Kinks Still to be Worked Out for Federal Hiring and Recruiting Standards

U.S. government agencies are continuing to fall short of expectations set by the Obama Administration to improve hiring and recruiting practices. Only 45 percent of hiring managers in the federal workforce said they were “actively and personally” involved in the recruiting process for job vacancies, according to a recent Chief Human Capital Officers survey. That is only a one-percent increase from the prior benchmark. The administration and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management were aiming for at least a 10-percent improvement. And only about 60 percent of hiring managers were happy with the quality of applicants for open job posts. According to an article in Government Executive, that percentage is well below the 70 percent benchmark set by the Obama Administration. The results were gathered from the survey responses of bosses and supervisors in the federal workforce, who are responsible for hiring and recruiting. The 2010 Government Performance and Results Modernization Act established hiring and recruiting standards in an attempt to improve the pool of candidates seeking to work in the federal government. Survey results and other federal government performance benchmarks are published on the website www.performance.gov. “At its core, these goals serve as a simple but powerful way to motivate people and communicate priorities in improving the Federal Government’s performance and accountability,” according to the website.