• Agency leaders are detailing some long-term fixes to the federal hiring process. The leaders said collaboration among executives is especially important to reform and speed-up federal hiring. And, including chief human capital officers from the start of the recruitment process, will save agencies time and resources. That is all according to panelists at a recent Advanced Technology Academic Research Center (ATARC) event. The experts added that agencies should also try to tailor their hiring strategies, based on the preferences of different generations.
  (The Future of the Workforce - ATARC)
• The General Services Administration and its inspector general continue to butt heads over the Transaction Data Reporting or TDR pilot. The IG, once again, called on GSA to end the TDR program because it has significant deficiencies and due to the fact, the IG said, the data is unusable. This is the second consecutive report, and sixth since 2015, that highlights ongoing challenges with TDR. GSA, meanwhile, said it remains committed to improving TDR data, training contracting officers on how to use the data and expanding the program to more contractors.
  (GSA’s Fiscal Year 2020 Transactional Data Reporting pilot evaluation provides an inaccurate assessment of the program - GSA OIG)
• The Postal Service is experiencing major turnover in non-career workers, as its union protests short-staffing. In a recent report, the USPS inspector general’s office found the agency saw a nearly 59% turnover rate in FY 2022. That is well above its 32.5% target for non-career turnover. According to USPS exit surveys, non-career staff said they left the agency because of a lack of schedule flexibility, they didn’t like their supervisor or worked too many hours. American Postal Workers Union Local 140 President Dena Briscoe said the agency remains too short-staffed to meet service standards, leading to burnout and a high rate of employee turnover. “People come in to work, and then they’re pushed to the limit, and they don’t stay," Briscoe said.
  (USPS sees ‘massive turnover’ in non-career workers as union protests short-staffing - Federal News Network)
• President Biden is expected to pick Gen. C.Q. Brown as the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Brown would replace Gen. Mark Milley as the military’s highest-ranking officer. Milley’s second and final two-year term ends in October. Brown has served as the Air Force’s chief of staff for the past three years, and is the first-ever African American to hold that position. Before that, he was the commander of Pacific Air Forces and the deputy commander of U.S. Central Command.
  (Biden said to pick Air Force general as Joint Chiefs chair - Federal News Network)

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• The Defense Acquisition University and Defense Innovation Unit are teaming up to give a second group of contracting officers help in using commercial acquisition processes. Applications for the latest cohort of six contracting officers under the Immersive Commercial Acquisition Program (I-CAP) are open and are due by July 7. The cohort will take part in a 12-month course, where they will receive targeted training on other transaction authority and DIU's Commercial Solutions Opening (CSO) process. The courses will focus on everything from project curation to the basics of other transaction authorities to day-to-day project execution. DIU and DAU launched the first cohort of training last fall with the I-CAP fellows expected to complete their courses in October.
  (DIU, DAU launch 2023 Immersive Commercial Acquisition Training Program - DIU)
• Military service members have another tool to seek support for mental health. The new DoD policy, called the Brandon Act, allows service members to confidentially get a mental health evaluation for any reason. Secretaries of each service will set up policies and procedures to allow greater access to mental health professionals and reduce the stigma associated with seeking mental health care. The Defense Health Agency will help the military departments train and educate service members about their options.
  (DoD Announces Implementation of the Brandon Act - DoD)
• Artificial intelligence has taken center stage in a new partnership between the Defense Department and the National Science Foundation. The newly announced institute will explore using natural intelligence to pursue designs of more capable and trustworthy AI. The two departments chose a proposal lead by Columbia University for the award. With joint funding, the multi-university team will get about $20 million over five years. It will explore how advances in understanding neural, biological, and cognitive processes can support models and mechanisms for developing AI.
  (DoD Co-funds Institute to Research the Neural, Biological, and Cognitive Foundations of Artificial Intelligence - DoD)
• The Veterans Affairs Department is appointing Chauncey Parker to serve on the Advisory Committee on Tribal and Indian Affairs. The committee provides guidance to VA on all matters relating to Native American, Native Hawaiian, and Alaska Native veterans. It also issues recommendations to Congress for legislation to improve Native American veterans’ access to VA health care and benefits. Parker is the co-founder of the Great Plains Veterans Service Center on the Rocky Boy's Indian Reservation in Montana.
  (Tester Statement on Appointment of Montana’s Chauncey Parker to VA’s Advisory Committee on Tribal and Indian Affairs - Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.))
• The latest finalists for the Service to America Medals is out. The Partnership for Public Service has named 27 finalists for the awards program, more affectionately known as the Sammies. It recognizes individuals in government, who have made impressive and innovative contributions to public service. The Partnership will recognize all of the Sammies finalists at a Washington reception on Thursday. Then, in October, the annual awards gala will be held at the Kennedy Center, where six winners will be named from the 27 finalists.
  (2023 Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medals - Partnership for Public Service)
• For Public Service Recognition Week, the White House is honoring federal employees with an official kick-off today. The Biden administration said it will celebrate public servants and their many contributions throughout this week -- and the entire year. The annual event recognizes the work of civil servants and thanks them for their dedication to serving the public. Other advocacy groups, including the National Active and Retired Federal Employees (NARFE) Association, are also tipping their hats to feds. Public Service Recognition Week started yesterday and runs through May 13. If you want to thank a federal employee for his or her service, send an e-card through our website, federalnewsnetwork.com.
  (A Proclamation on Public Service Recognition Week, 2023 - White House)

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