By Alyssa Rosenberg
September 16, 2008
During his first press briefing on Monday, the government's new personnel chief said one of his priorities is ensuring that agency leaders take responsibility for workforce issues, including the hiring process.
"I think that each agency, they have to be totally accountable for human capital," said Michael Hager, director of the Office of Personnel Management. "There's only one thing that makes everything function, and that's human capital... The leadership at the top absolutely owns it."
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0908/091608ar1.htm
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Marines Anticipate Reaching Five-Year Goal Two Years Early
By Army Staff Sgt. Michael J. Carden
September 12, 2008
Even without offering big cash bonuses, promising opportunities for college or assuring a better life after service, the Marine Corps anticipates meeting its five-year force-growth goal two years early, the commander of Marine recruiting said via teleconference today from his headquarters in Quantico, Va.
The Marine recruiting message is dynamically different from that of other services, Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Robert E. Milstead Jr. said as he discussed the current state and contemporary challenges in recruiting Marines.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=51148
September 12, 2008
Even without offering big cash bonuses, promising opportunities for college or assuring a better life after service, the Marine Corps anticipates meeting its five-year force-growth goal two years early, the commander of Marine recruiting said via teleconference today from his headquarters in Quantico, Va.
The Marine recruiting message is dynamically different from that of other services, Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Robert E. Milstead Jr. said as he discussed the current state and contemporary challenges in recruiting Marines.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=51148
New Program Aims to Help With Adjustment After Redeployment
By William Bradner
Sept. 10, 2008
Earlier this year, a Fort Rucker, Ala., soldier died when he lost control of his new sport motorcycle in a curve, hit the culvert, was ejected off the bike, and slammed into a light pole. He was wearing a helmet, but had not attended the motorcycle safety course, and did not have a motorcycle endorsement on his license.
This weekend, the Army is testing a new program designed to help these soldiers adjust from the high-paced, high-adrenaline combat environment to garrison or “home” life.
Warrior Adventure Quest combines high-adventure outdoor recreation activities such as skydiving, paintball, ropes courses, rock climbing, mountain biking, stock car racing, skiing, and others, with Battlemind training to help soldiers re-adjust to a calmer paced lifestyle.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=51096
Sept. 10, 2008
Earlier this year, a Fort Rucker, Ala., soldier died when he lost control of his new sport motorcycle in a curve, hit the culvert, was ejected off the bike, and slammed into a light pole. He was wearing a helmet, but had not attended the motorcycle safety course, and did not have a motorcycle endorsement on his license.
This weekend, the Army is testing a new program designed to help these soldiers adjust from the high-paced, high-adrenaline combat environment to garrison or “home” life.
Warrior Adventure Quest combines high-adventure outdoor recreation activities such as skydiving, paintball, ropes courses, rock climbing, mountain biking, stock car racing, skiing, and others, with Battlemind training to help soldiers re-adjust to a calmer paced lifestyle.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=51096
OPM issues guide to overhauling federal hiring process
By Brittany R. Ballenstedt
September 9, 2008
The Office of Personnel Management on Friday launched an initiative designed to streamline the recruitment and hiring processes at federal agencies.
The hiring guide, which was developed by OPM and the Chief Human Capital Officers Council, aims to simplify the federal hiring process and improve the applicant's experience with it, according to a memorandum from OPM acting Director Michael Hager.
"There is broad agreement that the current competitive hiring process could be improved," the guide stated. "These combined frustrations make it more difficult for the federal government to hire qualified employees in the stiff competition for the top talent."
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0908/090908b1.htm
September 9, 2008
The Office of Personnel Management on Friday launched an initiative designed to streamline the recruitment and hiring processes at federal agencies.
The hiring guide, which was developed by OPM and the Chief Human Capital Officers Council, aims to simplify the federal hiring process and improve the applicant's experience with it, according to a memorandum from OPM acting Director Michael Hager.
"There is broad agreement that the current competitive hiring process could be improved," the guide stated. "These combined frustrations make it more difficult for the federal government to hire qualified employees in the stiff competition for the top talent."
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0908/090908b1.htm
Administration threatens veto of Senate defense measure
By Megan Scully
September 9, 2008
The White House Tuesday threatened to veto the fiscal 2009 defense authorization bill if it includes language in the Senate's version of the measure that would prohibit the use of private security contractors for any "inherently governmental" security functions in combat zones.
In its Statement of Administration Policy, the White House also said it would veto the bill, which the Senate is expected to begin debating Tuesday, if it forbids contractors from interrogating detainees.
