7 questions the Senate should ask OPM pick Beth Cobert
Beth Cobert has not testified before Congress since becoming acting director of OPM in July. From the data breaches to workforce issues, senators have plenty of...
3. How are you going to recruit the thousands of cybersecurity professionals that the government needs?
As the OPM data breaches illustrate, the government has a dearth of cybersecurity talent. The problem is that others do too. Tech firms often offer more money than the government. They hire faster. They have less bureaucracy. Some have better resources.
Congress has authorized some agencies, such as the Homeland Security Department, to go outside the government’s dominant pay scale, the General Schedule, to pay cybersecurity workers better. Just recently, OPM authorized DHS to quickly hire 1,000 cyber professionals.
“It’s a Band-Aid,” said Max Stier, president and CEO of the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service.