Mission. A great one. It’s a big reason we can get up and go to work every morning feeling pretty good. Employee engagement is important. And leadership matters. But it’s great leadership that effectively communicates the organization’s mission and keeps the mission squarely in everyone’s mind. The Partnership for Public Service’s Best Places to Work analysis gives us a look at the five predominant federal government missions, and which agencies rank top.
LAW ENFORCEMENT & BORDER PROTECTION
Department of Homeland Security’s United States Coast Guard ranks a respectable 64 of 305 agency sub-components, but it beats every other federal agency—large, midsize, small—when it comes to law enforcement functions: that is offices that “enforce the federal criminal laws and prosecute offenders, investigate terrorist threats, operate prisons, guard our borders and manage the immigration system.” It beats the U.S. Marshals, the FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Secret Service, which, by the way, comes in last. The Coast Guard mission? “To protect the public, the environment and U.S. economic interests in the nation’s ports and waterways, along the coast, on international waters, or in any maritime region as required to support national security.”
NATIONAL SECURITY
I spent last evening at the Intelligence National Security Alliance’s 2017 Achievement Awards. It was electric, surprising for an awards ceremony. The intelligence community takes tremendous pride in its work and professionalism, and it’s squarely focused and deeply committed to protecting the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic” and bearing “true faith and allegiance” to the Constitution. They’re a proud group. So it’s not surprising that when it comes to National Security, the Intelligence Community comes in first among all other federal departments. It’s already tops (third among 18 large agencies) among best places to work.
PUBLIC HEALTH
The Partnership’s public health mission focus is on those organizations which “conduct medical research, administer health care benefits, provide direct patient care, ensure food, drug and medical device safety, and control and prevent the spread of disease.” All good, and the Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is top among all other public health related agencies (HHS is in the top third of best places to work among the 18 large agencies). Better than the Food and Drug Administration, better than the National Institute of Health, better than the Department of Veterans Affairs, among others. And since 2003, the Centers for Disease Control have seen a pretty steady increase in positive employee engagement, among a body of employees that’s getting bigger and bigger every year.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
Top’s for energy and environment related mission isn’t who you might first guess, the Environmental Protection Agency. Best is a little organization called the Environmental and Natural Resource Division (ENRD) of the Department of Justice (DoJ). DoJ’s ENRD ranks second among 305 agency sub-components for best places to work, too. ENRD’s mission is “to safeguard and enhance the American environment; acquire and manage public lands and natural resources; and protect and manage Indian rights and property.” ENRD is a very small community, with just under 600 employees on last report.
INFRASTRUCTURE
An old Quartermaster colonel I used to know proudly told us, “I’m in charge of toilet paper.” When I think infrastructure, I think potholes. But the Partnership’s focus for infrastructure-related missions is broader than that—it’s about our quality of life. These are organizations “are responsible for ensuring that the nation has a safe, reliable, and modernized infrastructure that includes roads, bridges, water and sewage systems, tunnels, rail lines, waterways, flood control projects, power grids, dams and telecommunications systems.” And if you’re one among America’s “engineers, electricians, safety inspectors, transportation planners, architectural and civil drafters, conservation scientists, hydrologists, logisticians and lawyers,” take a look at the top infrastructure organization, the Department of Transportation’s sub-agency the Federal Highway Administration (FHA), number 25 among the best places to work.
If mission is what moves you and you’re looking for an agency to call home, spend some time unpacking the data and analysis presented in the Partnership’s Best Places to Work.
