee Ratio Q
August 1995: identify proposed placements of secretarial and other
regional staff.
Concurrent with the development of PDs and placement of all GS-13, 14 and 15
employees, the region's formal Green Border Reorganization plan will be submitted
to Headquarters and implemented by the following schedule:
July 1995: submit formal Green Border Reorganization proposal to
Headquarters.
October 1995: implement regional reorganization.
55
-------
Q "HQ'VAdministrative Staff Redeployment Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
~ "HEADQUARTERS"/ADMINISTRA TiVE STAFF REDEPLOYMENT
Status before reinvention. Region ll's structure prior to reinvention reflects some
of the staffing patterns typical of a mature organization, with significant numbers
of employees who specialize in single disciplines (in our particular case, in single-
medium functions). The retention of senior, experienced employees over time has
contributed to the number of higher-graded supervisory positions. The effects of
specialization in task and function have also extended to employees in the areas o*
human resources, budget and finance, assistance and acquisition, and audit
management.
With regard to the four administrative job categories targeted by OMB, our
authorized staffing is as follows: Budget Specialists - 3; Accountants and Auditor
- 33; Personnel Specialists - 17; and Acquisition Specialists - 25. The majority ofS
Accountants and Auditors and Acquisition Specialists provide direct support to the
Superfund program for contract issuance and management (e.g., clean-up
contractors) and for cost recovery. It should also be pointed out that as a
percentage of total authorized staff (of close to 1000), these are very low figures
Budget Specialists, for example, constitute only 0.3% and Personnel Specialists
and Assistants, less than 2% of the total staff. This low percentage is a
reflection, in part, of the negligible growth that occurred in the administrative
program elements in the region since the 1980's, even as the region's overall
staffing levels doubled. As a percentage of total staff, this means the
administrative job categories have effectively been reduced approximately in half
since the 1980's.
What we have accomplished so far. Some 52 experienced EPA supervisors will be
freed of supervisory responsibility after the implementation of our proposed
reorganization. We have already begun to experiment with teams in the area of
Superfund cost recovery, where employees specializing in a range of financial
management functions will be working together as a team to expedite service to
the Superfund program and to attorneys engaged in cost recovery litigation. Other
efforts such as those for multi-media enforcement have provided useful experience
with cross-media teams and interdisciplinary training. The region will look to
develop additional cross-training opportunities and ways to foster interdisciplinary
team approaches to program delivery.
Like the Agency as a whole, Region II has begun to explore opportunities to
implement carefully targeted shifts of administrative employees away from control
functions towards support and management assistance functions. We are
56
-------
D Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan "HQ"/Administrative Staff Redeployment Q
however limited in what we can do. Many of EPA's underlying legislative and
federal regulatory mandates still remain in place. Unless significant changes in
these laws and rules occur, it will be difficult to make changes in the way we do
business. We are also concerned that several of the areas proposed for
redeployment, i.e., contract management and Superfund cost recovery, have been
declared high risk or material weakness areas under the Federal Managers'
Financial Integrity Act (FMFIA), particularly due to a shortage of staff resources to
conduct proper oversight and exercise needed management controls. These are
also areas where the Agency has just completed the conversion of contractors to
EPA employees to address issues of integrity and the inherently governmental
nature of the work involved. Region II plans no redeployment at the expense of
increasing risk in these areas.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. We will be
reassigning experienced supervisors to positions where they will have a more direct
impact on customer satisfaction. The creation of teams, many of which will be
headed by former supervisors, will create dedicated groups focusing on specific
customers and their unique problems. We will enhance the skills of team leaders
to develop their ability to serve as intermediaries between customers and staff as
well as their ability to coach and facilitate the development of their teammates.
We will continue to look for opportunities between now and 1999 to redeploy
OMB-designated administrative personnel into positions more directly impacting
customer service. However, our ability to do this will need to be carefully balanced
with meeting statutory and regulatory mandates and with assuring the integrity of
the resources assigned to the region.
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use. The
analytic processes used to develop the region's proposed reorganization placed
great emphasis on creating positions for displaced supervisors that would make the
best use of their skills. We focused on the region's need to increase its
involvement with its customers, and to use its employees' skills differently and
more effectively. We intend to measure the success of our teams and our team
leaders in part by measuring our customers' reaction to our new organization.
Specific deadlines and milestones.
October 1995: implement regional reorganization including reassignment
of supervisors.
January 1996: customer focus orientation and training for team leaders.
57
-------
D Flexibility
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
~ FLEXIBILITY
Status before reinvention. Region II is currently organized along media lines, with
our enforcement capability distributed across media divisions and the Office'of
Regional Counsel. Teams, including those designed to implement multi-media
projects, have been initiated on a case-by-case basis. Some have been ad hoc to
respond to priority situations on a quick-turn-around-basis (a good example was
the region's response in 1989 to Hurricane Hugo which devastated the Caribbean
and where regional staff from several media programs were mobilized to work with
the Federal Emergency Management Agency to restore essential water supply and
other infrastructure to the islands); other teams are permanent. However, our
ability to mobilize staff from across the divisions has at times necessitated
reprioritizing the work of multiple divisions and programs; it has also required
marshalling the services of a sufficient number of staff with the requisite breadth
of experience across programs.
What we have accomplished so far. One of the most important outgrowths of the
teams we have established to-date is that our employees have gained experience in
other environmental disciplines, as well as an ability to work together effectively.
A key recommendation of a recent evaluation we conducted of our multi-media
enforcement program was to establish a mentoring program for enforcement
inspectors whereby individuals with expertise in one medium could become more
knowledgeable about other media -- the goal would be to develop a cadre of
inspectors that can conduct multi-media inspections at a single facility that may be
regulated under several environmental statutes. We have begun to explore other
opportunities as well, such as in our laboratory and quality assurance programs ancj
through an employee exchange program, to foster multi-media experience among
our staff, with a view toward enhancing the region's ability to react quickly and
effectively to emerging priorities. The exchange program will be implemented on a
pilot basis in 1995.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. The
reinvention task force and related activities and discussions have all focused on the
need to make the region's structure more flexible and responsive to customer
needs. The region has recognized the need for flexibility in order to respond to
changes in our mission and mandates, declining resources, and increasing
customer demand. Our reorganization proposal creates, for the first time, teams
that can expand and contract to meet changing conditions. More than 50 teams
are anticipated to be established as part of the new regional structure. Examples
of the types of teams proposed are provided in the section on Teams. The
58
-------
D Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Flexibility Q
reinvented Region II will have permanent teams in each division and across
divisions. This will be a major transition that will change the way we carry out our
day-to-day activities.
Also, by combining programmatic media activities into the Environmental Planning
and Protection Division, and enforcement media activities into the Division of
Enforcement and Compliance Assistance, we expect to foster the development
among our staff of multi-media expertise which will enable more flexible
approaches toward emerging priorities. The proposed reduction in our supervisory
structure will result in a cadre of our most experienced employees, many serving
as team leaders or on teams, available to respond to changing needs.
One potential barrier to success is the need for added training, both for the new
team leaders and for project staff, to foster multi-discipline expertise. Our training
office is researching appropriate courses for our future team leaders and we will
incorporate this into the branch-specific core training plans we plan to develop
once our reorganization is in place. We will also look for additional opportunities to
offer technical training to staff as we move toward a more multi-discipline
approach for environmental protection. Resources and time may be constraining
factors in providing wide-scale training to employees.
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use. The
development of our divisional substructures, most especially the identification of
which teams should be established, was done with the participation and advise of
multi-divisional teams of employees assigned to assist each division director. The
idea was to involve the individuals who work on a day-to-day basis with these
issues, and therefore have direct knowledge of how and where team interactions
would be most effective. As we implement our new organization, we expect to
continue to reach out to employees for their ideas for improving team structures,
including changing the focus or priorities of existing teams and identifying where
new teams may be needed.
We will continue to identify the knowledge, skills and abilities most needed by
team leaders and team participants, and seek out appropriate training courses--as
well as practical experiences--to help all regional staff build appropriate
competencies. We will do this with the involvement of the affected staff, using
surveys and other tools to identify their training needs.
59
-------
Q Flexibility
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
We will examine the effectiveness of the teams we establish both on an ongoing
basis, and as part of an overall evaluation of the region's new organizational
structure.
Specific deadlines and milestones.
October 1995: team-related training will begin.
