The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) are set to release their four-year strategic plan later this month, according to OPM Director Kiran Ahuja, who previewed what the Federal government can expect to see in that plan.
During an FCW event today, Ahuja said the four-year strategic plan is currently “in OMB’s hands and will be released fairly soon.” Ahuja also said the plan will focus on rebuilding the Federal workforce.
“We have an opportunity to remake it, both in the early career talent that we need to bring in, as well as the importance of professional development opportunities,” Ahuja said.
She went on to say the plan will also focus on the Federal workforce becoming “the model employer,” through both telework and remote work flexibilities, as well as “a whole range of efforts,” including providing support to the Federal workforce and leaning in to “a hybrid work environment and being an example there.”
Just this past Friday, OPM released a new guide to telework and remote work for Federal agencies, in response to increased agency interest in working from home. The 79-page guide is perhaps the most detailed telework and remote work tool for agencies yet.
Additionally, Ahuja said the plan will focus on how “every Federal job should be a good job.” She explained that historically, the Federal government has been “a pathway to the middle class, especially for communities of color.” Therefore, diversity, equity, and inclusion are paramount to the Federal workforce.
“We need to be incorporating diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in the entire employee lifecycle. I often say that diversity is our greatest strength in our nation, and frankly, the greatest asset we have in our Federal workforce,” Ahuja said. “We need to draw on all the vast arrays of backgrounds and viewpoints and lived experiences that the American people have to offer, because we know each new perspective leaves us better equipped to meet America’s needs.”
“Those are the things that you will see in our plan, both in, how we want to be a real partner, how we’re seeking to rebuild our own agency to deliver to all our partner agencies,” she added. “I see my personal mission to be out there with the mantle, a call for public service because I do think we’re in a historic moment to take advantage of the opportunities that are in front of us as a Federal workforce. And I’m intent on doing that and bringing that message to as many people as I can.”
