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...
7. How will you fix the Senior Executive Service?
Federal employees are supposed to aspire to reach the SES, the highest rung on the civil service ladder. But they don’t for myriad reasons. For starters, SES members are paid only slightly more than the most experienced GS 15s, yet they have greater responsibilities and fewer job protections.
There also are lots of proposals to change the executive corps. The White House and some members of Congress would like to see SES members rotate positions every so often like military leaders do.
“This seems like forced mobility for its own sake, as well as a potential disincentive for those aspiring to the SES,” said Ron Sanders, a former SES member who is now a vice president at Booz Allen. “What can OPM do to ensure that this doesn’t become a meaningless, square-filling exercise and, at worst, an opportunity way to get rid of career executives that an administration doesn’t like?”
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