Federal Law Enforcement: Selected Issues in Human Capital Management
Published: 2003-07-23T00:00:00

Fast Facts:

Highlights:
section_title: Why GAO Did This Study
paragraphs: Many federal agencies in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area have their own police forces to ensure the security and safety of the persons and property within and surrounding federal buildings. In the executive branch, for example, the Secret Service has over 1,000 uniformed officers protecting the White House, the Treasury Building, and other facilities used by the Executive Office of the President. The Interior Department's Park Police consists of more than 400 officers protecting parks and monuments in the area. The Pentagon Force Protection Agency has recently increased its force to over 400 officers. Even the Health and Human Services Department maintains a small police force on the campus of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland. In addition, there are federal uniformed police forces in both the Legislative and Judicial Branches of the federal government. We have continued to examine the transformation of 22 agencies with an estimated 160,000 civilian employees into the Department of Homeland Security.
section_title: What GAO Found
paragraphs: After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and the government's subsequent efforts to increase airline security, many of these local police forces began experiencing difficulties in recruiting and retaining officers. Police force officials raised concerns that the newly created Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and its Federal Air Marshal Program were luring many prospective and experienced officers by offering better starting pay and law enforcement retirement benefits. Former Congresswoman Morella asked us to look into these concerns. Most forces reported experiencing recruitment difficulties. Officials at 8 of the 13 forces told us they experienced moderate to very great recruiting difficulties. Despite this, none of the 13 forces used available human capital flexibilities, such as recruitment bonuses or student loan repayments in fiscal year 2002, to try to improve their recuiting efforts. In fiscal year 2002, many of the local forces experienced sizable increases in turnover, mostly due to voluntary separations. About half of the officers who left voluntarily went to the TSA. Some of the forces provided retention allowances and incentive awards to try to retain more of their officers. Entry-level pay at the 13 agencies during fiscal year 2002 ranged from $28,801 to $39,427, a gap that narrowed for some of the forces in fiscal year 2003 because officers at 12 of the 13 agencies received increased entry-level pay. However, information we have gathered since we issued our report indicates that turnover in most of the police forces has dropped significantly during fiscal year 2003. The increase in turnover that occurred at 12 of the 13 police forces during fiscal year 2002 appears to be associated with the concurrent staffing of the TSA Federal Air Marshal Program. TSA's hiring of air marshals during fiscal year 2003 has been pared back.

section_title: Letter
paragraphs: Many federal agencies in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area have  their own police forces to ensure the security and safety of the persons  and property within and surrounding federal buildings. In the executive  branch, for example, the Secret Service has over 1,000 uniformed officers  protecting the White House, the Treasury Building, and other facilities  used by the Executive Office of the President. The Interior Department’s  Park Police consists of more than 400 officers protecting parks and  monuments in the area. The Pentagon Force Protection Agency has  recently increased its force to over 400 officers. Even the Health and  Human Services Department maintains a small police force on the campus  of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland. In  addition, there are federal uniformed police forces in both the Legislative  and Judicial Branches of the federal government.
After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and the government’s  subsequent efforts to increase airline security, many of these local police  forces began experiencing difficulties in recruiting and retaining officers.  Police force officials raised concerns that the newly created  Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and its Federal Air Marshal  Program were luring many prospective and experienced officers by  offering better starting pay and law enforcement retirement benefits.  Former Congresswoman Morella asked us to look into these concerns. I  would like to summarize the results of that review, which was published  last month.
Most forces reported experiencing recruitment difficulties. Officials at 8 of  the 13 forces told us they experienced moderate to very great recruiting  difficulties. Despite this, none of the 13 forces used available human  capital flexibilities, such as recruitment bonuses or student loan  repayments in fiscal year 2002, to try to improve their recruiting efforts.
In fiscal year 2002, many of the local forces experienced sizable increases  in turnover, mostly due to voluntary separations. About half of the officers  who left voluntarily went to the TSA. Some of the forces provided  retention allowances and incentive awards to try to retain more of their  officers.
Entry-level pay at the 13 agencies during fiscal year 2002 ranged from  $28,801 to $39,427, a gap that narrowed for some of the forces in fiscal  year 2003 because officers at 12 of the 13 agencies received increased  entry-level pay.
However, information we have gathered since we issued our report  indicates that turnover in most of the police forces has dropped  significantly during fiscal year 2003. The increase in turnover that  occurred at 12 of the 13 police forces during fiscal year 2002 appears to be  associated with the concurrent staffing of the TSA Federal Air Marshal  Program. TSA's hiring of air marshals during fiscal year 2003 has been  pared back.