"Such a provision would unduly limit the United States' ability to obtain intelligence needed to protect Americans from attack." The House bill includes similar language on the use of contractors in war zones.
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0908/090908cdam1.htm
September 9, 2008
The White House Tuesday threatened to veto the fiscal 2009 defense authorization bill if it includes language in the Senate's version of the measure that would prohibit the use of private security contractors for any "inherently governmental" security functions in combat zones.
In its Statement of Administration Policy, the White House also said it would veto the bill, which the Senate is expected to begin debating Tuesday, if it forbids contractors from interrogating detainees.
"Such a provision would unduly limit the United States' ability to obtain intelligence needed to protect Americans from attack." The House bill includes similar language on the use of contractors in war zones.
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0908/090908cdam1.htm
Seeking Mental Health Help Shows Courage, Officials Say
By Christie Vanover
Sept. 8, 2008
The Army is a team that embraces the Warrior Ethos by never accepting defeat and never quitting.
But what happens when someone is pressured by the daily grind, life at home or financial burden? What happens when they believe admitting their problems contradicts the ethos by which they live?
“It’s hard for [people] to ask for help,” said Chris Staker, U.S. Army Garrison Benelux health promotion coordinator. “Even though we try hard, we haven’t erased the stigma of seeking help.”
Because of this and other concerns felt throughout the service, Lt. Gen. Michael D. Rochelle, Army deputy chief of staff for personnel, is stressing that seeking help is not a sign of weakness; it is a sign of courage and strength.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=51070
Sept. 8, 2008
The Army is a team that embraces the Warrior Ethos by never accepting defeat and never quitting.
But what happens when someone is pressured by the daily grind, life at home or financial burden? What happens when they believe admitting their problems contradicts the ethos by which they live?
“It’s hard for [people] to ask for help,” said Chris Staker, U.S. Army Garrison Benelux health promotion coordinator. “Even though we try hard, we haven’t erased the stigma of seeking help.”
Because of this and other concerns felt throughout the service, Lt. Gen. Michael D. Rochelle, Army deputy chief of staff for personnel, is stressing that seeking help is not a sign of weakness; it is a sign of courage and strength.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=51070
Scarcity of science students worries military IT officials
By Gautham Nagesh
September 5, 2008
The dearth of Americans being trained in science and technology is probably one of the greatest threats to the military's future, several Pentagon information technology officials said during a luncheon on Friday.
Comment on this article in The Forum."If we're not sweating bullets about the education problem, we're all in the wrong framework," David Tillotson, deputy chief information officer for the Office of the Secretary of the Air Force, told an audience of IT industry professionals at the Armed Forces Communication and Electronics Association event.
Tillotson and other officials said they were concerned that U.S. high schools and colleges are not turning out enough engineers to help fill the military's next-generation needs. The issue is critical enough that Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England recently raised it a high-level meeting of Pentagon officials, Tillotson said.
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0908/090508n1.htm
September 5, 2008
The dearth of Americans being trained in science and technology is probably one of the greatest threats to the military's future, several Pentagon information technology officials said during a luncheon on Friday.
Comment on this article in The Forum."If we're not sweating bullets about the education problem, we're all in the wrong framework," David Tillotson, deputy chief information officer for the Office of the Secretary of the Air Force, told an audience of IT industry professionals at the Armed Forces Communication and Electronics Association event.
Tillotson and other officials said they were concerned that U.S. high schools and colleges are not turning out enough engineers to help fill the military's next-generation needs. The issue is critical enough that Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England recently raised it a high-level meeting of Pentagon officials, Tillotson said.
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0908/090508n1.htm
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Mississippi Guard Applies Lessons Learned from Hurricane Katrina
By Army Staff Sgt. Michael J. Carden
Sept. 3, 2008
Hurricane Katrina provided valuable lessons three years ago that local, state and federal response agencies along the Gulf Coast were able to put to work for Hurricane Gustav this week, Army National Guardsmen providing relief efforts here said yesterday.
Tables and charts citing those lessons are posted in unit headquarters all across Mississippi. Though Hurricane Gustav was weaker than expected when it hit the shores of the Gulf Coast early Labor Day morning, the National Guard was ready, Army Sgt. Michael Webb of the Mississippi National Guard said.
“The planning was a lot better this time,” Webb said. “Every battalion in the state had a plan and knew exactly what they had to do. Even if Gustav had been as bad [as] or worse than Katrina, we were 10 times more prepared.”
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=51016
Sept. 3, 2008
Hurricane Katrina provided valuable lessons three years ago that local, state and federal response agencies along the Gulf Coast were able to put to work for Hurricane Gustav this week, Army National Guardsmen providing relief efforts here said yesterday.
