Optimizing Talent in the Federal Workforce

William J. Rothwell PhD, SPHR, Aileen G. Zaballero CPLP, John G. Park MBA

• Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers
• Year: 2014
• Print ISBN: 9781567264340
• eBook ISBN: 9781567264357
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Bookkeeping & Budgets
• Index: Business

Taxpayers deserve the very best frompublicservices, and first-rate public services can only be provided by outstanding government workers. Federal human resource managersfacethe challenge of attracting and retaining high-caliber individuals within the constraints of ever-tightening budgets and often-conflicting political directives. From a talent management perspective, Optimizing Talent in the Federal Workforce explores:
• Best practices for recruiting and selecting employees
• Proven methods for developing and training employees
• Optimal deployment and placement processes.
This text is a must-read for anyone in or working toward a government management position.

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

Christos Anagiotos and Aileen G. Zaballero

According to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM; 2012a), the federal government has a civilian workforce of 2.76 million employees. However, budgetary constraints coupled with an increased demand to attract and retain talent have imposed complex challenges. A surge in the number of senior federal employees becoming eligible for retirement is causing national leaders to take heed of these challenges; meanwhile, the “technical skills required in today’s workplace continue to necessitate advanced employee training efforts” (Condrey et al., 2012:1). Government human capital leaders are seeking solutions to improve the federal human resource (HR) systems that will optimize talent. However, several issues pertaining to the existing system must be addressed:

• Recruiting and selecting

• Developing and training

• Deploying and placing

• Retaining

• Transferring knowledge.

The aforementioned HR functions have changed as today’s global markets compete in the “war for talent” (KPMG International, 2012:2). HR departments in both the private and public sectors have shifted from playing predominantly administrative roles to achieving strategic missions and objectives where resources are often scarce. Federal agencies in particular are attempting to adopt new HR practices to succeed during this complex period. The alignment of talent management to business objectives will require systematic and strategic initiatives.

HISTORICAL EVOLUTION

In the early 1920s, personnel management was strictly focused on the administrative function of employee recordkeeping. During this period, the government’s influence on employee relations was nonexistent. Employee abuses, including unsafe working conditions and child labor, were very common. However, during World War II the need to motivate employees to be more productive became important. Furthermore, classifications of workers and occupational categories that altered the recruitment and selection process were developed (Kavanagh et al., 2012).

The civil rights movement in the 1960s was the impetus for many new federal labor regulations. During this period, the government became responsible for policing discriminatory employment practices. Personnel departments were encumbered with legislative regulations that demanded data collection to substantiate that there were no unfair or discriminatory practices. The combination of optimizing employee productivity and the desire to avoid punitive damages for noncompliance resulted in the expansion of personnel management into today’s HR departments (Kavanagh et al., 2012).

As the European and Asian economies grew and increased global competition, the 1980s became the era of cost-effectiveness. The realization that the cost of labor had a significant impact on budgets drove the need for employee programs and services. This approach to the workforce defines people as assets, also referred to as human capital, whose value can be measured and whose future value can increase through investment. According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), the government’s human capital is its greatest asset:

To attain the highest level of performance and accountability, federal agencies depend on three enablers: people, process, and technology. The most important of these is people. (GAO, 2000:1)

However, the likelihood of future staffing problems due to a high percentage of eligible retirees became apparent in 2000, when the phrase “human capital crisis” began to surface. Federal reports and congressional testimonies by experts on the topic of managing in government indicated that

• The reputation of government as an employer has diminished

• People who work for the government often leave for better working conditions and higher salaries.

• A large number of people who have made careers in government will soon retire. (Friel, 2003)

These reports further suggested that the federal government was inept in attracting and retaining the “best and brightest” talent, thereby impacting the government’s ability to perform its duties. For example, in 2003, when corporate malfeasances and accounting scandals were at a record high, increasing the workload of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), SEC was unable to immediately fill new positions despite receiving the largest budgetary increase in the history of the agency. This staffing challenge impaired SEC’s ability to fulfill its mission. According to a GAO report, SEC recognized the need to develop new strategies that include staff allocation and human capital planning processes. The strategic plan would be “vital to SEC’s ability to develop performance-oriented, outcome-based performance measures” (2003c).

The federal government’s strained ability to serve the public and meet its expectations now required drastic improvement in the management of its human capital. Responsible for safeguarding merit principles and employee rights, the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) was created to assist agencies in managing their workforce (MSPB, 2002). According to GAO, the federal government must position itself to address challenges and transform its internal strategic workforce planning.

Strategic workforce planning addresses two critical needs: (1) aligning an organization’s human capital program with its current and emerging mission and programmatic goals and (2) developing long-term strategies for acquiring, developing, and retaining staff to achieve programmatic goals. (GAO, 2003b:2)

Aligning the management of each agency’s workforce (recruitment, training, deploying, engaging, and retaining employees) with its strategic goal has become critical. Furthermore, government agencies have increased their emphasis on performance and results-driven outcomes, thereby impacting talent management strategies. Agencies are focusing more on the talent management process by identifying the most critical projects and matching the skills needed to meet desired goals.

