International Cooperative Administrative Support Services s2

International Cooperative Administrative Support Services MINUTES ICASS INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP MEETING ICASS Service Center Wednesday, March 9, 2016 10:00 a.m.

IWG Chair Philip French chaired the meeting.

1. Introduction of IWG Members and Attendees.

2. Adoption of Minutes of the February 10, 2016, IWG Meeting: Minutes for the February 10, 2016, meeting were approved and adopted with no changes.

3. Reports:

. ISC Director’s Report: ISC Director Sherrie Marafino reported on the ICASS Service Center’s recent and upcoming activities, including Outreach and Training, NSDD-38 Telegrams, Malaria Telegram, and the 2016 ICASS Survey. Ms. Marafino noted that the ICASS Annual Customer Satisfaction survey closed on February 19. Jeff Kramer (USAID) asked how a post could achieve a participation rate above 100%. It was explained that only the number of employees at post is used to establish the participation base and, therefore, responses from family members and guards working under a contract, rather than a PSA, could cause the percentage to rise above the original participation base. (See the Director’s report at the end of these minutes.) Erin Sullivan, Foreign Commercial Service, requested examples of messages sent to other posts to encourage survey participation.

. Budget Update:

o Trish Garate, ISC, gave an update on invoicing and noted that the 70% recapitalization invoices were issued on February 19th and the following departments/agencies had authorized their payments within three days: Agriculture, Treasury, SSA, State/CGFS/EX and State/FLO. She added that the issuance of FY16 Initial invoices was expected to begin this week.

March 9, 2016, IWG meeting –BH Page 1 o Jeff Kramer, USAID Alternate Service Provider (ASP), mentioned that Tegucigalpa will become a new ASP post for some Building Operations Cost Centers (78XX) which will be similar to how the ASPs function in Pretoria, Juba, and Cairo. He added that there are still a few FY15 ASP final invoices still being processed and that Justin Datta ([email protected] ) is the contact for any questions about these invoices.

o ASP Service Provider – Training is being planned for USAID personnel at the USAID Training Center in Pentagon City in May. The training will be for USAID personnel prior to their first assignment overseas as well as staff currently overseas. It will include ICASS Basics and will focus on: 1) the Overseas Cost Containment Initiative (OCCI), 2) Cost Distribution methodology, and 3) Cost Center definitions.

. Service Provider Report:

Howard VanVranken, Deputy Executive Director, NEA-SCA/EX, presented an overview of current issues for ICASS Service Providers including: 1) OCCI in the General Services and Building Operations lines of business; 2) Customer Service Centers (CSC) at posts and CSC Best Practices, such as the ICASS Access Cards in Yaoundé and CSC quality assurance and data management in Rabat. (See PowerPoint at the end of this section.)

Mr. VanVranken noted the lower worldwide rate of growth in costs for both General Services and Building Operations since the introduction of the OCCI. In the case of General Services, the average growth rate dropped from 14% to 11% and for Building Operations it dropped from 9% to 8%. Resulting savings are directed to unfunded priorities so that services can be maintained or expanded without increasing customer agency invoices.

He discussed Customer Service Centers (CSC) which are currently in place in about 25 posts worldwide. The centers function as a “One-Stop Shop” for a wide range of services and are particularly effective in supporting and orienting newly-arrived US direct-hire personnel and their families. He noted that while there is no standard way of designing and implementing these centers, they are being used in posts of all sizes and are generally staffed by reprogrammed positions rather than new positions. CSC staff often track work order requests, coordinate or schedule work, and confirm that a requested service was satisfactorily completed. He indicated that in his experience these centers are very well- received by customers at posts.

He stated that CSCs provide better oversight and a more direct connection to the management officer/counselor. He highlighted a “best practice” from Yaoundé’s CSC which issues “ICASS access ID cards.”

Jim Core, State Service Provider, noted that State is not taking a position of prescribing the establishment of these Centers, leaving that decision to the post’s discretion. Jeff Kramer suggested M/PRI could develop models or “marketing materials” for use by posts considering establishing CSCs.

Erin Sullivan raised the question of TDYers receiving unexpected invoices after an official trip, and suggested including cards in TDY welcome packets laying out the ICASS services policy for TDYers so they are aware they may incur charges.

There followed general discussion on how best to disseminate ICASS policies, and increase ICASS training/awareness in general, a concern raised by the IEB field trips in 2014. Laura Perrone (CDC) briefly described her agency’s ICASS training requirements, which are mandatory for all CDC employees prior to deploying overseas. In response to a question about tracking training participation, Training Coordinator Bill Hoover said the webinars include the ability to track training participation, including how long participants remain online.

PowerPoint for this Update (click on the icon below):

4. Committee Update:

Budget Committee: Trish Garate, Budget Committee co-chair, advised that the dates had been set for the FY16 Final Budget Pre-Hearing (April 6th) and Hearing (April 13th).

