On May 11, 2010, President Obama signed a memorandum ordering Federal agencies to significantly revamp their hiring processes by November 1, 2010. Under the new policies, agencies must:

1. eliminate any requirement that applicants respond to essay-style questions when submitting their initial application materials for any Federal job (i.e. no more KSAs);
2. allow individuals to apply for Federal employment by submitting resumes and cover letters or completing simple, plain language applications, and assess applicants using valid, reliable tools; and
3. provide for selection from among a larger number of qualified applicants by using the “category rating” approach (i.e. no more “rule of three”).

Managers and supervisors with responsibility for hiring are required to be:

1. more fully involved in the hiring process, including planning current and future workforce requirements, identifying the skills required for the job, and engaging actively in the recruitment and, when applicable, the interviewing process; and
2. accountable for recruiting and hiring highly qualified employees and supporting their successful transition into Federal service, beginning with the first performance review cycle starting after November 1, 2010.

Federal managers will have a crucial role to play in making the new processes work. Regardless of the quality of the new hiring systems established by each agency, the government will not become any better at getting the right people into the right jobs unless/until we as managers take ownership of the hiring process and learn how to do it well. It is, of course, in our interest to do so; decisions about who will be on our team has a profound impact on the performance of the team. In Good to Great, Jim Collins actually argues that getting the right people “on the bus” is key to building the foundation of a great organization.

Federal agencies have actually had the flexibility to do most of the things in the President’s May 11 memorandum for several years, but few have taken advantage of the flexibilities available to them.

By the end of year, Federal managers will be held accountable in their annual performance evaluations for hiring qualified people and supporting their transition into their new roles. As such, managers will need to move quickly to start cultivating their hiring skills. There is no need to wait until your agency rolls the new processes. There are a number of principles that apply to recruitment and hiring regardless of context. Here are a couple suggestions on where to start:

• The first article I wrote for GovLeaders.org in (back in 2002) was Hiring the Best People for Your Agency.
• Stewart Liff’s book The Complete Guide to Hiring and Firing Government Employees is a great resource for government managers. It is packed with useful and innovative tips on hiring the best people, including how to: minimize staffing gaps, target your recruiting efforts, screen applications, conduct effective interviews, and make good hiring decisions.

If you have ideas for improving leadership and management of the Federal workforce, please consider submitting you idea via the website FedPitch.org.  Even if you don’t submit an idea, if you happen to be in the DC area please think about attending this event during Public Service Recognition Week.  It should be a lot of fun.

GOOD-GOVERNMENT GROUPS ANNOUNCE FEDPITCH COMPETITION:
Citizens to “Pitch” Ideas for Better Managing the Federal Workforce

Washington, D.C. – Several good-government organizations today announced FedPitch 2009 – a competition where citizens present 2-minute “pitches” of their ideas for improving workforce management in the federal government. The FedPitch 2009 competition will be held during the week of May 4 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., as part of Public Service Recognition Week, a yearly weeklong celebration that honors the men and women who serve America as federal, state and local government employees. The first annual FedPitch competition was held last year during the Public Service Recognition Week celebration.

The purpose of the FedPitch competition is to identify innovative ways to attract and recruit people to federal public service and new approaches for retaining, engaging, motivating, rewarding, developing, or leading the federal workforce. FedPitch 2009 is being initiated by
13L, a group of mid-career federal employees, and is co-sponsored by the Partnership for Public Service, Young Government Leaders, American University’s Institute for the Study of Public Policy Implementation, and the Federal Advisory Committee of the International
Public Management Association for Human Resources.

“FedPitch is a great way to involve citizens in helping to find new approaches to better lead and manage the federal workforce,” said Scott Derrick, a 13L founder and architect of FedPitch. “Last year’s FedPitch event was very well received, and we are pleased to be able to offer the competition again this year.”

The pitches will be presented before a live audience and a panel of five judges. The judges will rate each pitch based on factors such as originality and feasibility. At the end of the session, the judges will select a winner, who will meet with the judges at a later date to explore strategies for implementing the winning idea. The moderator for FedPitch 2009 will be Tim Clark, Editor in Chief of Government Executive magazine.

To submit a proposal to pitch an idea at the FedPitch 2009 event, entrants should log on to the FedPitch web site at www.FedPitch.org beginning March 4 through April 4, 2009.

Finalists for the competition are scheduled to be announced on April 13.

