President Obama has issued an executive order on the SES that in some ways seeks to return the SES to how it was originally designed in the Carter administration, as a cadre of experts in problem-solving rather than experts in particular program—with higher expectations of mobility but also promises of higher compensation.
By next May 31, agencies with 20 or more SES positions will have to submit a two-year plan to increase the number of SES members who are rotating within or among agencies, with a government-wide goal of 15 percent rotating for at least four months each year starting with fiscal 2017. The policies are to consider, among other things, the government’s “interest in cultivating generalist executives with broad and diverse experiences who can lead a variety of organizations.”
On compensation, it tells agencies to generally set starting pay, and to provide annual raises, sufficient for career SES appointees to receive compensation exceeding the rates of pay, including locality pay, of their subordinate GS employees.
It also raises the limits on performance awards to SES members to 7.5 percent of aggregate SES salary and orders OPM and OMB to review guidance on aggregate spending. OPM is to issue guidance to support the goal that “agencies should allocate awards in a manner that provides meaningfully greater rewards to top performers.”
Similar policies would apply in both cases to senior level and senior scientific and technical positions.