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Bill Fischer

July 2016 - The Public Manager

When the workforce comes together, agencies can bring creative ideas to fruition. Juliana Cyril of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention discusses how CDC is making innovation accessible to its workforce. Bill Fischer of Growth Matters considers how conferences can become a space for innovation.

Sparking Innovation in Government

The Government Workforce: Learning Innovations conference attracted nearly 300 attendees and saw participation from employees from more than 50 different federal agencies or government working groups, many of whom represented their organizations in conversations on 16 concurrent panel discussions. Throughout the day, four general subjects—data analytics, performance management, training and workplace volatility—emerged as the most cited on twitter, underlying the timeliness of topics that touch everything from engagement to knowledge transfer in the public sector. One popular panel track focused on using data analytics to deliver on agency missions, whether through better use of social media, or learning how to use smart data to boost program and workforce performance. Attendee Tracy Hansen tweeted one important takeaway from a data analytics panel. To make the first move towards improving performance, ask employees to fill in the blanks in the following question: “If I had \_\_\_\_\_ and \_\_\_\_\_, I'd know \_\_\_\_\_\_ to solve \_\_\_\_\_\_.” Managing the performance of programs and people was another important topic, with panels addressing strategies for delivering the highest levels of performance and technology. Panelist Christine Heflin, in the session, “Changing Up: Integrating a Culture of Performance in Your Organization,” observed that “good individual performance plugs into good organizational performance. Meanwhile, informal learning and non-traditional training stood out as major themes in the “Everything Learning” track. Conference attendee Oscar Marin observed the importance of acknowledging the pervasiveness of mobile communication patterns. He tweeted that, “66 percent of employees use two mobile devices in the workplace.” The topic also struck a chord with attendee Dr. Monica Evans, who tweeted her takeaway question on the subject, “How can we use mobile apps to facilitate \[finding the\] right training for right task?” Finally, the panel discussion on managing volatility and change to get results, “The View on VUCA,” generated spirited conversation. Panelists Jessica Southwell of NASA and U.S. Department of Commerce representative Jeff Press emphasized the importance of harnessing VUCA to create positive change.  “VUCA gives us an opportunity to be transformational,” said Southwell, while Press instructed the audience to “Use VUCA as a catalyst for innovation.” Indeed, attendee Bill Adams agreed with Press and Southwell. He tweeted that “Before 9/11 relying on technical skills was sufficient. But now, leaders have to be adaptive.”For more Government Workforce 2015 conference highlights from the twittershere, check out the twitter hashtag #GovWorkforce.

Panelists and Attendees Talk Data, Performance, and Volatility Management at Government Workforce 2015

The question of attrition in the public sector is a big one. As a large portion of the senior workforce eyes retirement from an agency, management and talent development leaders are asking why.A new survey released by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management found some answers to those questions. The recent report on Senior Executive Service exit survey results found that senior executives cited the political environment and the potential to make more money as their primary reasons for leaving federal service. Nearly half of the departing executives said they planned to work for pay, and over 60 percent of that group indicated they planned to do so as an employee or contractor for their agency. Of those respondents who said they would be working after their exit from an agency, the majority, 71 percent, reported they would seek full-time work, with 59 percent reporting that they expected an increase in compensation. The majority of the executives who took the survey indicated they were retiring or resigning, a group that made up 70 percent. Of those, 97 percent reported that they were retiring or resigning voluntarily. And just a quarter of those surveyed said they had not decided whether they would work for pay in the future. The senior leaders exiting their agencies said work environment issues contributed the most to their decision including senior leadership and organizational culture in addition to the political environment.  Respondents also indicated that a “desire to enjoy life without work commitments” was a contributing factor in deciding to leave. Nevertheless, many of the survey’s respondents said they could have been convinced to stay in their leadership position. Seven in 10 executives indicated that no effort was made to encourage them to stay. And many said that their decision might have been changed by an increase in pay, while others cited verbal encouragement or an award as factors that would have influenced their decision. Meanwhile, almost two-thirds of the survey’s executives said they would recommend their agency as a good place to work, and 62 percent said they would recommend employment in the Senior Executive Service. These findings capture some of the core strengths and challenges facing today’s Senior Executive Service members, according to OPM. “Clearly, there is still pride in being a part of the Senior Executive Service and in the role of a public servant. These findings show that agencies can influence whether or not their SES members ultimately choose to stay or leave the organization,” the agency said in its report. “By shifting the work environment and organizational culture, and acknowledging and appreciating an executive’s value to the organization, agencies may be able to convince their high-performing senior executives to stay.” “The information in the report will be used to support agency and Government wide recruitment, engagement, retention, and succession planning efforts for current and future executives,” wrote OPM Director Katherine Archuleta in a memorandum to agency human resources leaders. “With many SES eligible for retirement in the near future, it is imperative for agencies to understand what they can do to engage and retain executives, while mitigating factors that cause executives to leave the Federal Government.” Despite that effort, as large numbers of senior executives leave public service, the knowledge base that government agencies depend on to get the mission done is in real peril of disappearing along with them. Of the employees surveyed, nearly half said they are taking over 20 years of experience with them, highlighting a potentially bigger problem than attrition: a lack of strategy when it comes to transferring vital on-the-job skills and knowledge.  “With over half of the current SES workforce eligible for retirement in the next three to five years, it is critical that agencies have a pipeline of talent ready to take on senior level roles,” said OPM in the report. “Agencies currently are already required to develop a comprehensive management succession program; however, over half of the surveyed executives reported no formal succession planning efforts in their agencies. Fifty-three percent of executives did report they had been asked to help prepare their successors.” OPM’s survey represented 24 agencies, ranging from large departments to small, independent agencies. The survey, which was conducted between April 2013 and July 2014, included 221 departing SES employees. The survey was carried out in partnership with the National Academy of Public Administration, the Partnership for Public Service, the Senior Executives Association, and OPM representatives, the agency said. Read the full report here.

Bill Fischer

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