Some things are a lot easier to complain about than fix. Civil service falls in that category. But you can’t fault people for trying. Partnership for Public Service, along with Booz Allen Hamilton released “Building the Enterprise: A New Civil Service Framework,“ a report that identifies the issues with the civil service system and recommends some major changes.
The report refers to the civil service system as outdated and archaic and in need of a complete overhaul. President and CEO of Partnership for Public Service, Max Stier, exhorts U.S. leaders to create a civil service system that gets results for the country. Stier explains, “Good government starts with good people, and our nation is fortunate to count some of the brightest, most dedicated professionals among its ranks. But they too often succeed in spite of the current system, not because of it.”
The report included some of the following recommendations:
- Build a market-sensitive labor system by occupation.
- Create a unified personnel system.
- Improve the performance management system (empower supervisors and managers and award employees who perform above expectations but not those who perform unsatisfactorily).
- Streamline the job classification system for professional and administrative positions.
- Give agencies great flexibility in hiring in order to attract the top talent – without violating EEOC policies.
- Remove roadblocks for disciplining or firing poor performers.
- Create a tiered senior executive service so executives can be better prepared for the transition.
- Reduce the number of political appointee positions to improve operational and strategic agency continuity.
Successful change will depend on involvement and buy-in from the executive branch, congress, and federal unions. Without the right support, the report will remain a collection of potentially great ideas. The key will be the implementation strategy. An overhaul may be necessary, but given the red tape and effect on the millions of federal workers, a priority-based phased approach could be more effective.
If you were to overhaul the civil service system, where would you begin? What improvements would you suggest?