January 1996: revisions to core training plans completed.
September 1996: evaluate the employee exchange program pilot.
October 1996: teams will be an integral part of the organization.
Although we do not anticipate any barriers to implementing our reorganization, on
paper, we are aware of the need to work with our employees, supervisors and
staff, to enable them to respond positively to our new approach to business. The
transition to a more flexible and fluid organization will require changes that we can
expect to occur only gradually, and possibly only with help. We have already
begun investigating transition counseling for our employees. Milestones for this
are:
June 1995: transition counseling procured or developed.
July - September 1995: transition counseling offered.
60
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Accountability Q
~ ATTRIBUTES
A fuller discussion of the organizational attributes under our proposed regional
structure will be included in the region's formal Green Border reorganization
submission to Headquarters. What follows below are key highlights of how our
proposed reorganization will satisfy each of the attributes.
~ ACCOUNTABILITY
Status before reinvention. Region ll's current structure is characterized by
essentially command-and-control lines of responsibility and accountability. Our
media-specific divisional organization has corresponded to the Headquarters model
in a way that has facilitated management and reporting for all functions. With the
realignment in Headquarters of enforcement activities into a single AA-ship --
OECA -- the alignments between our current structure and that of Headquarters
changed. This has resulted in multiple lines of accountability and reporting from
the region to Headquarters and vice-versa for each of the media programs. This
change in the traditional lines of accountability have also made it more difficult for
the region to respond effectively to the new integrated multi-media approaches to
environmental protection that have been identified by the Administrator. We
believe that our proposed structure will foster more flexible and creative responses
while preserving original lines of accountability to assure effective program
implementation.
What we have accomplished so far. Region II has long been able to point to
structures that assure the quality and consistency of our environmental programs,
as well as our managerial functions. Our task has not been to establish these, but
to maintain and enhance them as we move toward a more streamlined
organization. As an interim measure, to respond to the new OECA model, we have
established an Enforcement Coordinator reporting to the Deputy Regional
Administrator. This approach, however, is not considered the optimal way to
integrate our enforcement and compliance activities over the long-term. In
developing our reorganization design, we have looked to position the region to
carry out effective multi-media snd single-medium environmental protection into
the future. Our plan is to preserve the assignment of explicit responsibility for key
activities, such as signing off on grants, permits, memoranda of understanding,
etc.; making decisions and speaking on behalf of regional programs; conducting
oversight activities with respect to state and tribal programs; and accounting for
and reporting on resource allocation and usage, within the context of this new
61
-------
Q Accountability
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
multi-media construct. We believe the organizational design we have developed
will effectively support accountability in this way.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. We are
proposing a regional structure with the following attributes:
Provides clear lines of accountability and responsibility through all
organizational levels, through the creation of teams, sections, branches
and matrix managers/advisors, under the direction of division directors.'
Accountability for national program consistency and regional
implementation will continue to be vested in division directors, while senior
level matrix managers will be responsible for assisting in the development
and dissemination of program policy and emerging issues. New structures
will also identify mid- and lower-level contacts to facilitate routine
interactions with Headquarters, the states and the public.
As identified in the Table below, for each Assistant and Associate
Administrator, clearly establishes a division director directly accountable to
that AA; routine interactions will be at branch chief and policy advisor
levels as appropriate.
Region II Accountability Under Proposed Reorganization
Region II
Division Director
Assistant/Associate
Administrator
Division of Enforcement and Compliance
Assistance
OECA, OPPTS
Emergency and Remedial Response
Division
OSWER
Environmental Planning and Protection
Division
OW, OAR, OSWER (RCRA)
Division of Environmental Sciences
ORD
External Programs Division
OIA, OCEPA, OCELA
Office of Policy and Management
OARM, OPPE, OIG, ORO
Office of Regional Counsel
OGC, OECA (Legal)
62
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Accountability Q
The Regional Administrator has overall accountability to the Administrator
and Deputy Administrator for regional program management; also directly
oversees the Environmental Justice Coordinator.
Within the new integrated multi-media program division (EPPD), maintains
separate single-medium branches for the air, water and RCRA programs to
assure effective implementation of these programs and alignment with the
Headquarters organizational model. Assigns accountability for these
programs to an SES-level division director, assisted by two deputy
directors. Also establishes senior policy advisors for the air, water and
RCRA programs to assure consistency with national policies, regulations
and standards and to serve as a senior level point of contact on day-to-day
interactions with the media staff in Headquarters.
Assigns accountability for all programmatic enforcement and compliance
for which OECA is the National Program Manager to an SES-ievel division
director in DECA, while maintaining the existing lines of accountability
between OECA and the Office of Regional Counsel (ORC) on legal matters.
Within DECA and ORC, maintains a media-based branch structure to
correspond to the Headquarters analogue in OECA and among our states.
By providing media-based branch structures in both divisions, assures clear
lines of accountability and working relationships between technical and
legal enforcement staff for the air, water, waste, pesticides and toxfc
substances programs.
Also within DECA, assigns responsibility for coordination of multi-media
enforcement to a multi-media coordinator reporting directly to the division
director, and establishes a Compliance Assistance and Support Branch to
provide strong linkages with OECA's Office of Compliance Assistance.
Provides for two Superfund branches in ORC due to the size of the
program, organized on a geographic basis consistent with the geographic
branch structure established in the Emergency and Remedial Response
Division {ERRD). Thus maintains clear lines of accountability and
coordination for CERCLA enforcement activities.
Provides for an ERRD organization also in alignment with OSWER's
Superfund organization which contributes to clearer lines of accountability
on programmatic goals and commitments.
63
-------
Q Accountability
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
reinforces the role and responsibilities of the Senior Resource Official
fsROI which continue to be vested in the Assistant Regional Administrator
or Policy and Management (ARA) who retains direct authority and
accountability for all aspects of resource management, including the
administration of contracts and grants, budget execution and financial
management.
Vests accountability for multi- and cross-media Initiatives, such as
aeooraphic and place-Based initiatives, in the new multi-med.a program
division _ EPPD The division will work with states on setting strategic
priorities provide a focal point for integrated strategic planning within the
reolon and will coordinate oversight of state program grants. Integration
of pollution prevention with media program activities will be fostered
through creation of a pollution prevention team. EPPD w, 11 also include a
oermrt integration coordinator with responsibility for identifying and
Implementing emerging multi-media permitting issues and overseeing
Improvements to the air, water and RCRA permitting programs.
Maintains the integrity of smaller programs including pesticides and toxics,
nil UST/LUST and Underground 'niec*'on Control wh/cft remain intact (i.e.,
enforcement m programmatic activities). The Oil program is maintained
in the Emergency and Remedial Response Division, where rt continues to be
alianed with the Superfund and EPCRA Title III programs under an SES-
fevel division director. The other programs cited above are located ,n DECA
under an SES-levei division director accountable to the AA's for these
programs.
Maintains an integrated planning and budget function within the Office of
Poltoy and Management under the direction of the SES-level ABA who
coordinates the region's activities with those of Headquarters through
linkages with OPPE and OARM.
Maintains the region's existing clearly-defined delegations of authority with
respect to accountability for resources, signoffs on grants, permits, lAG's,
compliance and enforcement documents, etc.; ensures that actions can be
«ker! with maximum empowerment while accountability is maintained at
appropriate levels.
Because the region has a tradition of clearly defined responsibilities, we anticipate
few barriers in thl. regard. It will be important, however, for ell divisions to
64
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Accountability Q
establish, after reorganization, close ties with appropriate Headquarters contacts
and with the states, tribes and program grantees. In some instances, reporting
relationships of long standing will be altered, and we will need to assure that
ongoing work in the areas of managing and evaluating program activities is not
disrupted. The region will develop and implement a communication strategy
targeted to all Agency and external stakeholders to assure that new lines of
communication are established and are effective.
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use. Our
recent efforts to delegate authority within the region have proved highly effective.
We will continue to assess the level and impact of additional internal delegations,
and extend responsibility through subordinate levels where accountability will not
be adversely affected. We will also continue to offer training in resource
management skills, including project management, so that staff will have the
abilities to carry out tasks for which they are accountable. Region II has used the
LAN to great advantage for dissemination of procedural manuals and policy
documents; we expect to continue to install pertinent materials where they can be
easily accessed.
