The Bottom Line - Fall 2020 - 26

OPRS CONTINUED
Because of its critical nature, OPRS has
always had a contingency plan in place in
case of emergencies. During the COVID-19
pandemic, we have had to make additional
changes to our processes to ensure we can
continue to fulfill our mission. We have been
able to deal with the pandemic shutdown
by implementing effective communication
between departments and information technology support from other team members
outside of OPRS. Effective communication,
whether by telephone, email, video conferences or a combination of all, was and is the
key to ensuring that we maintain our level of
service.
In a few cases, some team members had
to continue to physically report to work to
perform tasks to ensure that payments were
processed timely. Others were able to transition to telework. Whether remote or on-site,
the teams meet on a weekly basis to discuss
work related items and stay abreast of issues
that need addressing.
One of the most difficult issues we encountered was going completely paperless for
payroll and vendor checks. There were several
active employees, U.S. Park Police, and U.S.
Secret Service retirees that received paper
checks. To ensure that all employees and retirees receiving in front of paper checks paper

26 | THE BOTTOM LINE

checks were paid timely, we issued a US Bank
payment cards. Although written communication was sent to all check recipients via email or
US mail our telephone inquiries increased significantly. We worked closely and continuously
for months with a great team of employees
(Ingrid Richards, Michelle Mosby and Antesha
Jones) at the Office of Finance and Treasury
(OFT) to assist with all inquiries. There were
multiple issues to be addressed, which resulted
in some team members working before and
beyond our "normal" tours of duty. Our goal
was to make sure every employee and retiree
was completely satisfied and had a great customer service experience. We also had to make
significant changes to our vendor payment process and as a result, we offered and encouraged vendors to receive their payments via the
Automated Clearing House (ACH).
In addition to these, others were also necessary, but no challenge was too great for the
OPRS Dream Team, supported by the fantastic OCTO Team. The OCTO and OPRS staff
worked long hours and had several sleepless
nights to ensure the all payments were processed correctly. The OCTO and OPRS staff
worked very long hours and sleepless nights
in making the necessary changes to ensure
the on/off cycle payments were processed
correctly.
It may be routine, but there's never a dull
moment in payroll! *

The Bottom Line - Fall 2020

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