Foundations in Federal Human Resources

Foundations in
Federal Human Resources
Patrina M. Clark, President
SHRM-SCP | HRCI SPHR | HRI Human Capital Strategist

Professional history
• President, Pivotal Practices Consulting LLC (2012 –
Present
• Chief Human Capital Officer, U.S. Government
Accountability Office (GAO, 2008 – 2011)
• Staff Director, Federal Election Commission (FEC,
2006 – 2008)
• Regional Executive Director, Naval District Washington,
Department of Navy (2004 – 2006)
• Program Manager, Internal Revenue Service (IRS,
1986 – 2004)

Course Objectives
• Discuss the foundational laws and regulations governing
federal human resources management and recent legal and
policy developments
• Identify the Merit System Principles and Prohibited Personnel
Practices
• Describe the evolution of personnel and human resources as
an occupation in the Federal government, including HR’s role
as a strategic business partner

Course Objectives (2 of 2)
• Describe the core competencies, technical qualifications, and
career path overviews for the major HR specialty areas
• Identify available tools and resources for enhancing
professional competence
• Discuss strategies of agencies ranked as one of the best
places to work in the Federal government

Course overview
• Day 1 a.m. – Federal Government As an Employer, Talent
Management Life Cycle, Merit System Principles and
Prohibited Personnel Practices
• Day 1 p.m. – Merit System Principles and Prohibited
Personnel Practices (continued), GAO’s Findings for Human
Capital Management As One of It’s High Risk Areas

Course overview (2 of 2)
• Day 2 a.m. – Evolution of Human Resource/Human Capital
Management, Human Capital Assessment and Accountability
Framework (HCAAF), Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey
(FEDView, FEVS)
• Day 2 p.m. – Federal Human Resources Occupational
Series, General Competencies, Specialty Areas and
Technical Competencies, Resources

Foundations in Federal Human Resources

Total Employment = 2,760,569
(9/2012)

Why we have them
• Remind us that duty and the public interest are first, all else is second.
• Raise our sights to the public’s long-term interest in an “effective civil
service” which may, at times, conflict with immediate personal interest.
• Challenge the status quo - what we do/how we do it.
• Give us benchmarks to measure and judge all personnel policies,
programs, practices, and individual behavior.
• Provide the basis on which OPM, on behalf of the President and the
Congress, holds agencies and individuals accountable.

Small Group Exercise
In your small group, identify
the Merit System
Principle(s) that apply to
each element of the talent
management process on
page 3 in your books.

Principle #1
Recruitment should be from qualified
qualified individuals from appropriate
sources in an endeavor to achieve a
workforce from all segments of
society. Selection and advancement
should be determined solely on the
basis of relative ability, knowledge and
skills and after fair and open
competition which assures that all
receive equal opportunity. [5 U.S.C.
2301(b)(1)]
WHAT THIS MEANS:
 Employees are hired/advanced on
the basis of their qualifications.
 Job information is available to the
public on vacant jobs.
 People selected for jobs have the
knowledge, skills, and abilities
required for the job.
 Vacant jobs are filled after fair and
open competition.

Principle #2
All employees and applicants for
employment should receive fair and
equitable treatment in all aspects of
personnel management without regard
to political affiliation, race, color,
religion, national origin, sex, marital
status, age or handicapping condition
and with proper regard for their
privacy and Constitutional rights. [5
U.S.C. 2301(b)(2)]
WHAT THIS MEANS:
 Opportunity is provided equitably and
fairly to use family friendly work place
flexibilities to all employees.
 Employees are encouraged to use EAP
programs.
 Managers, supervisors, team leaders
deal fairly and equitably with
complaints of discrimination.
 Disputes or conflict are resolved fairly.
 Employee rights to privacy are
protected.

Principle #3
Equal pay should be provided for work
of equal value, with appropriate
considerations of both national and
local rates paid by employers in the
private sector, and appropriate
incentives and recognition should be
provided for excellence in
performance. [5 U.S.C. 2301(b)(3)]
WHAT THIS MEANS:
 High performing employees receive
meaningful recognition.
 Supervisors/team leaders are fair in
giving recognition.
 Career ladder promotions, band level
increases, and within grade increases
are performance based.
 Employees are asked about their
preference for different types of
rewards and recognition.