Specific deadlines and milestones. The development and enhancement of
accountability, in the context identified for this reinvention implementation plan,
are ongoing activities. Senior management is committed to the activities and
processes described above and to the following general milestones:
October 1995: implement regional reorganization.
October 1996: conduct an assessment to evaluate the degree to which
the new structure supports desired attributes, including accountability.
65
-------
~ Communication and Coordination
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
~ COMMUNICATION AND COORDINATION
Status before reinvention. Some organizational change in Headquarters has moved
ahead of similar developments in the regions (i.e., OECA), and we have found it
necessary to adapt in order to coordinate programs effectively on a national level
As former communication channels change, new communication channels will
need to be established to provide maximum interaction with the region's customer
and stakeholders as other regions and Headquarters offices (in addition to OECA) S
reorganize.
What we have accomplished so far. We have strengthened existing channels of
communication with new Headquarters organizational structures, and sought
opportunities to coordinate our efforts with the states and tribal nations. For
example, we have established points of contact with the new OECA structure to
ensure that our programs are consistent with Headquarters directions. We have
also sought to factor in state and tribal priorities when developing strategic plans
for regional programs. This latter connection has enabled us to focus on activities
that are responsive to local environmental needs, yet representative of national
strategies.
In the matter of internal coordination and teamwork, the region has amassed a
body of experience in coordinating team approaches across the divisions. One of
the best examples of this has been our work thus far on streamlining,
reorganization, and reinvention, which has involved input from and coordination
among all segments of the region. We feel the results of teams and workgroups in
this regard have been remarkably expeditious and productive.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. Region II
proposes to adopt an infrastructure that enhances our existing ability to develop
coordinated responses to Congressional, Headquarters, and external requests for
information, whether connected with budget development, required reports, or
general public interest. It will also expand our ability to facilitate teamwork and
coordinate a variety of regional projects. This infrastructure includes:
consolidation of grants and contracts administration functions in one
branch of the Office of Policy and Management to capitalize on
commonalities in these external delivery systems, and a closer alliance of
the budgetary and planning functions in OPM, particularly with regard to
state involvement.
66
-------
~ Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Communication and Coordination ~
a media-based branch structure within DECA and ORC to correspond to the
Headquarters analogue in OECA and among our states. By providing
media-based branch structures in both divisions, assures clear lines of
accountability and working relationships between technical and legal
enforcement staff for the air, water, waste, pesticides and toxic
substances programs. The Environmental Planning and Protection Division
(EPPD) also aligns with DECA/ORC along media program lines, thus further
supporting vital program communication and coordination channels.
two Superfund branches in ORC (due to the size of the program) organized
on a geographic basis, consistent with the geographic branch structure
established in the Emergency and Remedial Response Division (ERRD).
Thus maintains clear lines of accountability and coordination between the
technical and legal staff for CERCLA enforcement activities. The
geographic splits in ERRD also allow for enhanced communication and
coordination with other involved partners such as states, tribes and public.
clearly identified points of contact within the External Programs Division for
national, state, tribal and local government representatives (the
Intergovernmental Affairs Branch); for the media (the Press Team); and for
the public (the Public Outreach Branch).
an enhanced role for the Caribbean Environmental Protection Division,
enabling it to provide more effective service and communication at the local
level in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
a newly-created liaison for our efforts in the U.S. Virgin Islands, reporting
to the CEPD Director; the VI Liaison will be charged with coordinating EPA
priorities with those of territorial government officials, monitoring EPA
programs delegated to local government agencies, and communicating local
concerns on economic development, environmental management, and
political activities to regional management.
cross-divisional linking positions, cross-divisional teams, and similar
functional alignments between divisions with ongoing collaborative
relationships, to formalize regular points of contact for critical program
issues and facilitate teamwork. Some examples are EPPD's enforcement
coordinator who will work with DECA and ORC, and its Superfund/RCRA
Coordinator who will coordinate ARAR's issues and consistent cleanup
strategies with ERRD.
67
-------
Q Communication and Coordination
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
state liaison positions in EPPD to provide a focal point for communicating
with the state on strategic goals, program development, oversight and
administrative issues.
a variety of teams in DECA for sectors, small programs, pollutants, etc., to
facilitate communication with customers and stakeholders.
a Science Officer position in the Division of Environmental Sciences (DES)
to coordinate region-wide science issues such as peer review and to advise
the Regional Administrator on science policy.
coordination on regional priorities between DES and both DECA and EPPD
through the use of Memoranda of Agreement (MOA's) which establish
DES's workload for field, laboratory and quality assurance activities;
coordination is further facilitated by quarterly reporting on outputs.
The greatest barrier to achieving our goals with respect to communication and
coordination will be the inevitable period of uncertainty as we transition from one
structure to another. We anticipate it will take some time for all lines of
communication to be established, and for all customers and stakeholders to be
informed of organizational changes and new responsibilities. To expedite this
changeover, we will implement a communication strategy that will disseminate
information on new communication channels, as they become institutionalized, to
all Agency and external stakeholders.
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use.
Consultation with customers and stakeholders has enabled us in the past to tailor
our approaches to their needs, whether in terms of formulating environmental
strategies or improving the ways we coordinate work internally. We expect to
continue to test the effectiveness of our communications channels through periodic
checks with those most affected by them.
Specific deadlines and milestones. The enhancement of channels of
communication and coordination skills, in the context identified for this reinvention
implementation plan, involves ongoing activities. We are committed to the
activities and processes described above and to the following general milestones:
October 1995: implement regional reorganization.
68
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan	Communication and Coordination Q
October 1996: conduct an assessment to evaluate the degree to which
the new structure embodies desired attributes, including clear and open
channels of communication and smooth coordination of regional activities.
69
-------
Q Customer Focus
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
~ CUSTOMER FOCUS
Status before reinvention. As noted in a previous section of this report, the region
has long been customer-focused and has invested significant resources to train
staff and managers in the principles of Total Quality Management. Strong links to
print and electronic media have provided our customers with vital information; joint
strategic planning has been ongoing in some media programs; and improvements t
various process such as the system for responding to FOIA requests have been °
initiated as a result of TQM-Quality Action Team recommendations. In some
areas, such as with respect to state oversight and the EPA/State relationship, we
have not been able to take as systematic an approach as desirable to determi'nino
and responding to our customers' needs.
What we have accomplished so far. One of Region II's highest priorities in
assessing possible organizational structures was the potential for various
alternative designs to enhance our focus on customer needs. By soliciting
customer reactions to our proposals for reinvention and reorganization, we have
assured that our decisions are made with full knowledge of the needs of both
internal and external stakeholders. The resulting proposed organizational structure
is, we believe, well-suited to identify appropriate contact points for various
customers' needs, and to respond expeditiously to requests from all levels.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. We
anticipate the creation of specific structures to accommodate customer needs,
including, for example:
DECA's "one-stop shop" from which the regulated community can request
and receive compliance assistance, in coordination with the states and
across all media;
establishment of an Environmental Justice Coordinator reporting to the
Regional Administrator to provide outreach with affected communities and
the public on issues related to environmental justice.
the presence of easily-identifiable contact persons in all divisions, for the
purpose of providing efficient service in areas where the public commonly
requests information or assistance;
state liaison positions in EPPD, to improve existing lines of communication
and facilitate a dialogue on both single and cross-media issues;
70
-------
~ Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Customer Focus Q
structures in several divisions that support a place-based protection focus,
to increase the relevance of coherent ecosystems programs to the public;
a variety of fixed and flexible teams to provide a closer focus on specific
industrial sectors or pollutants such as RCRA special wastes and lead.
a permits integration team in EPPD that creates opportunities to focus on
efficiencies for the regulated community and state permitting agencies;
a focal point within the Division of Environmental Sciences for training and
technical assistance to states, consultants, PRPs, etc., to bring maximum
technical support to these stakeholders;
an enhanced presence in the Caribbean through expansion of the Caribbean
Environmental Protection Division; in addition to providing day-to-day
program implementation for all environmental programs, CEPD will have a
community relations specialist, a Virgin Islands Liaison stationed in the
Virgin Islands, and an expanded legal presence through the Associate
Regional Counsel for Caribbean Programs (organizationally part of the ORC
Immediate Office); this will enable more effective service and
communication at the local level.
fluid teams in the Human Resources Branch, expected to improve internal
customer service by shortening response time and allowing the flexibility to
shift staffing among priority activities to respond to emerging customer
needs; and
clear points of contact, within the External Programs Division, for
Congressional and other elected officials, the press, environmental groups,
states and local government (through a State/Local Desk Officer), tribal
nations, and the general public.