Tables and charts citing those lessons are posted in unit headquarters all across Mississippi. Though Hurricane Gustav was weaker than expected when it hit the shores of the Gulf Coast early Labor Day morning, the National Guard was ready, Army Sgt. Michael Webb of the Mississippi National Guard said.
“The planning was a lot better this time,” Webb said. “Every battalion in the state had a plan and knew exactly what they had to do. Even if Gustav had been as bad [as] or worse than Katrina, we were 10 times more prepared.”
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=51016
OPM criticizes proposal for a compressed work week
By Brittany R. Ballenstedt
September 3, 2008
The Office of Personnel Management opposes a proposal by House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer to create a four-day, 40-hour work week for federal employees.
A compressed schedule would hurt the government's ability to provide essential services and weaken national security, OPM acting Director Michael Hager wrote in a letter to the Maryland Democrat. Homeland security and intelligence operations, for instance, must run around the clock, Hager stated.
He also expressed concern that some employees could find the new hours burdensome. Many care for young children or aging adults, he said, making it difficult for them to work longer days. Others depend on mass transit or carpools, he noted.
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0908/090308b1.htm
September 3, 2008
The Office of Personnel Management opposes a proposal by House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer to create a four-day, 40-hour work week for federal employees.
A compressed schedule would hurt the government's ability to provide essential services and weaken national security, OPM acting Director Michael Hager wrote in a letter to the Maryland Democrat. Homeland security and intelligence operations, for instance, must run around the clock, Hager stated.
He also expressed concern that some employees could find the new hours burdensome. Many care for young children or aging adults, he said, making it difficult for them to work longer days. Others depend on mass transit or carpools, he noted.
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0908/090308b1.htm
Bush signs sole-survivor benefits bill
By Rick Maze
September 2, 2008
President Bush on Friday signed into law an expansion of military benefits to sole surviving members of a military family who decide to leave the military.
The law applies retroactively to sole surviving members of families in which one or more siblings were killed or severely injured in the military. It is called the Hubbard Act, named for an Iraq war veteran, Jason Hubbard, who took an early discharge from the Army after two of his brothers were killed in Iraq. Because his discharge left him several months short of completing the three-year enlistment for which he had signed up, the combat veteran was denied some benefits.
http://www.navytimes.com/news/2008/08/military_solesurvivor_bush_082908w/
September 2, 2008
President Bush on Friday signed into law an expansion of military benefits to sole surviving members of a military family who decide to leave the military.
The law applies retroactively to sole surviving members of families in which one or more siblings were killed or severely injured in the military. It is called the Hubbard Act, named for an Iraq war veteran, Jason Hubbard, who took an early discharge from the Army after two of his brothers were killed in Iraq. Because his discharge left him several months short of completing the three-year enlistment for which he had signed up, the combat veteran was denied some benefits.
http://www.navytimes.com/news/2008/08/military_solesurvivor_bush_082908w/
Bush Praises Cooperation in Hurricane Response
By Jim Garamone
September 1, 2008
Cooperation among federal, state, local governments and non-governmental agencies has been much better as Hurricane Gustav hit the Gulf Coast than it was when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005, emergency officials said.
Speaking in Austin, Texas, today, President Bush praised the governors of Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, saying “there was clearly a spirit of sharing assets, of listening to somebody's problems and saying, how can we best address them?”
Bush said the federal government is very much involved in assisting the states. Gustav stormed ashore in Louisiana this morning. More than 2 million people evacuated their homes in advance of the storm that killed 84 people in the Caribbean.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=50997
September 1, 2008
Cooperation among federal, state, local governments and non-governmental agencies has been much better as Hurricane Gustav hit the Gulf Coast than it was when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005, emergency officials said.
Speaking in Austin, Texas, today, President Bush praised the governors of Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, saying “there was clearly a spirit of sharing assets, of listening to somebody's problems and saying, how can we best address them?”
Bush said the federal government is very much involved in assisting the states. Gustav stormed ashore in Louisiana this morning. More than 2 million people evacuated their homes in advance of the storm that killed 84 people in the Caribbean.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=50997
OMB will require agencies to use Networx
By Gautham Nagesh
August 29, 2008
A memorandum released by the Office of Management and Budget on Thursday effectively requires agencies to make use of the General Services Administration's new Networx telecommunications contract. Agencies deciding not to use Networx must conduct extensive analysis to justify their decision.
