HC C.1: Performance and Reward

Provide timely and accurate feedback to all employees concerning their job performance and ensure the maximum use of appropriate award systems to reward outstanding performance.

Other Information:

The FBI spends 65 percent of its resources on personnel, evidencing once again that employees are its most valuable assets. All of the organization’s employees have an expectation that they will be informed ahead of time what their professional responsibilities entail, and then receive timely feedback on how well they are meeting their responsibilities relative to expectations. The FBI currently has a performance appraisal system that is relevant, time sensitive, and legally defensible. However, the current system seemingly restricts employee evaluation to a determination that the employee meets or does not meet expectations. Many employees consider this a limited assessment of their job performance in critical functions. Therefore, appropriate ratings or mechanisms that allow for accurately describing extraordinary performance, and emphasizing the FBI’s value on excellence, need to be developed, validated, and implemented. As new job families are added to the organization, and new priorities are established for current employees, the FBI must ensure that these new positions and priorities are swiftly and accurately integrated into the performance and award system. For example, with the mandate that the FBI quickly transition from a case-driven to a threat-driven environment, the development and use of human sources is more critical than ever. Therefore, the FBI should restate and re-prioritize the critical element of developing an intelligence base in the Special Agent and Intelligence Analyst performance plan. Increased attention to the intelligence function and identification of threats can be similarly integrated into numerous other job families as well. The FBI should ensure that its focus on counterterrorism and counterintelligence matters is reflected in a defined career path for Special Agents, and that agents who are promoted into executive management positions have significant experience and training in these two programs. Priority Actions: Upgrade existing technology to facilitate electronic performance appraisals to increase their timely preparation and presentation to all employees. Develop additional ratings or mechanisms to be used with FBI performance plans to better acknowledge outstanding achievement. Rewrite performance plans across all job families to ensure critical elements are consistent with the FBI’s latest strategic plan. Ensure timely initiation of relevant performance plans for the newest categories of FBI employees in analytical and other positions to facilitate their recruitment and hiring in the shortest time frames. Continue efforts to develop innovative award recognition programs to highlight the efforts of deserving employees. Create a defined career path for Special Agents with an emphasis on counterterrorism and counterintelligence, with requirements that promotions be tied to experience and training in identified skill areas.

Indicator(s):

Indicator:1

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