Developing Future Executives: an Assessment of Federal Efforts in an Era of Reform

• DOI: 10.1177/0734371X8200200210
• Published date: 01 March 1982
• Author: Rudi Klauss,Loretta R. Flanders
• Date: 01 March 1982
• Subject Matter: Articles

DEVELOPING FUTURE EXECUTIVES: AN ASSESSMENT OF
FEDERAL EFFORTS IN
AN
ERA OF REFORM*
Loretta R. Flanders
U. S. Office of Personnel Management
Rudi Klauss
National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration
Abstract
This study examines the status of executive development in the federal government since the passage
of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978. A preliminary assessment indicates that encouraging ini-
tial steps have been taken in many agencies to establish executive development programs that in-
clude a range of work related experiences and formal training to prepare individuals for the Senior
Executive Service. However, the next few years will be critical to the long-term effort to institu-
tionalize executive development programs on a government-wide basis.
Introduction
In times of budgetary and personnel cutbacks in the federal government, some
argue that executive development programs are a luxury rather than a necessi-
ty. However, when seen in the broader context of dramatic changes in program
direction, shrinkage of financial resources, and the accelerating exodus of ex-
perienced executives, it is evident that there is a continuing if not growing need
to assure that there will be a cadre of competent career executives who can take
on the challenges posed by these trends.
Both public and private sector organizations are increasingly recognizing the
importance of managerial competence for productivity improvement. Planned
development of the management workforce (entry, mid, and senior levels)
assures that the organization has a pool of management talent with the necessary
competencies (e.g., job-related knowledge, skills, and characteristics) to effec-
tively meet current and projected needs, priorities and goals.’
1
The Civil Service Reform Act (CSRA) of 1978 provided a significant impetus
for increased attention to the development of the federal government’s manage-
ment workforce. This law established the Senior Executive Service (SES) and
provided the first statutory base for executive development programs as an en-
tity separate from the training programs authorized by the Government
Employee Training Act of 1958. The section on executive development (sec-
tion 3396 of title 5, United States Code), combined with other provisions on
*The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of the U. S. Office of person-
nel Management.
119

---

the SES, provides a framework for integrating the training-development func-
tion with other aspects of executive personnel management - vacancy
forecasting and manpower planning, recruitment, selection, and performance
appraisal.
Prior to the CSRA, executive development had been encouraged by the Civil
Service Commission and the Office of Management and Budget through various
directives. However, relatively few agencies undertook systematic executive
development efforts. There were some exceptions, such as in the Internal
Revenue Service and the Federal Aviation Administration. But the general situa-
tion in 1978 is best described by the finding of an interagency task force on
executive development:
o
It has long been recognized by those who have looked into the
management problems of the federal government that there are
serious inadequacies in the manner in which its career executives are
selected, developed, and utilized.... While the career service pro-
duces numbers of outstanding executives, poor executive selection
and development practices in a number of agencies provide room
for significant improvements in this vital area (U. S. Civil Service
Commission, 1978)
This article addresses that part of the executive development effort designed
to prepare individuals for executive positions - SES Candidate Development
programs (SES ~I~hs). Participants in the programs are generally selected from
the level immediately below the SES (GS-15), although a few highly qualified
persons at lower grades and from outside government have been chosen in a
few agencies. These programs are examined because they have received priori-
ty for implementation (ahead of development of SES members and mid-level
managers).
SES Candidate Development Programs have the potential for reshaping the
way in which the majority of executives are selected and increasing the manage-
ment competence of the executive workforce. Not enough time has passed to
make conclusive judgments on either dimension; therefore, our purpose is to
report on policy initiatives to date and assess the situation in terms of trends,
issues, and problems. In addition, we will suggest implications for institutionaliz-
ing executive development efforts in an environment of budgetary and person-
nel cutbacks.
Context of Executive Development
The Act represented an important new phase in federal personnel manage-
ment at a time of growing public disenchantment and dissatisfaction with the
management of public services. One of the key elements of this legislation was
the creation of a Senior Executive Service ’to ensure that the executive manage-
ment of the Government of the United States is responsive to the needs, policies
and goals of the nation and is otherwise of the highest quality&dquo; (5U.S.C.3131).
120

---

Central to the concept of the SES was a focus on managerial performance
(in terms of factors such as improvements in efficiency, timeliness and quality
of work, and meeting equal employment opportunity goals) and the administra-
tion of the reward system (compensation as well as retention and tenure) on
the basis of individual accomplishment. The criteria for selection into the SES
gave a great deal of weight to the demonstration of managerial competence.
Agencies determine the specific qualifications standards ~- managerial and
technical-professional - for their SES positions. However, the law directed
the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to establish Qualifications Review
Boards (QRBs) to serve as final reviewer and certifier of the executive (i.e,
managerial) qualifications of all persons receiving their initial career appoint-
ments in the SES.
Subsequent OPM
guidelines defined executive qualifications in terms of com-
petence to assume leadership responsibilities in the following activity areas com-
mon
to SES positions: integration of internal and external program/policy issues;
organizational representation and liaison; direction and guidance of programs,
projects, or policy development; acquisition and administration of financial and
material resources; utilization of human resources; and analysis and review of
implementation and results. Thus, while technical expertise in program areas
may
be identified as an important ingredient for particular positions, managerial
competence and...