Principle #4
All employees should maintain high
standards of integrity, conduct, and
concern for the public interest.
[5 U.S.C. 2301(b)(4)]
WHAT THIS MEANS:
 There is trust between employees
and managers/supervisors/team
leaders.
 All employee’s conduct and behavior
problems are addressed effectively.
 Managers and supervisors practice
the MSPs.
 Prohibited personnel practices
(PPPs) are not occurring in this
organization.
 All employees maintain high ethical
standards.

Principle #5
The Federal workforce should be used
efficiently and effectively.
[5 U.S.C. 2301(b)(5)]
WHAT THIS MEANS:
 Employees participate in development of
strategic plans.
 Employees receive the guidance they need to
do their jobs effectively.
 Managers communicate the organization’s
mission, vision & values.
 Managers provide sufficient resources to get
the job done.
 Employees are involved in improving the
quality of products, services, & work
processes.
 There is enough work to keep employees busy.
 A spirit of cooperation & teamwork exists.

Principle #6
Employees should be retained on the
basis of the adequacy of their
performance. Inadequate performance
should be corrected, and employees
should be separated who cannot or
will not improve their performance to
meet required standards.
[5 U.S.C. 2301(b)(6)]
WHAT THIS MEANS:
 Supervisors provide fair and accurate
ratings of employee performance.
 Supervisors provide employees with
suggestions to improve job
performance.
 High performers are motivated to stay
with the organization.
 Supervisors deal effectively with poor
performers.

Principle #7
Employees should be provided
effective education and training in
cases in which such education and
training would result in better
organizational and individual
performance.
[5 U.S.C. 2301(b)(7)]
WHAT THIS MEANS:
 Employees receive training they need
to perform their jobs.
 Supervisors jointly determine
employees training needs.
 Training plans are integrated into
organization’s overall strategy.
 Workforce has job-relevant and
knowledge, skills, and abilities
necessary to accomplish
organizational goals.
 Funds are available for employees to
get training they need.

Principle #8
Employees should be:
a)Protected against arbitrary action,
personal favoritism, or coercion for
partisan political purposes and
b)Prohibited from using their official
authority or influence for the purpose
of interfering with or affecting the result
of an election or a nomination for an
election.
[5 U.S.C. 2301(b)(8)]
WHAT THIS MEANS:
 Employees are protected against
arbitrary action, personnel favoritism
or coercion for partisan political
purposes.
 Employees do not use their official
authority or influence for the purpose
of interfering with or affecting the
result of an election or a nomination
for election.
 Employees have not been pressured
by an agency official to engage in
political activity in violation of the
Hatch Act.

Principle #9
Employees should be protected against
reprisal for the lawful disclosure of
information which the employees
reasonably believe evidences:
a)A violation of any law, rule, or regulation
or
b)Mismanagement, gross waste of funds, an
abuse of authority or a substantial and
specific danger to public health and safety.
[5 U.S.C. 2301(b)(9)]
WHAT THIS MEANS:
 Employees are protected against
reprisal for lawful disclosure of
information that evidence (a) violation
of any law (b) mismanagement,
waste, fraud or abuse (c) danger to
public health.
 Organization has informed
employees what their rights are if
they blow the whistle and are
retaliated against.

Prohibited personnel practices

What are they?
• Prohibited Personnel Practices (PPPs) are actions a Federal
employee who has personnel authority may not engage in.
• They are admonitions against specific activities that conflict with
the MSPs.
• 13 Practices – 5 General Categories
• Discrimination
• Political activity
• Hiring practices
• Retaliation (including, Whistleblower protection)
• Catch-all and Non-Disclosure Agreements

discrimination
It is a prohibited personnel practice to discriminate against an
employee:
•Based on race, color, national origin, religion, gender, handicapping
condition, age, marital status, sexual orientation, or political affiliation
•Based on“conduct which does not adversely affect the performance of
the employee or applicant or the performance of others”
5 U.S.C. §§ 2302(b)(1) and (b)(10)

