{ "id": "IN11035", "type": "CRS Insight", "typeId": "INSIGHTS", "number": "IN11035", "active": false, "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "versions": [ { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 597282, "date": "2019-02-08", "retrieved": "2020-01-02T16:09:54.466470", "title": "Department of Homeland Security Human Resources Management: Homeland Security Issues in the 116th Congress", "summary": "/\n \nHuman resources management (HRM) underlies the Department of Homeland Security\u2019s (DHS) mission and performance. DHS\u2019s Chief Human Capital Officer (CHCO) \u201cis responsible for the Department\u2019s human capital program,\u201d which is described as including such elements as \u201chuman resources policy, systems, and programs for strategic workforce planning, recruitment and hiring, pay and leave, performance management, employee development, executive resources, labor relations, work/life and safety and health.\u201d \nUnder Title 5, Section 1402, of the United States Code, a CHCO\u2019s functions include \u201csetting the workforce development strategy\u201d and aligning HRM with \u201corganization mission, strategic goals, and performance outcomes.\u201d DHS\u2019s Management Directorate web page includes the CHCO position under the Under Secretary for Management (USM). The Organizational Chart and Leadership web pages do not include the position under the USM nor explain that difference. At DHS, the CHCO is a career Senior Executive Service position. The incumbent CHCO assumed the position in January 2016.\nThe 116th Congress may decide to conduct oversight of DHS CHCO operations\u2014including placement, role, and functions within the department\u2014and DHS human resources management. Such reviews could focus on the department\u2019s plans for, and performance of, HRM. These plans are set forth in a Strategic Plan and an Annual Performance Report. The latter report for FY2020 is expected to be published along with the release of the department\u2019s budget request. Congress may also examine DHS activities related to the President\u2019s Management Agenda (PMA), particularly the agenda\u2019s Cross-Agency Priority Goal (CAP) to develop the federal workforce. These topics are briefly discussed below.\nHearings, roundtables, and meetings with officials and employees could inform congressional oversight on DHS appropriations, administration, and management as they relate to HRM. Annually, on or about the anniversary of DHS\u2019s official inception, which occurred on March 1, 2003, Congress could consider conducting a review that focuses specifically on the CHCO operations and HRM policies and programs. The DHS FY2020 budget request, anticipated in March 2019, may enable Congress to conduct such a review within the context of the department\u2019s Strategic Plan, Performance Report, and PMA activities.\nDHS Strategic Plan\nSection 2 of the GPRA Modernization Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-352) requires agency heads to submit a strategic plan that provides, among other things, \u201ca description of how the goals and objectives are to be achieved,\u201d including a description of the \u201chuman, capital ... resources required to achieve those goals and objectives.\u201d Section 230 of the Office of Management and Budget\u2019s (OMB) Circular No. A-11 (2018), \u201cPreparation, Submission and Execution of the Budget,\u201d stated:\nAn agency\u2019s Strategic Plan should provide the context for decisions about performance goals, priorities, strategic human capital planning and budget planning. It should provide the framework for the detail published in agency Annual Performance Plans, Annual Performance Reports and on Performance.gov. \nDHS published its most recent publicly available Strategic Plan, covering FY2014-FY2018, in September 2015. The plan briefly mentioned HRM. To \u201cstrengthen service delivery and manage DHS resources,\u201d the plan stated that the department would \u201c[r]ecruit, hire, retain, and develop a highly qualified, diverse, effective, mission-focused, and resilient workforce.\u201d Specific objectives identified to accomplish this were \u201c1) building an effective, mission-focused, diverse, and inspiring cadre of leaders; 2) recruiting a highly qualified and diverse workforce; 3) retaining an engaged workforce; and 4) solidifying a DHS culture of mission performance, adaptability, accountability, equity, and results.\u201d\nTo obtain an understanding of progress on the plan\u2019s HRM components to date, Congress could ask the department to document the specific framework for these four objectives and the conditions and factors related to each being fulfilled. Congress could also ask DHS to include a statement about the expected publication of an updated Strategic Plan on the Strategic Planning page of its website.\nDHS Annual Performance Report\nA Performance Report, required by Section 3 of P.L. 111-352, is to be published by the first Monday in February each year and cover \u201ceach program activity set forth in the budget.\u201d Among the other requirements that are specified at Title 31, Section 1115(b), of the United States Code, the plan must \u201cprovide a description of how the performance goals are to be achieved,\u201d including \u201cthe operation processes, training, skills and technology, and the human, capital, information, and other resources and strategies required to meet those performance goals.\u201d\nDHS published its most recent Performance Report, covering FY2017-FY2019, in February 2018. The report noted that the Human Capital Operating Plan (HCOP) identifies \u201cgoals, objectives, and performance measures linked to DHS strategy\u201d and \u201cemphasizes management integration, accountability tracking, and the use of human capital data analysis to meet DHS mission needs.\u201d According to the department, the HCOP is used to \u201cidentify and address critical skills gaps.\u201d The Performance Report stated that Component Recruitment and Outreach Plans specify \u201crecruitment strategies\u201d as \u201ca key element to sustain progress in skill gap closure.\u201d\nThe HCOP and the Component Recruitment and Outreach Plans do not appear to be publicly available on the department\u2019s website. Congress could suggest that the department include a link to these documents on DHS.gov to facilitate consultation and oversight about measurable results for performance goals.\nPresident\u2019s Management Agenda\nThe President Donald Trump Administration describes the PMA as setting forth \u201ca long-term vision for modernizing the Federal Government.\u201d The PMA is to be implemented through CAPs that address \u201ccritical government-wide challenges.\u201d One such CAP\u2014led by the Office of Personnel Management, OMB, and the Department of Defense\u2014is \u201cDeveloping a Workforce for the 21st Century.\u201d It seeks a strategic human capital management framework that enables managers to \u201chire the best employees, remove the worst employees, and engage employees.\u201d Three CAP subgoals under this objective are \u201cImprove Employee Performance Management and Engagement,\u201d \u201cReskill and Redeploy Human Capital Resources,\u201d and \u201cSimple and Strategic Hiring.\u201d\nThe DHS CHCO is the leader for the third CAP subgoal, which includes strategies to reduce hiring times; \u201cbetter differentiate applicants\u2019 qualifications, competencies, and experience;\u201d and \u201celiminate burdensome policies and procedures.\u201d\nCongressional oversight of PMA activities at DHS could focus on such matters as key initiatives, measureable results, and anticipated timelines for accomplishing subgoals.", "type": "CRS Insight", "typeId": "INSIGHTS", "active": false, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/IN11035", "sha1": "b2e873f723a039a72b101a4ab08bf882f62a1cda", "filename": "files/20190208_IN11035_b2e873f723a039a72b101a4ab08bf882f62a1cda.html", "images": { "/products/Getimages/?directory=IN/ASPX/IN11035_files&id=/0.png": "files/20190208_IN11035_images_4c90792b4ac35865273673c3e0c671ab3bf94038.png" } }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/IN11035", "sha1": "177e58d075b727a259fefd048bda9926f66e2d5e", "filename": "files/20190208_IN11035_177e58d075b727a259fefd048bda9926f66e2d5e.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [] } ], "topics": [ "Appropriations", "CRS Insights" ] }