Human Capital:
Observations on Agencies' Implementation of the Chief Human Capital Officers Act
GAO-04-800T: Published: May 18, 2004. Publicly Released: May 18, 2004.
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Congress recognized the critical leadership role the agency Chief Human Capital Officers (CHCOs) and the CHCO Council must play in the fundamental changes that need to take place across the executive branch. A range of 21st century challenges are driving the need for a fundamental transformation of the federal government. People strategy must be a key element of this overall transformation effort. People define an organization's culture, drive its performance, and embody its knowledge base. Congress has provided agencies across the executive branch with additional tools and authorities needed to strategically manage their workforces. The success of these and related initiatives will depend in large measure on the existence of high-quality CHCOs and a strategic and effective CHCO Council. GAO discussed (1) the different approaches agencies used in selecting CHCOs and creating the CHCO position, (2) the key responsibilities of the CHCOs, and (3) the initial steps taken by the CHCO Council and some suggested next steps.
The inaugural CHCOs appointed since May 2003 varied in the positions they were holding prior to their selection by the agency head, the responsibilities assigned to them when they became CHCOs, whether they were political appointees or career executives and whether they reported directly to the agency head. According to the CHCOs, their efforts are primarily focused on the human capital efforts needed to address the President's Management Agenda (PMA). In our discussions with the CHCOs, they cited strategic human capital management and, to a lesser extent, competitive sourcing as the two primary PMA initiatives on which they are focusing. The CHCO Council's activities during its first year have largely revolved around start-up activities including organizing the council and establishing subcommittees. For example, the Council created subcommittees to address and recommend change for five key areas--the hiring process, performance management, leadership development and succession planning, employee conduct and poor performers, and emergency preparedness. At the request of Congress, we have undertaken a large body of work in recent years that should prove helpful to the Council and its subcommittees as they develop their initiatives in the five areas. For example, as we reported in May 2003, there is widespread recognition that the current federal hiring process does not meet the needs of agencies in achieving their missions, managers in filling positions with the right talent, and applicants for a timely, efficient, transparent, and merit-based process. We made a number of recommendations to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to address various parts of the hiring process. In addition, in March 2004, GAO issued a guide for assessing strategic training and development efforts in the federal government. In addition to the important areas already receiving priority attention by the Council, our work suggests that the Council should ensure that as it moves forward, its efforts address agencies' need for guidance, assistance, knowledge, and leading practices in several other key crosscutting areas such as (1)developing the capabilities required for successful implementation of human capital reform, (2) strategic human capital planning, and (3)transforming the human capital office and its processes to more fully contribute to key agency decisions. We believe that our work should prove helpful to the Council as they address these and other areas.
Feb 24, 2021
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Bureau of Prisons:
Opportunities Exist to Better Analyze Staffing Data and Improve Employee Wellness ProgramsGAO-21-123: Published: Feb 24, 2021. Publicly Released: Feb 24, 2021.
Jan 12, 2021
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DHS Employee Morale:
Some Improvements Made, but Additional Actions Needed to Strengthen Employee EngagementGAO-21-204: Published: Jan 12, 2021. Publicly Released: Jan 12, 2021.
Sep 16, 2020
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Senior Executive Service:
Opportunities for Selected Agencies to Improve Their Career Reassignment ProcessesGAO-20-559: Published: Sep 16, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 16, 2020.
Feb 25, 2020
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State Department:
Additional Steps Are Needed to Identify Potential Barriers to DiversityGAO-20-237: Published: Jan 27, 2020. Publicly Released: Feb 25, 2020.
Dec 30, 2019
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Office of Congressional Workplace Rights:
Using Key Management Practices Would Help to Fully Implement Statutory RequirementsGAO-20-222: Published: Dec 30, 2019. Publicly Released: Dec 30, 2019.
Oct 10, 2019
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Department of Veterans Affairs:
Improved Succession Planning Would Help Address Long-Standing Workforce ProblemsGAO-20-15: Published: Oct 10, 2019. Publicly Released: Oct 10, 2019.
Oct 2, 2019
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Defense Workforce:
Steps Needed to Identify Acquisition Training Needs for Non-Acquisition Personnel [Reissued with revisions on Oct. 2, 2019.]GAO-19-556: Published: Sep 5, 2019. Publicly Released: Sep 5, 2019.
Sep 25, 2019
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Federal Workforce:
Talent Management Strategies to Help Agencies Better Compete in a Tight Labor MarketGAO-19-723T: Published: Sep 25, 2019. Publicly Released: Sep 25, 2019.
Sep 11, 2019
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USAID Reform:
Efforts Address Most Key Practices but Could Improve in Performance Assessment and Strategic Workforce PlanningGAO-19-609: Published: Sep 11, 2019. Publicly Released: Sep 11, 2019.
Aug 15, 2019
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Defense Acquisition Workforce:
DOD Increased Use of Human Capital Flexibilities but Could Improve MonitoringGAO-19-509: Published: Aug 15, 2019. Publicly Released: Aug 15, 2019.
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