wfn.org | Board Makes Organizational Changes

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"UNITED METHODIST DAILY NEWS 97" by SUSAN PEEK on April 15, 1997 at 14:24
Eastern, about DAILY NEWS RELEASES FROM UNITED METHODIST NEWS SERVICE (291
notes).

Note 289 by UMNS on Aug. 29, 1997 at 15:31 Eastern (2161 characters).

Produced by United Methodist News Service, official news agency of
the United Methodist Church, with offices in Nashville, Tenn., New
York, and Washington.

CONTACT:  Ralph E. Baker                          477(10-71B){289}
          Nashville, Tenn.  (615) 742-5470           Aug. 29, 1997

Operational changes approved at Board
of Pension and Health Benefits

                 by United Methodist News Service

     Earlier action by the board of directors has paved the way
for organizational changes at the United Methodist Board of
Pension and Health Benefits.
     The changes, which will help the board become more responsive
to client needs, will be announced during the next several months
at the agency's office in Evanston, Ill. In the first phase, staff
will be reorganized in the operations functions -- the area that
most directly relates to clients.
     "The basis of the new staffing model is a participant
response center that will provide 24-48 hour turn-around on all
requests coming in by telephone or mail," said Len Lacouture,
chief operating officer of the board. "Our next step will be to
implement a prototype plan that is designed to test the new
process fully."
     "We believe that a new service delivery model for our
operations staff will help in using new technologies to answer
questions and solve problems for our customers faster and better,"
said Barbara Boigegrain, the board's top staff executive. "We are
excited about the potential it provides us to form new teams that
are more responsive to customer needs on a day-to-day basis."
     The new staff service delivery model is part of an
organization-wide reengineering. The board cites increased
customer expectations, changing industry standards and norms, and
a challenging regulatory environment as reasons for the change.
     In addition to staff changes, other initiatives will include
a new computer-based management system for conference benefits
officers, roll-out of a new Personal Investment Plan for
participants and a more efficient system for handling paper
transactions.
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