Monster software flaw haunts federal agencies

QuickHire glitches hinder HHS, DHS hiring efforts

By Marc L. Songini

April 11, 2005 12:00 PM ET

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Computerworld - Several federal government agencies have been bedeviled over the past month by technical issues that impaired a hosted human resources software system run by recruiting and advertising giant Monster Worldwide Inc.
The problems have forced Monster developers to perform various work-arounds and the agencies to adopt temporary processes for job applicants. Monster said it will pay to fix the problems, though neither it nor the agencies would disclose the amount of that outlay or the cost of adopting the temporary measures.
The affected agencies include the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Homeland Security's Customs and Border Protection, Citizenship and Immigration Services, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement units.
The hosted software system, called QuickHire, automates the processing of often complex government job applications and can quickly link candidates to the appropriate open job slot.
Unable to Handle Volume
At HHS, the system worked well for several months after it went live in October 2003, said Bob Hosenfeld, the agency's deputy assistant secretary for human resources. However, by the time QuickHire was shut off last month, "the software was unable to handle the volume and demands placed on it by the department and applicants," he said.
Monster subsidiary Monster Government Solutions, based in McLean, Va., runs and manages the QuickHire software. The operation's customer list includes some 60 federal agencies, according to a Monster spokeswoman.
The Monster-hosted systems supporting HHS and the DHS went off-line by mutual agreement on March 9. Monster has been working unsuccessfully since then to get the software back up and running.


HHS's Monster-hosted HR system was taken off-line March 9. Image Credit: Newscom

At the DHS's Customs and Border Protection agency, QuickHire provided a fast way to fill vacant slots, but "glitches in the system" cropped up, said a spokesman. Since then, the application has been unable to handle heavy volume, and it began timing out while job applications were being processed, he said.
Rather than canceling the hosted service, "we basically went back to the drawing board and are trying to work out the glitches," the spokesman said. Those whose job applications have been lost have been contacted via e-mail, to the best of the agency's ability, and have been urged to reapply, he said.
As of April 4, the agency's Web site stated that all job openings would be posted on an alternative government site and that some candidates would need to provide application information via e-mail while QuickHire is down.
Without offering specifics, the Monster Government Solutions spokeswoman said the QuickHire

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