Political activity
It is a prohibited personnel practice to:
•Coerce the political activity of any person (including providing of any
political contribution or service)
•Take any action against an employee or applicant for employment as
a reprisal for the refusal of any person to engage in such political activity
5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(3)

Hiring offenses
• Obstructing the right to compete
• Influencing withdrawal from competition
• Unauthorized preferences
• Nepotism
• Considering improper job references
• Knowingly violating Veterans’ Preference
5 U.S.C. §§ 2302(b)(2); (b)(4); (b)(5); (b)(6);(b)(7); (b)(11)

Hiring offenses, cont.
Most Common Offenses
•Deceiving or willfully obstructing right to compete for
employment — 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(4)
•Influencing withdrawal from competition in order to improve
or injure employment prospects of another —5 U.S.C. §
2302(b)(5)
• Giving an unauthorized preference or advantage to
improve or injure the prospects of any particular person for
employment — 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(6)

It is not a prohibited personnel practice to act upon one’s
existing expectation that one person may be the best
selectee for a particular position (“preselection”).
To violate the law there must be —
• the grant of some illegal advantage
• an intentional and purposeful manipulation of the system to
insure that one person is favored and another person is
disadvantaged

Caveats
• While hiring offenses usually require intent to deceive or
manipulate the system, if a law, rule, or regulation
implementing a merit system principle is violated in the
process, that would also be a prohibited personnel
practice.
• Negligence or impudent actions can create the
appearance of a hiring offense and result in complaints
and investigations — e.g., broadcasting one’s choice
before competition is held.

examples
• Manager deliberately fails to have vacancy announcement
posted, to prevent a particular candidate from applying for a
vacancy
• Application received is deliberately misplaced or destroyed
• Supervisor gives an employee a dishonest recommendation or
appraisal to keep valuable employee or to help another
candidate
• Closed vacancy announcement is re-opened to permit a
favored candidate to apply

Examples, cont.
• Supervisor encourages a subordinate not to compete, or to
withdraw his or her application, by making promises of future
benefits that supervisor does not intend to keep
• Job qualifications are manipulated to favor a particular
applicant
• A supervisor advises a qualified employee not to apply for a
job in order to improve another employee’s chances to be
selected

The catch-all
Taking or failing to take personnel action, in violation of a law,
rule or regulation that implements or directly concerns a merit
system principle
5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(12)

Retaliation
• Retaliate against a whistleblower – whether an employee or
applicant
• Retaliate against employees or applicants for filing an appeal

Office of special counsel (OSC)
Authorized to —
•Investigate Prohibited Personnel Practices and other activities
prohibited by civil service law, rule, or regulation
•Seek corrective action on behalf of individuals who are the
victims of prohibited personnel practices
•Seek disciplinary action against agency officials who commit
prohibited personnel practices

OSC, cont.
Authorized to —
•Provide a safe channel for whistleblower disclosures by current and
former federal employees, and applicants for federal employment
•Advise on and enforce Hatch Act provisions on political activity
applicable to federal, state, and local government employees
•Protect the reemployment rights of federal employee military veterans
and reservists under USERRA

Responsible officials
The head of each Line of Business or Staff Organization, and officials
with delegated personnel management authority, are responsible for —
• Preventing prohibited personnel practices
• Complying with and enforcing civil service laws, rules, and
regulations
• Ensuring that employees are informed of their rights and
remedies (in consultation with OSC)

Advice for responsible officials
• Be measured in your speech and actions
• Keep the merit systems concepts on your radar screen
• Seek expert advice when you are unsure
• Deal with problems as they occur to avoid the appearance
of bad motive
• Be consistent in your management of your employees
• Do your best not to be someone about whom the whistle is
blown

GAO’s High Risk Report –
Human Capital Management

What GAO found
Actions are needed in three broad areas:
•Planning. Identifying the causes of and solutions for skills gaps
and steps to implement those solutions.
•Implementation. Defining and implementing corrective actions
to narrow skills gaps through talent management and other
strategies.
•Measurement and evaluation. Assessing the effects and
evaluating the performance of initiatives to close skills gaps.

