Melissa Lytell

571-***-**** adndjh@r.postjobfree.com Aldie, VA 20105

SUMMARY

Enthusiastic Human Resources Officer offering over 20 years of experience in all aspects of human resources management with expertise in compensation, recruitment and retention, employee and labor relations, mediation and alternate dispute resolution, position management and classification, staff training and career development and complex problem resolution.

SKILLS

HR policies expertise

Technology (Proficient in Microsoft Office)

Issue and conflict resolution

Recruitment and hiring

Employee engagement/Team building

Staff compensation

EXPERIENCE

Assistant Director, Early Learning Center, YMCA of Metropolitan Washington DC, March 2018-Current

Reston, Virginia

Manage operations of large childcare center licensed for 125 children, increasing new enrollment and return enrollment by 15%.

Launched marketing campaigns and large-scale events to attract community members and increase enrollment.

Manage school's social media accounts to promote positive image to area families.

Improved on school curriculum and policies by conducting research on developments in early childhood education and integrating findings during planning. Coordinate quarterly educational assessments with parents to show progression.

Write newsletters and emails to communicate monthly activity schedules to parents.

Implemented a rigorous COVID-19 cleaning and illness policy resulting in only one positive case. Report health concerns and post health warnings in case of illness.

Conduct rigorous interviews and hiring process to deliver qualified teaching staff for parents and students.

Educate teaching staff in key job functions such as classroom guidance, curriculum, parent-school relations and child development by holding monthly training sessions for new hires and current staff.

Develop multilingual and multicultural staff and curriculum to serve families from diverse backgrounds. Regularly lead team-building exercises for staff to improve communication and teamwork. Implemented the first employee morale program resulting in employee retention and increased job satisfaction.

Mentor and conduct quarterly performance review sessions, documenting job performance, recommending merit increase or corrective action as needed.

Director of Shared Services and Change Management, US Department of State, February 2008-April 2015

Washington, DC

Developed a business case based on OPM's HR Line of Business that focused on improvement of key recruiting and staffing functions resulting in the realignment of these functions and staff from Washington, DC to Charleston, SC.

Designed, developed and implemented HR four-tiered shared service delivery model focused on employee self-service conducted through a new HR Service Center established in Charleston, SC.

Developed the technical requirements to outline the functionality of the business processes as well as the applications and systems that enabled the 4 tiers to launch successfully.

Guided startup and management of all HR operations, systems and programs in the new HR Service Center including the development of nine HR Service Provider and Policy and Oversight teams co-located at dispersed locations.

Provided expert management and consulting services on change management, internal business process improvements, customer service, employee satisfaction and employee performance through the development and oversight of a Customer Service Advisory Board.

Established seven implementation teams consisting of 100+ employees who provided input on staffing and organization for the Service Center in Charleston, SC including the design of new facility; training employees on new processes and procedures; change management and communication; process re-engineering; knowledge base development; and new technology.

Senior Human Resources Officer, US Department of State, March 2001-February 2008

Washington, DC

From 2001-2005, I served as a single Bureau's HRO, providing consultation services to senior management in setting the strategic direction of the Bureau and ensuring its' success.

Set the strategic direction of the human capital functions such as compensation, benefits, employee and labor-management relations, recruitment, staffing and on-boarding, performance management and awards administration. I have served in this position since 2001 and was promoted to the GS-15 level in 2005 after the successful addition of 4 client bureaus.

Managed the division through subordinate supervisors and team leaders; emphasizing a customer-centric, collaborative culture that adds value to the missions of client organizations. This required that I continually assess the efficiency and effectiveness of the Bureaus' Human Capital Management (HCM) business practices, as well as the customers' satisfaction with them, in order to improve the organizations' service delivery model.

Developed new strategic partnerships and service delivery arrangements with other Bureaus, and exercised delegated authority to commit Bureau resources and staff to ensure the success of these efforts.

Ensured the Bureaus had the depth and breadth of talent necessary to meet its changing and growing objectives. Developed talent review and succession planning processes; employee development programs, including cross-functional developmental assignments.

Led multiple bureau re-engineering and streamlining initiatives, i.e., advanced the use of technology and guided numerous efforts to automate processes and improve all human resources systems.

Developed and implemented performance metrics and other qualitative and quantitative methods by which HCM products and services can be measured in order to identify problem areas and improve customer service and satisfaction.

Supported top talent identification processes by interviewing candidates and executing all HR steps, including onboarding, orientation and benefits.

Performed quantitative analysis and analyzed job classifications, duties and compensation.

Created process improvements, policies, procedures and knowledge management to resolve employee discrepancies.

Human Resources Specialist, Department of State/Navy, October 1997-March 2001

Washington, DC

Between 1990 and 2001, for both State and Navy, I provided personnel advisory services on employee and labor relations, benefits and compensation, equal employment opportunity, position management and classification, FLSA, Reduction-in-Force, recruitment, onboarding and retention, workforce diversity, training and career development.

Provided advice and guidance to managers and employees regarding disciplinary and adverse actions, i.e., conduct, performance, grievances, appeals, EEO complaints and Union issues.

During my time at the Department of Navy, I was responsible for overall policy development and management of the Priority Placement Program, Student Programs, Federal Women's Program, including Prevention of Sexual Harassment.

Worked as part of a team to develop the Voluntary Separation Inventive Program (VSIP/VERA) programs. As the Student Program Coordinator, I was responsible for recruitment, placement, application of appropriate policies and regulations, development of program instructions, academic counseling, benefits, performance and conduct issues. As the Federal Women's Coordinator, I was responsible for coordinating the training of all military and civilian personnel in the prevention of sexual harassment. I developed, prepared, trained and trainers and presented yearly training for approximately 9000 civilian and military personnel at multi-sites.

EDUCATION AND TRAINING

Associate of Arts

General Studies, Cerro Coso Community College, Ridgecrest, CA 1994

AWARDS/CERTIFICATIONS

Director Generals Award for Excellence in Human Resources 4/2008 - HRO of the Year

Meritorious Honor Award 4/2008

Group Superior Honor Award 9/2007

Meritorious Honor Award 4/2005

Meritorious Honor Award 5/2005

Quality Step Increase 11/2005

Quality Step Increase 5/2004

Meritorious Honor Award 4/2003

Group Meritorious Honor Award 7/2001

Franklin Award 1/2001

Society of Human Resources Management - Member

International Quality & Productivity Center - Keynote Speaker

Alternate Dispute Resolution Facilitator

Disney Approach to People Management

Prevention of Sexual Harassment Certified Trainer

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Successfully launched HR Service Center on-time and under budget.

Led two competitive sourcing initiatives and stood up two Most Efficient Organizations (MEO) simultaneously while avoiding any reduction-in-force actions.

Reduced a vacancy rate of 20% to 0% for a bureau with 1300 fulltime equivalent positions.

As the first organization to merge HR staffs I successfully integrated three separate and distinct divisions from client bureaus into one new shared services organization.

One of the first of three bureaus designated as a Center of Excellence with full delegation of authority to the GS-15 level with delegated examining authority.

Through improved communications and outreach, eliminated a backlog of longstanding complaints and grievances.

Dramatically improved overall customer satisfaction by 30-50% in client bureaus served.

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