OPM Again Extends Deadline for Agencies to Adopt Skills-Based Hiring
OPM Director Kiran Ahuja said her agency is still working on finalized guidance for agencies to complete implementation of the order. Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images
By
Erich Wagner
The government's personnel agency said final guidance on implementing skills-based hiring assessments, rather than purely educational attainment, is coming soon.
The Office of Personnel Management announced Wednesday that it will again extend the deadline for agencies to implement a Trump-era executive order aimed at overhauling the federal hiring process.
In June 2020, then-President Trump signed an executive order requiring agencies to increase the use of skills assessments and interviews with subject matter experts, rather than relying purely on educational attainment and length of job experience. That order followed the success of multiple pilot programs experimenting with the simplification of the resume submission process in favor of a series of job interviews and skills assessments, spearheaded by the U.S. Digital Service.
In May, OPM extended the deadline for agencies to comply with the executive order until the end of this year, following concerns from agency officials about their ability to meet the original implementation date.
In a memo to agency heads Wednesday, OPM Director Kiran Ahuja said her agency is still working on finalized guidance for agencies to complete implementation of the order.
“We are pleased that many agencies have made some great progress this year implementing the EO,” Ahuja wrote. “[In] addition, earlier this year, as part of the [Office of Management and Budget] Passback, agencies shared their planned assessment strategies with OMB outlining how they will work toward compliance with this EO. Lastly, we are finalizing the guidance for this EO, which will be issued soon."
According to the memo, OPM has set a new two-tier deadline for agencies to implement skills-based hiring assessments, with a final implementation date of the end of 2022.
“By May 30, 2022, agencies need to comply with these requirements in at least 50% of the instances in which they assess individuals for jobs,” Ahuja wrote. “By December 31, 2022, they should be at full compliance. OPM will work with your agency assessment leads and hold quarterly meetings to check on your progress.”