Small Group Exercise
Handout: GAO Best
Practices and Leading
Practices in Human Capital
Management

Strategic Human Capital Management

Personnel eligible by end of FY 2005

The Human Capital Idea:
Two Central Principles
• People are assets whose value can be enhanced through
investment.
• Human capital approaches should be designed,
implemented, and assessed by how well they help the
agency achieve strategic results and pursue its mission.

Cornerstones of Effective Strategic Human Capital
Management
• Leadership continuity and succession planning
• Strategic planning and organizational alignment
• Acquiring and developing staffs whose size, skills, and
deployment meet agency needs
• Creating results-oriented organizational cultures

An Enabler of Cultural Transformation
• Effective strategic human capital management
approaches serve as the cornerstone of any serious change
management initiative
• Successful human capital approaches enable an agency
to become LESS hierarchical, process-oriented, stovepiped,
and inwardly focused; and MORE flat, results-oriented,
integrated, and externally focused
• Requires a long-term commitment to valuing human capital
as a strategic asset

Commitment to Human Capital Management
• People are viewed as a key enabler of agency
performance
• Leaders stimulate and support efforts to integrate human
capital approaches with organizational results
• Managers are held accountable for effectively managing
people
• Human capital approaches are developed, implemented,
and evaluated by how well they help the agency
accomplish program results

Role of the Human Capital Function
• Agency leaders recognize the role of human capital
professionals in meeting the agency’s mission
• Human capital professionals partner with agency leaders in
developing strategic and program plans
• Human capital office provides effective strategies for
meeting current and future agency needs
• Human capital professionals are prepared, expected, and
empowered to serve internal customers
• Personnel processes are streamlined through the use of
technology

Integration and Alignment
• Human capital approaches demonstrably support
organizational performance
• Human capital approaches are designed specifically to
support programmatic goals
• Additional human capital approaches are considered in
light of the successes and shortcomings of existing
approaches
• Human capital approaches for meeting the needs of the
agency are reflected in strategic workforce planning
documents

Data-Driven Human Capital Decisions
• Decisions involving human capital management are
informed by complete, valid, current, and reliable data
• Data is used to identify areas for attention before crises
develop and to identify opportunities to improve agency
results
• Performance measures for human capital approaches
have been identified and are linked to agency results
• Performance information and data on the agency’s
workforce profile are used in strategic workforce planning

Targeted Investments in People
• Human capital expenditures are regarded as investments in
people and the agency’s capacity to perform its mission
• Strategies for investing in human capital are integrated with
needs identified through strategic planning
• The efficiency and effectiveness of the investments is
continuously monitored and evaluated

Human Capital Approaches Tailored to Meet
Organizational Needs
• Managers are identifying and using tools available under
current law to modernize their human capital approaches
• Human capital approaches are tailored to meet specific
mission needs
• A compelling, data-driven business case is made for
additional legislative flexibilities

Empowerment and Inclusiveness
• Empowerment:
• Employees at all levels are given authority to accomplish
goals
• Innovation and problem-solving are encouraged
• Agency leaders seek the views of employees at all levels
• Management and employees work collaboratively to
achieve outcomes

Empowerment and Inclusiveness
• Inclusiveness:
• Agency recognizes that an inclusive workforce is a
competitive advantage for achieving results
• Agency works to meet the needs of employees of all
backgrounds
• Agency has declared a “zero tolerance” for discrimination
• Agency strives actively to reduce the causes of workplace
conflict
• Agency ensures that conflicts are addressed fairly and
efficiently

Unit and Individual Performance Linked to
Organizational Goals
• Organizational culture is results-oriented and externally
focused
• Managers are held accountable for achieving strategic
goals, creating innovation, and supporting continuous
improvement
• Individual performance management is fully integrated with
the agency’s organizational goals
• Clearly defined and consistently communicated
performance expectations are in place to rate, reward,
and hold employees accountable at all levels of the
organization

Next Steps:
Responding to the Challenge
• Sustained leadership
• OPM can assist in—and, as appropriate, require—the
building of more robust human capital infrastructure in
agencies.
• Agency leaders must embrace reforms and integrate
their human capital efforts into their agencies’ core
planning and business activities.
• Agency leaders need to develop workforce plans,
implement recruitment and retention strategies and
measure their effects.

