1.2: Program Management Career Track

Create a Formal Program Management Career Track.

Other Information:

One of the CIOs we interviewed clearly made the point that having “qualified, experienced and dedicated Government staff in the PMO is the single most important ingredient for success.” Strengthening the Government’s capacity in this regard should begin with program managers. The Government should build upon the 2210 job code for program managers within the IT category to establish a career track that establishes financial and career advancement incentives for mastery-level Government program managers in general (and not just for IT) as well as certifications/designations to distinguish this cadre across Federal agencies. Additionally, as recommended by an interviewee with senior Government experience, program managers should be encouraged and incentivized to rotate between acquisition and program teams as a part of the career track between GS12 – GS14. Since these recommendations can be implemented only at the Deputy Secretary level, this issue must be discussed and considered by the President’s Management Council, chaired by the OMB Deputy Director for Management. Involvement of CIO, CFO and CAO Councils is also important, but it is crucial to note that if these Councils alone “own” these changes, they will not occur. We also suggest that the Deputy Director for Management at OMB establish a body bringing together frontline program managers on an ongoing basis to provide OMB with advice and feedback on initiatives to improve program management. Departmental program management councils should be established to advise the Deputy Secretary and other officials, including newly-appointed program managers, to share best practices and to act as independent review boards of submitted program management plans with the authority to issue corrective actions. OMB should also work with OPM to establish training, certification and job classifications for program managers. This could involve establishing: * A communication plan advocating program management as a valued career path * A policy of issuing appointment letters to program managers, program executives and program executive officers * Curriculum and certification program in program management * Performance awards/incentives in program management at the Secretary or Deputy Secretary levels and appropriate levels below * An IT track should be included in the Presidential Management Fellows Program As programs become more focused on business results, it will be critical to identify and develop the top program manager talent to appropriately assign to program missions. There is an industry best practice in which high potential leadership talent is identified to executive levels within companies with specific plans to provide strategic learning opportunities, program and technical experiences to position leaders for increasing levels of responsibility. The practice is also leveraged to fortify succession plans and to institutionalize desired program leadership behaviors.

Indicator(s):

Indicator:1

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