Performance Institute July 20, 2001

1
Performance Institute - July 20, 2001

• Recruiting Retaining Top IT Talent for Your
  Agency

Dagne Fulcher, IT Workforce Improvement U.S.
Department of the Treasury
2
IT Job Growth Has Been Strong
1987-1997
177 Employment Growth for Systems Analysts,
Computer Engineers and Computer Scientist
Jobs VS. 12 Employment Growth for All
Jobs! (U.S. Department of Commerce)
3
The Market is HotFour Fastest Growing Jobs in
the U.S.
1998 - 2008
(Bureau of Labor Statistics)
4
America Will Need 1.3 Million New Core IT
Workers by 2006
New jobs
3,000
Net replacements
Job

1996 base year
2,500
Openings
employment
1,134
Due to
2,000
Growth
1,500
and
244
(in thousands)
Net
1,000
1,501
Replacements
1,257
500
0
1996
2006
(U.S. Department of Commerce)
5
The Skill Set is Changing

• Fewer Unique Custom Applications
• More HW/SW Platform Consistency
• Allegiance to Technical Specialty vs. Employer
• Equals
• Greater Opportunity for Movement

6
A Challenge to Federal IT Workforce Stability
(U.S. Office of Personnel Management)
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The Treasury Department Workforce Picture 1999

• Average IT Employee is 44
• 22 of IT Staff and 45 of Top Mgmt. Eligible for
  Retirement within 5 years
• External Hires Down from 2
  in 3 to 1 in 8
• Turnover Rate 6 to 9

8
The Treasury Department Workforce Picture 2000

• Average Age Increased from 44 to 45
• IT Workforce Grew 5 Times Faster than the Overall
  Treasury Workforce (10/98-12/99)
• 70 of IT Workforce Growth from Employees Over 50
• 77 of Hires from within the Federal
  Workforce

9
Meeting the Federal IT Workforce Challenge

• Federal CIO Council Established IT Workforce
  Committee
• Federal IT Workforce Challenge Study Initiated

10
Meeting the Federal IT Workforce Challenge

• Report Issued July 1999
• CIO Council website - www.cio.gov
• Workforce Documents
• Implementation Plan - September 2000
• Update - March 2001

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The Workforce Challenge The Federal CIO Council

• PLOWING THE FIELD
• Info/outreach campaign to encourage IT careers
• IT Career Academy/HS
• Federal participation in skills alliances
• Federal Cyber Service

• SUSTAINING GROWTH
• OPM/CIO partneringspecific pay/occupational
  standards

• FERTILIZING THE FIELD
• CIO University/STAR
• Upgrade of IT skills/Best Practices
• Knowledge Management
• Government Industry Exchange

HARVEST An effective and efficient IT workforce
supporting the working mission

• SEEDING THE FIELD
• Limited critical need hire authority
• Recruitment from non-traditional labor pool
• Scholarship/intern program to promising IT
  students
• Pay and Occupational restructuring

• FARMING
• Establish continuing workforce planning

Enriching the IM/IT Value Chain
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Modernizing the Structure of Federal IT Jobs

• Description Create IT job categories that
  better correspond to private sector jobs by
  having clearer announcements, competency based
  recruiting, better measures of hot skills areas,
  and getting managers involved in recruitment.
• Approach Pilot Study
• Status Underway
• Target Date Summer 2001

13
Status Modernizing the Structure of Federal IT
Jobs (contd)

• Description Create job classification standards
  that reward technical proficiency by allowing
  more non-supervisors to rise in rank, and reward
  technical talent
• Approach OPM Survey of Agencies
• Status Final Standards Published
• Target Date June 2001

14
Pay Federal IT Workers Competitive Rates

• Description OPM Special Rate Study Works
  within current general schedule structure to
  research establishing special rate schedules for
  categories of IT workers.
• Approach Survey of All Federal Agencies
• Status Implemented
• Date January 14, 2001

15
Pay Federal IT Workers Competitive Rates (contd)

• Description Comparative IT Pay System Study
  National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA)
  will be making recommendations on how the
  government can best compete for IT talent.
• Approach Non-Partisan Independent Study
  
• Status Contract Awarded - Work Underway
• Target Date Summer 2001

16
Improve Workforce Planning

• Description Anticipate workforce talent
  drain and provide tools and techniques for
  workforce planning
• Goal Provide Model and System for
  Government-wide use by September 30, 2002
• Approach Development of Workforce Tools for
  Agencies
• Status SAS Developing Tools for OPM
• Target Date Sept 2002

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Improve Recruitment Strategies

• Description Encourage use of existing hiring
  flexibilities, such as
• Recruitment and retention bonuses
• Broaden recruitment efforts to all qualified
  candidates
• Encourage student intern and co-op programs --
  partnership with the National Academy Foundation
• Promote the CIAO Cyber Service Initiative
• Approach Council Publicity and Encouragement
• Status Ongoing

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Focus on Career Development

• Promoting upgrading skills through increase use
  of training technology (E.O. 13111)
• Promoting Road Maps which motivates employees
  by describing the road to advancement
• Supporting STAR and CIO University efforts
• IT Executive Exchange Program
• Mentoring

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Resources

• GSACIO University, STAR Program, 1000 X 2000
  Program www.gsa.gov
• National Defense Universitys IRM College
  www.ndu.edu/irmc
• Council for Excellence in Government New E-Gov
  Fellows Program www.excelgov.org
• OPMs USA JOBS www.usajobs.opm.gov
• FirstGov - Learning and Jobs www.firstgov.gov
• Department of Commerce website www.go4IT.gov