Next Steps:
Responding to the Challenge, cont.
• Robust strategic human capital planning
• Agencies need to integrate human capital planning
with broader organizational strategic planning involving
top management, employees, and other stakeholders.
• Agencies should examine retirements and other forms of
turnover, with an eye toward strengthening both current
and future organizational capacity.

Next Steps:
• Effective talent management
• Agencies’ talent management strategies must be
responsive to changing applicant and workforce needs
and expectations; and agencies must tailor recruitment,
retention, training, workforce flexibilities, and other
strategies to address any identified skills gaps.
• Agency training and development programs should be
part of an overall management strategy and include
processes to assess and ensure the training’s
effectiveness.

Next Steps:
• Results-oriented cultures
• Agencies need to have a performance management
system that creates a “line of sight” showing how unit
and individual performance can contribute to overall
organizational goals.
• Agencies need to foster a work environment in which
people are enabled and motivated to contribute to
continuous learning and improvement, as well as mission
accomplishment.

Federal human resources occupational
series

Job series & specialty areas
• 201 – Specialist
• 203 – Assistant
• Specialty areas provide a path for deep expertise in particular human capital/human
resources technical area
• Ten “traditional” specialty areas
• Two new areas recently added: Executive Services and Policy
• Expertise and experience in two or more specialty areas provides competitive advantage

Competencies, training areas, & critical development
areas
• Definition: Combination of knowledge, skill, and/or ability one needs to successfully perform
a job function
• General competencies cut across all occupations and specialty areas
• Technical competencies are specific to an occupation and/or specialty area
• Proficiency levels determine how well a competency has been mastered
• Awareness is the lowest level of mastery
• Expert is the highest level of mastery
• Training Areas – subjects for study
• Critical Development Activities – experiences

The individual development plan (IDP)
• Employees are responsible for ensuring their professional development – training is NOT an
entitlement
• Characteristics
• Tool to assist in career and personal development
• Two- exchange between employee and supervisor
• Phases
• Pre-Planning
• Employee/Supervisor Meeting
• Preparation/Development
• Implementation
• Evaluation

The human resources (HR)
professional framework

Current and future roles
Exercise

Resources
• OPM – http://opm.gov
• SHRM – http://shrm.org
• HCI – http://hci.org
• HRCI – http://hrci.org
• NAPA - www.napawash.org
• Partnership for Public Service - www.ourpublicservice.org
Others?

A Closer Look at How Agencies
Compete for Top Talent
Best places to work in the
federal government

Federal employee viewpoint survey (fedview or FEVS)
• Measures employee perceptions
• Provides insights into leadership challenges
• Supports increased effectiveness of civilian workforce
• Used by most federal agencies
• Categories
• Effective Leadership (overall, empowerment, fairness, senior leaders, supervisors
• Employee Skills/Mission Match
• Pay
• Strategic Management
• Teamwork

Federal employee viewpoint survey (fedview or FEVS),
continued
• Categories, continued
• Training and Development
• Work/Life Balance
• Support for Diversity
• Performance Based Rewards and Advancement
• Alternative Work and Employee Support Programs

Federal employee job satisfaction
(2006 – 2012)

Department of transportation
• Largest improvement for large agencies – 2010 and 2012
• Advancing in:
• employee empowerment,
• balance between work and personal life, and
• opportunities for training and development
• Secretary made it a personal mission – partnering with the CHCO
• Added additional questions – revealed employee interest in improved processes
• IdeaHub launched in 2010 – employee collaborative area
• Training for first-line supervisors in leadership competencies

Other notable activities
• Worker and job satisfaction senior leadership priorities
• Virtual and face-to-face communication forums to address workforce concerns
• Enhanced training
• Enhanced management accountability
• Enhanced strategic focus

Contact us for more info about our training solutions
Pivotal Practices Consulting LLC
(301) 220-3179
info@pivotalpractices.com
www.pivotalpractices.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pivotalpractices
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/pivotalpractices

Foundations in Federal Human Resources

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