High Hopes For A New Friend In The White House, (Washington Post)…Joe Davidson, Nov 6, 2008.
…Gage released a series of letters from Obama that outline his positions on various federal labor related issues. The Pentagon’s pay for performance system: Obama said he was concerned about a disconnect between pay and performance, forced distribution of performance ratings and suppression of wages in the National Security Personnel System. As president, he said, he would substantially revise the system’s regulations “and strongly consider a complete repeal.”
Good news on the possible changes to NSPS. I have over 30 years in the federal civil service including 17 years at the Department of Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) in Indianapolis, IN. One of the better performance appraisal systems I’ve experienced at DFAS was in the early 1990s when we used a pass/fail option. Our performance standards identified shared goals and objectives in four areas: customer satisfaction, results, process improvements, and employee satisfaction. The bonus system was separate from the individual performance review.
W. Edwards Deming, whose work with the Japanese after WWII was recognized by the editors of Fortune magazine as one of the best calls in business history, classified most individual performance systems (to include grades in school) as deadly diseases. Rationale provided at SuccessThroughQuality.com where you can test your knowledge of variation.
A better understanding of the variation principle would help minimize and/or avoid many of the costs associated with NSPS.
Additional articles on the subject published in Quality Progress and DFAS magazine.
Our early efforts to introduce the variation principle within DFAS provided in the article: Measuring Performance in the Department of Defense (DFAS). Published in Quality Progress Magazine, American Society for Quality, January 2002.
A Transformation to Quality Government. Published in Quality Progress Magazine, American Society for Quality, May 2000.
Doing the right things, right. Article that summarize quality ‘s common ground. Published in the Department of Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) newsletter, December 1995.
Success through Quality Choices. Article that illustrates the basic principles of numerical literacy. Published in the Department of Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) newsletter, December 1995.
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