As competition for the “best and brightest” talent continues to be a challenge in all sectors, including the private and nonprofit sector, managing talent becomes more critical. Therefore, recruitment and selection, training and development, compensation and reward, work design, performance appraisal, and labor management must continuously reform and adapt to the changing nature of public service (Gould-Williams, 2004; Hays and Sowa, 2006; Liou and Korosec, 2009; Snavely and Desai, 2010).

As a result, the federal government focused on reinvention, introducing several important concepts to the management of employees. Several strategies focused on increasing efficiency, reducing costs, and managing performance. Moreover, the demand for greater accountability from public officials drove several initiatives. In response to higher expectations, the Federal Workforce Flexibility Act of 2004 was signed, providing “even greater emphasis on employee development and training to promote strategic alignment with agencies’ missions” (OPM, 2005a:1). OPM and each federal agency will coordinate their efforts to align HR initiatives with agency strategic goals and performance objectives, as well as to develop comprehensive management succession programs.

HUMAN CAPITAL MANAGEMENT

Human capital management addresses business needs “through the system integration of recruiting, learning, performance, and succession planning” (Ward, 2009:212). It emphasizes the analysis of data to inform the operational decisions to manage people and increase their value. Human capital managers ensure that the workforce remains productive and motivated; this requires collaborative efforts between operational strategies and the agency’s goals and missions (Erskine, 2012). According to GAO, “strategic human capital management should be the centerpiece of any serious change management initiative and efforts to transform the cultures of government agencies” (2003:3). More specifically, government must focus on creating a flexible and adaptable work environment that is able to move quickly and minimize bureaucratic barriers.

Furthermore, the imperative that each agency’s talent management must align with its individual organizational objectives encourages government organizations to explore theories, models, and practices that focus on talent and employee performance. This book describes and discusses the best practices of both fundamental and emerging talent management initiatives and the activities of the federal government’s HR department, OPM. As a guide for students, academicians, researchers, practitioners, and consultants in both the public and private sectors, it aims to inform the reader about how the public sector is attempting to optimize a globally competitive workforce.

CHALLENGES FOR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

Today’s leaders are challenged to devise methods to gain the greatest productivity from the fewest people. This is particularly true in the public sector, where a higher-than-average percentage of workers are retirement-eligible (compared with employees in the private and nonprofit sectors) and where dramatic downsizings and layoffs have recently occurred. In 2011, it was reported that

Layoffs among state and local government workers are the most obvious source of new unemployment. Large cuts have started in regions as diverse as Jefferson County, Ala., Detroit, and Pennsylvania. These downsizings have affected police, teachers, and administrative personnel. In Detroit, the number of public employee layoffs could rise into the hundreds. And government job cuts may have only just started. Budgets in large states including California and New York are still not balanced, and state deficits are running in the billions of dollars. Austerity plans being proposed in Washington will probably cost jobs among federal government employees as well. (McIntyre, 2011)

Most government executives agree that the government’s workforce is an important pillar of national strength. These executives also agree that talent is the most important element of a modern workforce and, just as leading private-sector organizations do, the federal government should find ways to develop talent in its workforce. Yet, based on the predictions of many analysts, government budgets will be cut for years to come at the same time that public demand for federal government services will increase dramatically (Zeman et al., 2011).

BEST PRACTICES IN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

Attracting the best people to work for the federal government is just the beginning of ensuring that the federal workforce is the best it can be. Government officials must select productive people who can achieve results. In addition to choosing the right people from a pool of applicants, the federal government must develop and train the best people for their unique roles in its HR structure.

The U.S. government employs hundreds of thousands of people, so recruiting and selecting the right people for the right jobs is an important key to ensuring that its workforce will attain optimum performance. Furthermore, developing and training strategies that support strategic human capital management are critical. And putting the right people in the right positions—both in the United States (placement) and abroad (deployment)—is equally important, given the number of people employed by the federal government and the high cost of repositioning them. This requires various steps that identify the right people for each job and provide opportunities for engagement that connect them to their respective agencies. Doing so may increase job satisfaction and ensure that they are in the right environment to reach their individual potential. Employee engagement increases employee retention. Building appropriate motivation among individuals and establishing a positive work environment further encourages productivity and minimizes employee turnover. Even so, retaining the best employees is not always possible (e.g., when they are retiring). In these cases, transferring knowledge from more-experienced to less-experienced employees is vital.

It can readily be seen against this backdrop that government employers will be especia...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• About the Editors
• About the Authors
• Dedication
• Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Chapter 1: Introduction
• Chapter 2: Recruiting and Selecting the Best People
• Chapter 3: Developing and Training the Best People
• Chapter 4: Deploying and Placing the Best People
• Chapter 5: Engaging the Best People
• Chapter 6: Retaining the Best People
• Chapter 7: Knowledge Transfer
• Resources
• References
• Index