Knowledge Management - 2019 The Power of People Annual Report for the FHWA Office of Technical Services

Discipline Support System: Resources and Training for FHWA

Attendees at the November Financial Management seminar. Source: FHWA

The Discipline Support System (DSS) ensures FHWA staff is skilled and equipped to carry out FHWA’s mission through targeted collaboration, training and network building activities. Knowledge Management professionals are involved in all aspects of the DSS–from creating and supporting unique activities for individual disciplines, to managing the agency’s discipline seminar program, to overseeing the discipline membership management tool. KM ensures that disciplines have access to a host of resources to learn and grow their discipline expertise.

DSS Seminars Continue to Bolster Training and Connections

The keystone of the DSS learning activities is the discipline seminar–where members gather together to train and learn from one another and other experts in their fields. Seminars are multiday events focusing on increasing technical expertise, closing knowledge gaps, encouraging leadership at all levels, and creating strong networks for sharing and collaboration. The KM unit has managed the overall seminar program since late 2017, providing more than 1,700 employees the opportunity to participate in these unique training events. The latest cycle of seminars ended in April 2019, finishing up with the four Delivery seminars for both Federal-aid and Federal Lands employees in the Construction, Design, Program and Project Delivery (PPD), and Major Projects discipline areas. More than 650 employees participated in the Delivery seminars. The new discipline seminar cycle (FY2020 – FY2022) kicked off in November with the Financial Management seminar, with nearly 230 participants from across the country.

For this new cycle, KM implemented several new program enhancements, all designed to improve the seminar experience for FHWA staff. Two new pre-seminar webinars were designed, one focused on travel and logistics, and one on instructor training. The latter was a partnership effort with NHI. KM will tailor these webinars for each discipline as they prepare for their seminars. Based on seminar feedback from the prior cycle, KM made changes to the corporate session content to better reflect the needs of the attendees.

The November 2019 Finance Discipline Seminar was attended by 228 finance professionals eager to gain and share expertise face-to-face. Source: FHWA

Knowledge Capture through Storytelling

KM began developing a video series that highlights the stories behind award-winning projects and process improvements. By designing interviews that illuminate the strategies behind these activities, KM is able to capture and share best practices and broaden the reach of these successful initiatives. The first videos were shot at the Financial Management discipline seminar in November 2019.

Discipline-based Onboarding Pilot Set to Launch

While the discipline seminars are the primary technical learning activity for employees, they only occur about every three years. To ensure that employees who join the agency outside of a traditional onboarding program don’t have to wait to become immersed in their discipline, KM created Navigator – a discipline-based onboarding program for mid-career hires. Navigator is designed to quickly connect new employees with their disciplines, acclimate them to FHWA culture, and create a supportive cohort among participants.

The pilot, scheduled to launch in March 2020, will be infrastructure focused with participants from the Structures, Pavements, and Program and Project Delivery (P&PD) disciplines. The pilot agenda includes mini technical sessions, hot topics, condensed Federal Aid 101 and Highway Program Funding courses, HR training sessions, and discipline shadowing activities.

The Discipline Council Inspires Collaboration

The Discipline Council serves as the steering committee for the Discipline Support System (DSS). KM facilitates the Council through a permanent co-chair seat. Through regular web conferences, the Council encourages collaboration across disciplines, sharing of best practices, and implementation of process improvements.

In 2019 the Discipline Council co-chairs formulated a new DSS Action Plan to guide the Council through FY2022. Building on the peer assessment conducted in 2018, the plan serves as a guiding strategy to strengthen collaboration, coordination, and technical development across and within the 22 FHWA disciplines. The plan includes key priorities such as discipline member on-boarding, succession planning, learning and development, communication, networking, and more action items geared toward improving discipline capabilities and standardizing practices. Collectively, the Discipline Council co-chairs assign leads, timelines, and anticipated outcomes for each key activity in the plan, and work through the disciplines to promote and advance the DSS Action Plan goals. With open lines of communication and knowledge sharing at the forefront, the Discipline Council will help focus the disciplines’ lens towards the future, identify the priorities, and ensure the DSS continues to add value to the Agency moving forward.

Leveraging Technology for Success

The Knowledge Management (KM) unit seeks to connect FHWA employees and make them more successful through the use of collaboration technologies. This past year was one of testing and learning, as KM explored new uses for existing and emerging tools that will improve workforce efficiencies across the agency. Several of these tools will be coming on stream in 2020.

Collaboration Equals Productivity with O365

In the first half of 2019, the KM unit conducted a 90-day, discipline-based team study on how to best utilize and implement Microsoft’s Office 365 (O365) platform, in anticipation of an official rollout by the Department. With collaboration as a linchpin of KM, the unit brought in tech-savvy individuals from other areas of FHWA on rotational assignment to give KM’s experts a broader perspective. Several disciplines were interviewed about their likes, dislikes, and concerns about the current platform and identified needs in an O365 implementation. The team generated a report that was shared with both FHWA and DOT IT teams. The report provided valuable lessons and practices for migrating to the new O365 SharePoint platform, based on interviews from the disciplines. The KM unit continued to coordinate with both FHWA and DOT IT specialists by providing insight and encouraging ongoing communication to ensure a coordinated rollout. The official Department-wide rollout of the O365 SharePoint is expected for early 2020. KM stands ready to support the rollout by creating tips, video tutorials and other efforts to facilitate the tool’s use through the DSS.

