Skip to main content

Human Capital: Corps of Engineers Needs to Update Its Workforce Planning Process to More Effectively Address Its Current and Future Workforce Needs

GAO-08-596 Published: May 07, 2008. Publicly Released: May 07, 2008.
Jump To:
Skip to Highlights

Highlights

With a workforce of about 35,000, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) provides engineering services for civil works and military programs in the United States and overseas. Recently, the Corps' focus has shifted to also support contingency operations, such as responding to natural disasters. To meet its mission and emerging priorities, the Corps must have effective human capital planning processes to ensure that it can maintain its workforce. In this context, GAO was asked to examine the (1) extent to which the Corps has aligned its human capital plan with its strategic plan, (2) extent to which the Corps has the information necessary to identify and meet current and future workforce needs, and (3) challenges the Corps faces in meeting its workforce needs. To address these issues, GAO reviewed agency human capital and strategic planning documents, conducted structured interviews with eight Corps divisions and a purposeful sample of 14 of its districts, and interviewed other Corps officials.

Recommendations

Recommendations for Executive Action

Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Defense To help the Corps better manage its workforce planning efforts, the Secretary of Defense should direct the Commanding General and Chief of Engineers of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to develop a human capital plan that is directly linked to the Corps' current strategic plan and that contains all the key components of an effective plan as outlined by the Office of Personnel Management.
Closed – Implemented
In April 2012, the Corps published an updated Human Capital Strategic Plan for 2012-2017. The updated plan includes the Corps' strategic direction along with a figure to illustrate how the Corps' human capital goals and objectives align with the Corps' strategic plan (also called a campaign plan). The plan also discusses implementation efforts and an accountability system for the Corps' human capital activities.
Department of Defense To help the Corps better manage its workforce planning efforts, the Secretary of Defense should direct the Commanding General and Chief of Engineers of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to distribute the revised plan agencywide and direct the divisions and districts to use it to guide their human capital activities.
Closed – Implemented
Corps headquarters distributed the updated Human Capital Strategic Plan for 2012-2017 to division commanders, via an email message in May 2012. Corps headquarters also sent an email message to the divisions' human resources directors and directed them to distribute the new plan to districts. In addition to the email distribution, the Corps posted the human capital plan on its SharePoint site for division and district use.
Department of Defense To help the Corps better manage its workforce planning efforts, the Secretary of Defense should direct the Commanding General and Chief of Engineers of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to develop and implement a process for determining the effectiveness of the human capital tools the Corps is using so that it can adjust their use, as necessary, to meet workforce needs.
Closed – Implemented
According to the Corps, it surveys employees to determine the effectiveness of using human capital tools, such as recruitment, relocation, and retention bonuses. The Corps began to use an annual survey conducted by the Office of Personnel Management in 2010 to track the effectiveness of the human capital tools the agency uses. In addition, the Corps conducted a survey that specifically focused on the agency's use of human capital tools in 2011.

Full Report

GAO Contacts

Office of Public Affairs

Topics

Agency missionsCost analysisData collectionEmployee incentivesEmployee retentionHuman capitalHuman capital managementHuman capital planningHuman capital policiesInformation managementInformation resources managementLabor forceMission critical informationNeeds assessmentPerformance managementPerformance measuresPersonnel recruitingProgram evaluationProgram managementStrategic planningWorkfare