To perform our work, we identified federal uniformed police forces with  50 or more officers in the Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area  (MSA)—13 in all. We interviewed officials responsible for human capital  issues and obtained documents on recruitment and retention issues. Using  this information, we created a survey and distributed it to the 13 police  forces to obtain information on entry-level pay and benefits, officer duties,  turnover rates, recruiting difficulties, and the availability and use of  human capital flexibilities to recruit and retain officers. We reviewed and  analyzed the police forces’ responses for completeness and accuracy and  followed-up on any missing or unclear responses with appropriate  officials.
Chairwoman Davis, at your request and the request of Senator Voinovich,  we have continued to examine the transformation of 22 agencies with an  estimated 160,000 civilian employees into the Department of Homeland  Security (DHS). To learn from private sector mergers and acquisitions, we  identified key practices and their implementation steps that can serve as a  basis for federal agencies, including DHS, seeking to transform their  cultures to be more results-oriented, customer-focused, and collaborative  in nature. Our report on these implementation steps is being released  today.
Some of these steps are to    define and articulate a succinct and compelling reason for change;  identify cultural features of merging organizations to increase  understanding of former work environments;    adopt leading practices to implement effective performance management  systems with adequate safeguards; and  involve employees in planning and sharing performance information.
subsections: section_title: Federal Police Forces in Washington, D.C.
paragraphs: Although the specific duties police officers perform may vary among  police forces, federal uniformed police officers are generally responsible  for providing security and safety to people and property within and  sometimes surrounding federal buildings. There are a number of federal  uniformed police forces operating in the Washington MSA, of which 13  had 50 or more officers as of September 30, 2001. Table 1 shows the 13  federal uniformed police forces included in our review and the number of  officers in each of the police forces as of September 30, 2002.
The enactment of the Homeland Security Act on November 25, 2002, had  consequences for federal uniformed police forces. The act, among other  things, established a new DHS, which includes 2 uniformed police forces  within the scope of our review—the Federal Protective Service and the  Secret Service Uniformed Division. Another component of DHS is TSA, a  former component of the Department of Transportation. TSA includes the  Federal Air Marshal Service, designed to protect domestic and  international airline flights against hijacking and terrorist attacks. During  fiscal year 2002, the Federal Air Marshal Program increased its recruiting  significantly in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.  However, by fiscal year 2003, the buildup had been substantially  completed. Because Federal Air Marshals are not limited to the grade and  pay step structure of the federal government’s General Schedule, TSA has  been able to offer recruits higher compensation and more flexible benefit  packages than many other federal police forces.
Federal uniformed police forces operate under various compensation  systems. Some federal police forces are covered by the General Schedule  pay system and others are covered by different pay systems authorized by  various laws. Since 1984, all new federal employees have been covered by  the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). Federal police forces  provide either standard federal retirement benefits or federal law  enforcement retirement benefits.
Studies of employee retention indicate that turnover is a complex and  multifaceted problem. People leave their jobs for a variety of reasons.  Compensation is often cited as a primary reason for employee turnover.  However, nonpay factors, such as age, job tenure, job satisfaction, and job  location, may also affect individuals’ decisions to leave their jobs.
During recent years, the federal government has implemented many  human capital flexibilities to help agencies attract and retain sufficient  numbers of high-quality employees to complete their missions. Human  capital flexibilities can include actions related to such areas as  recruitment, retention, competition, position classification, incentive  awards and recognition, training and development, and work-life policies.  We have stated in recent reports that the effective, efficient, and  transparent use of human capital flexibilities must be a key component of  agency efforts to address human capital challenges. The tailored use of  such flexibilities for recruiting and retaining high-quality employees is an  important cornerstone of our model of strategic human capital  management.
subsections: section_title: Most Forces Experienced Recruitment Difficulties
paragraphs: Eight of the 13 police forces reported difficulties recruiting officers from a  moderate to a very great extent. Despite recruitment difficulties faced by  many of the police forces, none of the police forces used important human  capital recruitment flexibilities, such as recruitment bonuses and student  loan repayments, in fiscal year 2002. Some police force officials reported  that the human capital recruitment flexibilities were not used for various  reasons, such as limited funding or that the flexibilities themselves were  not available to the forces during the fiscal year 2002 recruiting cycle.