We expect no particular barriers to the establishment of these types of structural
enhancements. As noted in our previous discussion of Customer Focus, however,
we may experience some difficulty in developing a satisfactory customer-focused
approach to the regulated community. To manage this, we intend to concentrate
on carrying out statutory and regulatory mandates with clarity and consistency,
and to seek the regulated community's input on the effectiveness of our programs,
regulations and guidance.
71
-------
~ Customer Focus
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use. Region
II has been a charter member of the Agency's Customer Service Work Group, and
many of the approaches used by that group to identify customers, core business
processes, sub-processes and activities will be used in the region. We will use
both surveys and focus groups with employees and customers to develop
standards and appropriate measurement techniques.
Specific deadlines and milestones. The region's customer service plan will evolve
concurrently with the rest of the region's reinvention plan. We are also committed
to the following general milestones:
October 1995: implement regional reorganization.
October 1996: conduct an assessment to evaluate the degree to which
the new structure embodies desired attributes, including support for our
customer service goals.
72
-------
~ Rll Reinvention implementation Plan Integrity, Efficiency and Effectiveness Q
~ INTEGRITY, EFFICIENCY AND EFFECTIVENESS
Status before reinvention. Maintenance of programmatic integrity and the
efficiency and effectiveness of EPA functions within Region II is critical to the
success of our reinvention and reorganization efforts. Our goal is to preserve and
enhance the integrity standards and management control systems that have
characterized regional programs in the past, while enhancing flexibility and
empowerment through structural change.
What we have accomplished so far. A mainstay of efficient, effective operations
in Region II has been our full implementation of the role and responsibilities of the
Senior Resource Official (SRO), who is the ARA for Policy and Management. By
establishing appropriate lines of responsibility and communication throughout the
region, we have fixed accountability for our resources-without which any
program's success could be jeopardized--at senior levels, and assured that all
resource management staff receive necessary training and are kept informed of
policy developments. While the SRO concept applies to resource management in
particular, the focus of Integrity Act compliance within the region in the past year
has underscored the attention that all senior managers devote to program
effectiveness and efficiency. Region II also provides mandatory ethics training to
all employees who are required to file a financial disclosure statement on the basis
of the duties they perform. These individuals are required to participate in a one-
hour course, taught by our Office of Regional Counsel, on the ethical behavior that
is required of federal employees.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. Our
proposed organizational structure achieves the following:
reinforces the role and responsibilities of the SRO who maintains direct
authority and accountability for all aspects of resource management.
preserves the components of EPA base programs, which are consolidated
within the Environmental Protection and Planning Division (EPPD), to
continue to carry out the Agency's primary statutory authorities;
improves efficiency of enforcement efforts, by consolidating all
enforcement support and data management functions in one branch of the
Division of Enforcement and Compliance Assistance (DECA);
73
-------
D Integrity, Efficiency and Effectiveness Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
maintains the integrity of small programs, such as TSCA, EPCRA, FIFRA,
UIC and UST, which are consolidated under DECA;
strengthens internal control systems in the grants and contracts area,
which are combined in a single branch in the Office of Policy and
Management (OPM);
consolidates contracting, budgeting, tracking, data management and other
administrative services in one support unit in the Emergency and Remedial
Response Division (ERRD) to ensure proper accountability and management
of the Superfund program. Similarly, consolidates all enforcement support
and data management functions in one branch in DECA to enhance
efficiency and effectiveness.
places special emphasis on accelerating Superfund cleanups and
coordinating remedial and removal activities in concert with Headquarters
the states, and all accelerated response initiatives, through the use of
matrix managers, team structures and experts in ERRD;
uses flexible teams in ERRD to efficiently achieve program goals in smaller
programs and special emphasis areas such as Oil Pollution and EPCRA Title
III.
creates a Science Officer in the Division of Environmental Sciences to
strengthen the integration of strong science (peer review, risk assessment
quality assurance, etc.) with all aspects of program implementation; and
better synthesizes the region's planning and budgeting functions through
the consolidation of the Planning and Evaluation, and Policy and Program
Integration functions in a single OPM branch.
Management control systems are sometimes viewed as barriers to progress, in that
they represent checks and balances on ongoing activities. As noted elsewhere in
this report, however, systems that function properly are aids to streamlined,
efficient program activities. Our challenge will be to keep an appropriate focus on
integrity so that the controls put in place in the new organizational structure are
sufficient to protect our resources without impeding the achievement of
environmental goals.
74
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Integrity, Efficiency and Effectiveness Q
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use. Open
communication between the SRO, senior management, and resource management
staff has proved very successful in supporting efforts to disseminate information
on policies and procedures. We expect to keep these channels open, and seek
input from staff on ways to streamline resource management processes. Region II
also developed in FY'94 an effective local program of compliance with the Integrity
Act, based on the Agency's new integrity model, which focuses on existing
program guidance rather than the development of new layers of management
controls. We believe that continued implementation of Integrity Act programs will
help to reinforce existing systems, where any need for improvement may be
identified.
Specific deadlines and milestones. Region II will carry out the full range of
program reviews and internal assessments that are a significant part of its
managerial responsibilities, and is committed to the following general milestones:
October 1995: implement regional reorganization.
October 1996: conduct an assessment to evaluate the degree to which
the new structure embodies desired attributes, including the promotion of
integrity, efficiency and effectiveness in all endeavors, whether related to
"mission" or "management."
75
-------
O Measurement and Evaluation
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
~ MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION
Status before reinvention. In developing and implementing Region II programs
senior management has focused considerable attention on measures of success
Our annual program activity plans are developed in consultation with the National
Program Managers, and we have established an evaluation process for all
programmatic and enforcement activity that includes quarterly meetings among the
media divisions, the Office of Regional Counsel, and the DRA. Until this fiscal
year, we used the Agency's STARS system as the organizing framework for these
quarterly reviews. With the elimination of STARS, and pending the development of
an Agency-wide process to report under the Government Performance and Results
Act, we have modified our internal accountability process to focus on activity
measures of most importance to Region II. We have also begun to utilize our
Geographic Information System capabilities to provide information on
environmental results.
What we have accomplished so far. In devising reorganization proposals for
individual divisions, and in addressing other organizational values (such as
empowerment and diversity) throughout the reinvention process, we have become
much more attentive to means of evaluating our achievements. This attitudinal
change mirrors our new tendency to focus on outcomes, rather than on process
measures of success.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. Senior
management has determined that the following areas, among others, should be
monitored in assessing the success of our reinvention and reorganization activities-
regional capability for measuring compliance with environmental statutes
(databases, information collection, analysis);
customer needs for compliance assistance, and implementation of an action
plan to deliver compliance assistance to meet those needs, in coordination
with delegated states;
transition from a single-medium enforcement structure to one that makes
full use of cross-program approaches;
the extent to which pollution prevention measures are incorporated into
enforcement settlements;
76
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Measurement and Evaluation Q
project-specific environmental indicators, to demonstrate more accurately
the impacts of our special initiatives; and
the wide variety of performance measures applicable to regional operations
under the provisions of the Chief Financial Officers' Act and the
Government Performance and Results Act.
In addition to maintaining the region's exisiting systems of measurement and
reporting, both internally and to Headquarters, our new organizational structure will
position the region for enhanced measurement and evaluation of its activities by
providing for the following:
a strategic planning coordinator in EPPD responsible for overseeing
implementation of programmatic activities identified in EPA/State strategic
plans, with support from an environmental data assessment team.
integration and coordination of the region's reporting under GPRA and the
CFO Act by the Office of Policy and Management (OPM).
a GIS/Analytic Projects Team in the Policy, Planning and Evaluation Branch
in OPM that will be positioned to effectively utilize GIS capabilities in
support of Agency or region-wide analytic activities, such as those related
to GPRA, Environmental Justice, Environmental Indicators, National
Environmental Goals and State of the Region reports. The GIS team will
also chair a multi-divisional workgroup to establish and implement a
regional Locational Data Policy that will assure that all monitoring or other
environmental data collected in Region II, whether by EPA employees,
contractors or the states, can be utilized for GIS analysis.
a Quality Assurance and Monitoring Operations Branch in our Division of
Environmental Sciences that will continue to implement region-wide
ambient monitoring programs and monitoring networks, to provide data to
help measure environmental progress over the long-term.
