Paradigm Shift: Recruiting for Lifelong Careers or Public Service Stints

While some of the more than 311,000 people affected by tech layoffs occurring in the private sector since November 2022 could supply talent to fill currently available federal jobs, the government is working to ensure such applicants are recruited for both the short- and long-term.

“It’s important for folks in the tech sector to know that basically any kind of tech job that somebody might be interested in exists in the federal government,” Rob Shriver, deputy director at the Office of Personnel Management, told Nextgov.

According to Sarah Benczik, who leads Deloitte’s Government and Public Services human capital talent team, while workers impacted by the layoffs fill an immediate need, there are also long-term opportunities for government recruitment efforts, such as more targeted efforts to attract women and ethnically and racially diverse candidates, as well as non-traditional candidates—such as those from different schools or locations or with gaps in their resumes. She also advocated for reconsidering degree requirements and instead focusing on skill sets, aptitude and potential. 

In January, OPM and others held a virtual career fair to try to recruit laid off tech workers to fill immediately vacant positions in government. The agency is also using other authorities to hire people. 

Existing short-term public service stints

Beyond new OPM efforts, existing pathways—such as those housed under the General Services Administration, like the Presidential Innovations Fellows, 18F and U.S. Digital Corps, as well as the White House’s U.S. Digital Service—have been used to recruit workers for short public service stints. 

“GSA’s efforts to recruit technologists to government are driven by the need to provide pathways for everyone—from early-career technologists to seasoned professionals—to contribute their talents both at GSA and across government,” a GSA spokesperson told Nextgov. “The government is doing more to attract and retain these professionals in order to enhance its capacity for technology modernization and innovation, as well as to ensure a strong and stable technology workforce in the years to come. From an applicant perspective, [the Technology Transformation Service] works hard to create a positive candidate experience, and employs federal merit system principles to ensure fair and open recruitment.” 

For example, the Presidential Innovation Fellows offers experienced technologists, designers and strategists the ability to work with federal agencies as “yearlong entrepreneurs in residence.” 

“Since its inception over 10 years ago, the PIF program has introduced some of the private sector’s top innovators, entrepreneurs and executives to the federal government, improving public services for millions of Americans as a result,” the GSA spokesperson said. “Since its launch, the program has embedded over 250 fellows across more than 50 federal agencies, with over 53% of PIF alumni continuing in government at some point after their fellowship ends.”

18F also targets more experienced technology professionals to participate in two-year terms where they serve as a technology and design consultancy for government partners to improve user experience.

“Because most employees at 18F are hired into term appointments, the 18F staffing numbers fluctuate as employees term out and as new hires begin—a cycle that ensures that we are always bringing in a fresh perspective and knowledge of the latest technology,” the spokesperson said. “18F remains a talent pipeline for leaders in technology governmentwide. After their term ends, many 18F employees join other federal agencies, state governments, as well as other offices and programs within TTS.”

U.S. Digital Corps is a two-year fellowship for early career technologists to help modernize and simplify the federal government. 

“In June 2022, the U.S. Digital Corps welcomed 38 fellows who are serving at 12 agencies across the federal government. In their two years, they will help shape a more equitable, effective and secure digital government for the public,” the GSA spokesperson said. “It is our hope that many fellows in this first cohort decide to stay and continue as permanent career employees in the federal government, and we’re looking forward to welcoming our second cohort this summer.”

U.S. Digital Service brings in professionals to use design and technology to improve services for the American people. The program follows a tour-of-service model and people can serve for a maximum of four years.

“Since 2014, the U.S. Digital Service has hired over 500 technology professionals in engineering, data science, design, product management, operations, communications and procurement to address some of government’s most critical needs,” Deputy Administrator Cori Zarek told Nextgov. “USDS brings people in with short-term appointments for two or four years and is continuously recruiting new talent. USDS also partners with agencies to recruit tech talent and a number of former USDS staff move into agency roles, including executive leadership roles in federal, state and local government.” 

Notable USDS alumni in high-ranking government tech positions include: Clare Martorana, federal chief information officer and chair of the Technology Modernization Fund Board; Eric Hysen, chief information officer at the Department of Homeland Security; Charles Worthington, chief technology officer at the Department of Veterans Affairs; and Stephanie Nguyen, chief technology officer at the Federal Trade Commission, among others.

Short-term vs. long-term

Erica Ford, principal and U.S. government and public sector people advisory services leader at Ernst & Young, noted that government must balance the short- and long-term impacts for its recruitment strategy. She outlined ways that government agencies can prioritize goals and work to accomplish them.

“One of the things they really need to think about is just like, what kind of civil servant do they want to have in their employee?” Ford told Nextgov. “What is the general kind of knowledge that every employee, regardless of their function or their role in the mission, has to have? What are the ways that you want people to work and collaborate? How do you want folks to think about interdependencies between each other? What kind of technology do you want them to use?”

Successful public service does not necessarily mean serving the public for decades. Shriver stated that any amount of government service is important and the government should be helping to grow people’s careers. 

“We love the folks that come into the federal government and spend 30 years; there’s just a tremendous commitment to public service,” Shriver said. “We also recognize that’s kind of not the normal thing anymore. We don’t want to make it difficult for people to kind of move in and out of government.”

Shriver added that once working for the government, it is easier to move around within an agency or to another agency, and it is “a good thing to bring folks back in.” Recent policy changes have established that if an individual previously worked for the government, “there’s a streamlined way to bring you back, but at the salary that you qualified for, not the one that you left at,” Shriver said.

Like Shriver, Ford stated that even short-term public service is beneficial and desirable and should be viewed as successful.

“For some folks, they don’t want a 20-year job,” Ford said. “They’re looking for experiences and they’re looking for diversity in thinking and being in purpose-driven work. … And if [the government is] going to take advantage of the folks that have been released from these commercial organizations, having them come and work and contribute to innovation and bring new perspectives for three or four years, and then they go back to industry, that’s an advocate that’s going back to industry.”

Ford added that people who used to work for the government and now work in industry, “are more equipped to innovate for government” and are “more empathetic about government,” as they have a better understanding of government challenges and potential commercial solutions to meet those challenges. As a result, she stated that “government should broaden their thinking in terms of what a successful tenure or a successful career with them looks like.”

However, Dave Hinchman, director of Information Technology and Cybersecurity at the Government Accountability Office,  told Nextgov there are benefits of a long-term workforce, such as institutional knowledge. He stated that while there will always be turnover, “the more attractive you can make it for folks to consider staying long term the better off you are. You minimize turnover, you create [a] great corporate knowledge base that exists and gets turned over as new people come in, and people who’ve been there a long time can share their experiences and pass that on to the sort of what I'll call the next generation of workers.”

This is the second in a multipart series examining the current state of tech hiring in the federal government.