The author offers his suggestions for Katherine Archuleta, the president’s nominee for OPM Director, and invites FedSmith.com users to share their suggestions as well.
The author says that some of the most talented employees in government are looking away from it as a potential employer when they are needed more than ever.
Will a person’s behavior change when getting a written reprimand? The goal should be to change the undesirable behavior. The author analyzes the disciplinary process and offers suggestions for those who may be involved in a disciplinary situation.
The voters in Washington state recently legalized marijuana. The author, who is a resident of Washington, discusses the new law and what it might mean for federal employees who live or work there.
The author says that many people don’t consider the possibility of having performance appraisals that actually improve performance. He says that having a system designed to improve performance would be an appraisal system actually worth having instead of being just about the performance rating.
The author discusses performance standards and what he believes is a fundamental law of performance evaluations and the most common reason appraisals have failed in the past.
The author says that performance appraisals should serve to improve performance rather than just rate it.
The MSPB recently overturned the removal of a DoD employee for unacceptable performance. The author analyzes the circumstances surrounding the case.
Robbie worked for the Social Security Administration and Department of the Navy for over 13 years before dropping out of government… but he never really left. He began teaching seminars to Federal supervisors, managers, and union officials for a fledgling company called FPMI. In 1990 Robbie moved to Seattle, WA and began his own one-person training company – Government Personnel Services. He continues that enterprise today [see www.trainingfeds.com]. All of his clients are Federal agencies and the National Guard.
The perspectives in Robbie’s articles come "from the field" and from more than 30 years reflecting on why HR programs work… or don't. They stem from his experience in the areas of labor and employee relations and his attempts to make sense of Federal performance appraisal systems. When not teaching seminars, Robbie volunteers many hours as a Federal, municipal, and community mediator in the Seattle area.