Officials at 4 of the 13 police forces (Bureau of Engraving and Printing  Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Police, Federal  Protective Service, and NIH Police) reported that they were having a great  or very great deal of difficulty recruiting officers. In addition, officials at   5 police forces reported that they were having difficulty recruiting officers  to a little or some extent or to a moderate extent. Among the reasons given  for recruitment difficulties were:  low pay;  the high cost of living in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area;    difficulty completing the application/background investigation process;    better retirement benefits at other law enforcement agencies.
Conversely, officials at 4 of the 13 police forces (Library of Congress  Police, the Supreme Court Police, U.S. Mint Police, and U.S. Postal Service  Police) reported that they were not having difficulty recruiting officers.  Library of Congress officials attributed their police force’s lack of  difficulty recruiting officers to attractive pay and working conditions and  the ability to hire officers at any age above 20 and who also will not be  subject to a mandatory retirement age. Supreme Court officials told us  that their police force had solved a recent recruitment problem by  focusing additional resources on recruiting and emphasizing the force’s  attractive work environment to potential recruits. U.S. Postal Service  officials reported that their police force was not experiencing a  recruitment problem because it hired its police officers from within the  agency. Table 2 provides a summary of the level of recruitment difficulties  reported by the 13 police forces.
Although many of the police forces reported facing recruitment  difficulties, none of the police forces used human capital recruitment  tools, such as recruitment bonuses and student loan repayments, in fiscal  year 2002.
section_title: Sizable Differences in Turnover Rates among the 13 Police Forces
paragraphs: Total turnover at the 13 police forces nearly doubled from fiscal years   2001 to 2002. Additionally, during fiscal year 2002, 8 of the 13 police forces  experienced their highest annual turnover rates over the 6-year period,  from fiscal years 1997 through 2002. There were sizable differences in  turnover rates among the 13 police forces during fiscal year 2002. NIH  Police reported the highest turnover rate at 58 percent. The turnover rates  for the remaining 12 police forces ranged from 11 percent to 41 percent. Of  the 729 officers who separated from the 13 police forces in fiscal year  2002, about 82 percent (599), excluding retirements, voluntarily separated.  About 53 percent (316) of the 599 officers who voluntarily separated from  the police forces in fiscal year 2002 went to TSA. Additionally, about   65 percent of the officers who voluntarily separated from the 13 police  forces during fiscal year 2002 had fewer than 5 years of service on their  police forces.
The total number of separations at all 13 police forces nearly doubled  (from 375 to 729) between fiscal year 2001 and 2002. Turnover increased at  all but 1 of the police forces (Library of Congress Police) over this period.  The most significant increases in turnover occurred at the Bureau of  Engraving and Printing Police (200 percent) and the Secret Service  Uniformed Division (about 152 percent). In addition, during fiscal year  2002, 8 of the 13 police forces experienced their highest annual turnover  rates over the 6-year period, from fiscal year 1997 through 2002.
The turnover rates at the 13 police forces ranged from 11 percent at the  Library of Congress Police to 58 percent at the NIH Police in fiscal year  2002. In addition to the NIH Police, 3 other police forces had turnover  rates of 25 percent or greater during fiscal year 2002. The U.S. Mint Police  reported the second highest turnover rate at 41 percent, followed by the  Bureau of Engraving and Printing Police at 27 percent and the Secret  Service Uniformed Division at 25 percent.
There was no clear pattern evident between employee pay and turnover  rates during fiscal year 2002. For example, while some police forces with  relatively highly paid entry-level officers such as the Library of Congress  Police (11 percent) and the Supreme Court Police (13 percent) had  relatively low turnover rates, other police forces with relatively highly paid  entry-level officers such as the U.S. Mint Police (41 percent), Bureau of  Engraving and Printing Police (27 percent), and Secret Service Uniformed  Division (25 percent) experienced significantly higher turnover rates.  Additionally, turnover varied significantly among the 5 police forces with  relatively lower paid entry-level officers. For example, while the Federal  Protective Service (19 percent) and NIH Police (58 percent) entry-level  officers both received the lowest starting pay, turnover differed  dramatically.