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use.
Over the long-term, our plan will be to focus more on environmental outcomes and
results, rather than only on processes and counting "beans". This will be done
through enhanced use of GIS, environmental indicators, long-term monitoring
programs, and in cooperation with the states through integrated EPA/State
Strategic Plans. Use of this information to guide management decisions, as well as
77
-------
Q Measurement and Evaluation
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
communication to the public on the results, will be key components of future
regional activities.
Specific deadlines and milestones. Region II management is fully committed to the
activities and processes described above, and to the following general milestones-
October 1995: implement regional reorganization.
October 1996: conduct an assessment to evaluate the degree to which
the new structure embodies desired attributes, including the integration of
functional, clear, informative evaluation parameters that yield useful data
for managerial decision making.
78
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Reinvention and Streamlining Q
~ REINVENTION AND STREAMLINING
Status before reinvention. Region It's past activities in support of reinvention and
streamlining have been discussed in greater detail in previous sections. The full
scope of our reinvention program is, of course, the subject of the present report.
What we have accomplished so far. Over the past year, Region II has been
working to improve itself through reinvention. With the assistance of a Regional
Reinvention Task Force and a Diversity Workgroup, we have been examining
options for reorganizing for the future in keeping with EPA Administrator Carol
Browner's priorities, the Agency's Strategic Plan, and the principles of
streamlining. Key among these was the President's directive that federal agencies
halve the number of supervisors, which for EPA requires achieving a 1:11
supervisory-to-staff ratio. Building on the Region's February 1994 Streamlining
Plan, and consistent with the Administrator's April 4, 1994 memorandum to all
EPA employees on reinvention, since August of 1994 we have invested
considerable effort in developing a comprehensive approach to reinventing Region
II.
Specific steps toward the goal; barriers and plans to overcome them. Regional
management has identified numerous examples of the benefits expected to flow
from Region ll's proposed reorganization, including:
Establishment of senior non-supervisory positions for functions such as
advising on policy, participating in national workgroups, or managing a
project or program as a team leader (i.e., having project responsibility but
not direct supervisory responsibility over project members). By shifting
some of the policy and project implementation responsibilities to these new
positions, the remaining supervisors will be able to manage a larger number
of employees, thereby requiring fewer layers of supervision.
Replacement of sections, in many instances, by a variety of team-based
structures, which are more flexible and adaptable than traditional sections.
These new structures will range from those overseen by matrix-managers
to self-directed work teams. Team approaches will provide many segments
of staff with the opportunity to experience the benefits of collaboration
within and across divisions, using groups of people with complementary
skills.
79
-------
Q Reinvention and Streamlining
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
Achievement of a 1:11 supervisor-to-staff ratio, within our proposed
oroanizational design which includes a body of technical experts, team
leaders and matrix-managers. We have embarked on an ambitious
crhedule to develop appropriate and supportable position descriptions for
all of the new non-supervisory GS-13, GS-14 and GS-15 positions
identified in our reorganization.
Preation of additional positions that will have a direct impact on customer
service The creation of teams, many of which will be headed by former
supervisors, will result in dedicated groups focusing on specific customers
and their unique problems. We will provide training to team leaders to
develop their skills as intermediaries between customers and staff as well
as their ability to coach and facilitate the development of their teammates.
Recoanition of the need for flexibility in order to respond in a timely and
sensitive way to changes in our mission and mandates, varying levels of
resources, and customer demand. Our reorganization proposal creates, for
the first time, teams that can expand and contract to meet changing
conditions.
Processes used so far to meet the goal; processes planned for future use. As
described throughout this report, Region II has employed a wide variety of
orocesses in the course of our streamlining and reinvention efforts. Beginning with
the introduction of Total Quality Management approaches to problem-solving, we
have progressed through a series of region-wide workgroups, teams, focus groups
and other gatherings for the purpose of bringing together the widest possible
expertise in organizational development and change. We have consistently sought
the input of stakeholders and customers, both internal and external to the region,
and we have modified our plans and approaches accordingly. We have researched
best practices in other governmental and non-governmental organizations to see
which if any would adapt well to our mission and our particular needs, as well as
those of our customers. We have sought consensus in our reinvention activities
and focused on a common set of attributes around which we hoped to construct
the new Region II. All of these processes have served us well, and we expect to
continue to apply them in future, while continually refining our skills.
Specific deadlines and milestones. Once the new organization has been in place
for a year senior management is committed to carrying out an assessment of the
extent to which the new structures support our Boals and display desired
characteristics. For a summary of our milestones related to reinvention and
80
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan	Reinvention and Streamlining Q
streamlining, please see the Composite Milestone Chart that appears later in this
report.
81
-------
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Evaluation
HI. EVALUATION
Apart from the areas discussed in the Attributes section, above, under the headina
of Measurement and Evaluation, we propose to focus on a wide range of
evaluation indicators in order to gauge the success of our reinvention efforts.
Much of what we are trying to do involves behavioral change, and will require
transformation of the region's organizational culture. Baseline information on both
behavior and culture is therefore needed. Equally critical, we will need to evaluate
the extent to which our new organization and other reinvention actions facilitate
enhanced environmental protection and service delivery to the public.
The indicators we will use to evaluate the success of our reinvention are still under
consideration and the region plans to develop a consistent set of measurable and
meaningful indicators that it can track over the long-term to determine if our
reinvented organization is achieving the goals we have identified. Following are
some possible examples, grouped by major reinvention goal. This list will be
critically examined, using the criteria mentioned above, and progress against a
select number of indicators will be evaluated. The final list of indicators will most
likely include both subjective and objective measures since we are seeking to
assess changes in organizational culture as well as improvements in environmental
service delivery and protection of human health and the environment.
~ SHARED VISION AND VALUES
GOAL: The region's vision and set of organizational principles and values are
widely communicated among staff and managers, represent shared beliefs
and are used to guide day-to-day operations.
XJjndicators of Success;
The Region II Vision Statement is shared and understood by all employees
and used to guide day-to-day activities.
Employee retention and morale are high.
Employees express interest in being assigned to teams and taking on
additional assignments.
Non-Supervisory GS-14 and GS-15 Technical and Policy Experts earn
regional/national recognition for their contributions.
Team leaders and team members are satisfied with their jobs, authority and
relationship to the supervisory structure.
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Evaluation Q
Streamlined management structures facilitate more open communication
and risk-taking.
Non-supervisory technical and policy experts and team leaders enhance
divisional functioning with fewer managers.
Teams, matrix managers, and supervisors work with a team spirit to
conduct and accomplish tasks and responsibilities.
^Measures of Success:
Senior management uses all-hands meetings, all-employee memos,
divisional meetings, etc., as an opportunity to discuss the region's vision
and values with employees. Feedback from employees is positive and
supportive of the vision.
Employee retention before and after restructuring is compared.
Surveys are taken or assignments tracked to determine whether employees
are able to take on additional assignments.
The activities and accomplishments of the new technical and policy experts
are evaluated, looking at such measures of recognition as chair/co-chair
positions on work groups and task forces, non-regional awards and medals
to employees, etc.
Employees are surveyed to evaluate the degree to which divisions
encourage open communication and reward risk-taking.
Staff and managers are surveyed to establish baseline expectations on
functioning of the organization. Employee satisfaction and functional
performance are evaluated one year later against baseline.
Targeted surveys of team members, matrix managers and supervisors are
conducted to assess job satisfaction and productivity.
~ CUSTOMER FOCUS
GOAL: The region conducts business in a way that enables all staff to deliver
improved environmental results to its stakeholders.
Qlndicators of Success:
Cleanup has encouraged economic redevelopment in urban areas.
HQs/State/other Federal Agency/Regional relations are improved.
Community and place-based approaches to working with states and local
governments are well established and effective.
83
-------
~ Evaluation
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
Region is frequently called upon by states and local communities to provide
leadership and technical expertise.
Progress can be demonstrated in the pursuit of the Agency's National
Environmental Goals.
In the enforcement programs, strategies are developed and implemented for
delivery of compliance assistance, multi-media enforcement, pollution
prevention, state support, technology transfer and small businesses.
Over the long-term, improved rates and patterns of environmental
compliance are realized, and the region's ability to identify and address
violators having a significant effect on human health and the environment
is enhanced.
