Following are highlights from a strategic plan OPM has issued.
STRATEGIC GOAL:
Help agencies recruit and hire the most talented and diverse Federal workforce possible to serve the American people
OPM is spearheading a government-wide initiative to reform recruiting and hiring policies and procedures. The reform effort will encompass sweeping changes to streamline the hiring process. OPM will extend its reach to ensure agencies find and hire the best talent possible for the Federal government.
STRATEGIES
Reform the Federal hiring process by:
Promoting innovative and coordinated approaches to recruiting and hiring students, mid-career professionals, and retirees to meet agency talent needs
Streamlining the end-to-end hiring process to create a positive experience for applicants, managers, and HR specialists
Increasing manager engagement in the hiring process
Improving USAJOBS and integrating other components of the on-line hiring system to create a world-class experience for job seekers and agency recruiters
Providing targeted direction on Federal hiring to HR officials
Promoting efficiency and effectiveness in hiring practices and processes compliant with merit principles
Assist veterans to find a place in the Federal workplace by:
Assuring veterans’ preference
Helping veterans identify skills that match Federal opportunities
Promoting a culture of respect for veterans’ contributions in all agencies
Facilitating the transition of veterans into the Federal civilian workforce
Promote diversity and inclusion in the Federal workforce by:
Helping agencies create an environment that values workforce diversity and leverages diverse talent to achieve results
Promoting policies and practices to ensure all segments of society, including people with disabilities, have an opportunity for employment and advancement
Providing Federal employees and managers with educational and training opportunities aimed at creating and maintaining a culture where diversity is valued and promoted
Pursuing recruitment and retention efforts focused on attracting diverse talent
Ensure agencies have sufficient information to make decisions such as credentialing, suitability, and/or security clearance determinations by:
Achieving a quality standard in investigations that meets Federal investigative standards to ensure agency protection and satisfaction
Supporting reciprocity of both background investigations and the adjudications that result from such investigations to the maximum extent that is possible and appropriate
Safeguarding personal information to protect individuals’ identities and preserve the public trust
INDICATORS OF OUR PROGRESS
Federal agencies institute an effective hiring process as demonstrated by:
A decrease in the end-to-end hiring time for job applicants–
An increase in applicant satisfaction as reported in surveys–
An increase in manager satisfaction as reported in surveys–
Improved employment opportunities for veterans in the Federal government
Diversity is valued and recognized in Federal agencies, as demonstrated by increased employee and manager satisfaction scores as reported in employee surveys
Increased percentage of security and suitability investigations and adjudications that meet quality and timeliness standards
Fewer instances of compromised personally identifiable information
Increased percentage of background investigation
STRATEGIC GOAL:
Provide the training, benefits, and work-life balance necessary for Federal employees to succeed, prosper, and advance in their careers
To improve the results of Federal programs and services, the government must invest in its most valuable resource – its employees. Providing training throughout an employee’s career – from entry-level to executive – is critical to mission accomplishment and leadership succession planning. Having a suite of flexible benefits and promoting a healthy work-life balance across the Federal government also contributes to building an engaged workforce, employee well-being and retention. Programs and initiatives, such as alternative work schedules, telework, and employee assistance programs are designed to help employees identify and resolve personal and/or work-related issues that may affect their productivity. Investments in training, benefits, and work-life balance initiatives benefit current employees and help us continue to attract the best and brightest for Federal service.
STRATEGIES
Improve training opportunities f or Federal employees by:
Promoting workforce training and development as a critical element of civil service reform
Holding agencies accountable for providing training opportunities for their employees
Identifying and encouraging training programs to help employees evolve with changes in agency mission, prepare them for promotion, and position them for successful careers
Designing and deploying leadership development programs
Providing consultative services for leadership and training development programs
Ensure that available benefits align with best practices and employees’ needs by:
Evaluating benefit survey results of both public and private sector organizations
Communicating benefit options to ensure potential candidates and current employees understand the flexibilities and benefits available
Improve Federal employee engagement and satisfaction with health, wellness, and work-life flexibilities by:
Giving agencies tools to promote health and wellness among employees
Evaluating and revising agency telework and other work schedule policies, in conjunction with agency partners, to encourage increased use by agencies and managers
Helping agencies to address employee satisfaction with work-life flexibilities and benefits
Leading agencies in delivery of work-life programs
Improve Federal labor-management relations across the government by:
Meeting regularly with national and local leadership of organizations which represent employees and management
Facilitating opportunities for labor and management to meet regularly across the government
Helping agencies develop best practices, training, and metrics on labor-management relations and dispute resolution
Promoting collaboration as a means of achieving organizational objectives
INDICATORS OF OUR PROGRESS
Increased number of new leadership development programs and training opportunities available for Federal employees
Increased percentage of employees satisfied with their benefits package
Increased percentage of Federal employees who report satisfaction with work-life programs
Increased percentage of eligible Federal employees who telework
Increased retention rates for new Federal employees
Increased number of agencies that meet regularly with union representatives
Increased usage of alternative dispute resolution methods
Improved labor-management relations as measured by benchmarks and surveys
STRATEGIC GOAL:
Ensure the Federal workforce and its leaders are fully accountable, fairly appraised, and have the tools, systems, and resources to perform at the highest levels to achieve superior results
OPM assures that agencies across the Federal government hold leaders accountable for results. For agencies to succeed and meet the challenges of the 21st century, OPM must transform the civil service system to be flexible, agile, and responsive enough to adapt to any circumstance. OPM provides human resources management solutions, establishes the standards for continuous improvement, and leads by example to achieve agency results.
