CHCO Council News 
Top News
- 5 percent of federal workers to be furloughed Friday
- Congress pressures agencies to speed up office consolidations
- Katherine Archuleta chosen as next OPM director
- Data breach puts DHS workers at risk of identity theft
- DoD chooses interoperability over integration for new e-health record system
- House GOP panel moves on deep budget cuts
- OMB fuels synergy between mobile, open data
- IRS official Lerner: 'I did nothing wrong'
- Accountability breakdown leading factor in DoD sexual assaults
- OMB reworking financial system requirements
- Federal retirement funds temporarily tapped
- VanRoekel to lead OMB management team
- Meet the 2013 Service to America Medal finalists
- Thursday federal headlines - May 23, 2013
Obama to nominate Katherine Archuleta as next OPM director
Katherine Archuleta, President Barack Obama's nominee for director of the Office of Personnel Management, served as his national political director in the 2012 election. Prior to that, Archuleta served as chief of staff to former Labor Secretary Hilda Solis.
OPM, OMB outline plans for major rewrite of HR policies
A new memo from Acting OPM Director Elaine Kaplan details two main objectives and four focus areas for change. OPM and OMB want to eliminate 12 HR reports and consolidate four others.
Feds hail OPM's John Berry as an 'advocate' and 'champion'
On John Berry's last day as director of the Office of Personnel Management, the consensus from federal employees and employee groups he has worked with the past four years is that his shoes will be hard to fill and that he has been an utmost advocate for federal employees in a tough political climate of furlough talk, budget negotiations and a rebounding economy.
Agencies turn to HRStat to make better sense of workforce data
The Office of Personnel Management is doubling the number of departments to 16, taking part in data-driven reviews. The goal is to take the mounds of information available about an agency's workforce and spot trends to help plan for the future.
Agency collaboration founded in personal relationships
Several departments are seeing the benefits from governmentwide collaboration. The interagency National Intellectual Property Coordination Center used its relationships to get the word out more quickly about counterfeit air bags that potentially could explode on impact. HR University absorbed millions of dollars in performance management training courses from an agency who on the CHCO Council.
Survey: CHCOs feel effect of budget crunch on recruiting, training
Budget constraints are top of mind for agency chief human capital officers. And with good reason. CHCOs say they are feeling the effects of the budget crunch, particularly in recruiting, retaining and training employees, according to a Federal News Radio survey. Eugene Hubbard, head of the National Science Foundation's Office of Information and Resource Management, told Federal News Radio the budget squeeze and shrinking workforces mean agency employees are doing more with less to keep pace with the mission.
Locality pay, official time reports likely to rekindle federal pay debate
The Federal Salary Council will submit to the Federal Pay Agent in the coming weeks a recommendation to increase the number of localities that get special pay rates. OPM also will release the annual report on how much time federal employees spend on union activities during working hours. CHCO Council will also consider certification process for HR employees.
OPM updates language announcing office closings
The Office of Personnel Management is changing how it refers to the operating status of the government. Now when federal offices are closed due to weather or other emergencies, OPM will use the terminology, "Federal offices are closed. Federal employees required to work should follow their agency's policies."
VA CHCO resigns one day before IG releases conference spending report
John Sepulveda, the chief human capital officer at the Veterans Affairs Department, resigned Sunday. The agency's inspector general is expected to release a final report today on two human resources conferences last year that cost the department $5 million.
Small agencies' sequestration plans build from budget frustrations
The congressional ritual of punting budget work into the next fiscal year has helped agencies prepare their workforces for sequestration. Managers have learned much over the past few years about preparing contingency plans.
Medina advocates better CHCO communication to stop budget axe
Federal chief human capital officers should develop a consistent message about the effects of budget cuts on human resources, said CHCO Council Executive Director Kathryn Medina. The goal is to explain the tangible effects of spending reductions on core agency missions.
HR University looks to gain college accreditation for agency training
The initiative aims to provide federal employees with college credit for certain agency-created human resources classes. Federal employees could apply the courses toward degrees at colleges and universities.
CHCO recommends employee-sharing as budget salve
Managers should consider allowing employees to solve problems in other parts of government. Doing so is an effective way for agencies to improve workers' skillsets and maximize resources, said retiring Energy Department HR chief Mike Kane.
Mentoring event serves up career advice in a flash
Feds looking for career guidance and motivation are increasingly going outside of their agencies to find it. Employees from 20 agencies attended a recent "flash mentoring" session hosted by the Office of Personnel Management's HR University. More seasoned human resources professionals served as mentors.
HR University showing worth, expanding after first year
The government's training portal has nearly 10,000 users. The HR University now offers college-accredited classes and in-person "flash mentoring" events. The Office of Personnel Management and the Chief Human Capital Officers Council launched the portal last year as a way to save agencies money on professional development training.
Congress takes DoD to task over commitment to diversity
The military is laying the groundwork for a more diverse officer corps, officials told a congressional panel Tuesday. The Defense Department and military services have tackled most of the recommendations that a congressional commission made a year ago. But, recent hazing incidents suggest that the leaders' focus on diversity hasn't trickled down through the ranks.
Nominations open for 2012 Causey Awards
Nominations are now being accepted for the third annual Causey Awards. The awards honor exceptional performance by individuals in the human capital management field.
Managing morale - lessons from OPM's John Berry
John Berry, director of the Office of Personnel Management, offers his tips for managing the federal workforce during tough times.
VA, Education reap benefits of hiring reforms
Improvements to training and employee retention are increasing department workforces and saving money, agency chief human capital officers for the Education and Veterans Affairs departments said at an event Tuesday.
Kane named 'CHCO of the Year' for online training, performance evaluation work
The Energy Department is one of six agencies testing a framework aimed at revamping one of the thorniest issues in government: how supervisors evaluate employees. Chief Human Capital Officer Mike Kane led a working group of more than 100 union, management and government representatives who drafted the framework. He earned the "Chief Human Capital Officer of the Year" award from the CHCO Council.
