Client Spotlight on Tess Touve, HR Coordinator, BI, Inc.:
Safeguarding Productivity for Public Safety

Technology plays a key role in deterring and curbing crime. However, the technology can only be as good as the people who provide, operate and maintain it. Industry-leading BI, Incorporated supports 1,500 community corrections agencies with offender supervision technology, treatment and prisoner reentry programs that produce lasting results. Working through 44 locations nationwide, the company currently has a staff of 560 professionals. Having such a key role in public safety means that BI, Inc. must maintain high Human Resources standards when hiring. Helping ensure quality recruitment and retention results is Tess Touve, BI, Inc.’s Human Resources Coordinator.

Ensuring Employee Well-Being

As the HR Coordinator at BI, Inc.’s corporate headquarters in Boulder, Colorado, Tess tackles a diverse list of tasks on a daily basis. In addition to being mainly in charge of recruiting and interviewing, benefits administration, employer relations, EEO and Affirmative Action reporting, Tess also handles projects geared towards enhancing employee satisfaction and well being. Examples of these projects are in-house benefits fairs, coordinating free employee flu shots, and bringing in and administrating employee perks like movie and other entertainment discounts.

While the headquarters houses the company’s HR, Manufacturing, Finance, IT, IS and Marketing departments as well as part of their Sales division, many of BI, Inc.’s employees work off-site. Their Main Call Center is in Anderson, Indiana, and more than 40 other monitoring and support facilities operate throughout the country. Despite the company’s geographical diversity, Tess and the rest of the HR team are committed to ensuring that each employee is given equal access to the benefits and advantages that come with being a member of the BI, Inc. family.

Always on the Ready

Naturally, managing human capital as large as BI, Inc.’s has its challenges. For Tess and the rest of the HR team, the biggest ones are retention and maintaining a base of viable candidates. “The need is particularly pronounced in the field, where we have to work harder to ensure that our locations are manned by skilled, qualified people. There are many instances when younger employees hone their skills with us and then move on to the public sector.” To always be on the ready, HR does a lot of internal communication with the hiring managers in the field. “We always make sure we know what the job descriptions are, and what qualifications they require. When we don’t get the response we want from job ads and Monster.com, we turn to employment agencies for pre-qualified candidates.”

An On-Going Need for Quality Results

“We usually utilize temp services to cover for attrition so positions remain filled and functional until we find someone we can hire on a full time basis,” she says. “Typically, the assignment is for a front desk position, although we have had needs in other areas, including some highly technical and skilled positions. Many times, we have successfully transitioned contingency workers using the Temp-to-Hire approach.”

While Tess handles the recruitment for all other areas, the Manufacturing Manager takes care of procuring Light Industrial workers. “Since the demand for BI, Inc.’s products changes constantly, the Manufacturing division is actually a very lean, streamlined team,” says Tess. “They hire temps depending on the workload, but even then, they only staff for non-core competencies such as assembly and soldering.”

Tess often works with AppleOne, specifically Boulder Branch Manager Brock Musgrave. “It’s wonderful to work with Brock because we can rely on him to provide us with consistently great people,” says Tess. “We have been working with AppleOne for over two years and we have yet to be dissatisfied with the results.” At present, there are four AppleOne temporary associates working at BI, Inc.’s corporate office in front desk, filed service finance, and graphic design positions. “Working with clients as knowledgeable as Tess really makes a difference,” says Brock. “She always has a strong grasp on exactly what a specific department is looking for so it makes our search so much easier.” Because Tess always gives the Boulder office detailed feedback on all of the AppleOne candidates she meets with, Brock and his team are then able to go back and seek matches with more precision. “Tess is one of the best clients to work with – it’s an absolute pleasure to be a staffing partner with her and BI, Inc.”

About BI, Inc.
BI Incorporated is a leader in providing innovative technology and research-based programming that is proven to reduce recidivism in low- to high-risk offender populations. BI partners with public corrections officials to achieve results that support public safety in a cost-effective, lasting manner. By combining cutting-edge compliance technology with research-based treatment and counseling, BI assists offenders to curb future crime and conserve scarce local resources. Nationwide, BI, Inc. contracts with more than 1,500 governmental agencies at the federal, state, and local level to provide technology, treatment and training to adult and juvenile parolees, probationers, or pretrial defendants. BI helps our government to be smart on crime