DETR is Transitioning to NEATS!

NEATS Training is Completed... It's almost here

NEATS launch is imminent...be ready...

Everyone at DETR will begin using NEATS to report their time starting in March 2011. It's a large, somewhat daunting shift. But there's good news: other agencies across the State have made the same shift...and survived.

Better news: we have a plan to help us prepare for the migration. The NEATS knowledge transfer plan revolves around three key activities: training, coaching, and on-site support visits. Read on for more information.

  • When do we start using NEATS for timekeeping?

    Last minute preps continue but we think it will be between March 7 and March 10, 2011. Please keep your ear to your email for an official DETR-HR announcement. In the meantime, don't forget to get going on coaching...read on for more information on that.

  • What's the plan for the people who don't receive hands-on training?

    We are counting on the people who do receive training—our NEATS Super Users—to coach the employees (the New Users) who report to them and who do not receive training.

  • Can you make it simple? What makes someone a NEATS Super User versus a NEATS New User?

    You are a NEATS Super User if you attend the NEATS training class. You are a NEATS New User if you do not attend the NEATS training class.

  • In a nutshell, what does a Super User do?

    In the first two pay periods we begin using NEATS, Super Users are responsible for spending hands-on time with the New Users within their reporting units. Super Users are NEATS coaches.

  • How should a Super User coach the New Users?

    Easy: use the list below to guide coaching sessions. And budget about 1-3 hours per New User in the first week we use NEATS to provide coaching. While you may have to coach more than 1 person a session, do your best to keep sessions to no more than 4 people. Also, encourage quick-learning New Users to help other New Users.

    NEATS for timekeeping skill set Check-off items you covered
    How to get to and use the NEATS login screen 
    How to create a NEATS timesheet 
    How to fill-out a NEATS timesheet 
    How to save a NEATS timesheet 
    How to retrieve a saved NEATS timesheet 
    How to request leave using NEATS 
    How to request OT using NEATS 
    How to validate a NEATS timesheet 
    How to submit a NEATS timesheet for approval 
    How to use a timesheet from a prior pay period as a starting point for the current pay period 
    Where to go for training materials  
    Where to go for more help 

    Super Users don't have to be master trainers to be effective coaches-just sitting with a New User at his or her computer and guiding the New User through a screen or two (as needed) will be, in itself, helpful. Encourage New Users to ask questions and raise concerns. Using the checklist above as a reference, coaching sessions should be a breeze.

  • What do the New Users do?

    New Users should feel free to reach out to the Super Users for help when we first to go to NEATS. Tip: Managers and supervisors should identify New Users in their work areas who have used NEATS for timekeeping elsewhere in the State. These NEATS Vets might prove to be valuable coaching resources.

  • Who will support the Super Users?

    The Project Team will support the Super Users. The Project Team consists of about a half-dozen people drawn from DETR-HR, DETR-FM, DETR-IDP and DOP.

  • What does the Project Team do?

    The Project Team is responsible for reaching out to DETR divisions, offering help in the first several weeks we begin using NEATS. Members will make on-site visits to various work areas in Carson City, Reno, and Las Vegas, where they will field questions, provide coaching, verify DETR employees are successfully using the system, and escalate issues.

  • Who is on the Project Team?

    Currently the Project Team is comprised of the following: Karen Belleni (DETR-HR), Pat Winans (DETR-FM), Rachael Harris (DETR-HR), Yvonne Shepard (DETR-HR), Tim Lewis (DETR-IDP), Dennis Ashe (DETR-IDP), and Pat Moore (DETR-IDP).

  • Any other tips for success?

    NEATS is not a terribly difficult computer program to figure out, yet managers and supervisors should address current workloads in their administrative areas, allotting time for the change to NEATS in the first two pay periods we begin using it. Specific steps to success...

    1. Schedule coaching sessions with your team, taking into consideration other responsibilities in your work area.

    2. Follow-up after the coaching sessions, asking the New Users to confirm they have received coaching and that they are good to go (so to speak). Ultimately, Super Users will be approving the New Users timesheets.

    3. Survey your team right now to see if there is anyone among them who has used NEATS for timekeeping at another State agency. These NEATS Vets could become valuable assistants, providing coaching relief to Super Users.

    4. Work with the NEATS project team. They will be happy to schedule a visit to your area to help answer questions and escalate issues.


  v1.00.0a (2011/03/02)