STRATEGIES
Help agencies become high-performing organizations by:
Designing performance management systems that are integrated with agency program planning and clearly show employees how their actions drive agency results
Creating fair and credible standards for individual performance appraisal and accountability
Strengthening partnerships with public and private organizations allowing for knowledge transfer and the sharing of promising practices
Recognize, select, and sustain individuals who provide strong leadership and direction for agencies by:
Driving agencies to close leadership competency gaps through succession management and developmental opportunities
Evaluating the agency’s effectiveness in holding leaders accountable for agency performance
Ensuring agencies make meaningful distinctions in evaluating and recognizing different levels of management performance
Hold agencies to account for improvements in strategic human resources management by:
Providing agencies with designated human capital officers for ongoing direction and consultative support
Monitoring compliance with civil service laws and regulations and appropriate use of flexibilities/authorities
Encouraging agencies to see human resource offices as strategic business partners with top agency leadership
OPM will lead by example to implement human resources reforms and achieve results by:
Building leadership and staff capacity to further develop OPM as a high-performing organization
Improving business operations and providing exemplary internal customer service
Making better use of financial resources to meet program needs
Using performance results to inform management decisions
Improving collaboration and partnership within OPM
Ensure the safety of the Federal workforce through emergency preparedness by:
Developing and implementing policies and procedures to help agencies prepare and respond to emergency situations
Supporting the Federal Executive Boards to ensure coordinated responses to all hazards events
INDICATORS OF OUR PROGRESS
Federal agency HR systems and practices improve, as demonstrated by performance metrics reported in agencies’ annual Human Capital Management Reports
Federal agencies meet certification requirements for their leadership performance management systems
Federal agencies manage employee performance fairly and effectively, as demonstrated by increased employee and manager satisfaction as reported in annual surveys
Increased percentage of Federal employees who value and trust their leadership, as demonstrated in employee survey results
Increased cost savings/avoidance from human resource solution activities
Continued stewardship over OPM’s financial resources by maintaining the agency’s clean audit opinion
OPM increases its investment in training for its employees
OPM’s rank among Federal agencies improves as reported by survey results
STRATEGIC GOAL:
Ensure recognition and reward for exemplary performance of current employees and honor the careers of Federal retirees
Many of the employees working for the Federal government share a philosophy to give something to the wider public or community through their work. This work often requires high levels of training and education, and employees are often prepared to work harder for less pay. Therefore, it is incumbant on the Federal government to establish a performance system that will treat employees fairly, be easy for managers to use, reward those with expemplary service, and be understandable to the public.
The Federal government’s commitment to its employees does not end when someone retires from service. OPM administers retirement and insurance benefits for over 2 million retirees. We must ensure quality delivery of those benefits and respond to retirees questions and concerns in a caring and timely manner.
STRATEGIES
Improve Federal pay and reward systems by:
Working with key stakeholders to modernize the Federal pay system to be more supportive of current recruitment and retention trends and strategies
Engaging employees in implementing new recognition programs
Evaluating, improving and certifying agency Senior Executive Service (SES) pay and performance systems
Develop a 21st century customer focused retirement processing system that adjudicates claims in a timely and accurate manner by:
Investing in information technology tools and solutions to facilitate benefits payments
Using performance measures to ensure quality customer service
Strengthening quality assurance processes, policies, and procedures
Delivering optimal customer service experiences by improving processes
Improve OPM service to Federal agency benefit officers by:
Developing an agency benefit officers service delivery model emphasizing shared responsibility for benefits/retirement among employees, OPM and agencies
Defining standards for agency benefit officers, measuring their results, and recognizing them for exceptional customer service
INDICATORS OF OUR PROGRESS
Federal agencies manage employee performance fairly and effectively, as demonstrated by increased employee and manager satisfaction, as reported in annual surveys
Increased percentage of Federal employees who are satisfied with their agency’s recognition and reward systems, as demonstrated in employee survey results
Increased number of agencies that attain full certification for their SES pay and performance system
Increased efficiencies of retirement processing
Increased percentage of recent Federal employees who report higher customer satisfaction scores associated with pre-retirement counseling provided by their agency human resources benefits office, as demonstrated in retiree survey results
Federal agency benefit officers report increased customer satisfaction scores associated with OPM services, as reported in annual surveys
LONG-TERM PERFORMANCE GOALS:
In addition to using the indicators that appear for each of the strategic goals, OPM will also use the following long-term performance goals to gauge its progress through FY 2011:
Hiring Reform: 80 percent of Departments and Major Agencies meet agreed upon targeted improvements to:
Improve hiring manager satisfaction with applicant quality
Improve applicant satisfaction
Reduce the time it takes to hire
Telework: Increase by 50 percent the number of eligible Federal employees who telework
By FY 2011, increase by 50 percent the number of eligible Federal employees who telework over the FY 2009 baseline of 102,900.
Security Clearance Reform: Maintain or exceed OPM-related goals of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 and provide the OPM deliverables necessary to ensure that security clearance reforms are substantially operational across the Federal government by the end of calendar year 2010.
Retirement Claims Processing: Reduce the number of retirement records OPM receives that are incomplete and require development to less than: 38 percent by the end of FY 2010, 35 percent by the end of FY 2011, and 30 percent by the end of FY 2012.
