Recommendations to achieve a better,more diverse <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong>The federal government should take several steps to ensure the career SES looks morelike the country over the next 20-40 years and best serves the diverse nation it represents.Build<strong>in</strong>g on the actions taken by the Obama adm<strong>in</strong>istration—see the box below—wecall on the federal government to take the follow<strong>in</strong>g three steps:• Make a commitment to clos<strong>in</strong>g the diversity gap <strong>in</strong> the <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong>.• Develop a stronger applicant pool.• Use data to better promote diversity.Let’s look at each of these steps <strong>in</strong> turn.The Obama adm<strong>in</strong>istration’s commitment to diversityOn August 18, 2011, President Obama issued an executive orderto establish a coord<strong>in</strong>ated government-wide <strong>in</strong>itiative to promotediversity and <strong>in</strong>clusion <strong>in</strong> the federal workforce. The executiveorder requires the Office of Personnel Management and the Officeof Management and Budget to work with the deputy secretaries ofagencies and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission todevelop a government-wide plan to promote diversity. The executiveorder says the plan must “identify appropriate practices toimprove the effectiveness of each agency’s efforts to recruit, hire,promote, reta<strong>in</strong>, develop, and tra<strong>in</strong> a diverse and <strong>in</strong>clusive workforce.”The plan must be issued by mid-November and updatedevery four years.The executive order then requires each major executive branchagency to take action to implement the government-wide plan.There is a specific requirement for each agency to develop its owndiversity and <strong>in</strong>clusion strategic plan for “recruit<strong>in</strong>g, hir<strong>in</strong>g, tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g,develop<strong>in</strong>g, advanc<strong>in</strong>g, promot<strong>in</strong>g, and reta<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g a diverseworkforce”—these plans need to be complete with<strong>in</strong> 120 daysof the government-wide plan (by mid-March 2012) and updatedevery four years.The Obama adm<strong>in</strong>istration recently also made a commitment topromote diversity <strong>in</strong> the <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong>. In a jo<strong>in</strong>t memoto all of its members, OPM Director John Berry and OMB DeputyDirector Jeff Zients committed to set up a pilot project to develophigh-potential staff at the GS-13-15 level and prepare them forthe <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong>. They also promised a shared capacityacross agencies to market and recruit, and an external talent searchto attract diverse candidates. The recommendations of this reportbuild on these <strong>in</strong>itiatives. 35The Obama adm<strong>in</strong>istration also has hired a much more diverse group<strong>in</strong>to senior political appo<strong>in</strong>tments. In September 2010 24 percentof political appo<strong>in</strong>tees were m<strong>in</strong>orities and 40 percent were womencompared to 10 percent and 23 percent, respectively, four yearsearlier under President Bush. The Obama adm<strong>in</strong>istration also is notedfor its diverse hir<strong>in</strong>g efforts on the federal bench. Elena Kagan andSonia Sotomayor both now sit on the Supreme Court, but efforts toimprove judicial diversity have not been limited to the top of thesystem. To date, the president has had 97 of his judicial nom<strong>in</strong>eesconfirmed. As reported recently <strong>in</strong> The New York Times, nearly half ofthe confirmed nom<strong>in</strong>ees are women, 21 percent are African American,and 11 percent are Hispanic. 3619 Center for American Progress | A <strong>Better</strong>, <strong>More</strong> <strong>Diverse</strong> <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong> <strong>in</strong> <strong>2050</strong>
Mak<strong>in</strong>g a commitment to clos<strong>in</strong>g the diversity gap <strong>in</strong> the <strong>Senior</strong><strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong>The Obama adm<strong>in</strong>istration’s recent executive order recognizes the importance of leadershipfrom the center of government. It asks OPM and OMB to work together with theEEOC and departments to develop a government-wide plan to improve diversity. Webelieve the government-wide plan should <strong>in</strong>clude a strong focus on clos<strong>in</strong>g the diversitygap <strong>in</strong> the <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong>.Given the f<strong>in</strong>d<strong>in</strong>gs of this report, we recommend the top priority should be to addressthe very significant underrepresentation of Hispanics. It is also important to cont<strong>in</strong>ueto make progress to <strong>in</strong>crease the number of women <strong>in</strong> <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong> roles.We recommend that the government-wide plan should take the follow<strong>in</strong>g steps.Set an objective to close the diversity gap for the career <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong> by 2030Do<strong>in</strong>g so would ensure representation of women and all ethnic and racial groups betterreflects their likely representation <strong>in</strong> the civilian labor force. The best way to showleadership is to make a clear commitment to clos<strong>in</strong>g the diversity gap. But changetakes time, especially <strong>in</strong> relation to the composition of a 7,000-strong workforce. Thatis why we believe 20 years is a sensible timeframe.Set out <strong>in</strong>terim milestones on the progress that should be made across executivebranch agencies every four yearsThese milestones will allow the federal government to monitor progress and hone itsstrategies to maximize the chances of clos<strong>in</strong>g the diversity gap. Changes to strategyshould be reflected <strong>in</strong> revisions to the government-wide plan that is due to be revisedevery four years.Embark on a special <strong>in</strong>itiative to <strong>in</strong>crease the representation of Hispanics <strong>in</strong> the <strong>Senior</strong><strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong>The most serious issues of underrepresentation apply to Hispanics, and they applynot only to the <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong> but also to the feeder grades of GS-13,GS-14, and GS-15. The federal government should embrace this challenge head onand make it its top priority.Include a strong focus on clos<strong>in</strong>g the gender gapOur model predicts women will rema<strong>in</strong> significantly underrepresented <strong>in</strong> the <strong>Senior</strong><strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong> by 2030. We believe the gap is likely to close by <strong>2050</strong>, which is toolong to wait. The government-wide plan should commit to actions to accelerate thepace of improvement <strong>in</strong> gender diversity.20 Center for American Progress | A <strong>Better</strong>, <strong>More</strong> <strong>Diverse</strong> <strong>Senior</strong> <strong>Executive</strong> <strong>Service</strong> <strong>in</strong> <strong>2050</strong>