————————————————————————————-

13L is a group of mid-career federal employees committed to promoting effective leadership in the federal government. www.13L.org

The Partnership for Public Service works to revitalize the federal government by inspiring a new generation to serve and by transforming the way government works. www.ourpublicservice.org

Young Government Leaders is a professional organization of young federal employees that works to educate, inspire, and transform the current and future leaders of the federal government. www.youngovernmentleaders.org

The Institute for the Study of Public Policy Implementation at American University is a unique forum where all stakeholders in the public policy implementation system can work together on a continuing basis to create compelling results for the public. www.spa.american.edu/isppi

The Federal Advisory Committee of the International Public Management Association for Human Resources supports IPMA-HR by strengthening the federal presence in, and the federal contribution to, IPMA-HR programs and activities. The Federal Advisory Committee
serves as a community of practice in creating opportunities for federal HR practitioners to network and stay abreast of important issues. www.ipma-hr.org

]]> http://govleaders.org/blog/?feed=rss2&p=49 1 http://govleaders.org/blog/?p=41 http://govleaders.org/blog/?p=41#comments Sun, 01 Mar 2009 20:03:05 +0000 Don Jacobson http://govleaders.org/blog/?p=41 In many agencies there is disagreement over who is responsible for leadership development.  In some organizations, responsibility for leadership development is delegated to HR.  In others, leadership development is viewed as the domain of trainers.  In yet other organizations, employees expect the agency’s senior leadership to take the lead.

They are all right—to a point.   All three groups–HR staff, leadership trainers and senior leaders–have an important role in facilitating leadership development in the agency.  Their roles should be as follows:

• HR should ensure that the agency’s personnel policies are aligned to ensure that effective leaders rise to the top.  That means leadership capacity must be a key factor in promotions and hiring/selections for key leadership positions.
• Leadership training should be readily available and trainers should ensure that leadership training courses are of high quality and relevant to the agency’s culture and needs.
• And senior leaders throughout the organization should make it clear by word and deed that leadership is important and valued in their agency.  That means being good mentors, coaches, and role models–and providing strong support for the efforts of HR and the trainers.

And it sure helps if someone is connecting the dots between the leadership development efforts of HR, the trainers and the managers to ensure that their efforts are mutually reinforcing and that that are no gaps.

The Real Bottom Line
Your agency has an important role in helping you develop as a leader, but the person with the ultimate responsibility for leadership development is you.  All the incentives, training, and mentors in the world will accomplish nothing if each individual does not take ownership of his/her own leadership development.  Learning to lead is a lifelong process.  It’s hard work that requires practice, new skills, lots of feedback, and continual reflection.  And only you can do it.

So, what are you going to do about it? How committed are you to growing as a leader?  There’s no time like the present to begin!  Seek out the experiences, mentors, and courses that can help you along the way.  Seek feedback and make time for reflection.  And never, ever, stop learning.

Many of us in government want to change the way our agencies work.  These changes can take many forms.  Some of us may want to fix a process or change/eliminate counterproductive rules.  Others may wish to shoot for more ambitious goals that require a change of culture.  The current push to expand the use of collaboration tools like Web 2.0 technologies is one example of a big and important culture change.  My personal focus has been on doing whatever I can to foster a culture of leadership—both in my own agency and throughout the government.

Effecting change in a large organization is difficult.  Those difficulties can be magnified greatly in the public sector.  Entrenched rules and structures pose many obstacles.  Resource limitations often seem to be the things in greatest abundance.  And the possibility of criticism from senior bosses, Congress and the media tends to make many managers risk averse.

So how does one overcome all these obstacles to bring about significant positive change?  This article will outline 12 strategies, and practices that can be very helpful to the change agent in government.

Be Clear About Your Big Goal
What is it that you are really trying to accomplish?  Do you have a vision of your end goal?  Keeping the end goal in mind is critical to forward movement.  You will experience many setbacks on the way as some of your tactics will fail.  If you dwell on the latest setback it is easy to become frustrated.  I find that a Life Mission Statement is a helpful tool that enables me to keep sight of my larger scale strategic objectives.

Choose to Lead
Leadership is a choice.  If you see a problem, own it.  And fix it.  All too often, employees see problems but wait for someone else (e.g. the boss) to address them.  It’s important to remember that the boss might not even be aware that the problems exists—and even if they do know about it they might not have the time or energy to do anything about it.

