The role of the state department of education
Public sector agencies form a large web of interconnected organizations, with the state departments of education (DOE) playing a critical role. They house the different branches of education that receive state funding, oversight, and guidance. In one southern state, (the southern states refer to Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, and South Carolina) public school districts, state schools and special education programs, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) schools, vocational schools, and virtual charter schools all rely on the support of the state DOE.
The challenge of disparate systems
Like many public agencies, this DOE recognized their internal needs were exceeding staff bandwidth. They were looking to outsource certain operational tasks and positions, which led them to work with CAI as the managed service provider (MSP). CAI has been providing contingent workers to the organization since 2019.
Because of the way their digital infrastructure was set up, the DOE contingent workers were stuck in an inefficient and disorganized time-entry process. These contractors were expected to enter time into two systems: an internal timekeeping program, plus the Vector vendor management system (VMS) that served as the system of record.
This required the DOE managers to approve time in two systems as well. The problem not only created more room for error by requiring the same information to be entered twice in different places, but it also consistently caused a delay in timesheet submittals and approvals.
Additionally, the DOE was struggling to ensure the time entered was correct, as the time was being coded differently from one system to the other. To compound the problem, these issues had a ripple effect on CAI suppliers. Many of CAI’s suppliers who employ contingent workers are set up to receive payment when the rest of the accounts are processed and paid. The time entry errors and latency caused payment delays that would trickle down to the suppliers. Managers at the DOE would get complaints because of this, and it created friction in the relationships between the service providers, the contingent workers, and the DOE.
Finding a solution that works for everyone
The DOE decided it was necessary to build a new project and time-tracking system internally. This meant creating a new process for time entry, and most importantly, they wanted to be able to extract time from one system to send to CAI to process. They approached CAI with this task, hoping to remove the burden of double-time entry and approval from their workers and managers.
Leveraging a feature that already existed within the VMS, CAI was able to provide a solution for these issues. Vector’s import function allows for a bulk load of time data, meaning it can be transferred from one system to the other without manual entry. The CAI team ensured that the coding aligned with their new system, which streamlined the invoicing process.
Streamlined systems and efficiency gains
The end result of these changes is the contingent workers only enter time into one system, and managers only approve time in one system. Since the time is approved in the DOE’s system, the managers don’t need to submit their approval in the VMS—CAI handles that. This saves time each week for the DOE management team, as well as for nearly 100 contingent workers.
In addition, the workers only need to concern themselves with time entry in the DOE system instead of the dual entry process that led to error and confusion. This has translated to fewer errors overall, and subsequently, fewer corrections in back-end systems.
Another benefit to this streamlining is that CAI invoices more quickly, meaning the invoices instantly align with the DOE’s coding. This allows for quicker processing and payment, positively impacting the supplier and improving relationships across the board.
The realized benefits of an updated vendor management system
The DOE is very pleased with these improvements and the positive impact the new, streamlined system has had on their agency. Beyond the obvious efficiency and data continuity improvements, another positive change has allowed the DOE to shift focus. As CAI has taken the staffing burden off of the DOE’s plate, it’s allowed their teams to focus on higher-priority operational tasks.
“The collaboration with CAI was exceptional. Their team was incredibly supportive and proactive throughout the entire process. We have seen tremendous improvements thanks to this partnership and the new system. Time entry is more accurate and efficient, time approval processes are faster, and invoice processing is significantly smoother reducing the risk of resource turnover.”
This combined solution, the contingent workers and the newly-built timekeeping system, has not only improved internal relationships and reduced strain on internal staff but it’s also improved relationships with vendors. The streamlining of these tasks has improved the operational efficiency of the organization as a whole, and that means the DOE is set up for success in the future.
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