Recruiting has been hampered by a lengthy hiring and clearance process, says GAO. Image: Gil C/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffThe GAO has called on the State Department to step up its efforts to recruit and retain IT employees, which it said are hampered by factors including pay that is low relative to broader market rates and the relatively low use of incentive payment authorities—even though the department has acted to boost both.
In findings that mirror those of many reports on IT understaffing in federal agencies in general, the GAO said that recruiting also is hampered by a lengthy hiring and clearance process, a narrow focus of the department’s marketing and recruitment strategy, and a lack of detailed information in vacancy announcements about what the job entails.
Retention also is hampered by limited promotional opportunities and the “inaccuracy of position descriptions and performance of non-IT related work,” it said.
GAO said that State has partly implemented five of six leading practices for IT workforce recruitment such as strategic planning, but has not implemented one of those, involving establishing and tracking metrics of effectiveness. Without that, “State may find it challenging to determine if its recruitment program and hiring process are successful,” it said.
It said that of nine leading retention strategies for IT workers, State has fully implemented one—collecting and assessing training performance data—and has partially implemented six, but has not implemented two others, including setting performance objectives and tracking retention metrics. Without that, “State may experience more difficulties retaining critical IT staff with the key skills and abilities to meet the department’s mission and respond to evolving IT threats,” it said.
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