Joint EPA/State Multi-media Strategic Plans are in place for each state and
result in more efficient and effective protection of human health and the
environment.
Self-directed teams and matrix-manager structure enhance collaboration
between employees so that higher quality products are produced for the
public.
Environmental program delivery in the Caribbean is enhanced;
Commonwealth and U.S. Virgin Island environmental agencies react
favorably to the expansion of the Caribbean Field Office.
^Measures of Success:
Establish baseline data on rates and patterns of compliance and measure
progress against baseline.
Complete EPA/State Multi-media Strategic Plans for each state. Prepare
periodic progress reports and update plans annually.
Establish an agreed-upon set of environmental indicators for EPA and
states. Measure progress in achieving environmental improvements against
baseline data. Use results to assess program effectiveness and devise new
approaches where needed.
Communicate with the public on regional progress in achieving
environmental improvements and in realizing the National Environmental
Goals.
Track communication and relationships with stakeholders and customers
and evaluate the success of customer focus.
Survey how employees interact on teams as well as track quality and
efficiency indicators.
Evaluate the effectiveness of program delivery in the Caribbean before and
after expansion of the Caribbean Field Office.
84
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Evaluation D
GOAL: The region's communication and involvement with customers is effective.
^Indicators of Success:
Public accepts EPA decisions with less controversy.
State concurrence easier to achieve.
Congressional and other federal agency relations are improved.
Press coverage is balanced.
Public writes fewer letters to EPA expressing dissatisfaction.
^Measure of Success:
External customers are periodically asked, via survey or other mechnisms,
to assess effectiveness of region's communication and outreach.
~ DIVERSITY
GOAL: Diversity is valued and evident throughout the organization at all levels and
in all program activities.
indicators of Success:
The region maintains the existing diversity profile when the reorganization
is cpmpleted.
The Region II Diversity Work group continues to operate and make
recommendations to the Regional Administrator and senior management on
diversity issues under streamlining/reinvention.
S3Measures of Success:
Compare the current diversity profile to the diversity profile after
reinvention is completed.
Evaluate which Diversity Work Group recommendations are used by the
region during and after reorganization and how they are implemented.
85
-------
Q Evaluation
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
~ WORKING COLLABORATIVELY
GOAL: Employees have the knowledge, skills, authority and accountability to
achieve quality results. Teams and other collaborative working
arrangements are effectively utilized throughout the organization.
Managers serve as coaches and facilitators resulting in enhanced employee
productivity and creativity.
Ehndicators of Success:
Employees feel empowered, work more independently and ask for
management support on a less frequent basis.
The reduced number of supervisors makes work processes easier to
accomplish, and decisions are delegated down to lower organizational
levels. Program goals are easier to achieve with fewer layers of
management.
The flexibility inherent in the new organizational structure enables the most
highly knowledgeable and skilled employees to work to the extent of their
abilities, allowing for greater recognition commensurate with their
performance and abilities.
Applicants for senior non-supervisory technical and policy positions are of
high quality. Supervisory personnel see these positions as career
enhancing and apply for non-supervisory senior positions.
The flexibility of the structure allows highly qualified personnel to move
from one assignment to another or from one team position to another to
utilize the skills of these personnel.
Self-directed work teams empower employees to produce higher quality
work more efficiently.
The region offers employees training and education to increase skills and to
broaden employees' abilities which are then used to enhance the
employees' working skills.
SJMeasures of Success:
Survey or track both management and staff after reorganization to evaluate
efficiency and flexibility of the team approach; whether team members are
empowered more or less than other staff; and how job satisfaction
compares for team members versus other employees.
Measure the time it takes to get action memos/work
assignments/cooperative agreements completed.
86
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Evaluation Q
Measure the number of employees who express interest in working on the
most challenging projects because they perceive that the new structure
recognizes the highest quality scientific, technical, administrative and
support staff products.
Evaluate whether non-supervisory GS-13/14/15 positions are perceived to
be career enhancing by measuring the number of applications and types of
applicants for vacancies.
Evaluate the retention rate of employees in these positions.
Track whether highly skilled personnel apply for positions that will utilize
their skills because they perceive that they can provide the most to the
agency in these positions.
Determine if statistics on hiring and retention support the indicator of
success.
Compare similar work developed in traditional vertical management
structure environments to that produced in team environment.
Measure the region's productivity in terms of numbers of outputs (e.g.,
RODs/Removals/Action Memos/grants per year; inspections, AO's, NOV's,
case referrals per year; permit issuance per year) before versus after
reorganization.
Measure the number of career development opportunities compared to
existing structure.
~ ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN
GOAL: The organizational design achieves the goals of reinvention: it reduces
layers, meets the 1:11 supervisor-to-employee ratio, achieves appropriate
redeployment of staff, is flexible and accommodates change, and satisfies
all of the organizational attributes identified by EPA senior leadership.
indicators of Success:
The team and matrix management structures provide for the highest
scientific and technical work to be produced consistent with statutes and
regulations in the most efficient manner.
Teams are functioning and meeting their commitments/goals as or more
efficiently than sections.
Team structures and matrix managers permit flexible working relationships
such as rotation within the region which encourages employees to utilize
their skills to the best of their abilities.
87
-------
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Evaluation
Matrix manager structure in ERRD enhances the interdependence of the
division, promoting higher quality technical and regulatory work and team
spirit.
Inter-divisional coordination in all areas of environmental program delivery is
effective and efficient.
The region's programs continue to be implemented with the highest fiscal
and management integrity.
Division Director level accountability is established and effective for each
National Program Manager (AA).
@Measures of Success:
Review work to indicate if the flexible structure/team structure produces
high quality scientific and technical products.
Compare similar work developed in traditional vertical management
structure environments to that produced in team environment.
See whether reducing the number of Supervisors has allowed employees
more time to complete work and to ask for additional assignments.
Measure whether there are fewer disputes between divisions, as well as
fewer employee grievances or EEO complaints filed.
Evaluate whether divisions encourage employees to make suggestions and
put forth ideas with surveys.
Survey staff and supervisors to determine if the interdependence of the
structure enhances quality and efficiency.
Evaluate the effectiveness of lines of accountability between the region and
Headquarters and with states.
Use the Management Integrity Process to evaluate the integrity of regional
programs and processes; conduct internal reviews of selected highly
vulnerable program areas; use outside evaluations of the region, such as
those by the IG, GAO and Headquarters program offices, to assess
program integrity, effectiveness and efficiency.
Milestones for Evaluation:
July - August 1995: develop evaluation plan, including assessment
methodologies to be used and specific indicators to be examined.
November - December 1996: implement evaluation plan.
88
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan	Evaluation Q
January - February 1997: review observations and plan for any additional
organizational (or other) modifications that may be deemed necessary to
achieve goals.
89
-------
~ Composite Milestone Chart
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
IV. COMPOSITE MILESTONE CHART
DATE
MILESTONE
1995

March 1995
Distribute placement plan to all supervisors inviting them to
indicate their preferences for positions in the new
organization.
April 1995
Regional workgroup to be convened to develop redelegations
for the newly-established divisions and revise redelegations
for continuing divisions to reflect changes to those divisions'
internal structures.
April 1995
Completion of all GS-15 PDs (supervisory and non-
supervisory); distribute copies of new GS-15 PDs to all
supervisory 15s; GS-15s return preferences; conduct
informal discussions with GS-15s.
April 1995
Develop placement plan for secretaries.
May 1995
Announce proposed GS-15 placements; completion of all
GS-14 PDs (supervisory and non-supervisory); distribute
copies of new GS-14 PDs to all supervisory 14s; GS-14s
return preferences.
May-June 1995
Conduct informal discussions with GS-14s.
May 1995
Make Employee Exchange Program (EEP) pilot placements.
May 1995
Distribute template position descriptions for secretarial
positions at grades GS-5, 6, 7.
June 1995
Announce proposed GS-14 placements; distribute copies of
non-supervisory GS-13 PDs to supervisory GS-13s.
June 1995
Complete Customer Focus Plan.
June 1995
Transition counseling procured or developed.
June 1995
Complete revised position descriptions for secretarial/support
staff. |
90
-------
D Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Composite Milestone Chart Q
July 1995
Submit formal Green Border Reorganization proposal to
Headquarters.
July 1995
GS-13s return preferences; conduct informal discussions
with supervisory GS-13s; announce proposed placements for
current GS-13 supervisors.
