OPM Releases New Workforce Planning Guide
A modern and agile workforce is critical for executing the mission of each federal agency. With that goal in mind, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) recently released a new Workforce Planning (WFP) Guide.
The guide, which was put together by OPM and agency stakeholders, updates the decade-old Workforce Planning Best Practices Guide for the federal human resources community. The guide says, “By actively managing the workforce and developing agile operations, agencies better position themselves for effective and efficient achievement of their mission and goals.”
The guide’s release comes in the wake of the Government Accountability Office (GAO) high-risk report, which found that skills gaps in the federal workforce “persist” despite efforts to close them. GAO found strategic human capital management deficiencies contribute to 22 of 35 high-risk areas.
In a November 3 memo distributed to chief human capital officers, OPM Director Kiran Ahuja writes, “The Workforce Planning Guide presents a high-level view of workforce planning and is a resource for agency leaders, managers, supervisors, HR Specialists, and employees who are involved in analyzing the workforce, identifying gaps, as well as planning and implementing workforce action planning efforts.”
The guide outlines ways federal agencies can achieve their workforce goals through “five distinct elements to engage continually as a roadmap for success.”
Step one is setting a strategic direction for human capital. This includes[NC1] [AP2] identifying administration priorities, planning for both near and long-term workforce issues, and identifying mission-critical positions that need to be filled. Under this goal, leaders are also responsible for identifying potential risk factors to their workforce, as well.
Step two is conducting a workforce analysis, which includes analyzing supply and demand for an agency’s jobs, and performing both a gap analysis and a risk analysis. As the report says, “Workforce data analysis is the foundation of a good workforce plan.”
Step three is putting that analysis onto paper and developing a workforce action plan. This includes identifying the proper strategies to close talent gaps, plans to implement those strategies, and ways to assess progress.
Step four is implementing and monitoring the plan by ensuring the human and fiscal resources are in place to execute the plan successfully.
Step five is evaluating and revising the Workforce Action Plan, which involves looking for ways to continuously improve human capital management and adjust for any changes in technology or the modern workforce.
The guide also includes checklists to guide agencies through each step in the process to modernizing their workforces.
Director Ahuja recently spoke about the importance of succession planning for growing the workforce, and making sure critical skills gaps are filled. Government Executive reports that she says it requires a “shift in thinking” among government agencies, and hopes managers think about training younger workers.
“They could also train someone up as a GS-7, 8 or a 10 or 11, so we want them to think about that pipeline,” Director Ahuja said.
Director Ahuja also pointed out that the federal government is making progress in hiring younger workers by reinstituting internship programs and making the hiring process less cumbersome.