Thinking Beyond Budget Cuts: Operating an Efficient K-12 District with a Talent Management System

One district saves up to $70,000 per year by streamlining record-keeping processes

Dwindling budgets and resources put pressure on K-12 superintendents and CFOs to do more with less. In seeking creative ways to streamline operations while maintaining the quality of student education, many school and district leaders have invested in automated K-12 talent management systems.

“We have diminishing budgets all the time, and we have to work within them,” said Howard Kutcher, Ed.D., Senior Manager of Human Resources at Harford County Public Schools in Maryland. “The cost savings from automating talent management tasks have allowed us to find creative ways to work with what we’ve got.”

Howard and other K-12 leaders who use talent management solutions have seen a substantial return on investment (ROI). At Del Mar Union School District (DMUSD) in San Diego, California, for example, PowerSchool Employee Records quickly delivered a measurable financial impact. The solution streamlines HR workflows with a paper-free and audit-ready solution, while giving new hires a smooth onboarding experience.

“I think Employee Records saved me a person,” said Jason E. Romero, the district’s assistant superintendent of human resources. “It really did streamline our processes, and that’s where I think the product itself is as valuable as an employee in my organization. With benefits and salary and everything associated with a starting clerk, we save $60,000 to $70,000 per year.”

Employee Records also reduces the time staff members spend on record-keeping processes. That time can then be used to focus attention on tasks that have the greatest organizational impact.

Before implementing Employee Records, ensuring that forms and checklists were compliant was tedious for DMUSD staff and administrators.

“There was hole-punching, stapling, labeling, binding and, eventually, actually filing the file,” Romero said. “It was a multistep process that was handled over several days as opposed to what we’re doing now, which is a completely seamless process.”

Kia Birdsong, DMUSD’s human resources assistant, also felt the frustration of dependence on paper, noting how a copier jam frequently cost an hour of her day and contributed to job dissatisfaction. She was glad to replace those tasks with the intuitive workflows in Employee Records.

Talent management technology can also deliver benefits that extend well beyond record-keeping efficiency, when you pick the right solution. Before switching to PowerSchool Perform — an automated performance management solution — Bernadette Gerace, Director of Human Resources at Prosper Independent School District near Dallas, Texas, noted significant inefficiencies during the performance evaluation process.

“Our principals spent hours needlessly working with our system instead of communicating with teachers,” Bernadette says. “I was looking for a new solution that would allow our principals and teachers to really establish a connection. I found it in Perform.”

Beyond saving time and money, talent management solutions can also support student gains.

At Leadership Prep School in Frisco, Texas, leaders say they’re better empowering student achievement since implementing PowerSchool Candidate Assessment — a tool that uses predictive analytics to determine teacher candidate effectiveness.

“We recently hired a fourth-grade teacher using the (Candidate Assessment) and have been getting really positive feedback on her performance,” said Michelle Holland, Principal at Leadership Prep. “The parents and students love her. She’s very engaging, involved, and knowledgeable.”

Doing more with less within dwindling budgets doesn’t have to mean a cut in your district’s capabilities. Instead, with the right automated talent management system, superintendents and CFOs can actually improve productivity, teaching, and student success. Plus, with a system matched to your needs, you can make sure you’re identifying and hiring the right teachers, which reduces turnover and further maximizes your budget.

Making sure your classrooms are led by the best educators gives your students — and schools — the foundation needed for long-term success.