Power BI for a Clearer Financial Picture

Power BI is a data visualization tool that integrates with applications such as Excel to connect different data sets to create charts, graphs and reports to provide cohesive visuals of the data. In 2019, the KM unit began collaborating with OTS's Eric Spriggs, Brian Bratsos, and Karen Pinell from the Office of Administration, and the RC's George Merritt to adapt a RC Power BI tool for General Operating Expense (GOE) funds management. This application, currently under development, will enable FHWA units to analyze and visualize GOE expenditures and balances. The cross-office team is gearing up for an early 2020 rollout, and KM is working to develop training modules, document best practices, and communicate the value and usefulness of the tool.

KM Increases Audience Engagement with New Tech

Financial specialist, Braye Jombo uses Catch Box technology at the November 2019 Financial Management discipline seminar. Source: FHWA

In an effort to bring the agency powerful and effective technology tools, the KM unit conducted research and participated in industry and government trainings around emerging technologies that can benefit FHWA and DOT. One such emerging technology was an audience engagement platform that used participants’ cell phones and mobile devices to gather live feedback on prearranged questions. That feedback was then broadcast to all participants, instantly analyzed, and stored for future use. KM used this technology at the Financial Management discipline seminar and at other meetings as ice breakers, audience polling, and evaluation―all of which successfully increased audience engagement and interactivity during sessions.

Creating KM Ambassadors throughout FHWA and Beyond

Knowledge management can’t be achieved by a small unit alone. It involves spreading a culture of knowledge sharing and collaboration. Throughout 2019, KM staff laid the groundwork for a system of knowledge ambassadors throughout the agency and with our transportation partners. Internally, KM staff supported knowledge sharing projects for the Center for Advancing Innovation, the Office of Innovative Program Delivery, the Headquarters Office of Civil Rights, and the Diversity Management Committee. Externally, KM specialists shared tips and techniques with the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Subcommittee on KM, the Transportation Research Board’s (TRB) KM Task Force, the nationwide State Transportation Innovation Councils (STIC) Network, and the Federal KM Community. All these efforts – whether webinars, presentations, short tutorials, tech demonstrations or full trainings – served to reinforce the concepts of knowledge management and ensure that KM ambassadors throughout the agency are able to support KM initiatives in their offices.

The U.S. Government does not endorse products or manufacturers. Trademarks or manufacturers’ names appear in this report only because they are considered essential to the objective of the report. They are included for informational purposes only and are not intended to reflect a preference, approval, or endorsement of any one product or entity.

Building Connections to Share Ideas and Uncover Solutions

FHWA has long valued the innovative contributions of our diverse workforce. Employees at all stages of their careers have access to a dynamic resource to help drive FHWA into the future: the iExchange – a multi-generational forum focused on exchanging ideas and inspiring innovation. Sponsored by the KM unit, in 2019 the iExchange grew its membership to more than 240 employees and held numerous interactive events designed to bring people together, problem solve, and collaborate on new ideas. The KM unit provides leadership to the 10-person iExchange Council which approves the yearly action plan, and helps manage events open to all iExchange members.

Adam Arthur (KM team and iExchange Council co-chair) leads a Teams video work session with other KM staff and iExchange Council co-chairs: Darla Hugaboom, Stacey Jones, Nora Ocel, Jason Dvelis. Source: FHWA

The iExchange Council creates task forces to lead activities on the action plan. One such activity is the Professional Engineer (PE) exam study group. Although the study group existed in prior years, in 2019 iExchange members began to revive the group by developing new content that will be accessible to all PEs in FHWA. The goal is to create a video library of 5- to 15-minute videos introducing concepts and explaining how to solve specific problems, based on example exam questions. This library will supplement professional, instructor-led review courses with a ready resource that engineers can access as they prepare to take the PE exam. Although still in its beginning phase, this activity is a prime example of how iExchange members are using their collective talents to explore and develop solutions that will ultimately benefit the agency and improve the competency of its staff.

Other recent iExchange projects include:

Helping to design a survey and collect data on the communication habits and needs of transportation professionals in their 20s and 30s.
Developing eTips, an electronic library of resources for technology tips. Resources include existing videos and recorded webinars. The eTips task force is also producing new videos to promote better use of technology to improve communication and collaboration across FHWA.
Hosting speed networking, where participants were matched with other iExchange members for a fast-paced, fun event. The event, which was held via video Skype, included networkers at all grade levels and across all disciplines. The end result: new relationships, informal mentors, future collaboration opportunities and more.
Creating crowdsourcing events, which brought iExchange members together via webinar and led them through a facilitated series of questions. In a 30- to 60-minute web session, iExchange facilitators gain valuable input on key challenge areas for disciplines or the agency. In 2019, the iExchange gathered knowledge and opinions on topics such as safety ambassadors, FHWA’s defensive driving course, discipline seminars, NHI branding, and more.