With its quest for continuous improvement in excellent public service, the Department of Education Regional Office 1 (DepEd RO1) has moved up to the PRIME-HRM or the Program to Institutionalize Meritocracy and Excellence in Human Resource Management Level 2 accreditation in recruitment, selection, and placement as assessed by the Civil Service Commission Regional Office 1 (CSC-RO1).

CSC-RO I Regional Director Hedy Jose B. Lardizabal conferred the Certificate of Recognition to DepEd RO1 through Assistant Regional Director (ARD) Ronald B. Castillo at the National Educators Academy of the Philippines Region 1, San Vicente, City of San Fernando, La Union during the Araw ng Parangal – ONE for Region FIRST Honors Program on December 16, 2020. 

The Certificate of Recognition states that the DepEd RO1 has met “the standards/indicators for PRIME-HRM Maturity Level 2 in one HRM System – Learning and Development (L&D) based on the validated self-assessment and evidence requirements.”

The conferment for the recognition was made possible through the initiative of the Program lead – Human Resource Development Division led by Chief Education Supervisor Dinah C. Bonao, also the L&D Committee Vice-Chairperson and collaboration among the L&D Committee chaired by ARD Castillo and members composed of the Regional Chiefs of functional divisions.

The L&D Committee and TWGs underwent orientation and series of workshops and meetings led by the HRDD Program Manager Johnson P. Sunga and with full assistance from the CSC RO1 team. Through these, the L&D Committee and TWGs were able to comply with the specific requirements and met the standards set for the Level 2 accreditation.

Also in attendance during the event were CSC-RO1 Chief HR Specialist Liwayway R. Navalta, Supervising HR Specialist Walfredo C. Laudencia, Jr., and ARD Josephine R. Altura through Zoom.

In his message, Director Lardizabal commended DepEd RO1 for pushing through the PRIME-HRM as he truly wanted DepEd RO1 to be included as one of the agencies in the region to be PRIME-HRM accredited and continue until it reaches the Level 4 accreditation. He also ensured everyone of the CSC’s full support in DepEd RO1’s continuous journey in PRIME-HRM.

ARD Altura in her message live via Zoom also commended the whole DepEd RO1 family for being able to elevate its PRIME-HRM despite numerous tasks ahead and during this time of pandemic. She also congratulated the management, Regional Director Tolentino G. Aquino and ARD Castillo for the full support on this endeavor.

In behalf of Director Aquino, ARD Castillo thanked the CSC-RO1 team led by Director Lardizabal and ARD Altura for the full support and assistance towards the PRIME-HRM achievement. He also commended the DepEd RO1 L & D Committee and Technical Working Groups spearheaded by the Human Resource Development Division for the enormous effort in achieving another milestone in PRIME-HRM.

PRIME-HRM is a mechanism that aims to continuously capacitate agencies in the performance of their human resource management, recognize best practices and serve as a venue for exchange and development of expertise.

Under the program, the CSC assesses the maturity level of an agency’s competencies, systems and practices in four HR systems: (1) Recruitment, Selection, and Placement (RSP); (2) Learning and Development (L&D); (3) Performance Management (PM); and (4) Rewards and Recognition (R&R).  An agency may be classified according to four maturity levels, depending on how well it meets all the elements in each system.

 An agency which reaches Level 2 Maturity means that it has established a set of defined and documented Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) responsive to the agency’s unique needs, and automation is being used to a certain extent.  It is characterized by goal-oriented decision making. 

DepEd RO1 will continue its PRIME-HRM journey as it hopes to achieve recognition on the three remaining HR systems: RSP, PM, and R&R. (Abigail A. Cabilin, HRDD/Photo: Ronnie Ric Ramirez, HRDD)