Look for Leverage Points
Leverage points are places where you can achieve a multiplier effect from focused efforts (i.e. you obtain a larger impact than you would normally get for the same amount of effort).  For example, an HR employee or management analyst who provides support and guidance to managers across many parts of the organization can be a great leverage point for modeling or disseminating practices and ideas that you want to implement across the organization.

Plant Lots of Seeds…and Keep Watering
If you are looking to implement a major culture change, you will need to start planting seeds in various parts of the organization.  Be on the constant lookout for 1) opportunities for small wins; 2) new allies; and 3) ways to change the language used to discuss your issue.   The key is to take advantage of small opportunities when they present themselves—and to persist.  If you have been tending to these things, your initiative can more quickly blossom when you do achieve high-level support for it.

Develop a Network
Networks are key enablers for the change agent.  The network can be members of your own team, employees from other parts of the organization, or even contacts from other agencies.  Members of a network can provide each other encouragement, ideas, and other support.  They can also provide leverage by building support for change in diverse parts of the organization, replicating changes throughout the organization, and continually expanding each other’s networks.  Networks also reinforce the fact that you are not alone—a key factor in being able to persist.

Maintain Your Optimism
As Winston Churchill said, “The optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty.”  The change agent in government will encounter many difficulties.  Optimism gives us the enduring belief that, working with and through others, we can make a difference.  Optimism is also infectious.

Be Creative about Tactics
As discussed earlier, you will encounter many obstacles.  Keep the end goal in mind while you look for tactics that will help you find ways to go over, under, around, or through the obstacles.  If one tactic doesn’t work, try something else.  If you don’t have a knack for finding creative solutions, partner with colleagues who do.

Be Honest in Your Assessment of Potential Downsides
What would happen if your change initiative is implemented and then fails miserably?  How would that impact your agency’s ability to perform its mission?  How much money and energy will have been wasted?  Will it cause public embarrassment?  What are the chances of failure?  These are some of the things that decision-makers will worry about.  The answers to these questions can help you identify ways to strengthen your proposal and mitigate the potential downsides.  And let’s face it: Ignoring the significant risks is simply irresponsible.

Cultivate Credibility
To be an effective change agent, you also need to take the time to cultivate your credibility in your organization.  It’s not uncommon for brand new employees to identify major problems with the organization (e.g. with the HR system), and then quickly get frustrated because the “system” won’t fix all those problems that are so obvious.  New employees have fresh eyes and good ideas and managers should listen carefully to their suggestions.  However, new employees are well advised to focus primarily on mastering their jobs and learning the culture.  Implementing some modest but innovative changes within their immediate sphere of influence can help them build credibility as an innovator and provide valuable learning about how to get things done in the organization.   Another critical part of establishing credibility is cultivating a constructive relationship with your boss that involves a healthy mix of support, tact, and candor.

Keep asking “Why?”
As noted above, new employees come in with new perspectives and ideas.  Those who have been around for awhile may have become accustomed to (and accepting of) an absurd status quo.  It’s important to find ways to keep the fresh perspective of the newbie.  Don’t learn to accept bureaucratic stupidity if there might be ways to eliminate it.  One of my favorite “demotivators” from Despair.com says, “Tradition: Just because you’ve always done it that way doesn’t mean it’s not incredibly stupid.”

Do Completed Staff Work
Change agents also need to be prepared to do a lot of the groundwork required to actually implement the changes. A lot of ideas go nowhere simply because the boss is already too busy to take on something new—no matter how creative and exciting it may be to the would-be change agent. If you take a great idea to your boss (or other decision maker) and show him/her that they won’t have to do much more than say, “Yes,” your chances of getting the idea approved will improve dramatically. (See “The Doctrine of Completed Staff Work.”) A willingness to do much of the leg work needed also shows that you are really committed to the idea and will do everything you can to make it work.

Remember that a “Yes” From the Top Means the Real Work is Just Beginning
If you are fortunate enough to have the big boss sign off on your major change initiative, remember that the decision point is only the beginning of the real work for implementing your initiative.  Just because a change initiative is blessed by the leader(s) of the organization does not mean anything will actually happen.  And even if the initiative is implemented, you cannot assume that the effort will continue or have the intended effect.  As Admiral Hyman Rickover once said,

“Good ideas are not adopted automatically. They must be driven into practice with courageous impatience. Once implemented they can be easily overturned or subverted through apathy or lack of follow-up, so a continuous effort is required.”

So, what do you think needs to be fixed?  …And what are you going to do about it?