July 1995
Begin implementation of Customer Focus Plan.
July-September
1995
Transition counseling for individuals whose positions are
impacted by realignment (in conjunction with the Employee
Counseling Service).
July-August
1995
Develop plan for evaluating the success of reinvention in
Region II, including assessment methodologies to be used
and specific indicators to be examined.
August 1995
Identify proposed placements of secretarial and other staff.
September
1995
Assess coaching and facilitating skills.
Continuous
Develop and/or procure necessary training in
coaching/facilitation skills.
September
1995
Develop appropriate performance evaluation system for
supervisors in a reinvented EPA.
September
1995
Diversity training program chosen and implemented.
October 1995
Implement regional reorganization.
October 1995
New and revised redelegations signed by the Regional
Administrator.
October 1995
Reorganization-related reassignments implemented.
91
-------
Q Composite Milestone Chart
Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan Q
1996

January 1996
Customer focus orientation and training for team leaders.
January 1996
Revisions to core training plans completed.
April 1996
Revised performance management system initiated.
June 1996
Solicit evaluations by EEP pilot participants.
September
1996
TRIM process of eliminating/consolidating/ revising mandates
completed.
September
1996
Decide whether to establish EEP as a permanent program and
what program revisions are required.
October 1996
Conduct an assessment to evaluate the degree to which the
new structure embodies desired attributes.
October 1996
Divisions solicit managerial and staff feedback regarding the
effectiveness of delegations implemented October 1995 and
suggestions regarding opportunities for further redelegation.
October 1996
Evaluate performance of supervisors, using new performance
evaluation system designed for a reinvented EPA.
November-
December 1996
Implement reinvention evaluation plan.
December 1996
Review/evaluation assessment of Customer Service Plan.
1997

January-
February 1997
Review observations with respect to reinvention success and
plan for any additional organizational (or other) modifications
that may be deemed necessary to achieve goals.
January 1997
Diversity training of all employees completed.
April 1997 and
ongoing
Further redelegations are implemented.
92
-------
Q Rll Reinvention Implementation Plan
Conclusion Q
V. CONCLUSION
Our Region II Reinvention Implementation Plan builds on the solid foundation of
analysis and recommendations from our February 1994 Streamlining Plan, and the
substantial body of actions we have taken since then to streamline work processes
and empower employees. The region's plan, centered on reorganization and
redesign, embodies the goals of organizational and workforce transformation
identified by the Administrator.
We have layed out an ambitious timetable and a structured pathway for achieving
full implementation of our proposed reorganization by October 1, 1995. Key steps
along this pathway include: developing the final divisional sub-structures; putting
PDs in place for all new positions; identifying employee preferences for placement;
making placements of all current GS-15, 14 and 13 grade employees and affected
secretaries and administrative staff; ensuring our delegation documents are
understood and in place by October 1; identifying intra- and inter-divisional work
processes and linkages; ensuring that all financial and management controls remain
in place and clearly understood; and establishing clear communication lines for all
program activities with Headquarters, states, tribes and other stakeholders.
The region's formal Green Border reorganization package will be submitted to the
Office of Administration and Resources Management in July 1995. Prior to that,
we are seeking conceptual approval of our reorganization framework from the
Agency's senior leadership, concurrent with the SLC's completion of its review of
the reinvention implementation plans. As we developed our plan, we conducted
extensive outreach and communication with the Assistant and Associate
Administrators. The feedback we have received from the AA's has been quite
favorable, however, in one instance there is an AA-concern regarding our proposal.
We intend to continue the dialogue with this office and work with them on their
concerns. We have also had some preliminary discussions with the Management
and Organization Division regarding our formal reorganization submission and will
continue to consult with them as we prepare the Green Border document.
As we proceed to make fundamental changes in our regional organization and
transform the way we work, we face a number of challenges. During this period
of change, we must assure that we continue to provide strong environmental
protection to all stakeholders in Region II. We are also highly cognizant of the
concerns expressed by our staff, many of whom will be facing fundamentally
different jobs in the future, about the impacts of reinvention on their careers, job
satisfaction and opportunities for advancement in a downsized organization. The
93
-------
Q Conclusion
Rll Reinvention implementation Plan Q
potential impacts on diversity are also a major focus of the region's attention as
we seek to maintain our current diversity profile while looking for opportunities for
improvement in the future.
In all of these areas, we have identified goals for the future, and have laid out
steps we plan to take to assure the transition is as smooth as possible, that our
fundamental work of protecting human health and the environment continues
unabated, that our employees -- our most valued asset - understand the need for
change and support the directions we are taking to achieve that change, and that
our region continues to value and enhance diversity.
Along with the rest of EPA, we face a number of uncertainties about the Agency's
future. These include uncertainties about EPA's budget outlook, about how the
EPA/State relationship will evolve under the proposed "Performance Partnerships",
about other changes that may result from reauthorizations of major environmental
legislation such as Superfund and the Clean Water Act, and about the outcomes of
the Vice President's Reinventing Government II effort. We are excited by the
opportunity to reinvent Region II and believe that our new organization, coupled
with the changes we are making in work processes to empower staff and enhance
our customer focus, will enable us to effectively meet the challenges of the future.
94
-------
APPENDICES
I.	PROPOSED REGION II ORGANIZATIONAL CHARTS
II.	DRAFT REGION II FUNCTIONAL STATEMENT
III.	REINVENTION TASK FORCE AND DIVERSITY
WORK GROUP MEMBERS
IV.	REINVENTION REPORT TEAM
-------
U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
REGION II
-------
Office of Regional Counsel - Proposed
-------
Caribbean Environmental Protection Division - Proposed
-------
External Programs Division - Proposed
-------
Office of Policy and Management - Proposed
* TO BE FILLED THROUGH COMPETITIVE ANNOUNCEMENT
-------
-------
Emergency & Remedial Response Division - Proposed
Remedy Selection/
Design & Construction Manager
GS-15
Director
Deputy Director
SES
GS-15
ConsftuctabNty/Cost Estimation Expert
GS-14
(alEdiaon)
SACM (
Brawn fWdi SIM liaxoHTwnt

Section 1
QS-14

Section 2
QS-14

¦ Sections
QS-14
Strategic Integration Manager
GS-16
Mudu! SMi^c Plamtofl,
EriorovTMfllCoQfdMlofV8%«to0y
TuB^fciQ.
CoonJMIon w*h EPPO,
Hi J ii ilfc i f ¦Hhiriirmtnnmsi^d I _L
rnoiHy OfuI^aTVIuriTWWi «»•»,
HO OmrdnMor
Brown Ftakh OuNtch
Response &
Prevention
Branch
GS-15
SecUonl GS-14
8ecdon 2 QS-14
Section 3 08-14
Federal Fecttiee
Section QS-14
Contrasts Management
Section QS-14
Pre-Remedlai Section
QS-14
Resource Management/
Cost Reoovery Section
QS-14
Tedmlcal Support
Section QS-14
Emergency Retponte
Team GS-14
Enforcement Man agar a
Team QS-14
-------
-------
Division of Environmental Sciences
-Proposed
Director (SES)
RA
cience Office
GS-15
Laboratory Branch
GS-15
Organic and Inorganic
Chemistry Section
GS-14*
Sanitary Chemistry
and Biology Team
Quality Assurance and
GS-15
Air & Water
OA Team
Hazardous Waste
Support Branch
GS-15
Hazardous Waste
Support Section
GS-14*
Superfund
Contract
Support Team
* To be filled thorough competitive announcement
-------
REGION II PROPOSED REORGANIZATION
DIVISIONAL FUNCTIONAL STATEMENTS
(DRAFT)
1.	REGIONAL ADMINISTRATOR. The Regional Administrator (RA) has primary
responsibility to the Administrator for the planning, programming, implementation,
control, and direction of the technical, legal, and administrative aspects of Region II
activities of the Environmental Protection Agency. The RA serves as the
Administrator's principal representative in the Region with Federal, State,
interstate, tribal and local entities, industry, academic institutions, and other public
and private groups. The RA is responsible for accomplishing national program
objectives in the Region as established by the Administrator, Assistant and
Associate Administrators; within the administrative and technical framework set up
by these officials, the RA develops, proposes, and implements a Regional program
for comprehensive and integrated environmental protection activities. The RA's
office houses the Regional Coordinator for Environmental Justice, ensuring that
environmental justice considerations figure prominently in technical and managerial
decision making throughout the Region. The RA is also responsible for total
resource management in the Region within guidelines provided by Headquarters;
translating technical program direction and evaluation provided by various
Assistant and Associate Administrators into effective Operating programs at the
Regional level; and assuring that such programs are executed efficiently. The RA
exercises approval authority for proposed State standards and implementation
plans and provides for overall and specific evaluations of Regional programs, both
internal Agency and State activities.