5. Other Business:

a. IWG Chair Phil French noted that he had been on the job as IWG Chair for six months and assured everyone that, even though he is filling the position on a part- time basis, he is available to respond to any questions or concerns IWG members may have about ICASS.

b. IWG Chair Phil French raised the issue of topics for future IWG and IEB meetings, and asked the group if they had ideas to contribute. He asked the group if there was interest in an off-site field trip, perhaps to the DPM facility, offering to set up the trip if there was sufficient interest. The group responded favorably to the idea and Mr. French stated he would begin working on this. Jeff Kramer suggested a review of the regional platform initiative, given that it has been in existence for five years (examples: Ft. Lauderdale and Frankfurt). Are they effective? Are there other services that might benefit through regionalization? Another issue raised by Mr. Kramer was how to include Post ICASS Council input in the Merit Based Compensation program.

March 9, 2016, IWG meeting –BH Page 3 The meeting was adjourned at 12 Noon by the IWG chair. The next meeting of the IWG was announced for May 11, 2016.

ICASS Service Center U.S. Department of State SA-1, Columbia Plaza, Room H1504 International Cooperative Administrative Support Services (202) 663-3260 FAX (202) 663-3275

March 9, 2016

TO: ICASS Working Group

FROM: Sherrie Marafino, ISC Director

SUBJECT: March Director’s Report

Outreach and Training On February 19, the ISC conducted a briefing about ICASS and current issues for GSOs and HROs participating in PA221, General Services Operations, and PA230, Human Resources Operations.

On March 3, the ICASS Service Center participated in the annual Field Officer Course at Open Source Center (OSC) Headquarters in Reston, VA. The presentation provided a basic introduction about ICASS and the responsibilities of budget committee members in managing the program at a post overseas. Participants included OSC HQ personnel and officers preparing for overseas assignments.

On March 15, the ISC will offer the next in its “Just in Time” webinar series which focuses on preparing the ICASS Annual Assessment. The annual assessment is designed to be a “road map” to help service providers and ICASS councils define management priorities and guide activities for the coming year, and the ICASS council and management should collaborate in its preparation. ICASS Council Chairs must confirm with the ISC their submission of the Annual Assessment to the Chief of Mission by June 1 each year. New this year is a requirement that the report be posted to the embassy’s website.

With greater emphasis on collaborative engagement and timely preparation, the ISC has expanded this webinar to feature an easy-to-use template and other tools to facilitate the completion of this important document. We encourage interagency representatives – particularly those with a leadership role in ICASS at post – to watch this webinar. Information on registration can be found at this link: http://icass.adobeconnect.com/admin/show-event-catalog#currentSearchTag=1294559604 Also in March, the ISC will conduct two additional webinars: March 22, Budget Committee - FY16 Final Budget Discussion/Approval; and March 29, ICASS Council - FY16 Final Budget Ratification and Look Ahead to FY17.

NSDD-38 Telegrams M/PRI’s Office of Rightsizing recently agreed to include language regarding ICASS agency codes in outgoing NSDD-38 request telegrams: “Your HROs and FMOs should note that DOD positions have ICASS agency codes identified in the NSDD 38 application; other agencies are encouraged to provide theirs as well. Your HRO should check the application and share the agency code data with the FMO at post.”

The ISC hopes that this will help to correctly identify ICASS agency codes for new positions when they are established at post, which will ensure more accurate billing under ICASS and CSCS/MCS. Currently, only the Department of Defense Embassy and Consular Support Office (DECS) is using this feature, but we encourage other agencies to consider following this practice. We have recently noticed ICASS agency codes in some assignment notification telegrams. While we do not seek to discourage this, to standardize the provision of this information until the new NSDD-38 application is available, the ISC recommends that agencies enter the data into the existing NSDD-38 application.

Malaria Telegram The Office of Medical Services (MED) and the ISC will soon release a telegram with guidance authorizing the use of regional bureau ICASS funding to procure all types of anti-malarial medication for US direct-hire (USDH) employees and eligible family members (EFMs) assigned to posts at high-risk for malaria, and includes guidance for personal protective measures (PPM) at posts with high-risk of mosquito-borne illnesses.

In September 2015, the Office of Medical Services (MED) briefed the ICASS Working Group about its initiative to eliminate malaria within our communities overseas. MED advocates the use of anti-malarial medication and other measures, including treated bed nets, topical repellents, and permethrin insecticide (see telegram for details). Treated bed nets can be added to the Furniture and Appliance Pool as a supplemental item, and posts can purchase a limited supply of topical repellents to be provided to newly transferred employees. Posts can using insecticide can include Permethrin spray as part of the services in 78XX-Building Operations, funded through ICASS. This guidance will ensure consistent treatment in providing these items at posts overseas, and represents an important step in protecting employees and family members against malaria and other mosquito-borne illnesses. While it is not anticipated that this will impact ICASS budgets this fiscal year, posts will monitor the impact of this and include any increase in next year’s target request.

ICASS Survey The ICASS Annual Customer Satisfaction Survey closed February 19. Unlike last year, the survey remained open for a defined period of time with no extension; despite this, there were approximately the same number of participants: 56,952 in 2016 and 57,116 in 2015. The ISC is

March 9, 2016, IWG meeting –BH Page 5 pleased to report that seventy-five posts reached a participation level of 90% or better. Posts overseas came up with an array of messages to encourage participation; while these were often humorous, some included information about the provision of services which provided useful context. Numerical results from the survey were released to service providers and DCMs March 9; comments will be distributed next week.