Comment on this article in The Forum.The memo, signed by Karen Evans, administrator for e-government and information technology at OMB, stated: "Agencies shall use the General Service Administration Networx contract to satisfy requirements currently being met via the FTS2001 contract." According to the memo, the decision to require Networx was based on a cost-benefit analysis OMB and the Federal Chief Information Officers Council conducted.
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20080829_1382.php
August 29, 2008
A memorandum released by the Office of Management and Budget on Thursday effectively requires agencies to make use of the General Services Administration's new Networx telecommunications contract. Agencies deciding not to use Networx must conduct extensive analysis to justify their decision.
Comment on this article in The Forum.The memo, signed by Karen Evans, administrator for e-government and information technology at OMB, stated: "Agencies shall use the General Service Administration Networx contract to satisfy requirements currently being met via the FTS2001 contract." According to the memo, the decision to require Networx was based on a cost-benefit analysis OMB and the Federal Chief Information Officers Council conducted.
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20080829_1382.php
Program Ensures Reserve Component Medical Readiness
By Navy Lt. Jennifer Cragg
August 29, 2008
The Reserve Health Readiness Program ensures that reserve-component servicemembers have the ability and access to meet their deployment requirements, the program’s director said yesterday.
“The program was designed to supplement the reserve component readiness mission, and to add another resource that they could tap into to have these services done so they could satisfy their deployment requirements,” U.S. Public Health Service Cmdr. Diedre Presley, program manager of the RHRP, said during a “Dot Mil Docs” radio program on BlogTalkRadio.com.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=50988
August 29, 2008
The Reserve Health Readiness Program ensures that reserve-component servicemembers have the ability and access to meet their deployment requirements, the program’s director said yesterday.
“The program was designed to supplement the reserve component readiness mission, and to add another resource that they could tap into to have these services done so they could satisfy their deployment requirements,” U.S. Public Health Service Cmdr. Diedre Presley, program manager of the RHRP, said during a “Dot Mil Docs” radio program on BlogTalkRadio.com.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=50988
Agencies progress in identifying, consolidating IT infrastructure
By Gautham Nagesh
August 28, 2008
With a deadline looming for agencies to submit plans on how they could consolidate their computer networks and standardize the applications that support agency operations, officials hope the blueprints will lead to lower costs, improve agency collaboration and reduce the government's energy footprint.
Comment on this article in The Forum.The General Services Administration has asked agencies to submit by Sept. 30 five-year plans for how they will purchase information technology equipment and services. GSA plans to use the reports in the IT infrastructure line of business initiative to find common purchases and applications that can be consolidated, including mainframe computers, PCs, software and wireless communications.
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20080828_1071.php
August 28, 2008
With a deadline looming for agencies to submit plans on how they could consolidate their computer networks and standardize the applications that support agency operations, officials hope the blueprints will lead to lower costs, improve agency collaboration and reduce the government's energy footprint.
Comment on this article in The Forum.The General Services Administration has asked agencies to submit by Sept. 30 five-year plans for how they will purchase information technology equipment and services. GSA plans to use the reports in the IT infrastructure line of business initiative to find common purchases and applications that can be consolidated, including mainframe computers, PCs, software and wireless communications.
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20080828_1071.php
Contractors make up one fourth of intelligence workforce
By Pamela Hess
August 27, 2008
More than a quarter of the U.S. intelligence agencies' employees are outside contractors, hired to fill in gaps in the military and civilian work force, according to a survey of the 16 intelligence agencies.
That is roughly on par with last year's total, the first year the national intelligence director's office tried to count the outside help, Ronald Sanders, the intelligence director's human resource chief, told reporters Wednesday.
The number of government employees at U.S. intelligence agencies is classified, but Sanders confirmed it is more than 100,000. Contractors are not included in that total. Sanders said 27 percent of the total number of intelligence employees are contractors. With around 100,000 as a baseline, that translates to an estimated 35,000 to 40,000 private contractors working for agencies like the CIA and the National Security Agency.
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0808/082708ap2.htm
August 27, 2008
More than a quarter of the U.S. intelligence agencies' employees are outside contractors, hired to fill in gaps in the military and civilian work force, according to a survey of the 16 intelligence agencies.
That is roughly on par with last year's total, the first year the national intelligence director's office tried to count the outside help, Ronald Sanders, the intelligence director's human resource chief, told reporters Wednesday.
The number of government employees at U.S. intelligence agencies is classified, but Sanders confirmed it is more than 100,000. Contractors are not included in that total. Sanders said 27 percent of the total number of intelligence employees are contractors. With around 100,000 as a baseline, that translates to an estimated 35,000 to 40,000 private contractors working for agencies like the CIA and the National Security Agency.
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0808/082708ap2.htm
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