2.	OFFICE OF REGIONAL COUNSEL. Responsible for the development,
implementation, and coordination of all Regional legal activities. These include
coordination and conduct of defensive litigation; conduct of administrative, civil,
and criminal enforcement in conjunction with the Enforcement and Compliance
Assistance Division and, where appropriate, state and local governments; legal
aspects of the Region's financial assistance activities including grant appeals and
bid protest; review for legal sufficiency of many Regional actions such as State
delegations, permit actions, Federal Register notices, etc., and various other
Regional actions and activities which raise legal questions; interpretation of Agency
guidance, regulations and statutes; coordination of legal activities with State and
local governments and administering the Agency's ethics program in the Region.
3.	EXTERNAL PROGRAMS DIVISION. Responsible for the development,
implementation and coordination of public affairs, Congressional and
intergovernmental relations, international activities, the community relations
program, and the Indian program for Region II. Represents the Region in contact
with the press, the public, and elected officials; develops and implements programs
on environmental education; assists federally recognized tribes in developing
appropriate tribal environmental protection programs pursuant to federal law, and
-------
advises the Regional Administrator on all external program aspects of the Region's
activities.
4.	CARIBBEAN ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION DIVISION. Represents the
Regional Administrator in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the Territory of
the Virgin Islands; is responsible for liaison with the Commonwealth and Territorial
governments on matters concerning environmental problems requiring EPA action;
performs all routine programmatic activities in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin
Islands including implementing the water, air, pesticides, toxics, solid and
hazardous waste, and Superfund programs; communicates EPA program objectives
to local government agencies and provides scientific and technical assistance in
meeting these goals; advises the Regional Administrator on all local environmental
aspects of the Region's activities, including recommendations and suggestions on
preventive and corrective measures to be taken by EPA; and represents the Region
in contacts with the press, radio, television, and the general public.
5.	ASSISTANT REGIONAL ADMINISTRATOR FOR POLICY AND
MANAGEMENT. Directs the accomplishment of the policy making and managerial
phases of the Regional Administrator's overall responsibility.
Serves as the Region's Chief Financial Officer and Senior Resource Official,
responsible for the integrity of the Region's financial and contracts management
programs. Serves as the Senior Information Resources Management Official
(SIRMO). Responsible for providing policy coordination and analytical support
across Regional programs; implementing EPA accountability and reporting under
the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA); ensuring that management,
organization, and decision-making processes function efficiently; providing review
coordination of State program grant submissions; coordinating cross-divisional
programs such as public-private partnerships, data integration, geographic
information systems, and strategic planning. Responsible for Federal Managers'
Financial Integrity Act (FMFIA) implementation throughout the Region; conducts
reviews and analyses to ensure effective internal controls are in place. Responsible
for assuring efficient and effective management of resources in order to
accomplish Regional objectives. Coordinates Region ll's lead region functions.
Responsible for providing various functions of the Office, including policy and
program coordination, planning and evaluation, strategic planning and budgeting,
grants and contracts management, audit management, financial management,
information systems, human resources management, equal employment
opportunity, total quality and customer service coordination, health and safety, and
facilities management.
6.	DIVISION OF ENFORCEMENT AND COMPLIANCE ASSISTANCE.
Responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive regional program to
assure compliance with the full range of environmental statutes and regulations for
the air, surface water, drinking water, ground water, solid and hazardous waste,
UST/LUST and pesticides and toxic substances programs (i.e., all enforcement
except for the Superfund, oil spill prevention and emergency planning programs);
-------
compliance strategies employed incorporate a multi-media perspective to the
maximum extent possible. In cooperation with the Office of Regional Counsel,
determines regional enforcement priorities and commitments. Negotiates annual
Memorandum of Agreement with Office of Enforcement and Compliance
Assurance. Provides technical oversight and assistance to State agencies;
conducts inspections; investigates complaints; identifies violations; as appropriate,
provides compliance assistance, issues warning, or considers formal enforcement
action. Initiates administrative and judicial enforcement actions, coordinating
progress of actions closely with the Office of Regional Counsel; provides technical
expertise; ensures the successful completion of field investigations and studies
required to support actions; testifies as expert witness; participates in the design
of remedies and the negotiation of agreements; monitors compliance with terms of
agreements/settlements/judicial decrees. For the pesticides, toxics, UIC and
UST/LUST programs, manages the full range of programmatic activities in addition
to compliance activities.
7.	ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING AND PROTECTION DIVISION. Responsible for
development, implementation, coordination, and integration of the air, solid waste,
hazardous waste (including corrective action), radiation, drinking water, wetlands,
oceans, estuaries, municipal sewage treatment, construction grants, surface water,
environmental assessment, NEPA/309 review, pollution prevention and risk
assessment programs in the region. Assists states in developing and implementing
comprehensive environmental programs in these areas and supplies appropriate
technical assistance and oversight; actively participates in the negotiation and
implementation of State work plans, cooperative agreements, and State/EPA
agreements to prioritize and integrate pollution control, pollution prevention, and
risk reduction activities at all levels of government; administers the permitting
programs for the above media; develops and implements the RCRA corrective
action program including identifying candidate sites for stabilization activities,
obtaining hazardous waste corrective action studies and cleanup activities at
facilities, and overseeing state corrective action programs. For the above
programs, reviews State program plans and recommends grant awards; administers
the State Revolving Fund program; develops multi-media and ecosystems
approaches to environmental protection; and develops comprehensive strategic
plans encompassing the above activities.
8.	EMERGENCY AND REMEDIAL RESPONSE DIVISION. Responsible for the
development, implementation, and coordination of Regional activities, including
enforcement, under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation
and Liability Act (CERCLA) and the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization
Act (SARA); manages a comprehensive program for site evaluation, expedited
response actions, immediate removals and long-term remedial actions including
cost recovery activities. Responsible for all emergency response and emergency
contingency planning activities under CERCLA/SARA and EPCRA Title III; and
responsible for spill prevention, control and monitoring programs under the Oil
Pollution Act of 1990 and §311 of the Clean Water Act, and for the emergency
-------
planning program under EPCRA Title III.
9. DIVISION OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES. Responsible for setting
priorities and identifying resources needed to collect environmental samples,
analyze collected samples and evaluate the resulting data in support of regional and
agency compliance monitoring programs; directs and coordinates the field and
laboratory support for the Region; directs the implementation of the Regional
Quality Assurance Program Plan and the Peer Review Program; and directs special
studies, investigations, and surveys to support regional enforcement actions or
define environmental quality programs. Provides advice and assistance to State
and local agencies and oversight of State programs in monitoring, analytical testing
and quality assurance.
-------
Members of the Reinvention Task Force
Co-Chairs
George Pavlou
Dore LaPosta
Air and Waste Management Division
Kenneth Eng
Maria Stanco
Caribbean Field Office
Jose Font
Emergency and Remedial Response Division
John Higgins
Environmental Services Division
Barbara Finazzo
External Programs Division
Cecilia Echols
Office of Policy and Management
John Henderson
Jo-Ann Velez
Dana Williams
Office of Regional Counsel
Management Pi
Doreen Raicaldo
-------
Members of the Diversity Work Group
Co-Chairs
Muhammad Hatim
Kathleen Callahan
Air and Waste Management Division
Luz Garcia
Maria Stanco
Caribbean Field Office
Pedro Modesto
Emergency and Remedial Response Division
Caroline Kwan-Appleman
John Prince
Linda Wood
Environmental Services Division
Marcus Kantz
Office of Policy and Management
Lorraine Brando
Tierre Jeanne
Otto Salamon
Tracye Smith-Starkey
Dana Williams
Water Management Division
Barbara Cunningham
Julio Vazquez
Terry Wesley
Facilitation Team
Jeff Josephson
Alan Sommerman
-------
Reinvention Report Team
Barbara Pastaiove
John Henderson
Judi Brown
Alan Sommerman
Robert Rubel
-------
-------