Likewise, no clear pattern existed regarding turnover among police forces  receiving federal law enforcement retirement benefits and those receiving  traditional federal retirement benefits. For example, entry-level officers at  the Library of Congress Police, U.S. Capitol Police, and Supreme Court  Police all received equivalent pay in fiscal year 2002. However, the Library  of Congress (11 percent) had a lower turnover rate than the Capitol Police  (13 percent) and Supreme Court Police (16 percent), despite the fact that  officers at the latter 2 police forces received federal law enforcement  retirement benefits. In addition, while officers at both the Park Police   (19 percent) and Secret Service Uniformed Division (25 percent) received  law enforcement retirement benefits, these forces experienced higher  turnover rates than some forces such as U.S. Postal Service Police (14  percent) and FBI Police (17 percent), whose officers did not receive law  enforcement retirement benefits and whose entry-level officers received  lower starting salaries.
More than half (316) of the 599 officers who voluntarily separated from the  police forces in fiscal year 2002 went to TSA—nearly all (313 of 316) to  become Federal Air Marshals where they were able to earn higher salaries,  federal law enforcement retirement benefits, and a type of pay premium  for unscheduled duty equaling 25 percent of their base salary. The number  (316) of police officers who voluntarily separated from the 13 police forces  to take positions at TSA nearly equaled the increase in the total number of  separations (354) that occurred between fiscal year 2001 and 2002.
About 25 percent (148) of the voluntarily separated officers accepted other  federal law enforcement positions, excluding positions at TSA, and about  5 percent (32 officers) took nonlaw enforcement positions, excluding  positions at TSA. Furthermore, about 9 percent (51) of the voluntarily  separated officers took positions in state or local law enforcement or  separated to, among other things, continue their education. Officials were  unable to determine where the remaining 9 percent (52) of the voluntarily  separated officers went. Figure 1 shows a percentage breakdown of where  the 599 officers who voluntarily separated from the 13 police forces during  fiscal year 2002 went.
Although we did not survey individual officers to determine why they  separated from these police forces, officials from the 13 forces reported a  number of reasons that officers had separated, including to obtain better  pay and/or benefits at other police forces, less overtime, and greater  responsibility. Without surveying each of the 599 officers who voluntarily  separated from their police forces in fiscal year 2002, we could not draw  any definitive conclusions about the reasons they left.
Data we gathered from the 13 police forces since we issued our report  indicate that fiscal year 2003 turnover rates will drop significantly at 12 of  13 forces--even below historical levels at most of the forces—if patterns  for the first 9 months of fiscal year 2003 continue for the remaining  months. Prospective turnover rates at these 12 forces in fiscal year 2003  range from being 21 to 83 percent lower than fiscal year 2002 levels. In  addition, prospective fiscal year 2003 turnover rates at 8 of the 13 forces  are below historical levels.
The use of human capital flexibilities to address turnover varied among  the 13 police forces. For example, officials at 4 of the 13 police forces  reported that they were able to offer retention allowances, which may  assist the forces in retaining experienced officers, and 3 of these police  forces used this tool to retain officers in fiscal year 2002. The average  retention allowances paid to officers in fiscal year 2002 were about   $1,000 at the Pentagon Force Protection Agency, $3,500 at the Federal  Protective Service, and more than $4,200 at the NIH Police. The police  forces reported various reasons for not making greater use of available  human capital flexibilities in fiscal year 2002, including  lack of funding for human capital flexibilities,  lack of awareness among police force officials that the human capital  flexibilities were available, and  lack of specific requests for certain flexibilities such as time-off awards or  tuition reimbursement.
The limited use of human capital flexibilities by many of the 13 police  forces and the reasons provided for the limited use are consistent with our  governmentwide study of the use of such authorities. In December 2002,  we reported that federal agencies have not made greater use of such  flexibilities for reasons such as agencies’ weak strategic human capital  planning, inadequate funding for using these flexibilities given competing  priorities, and managers’ and supervisors’ lack of awareness and  knowledge of the flexibilities. We further stated that the insufficient or  ineffective use of flexibilities can significantly hinder the ability of  agencies to recruit, hire, retain, and manage their human capital.  Additionally, in May 2003, we reported that OPM can better assist agencies  in using human capital flexibilities by, among other things, maximizing its  efforts to make the flexibilities more widely known to agencies through  compiling, analyzing, and sharing information about when, where, and  how the broad range of flexibilities are being used, and should be used, to  help agencies meet their human capital management needs.
section_title: Entry-Level Pay and Benefits Varied among the Police Forces
paragraphs: Entry-level pay and retirement benefits varied widely across the 13 police  forces. Annual pay for entry-level police officers ranged from $28,801 to  $39,427, as of September 30, 2002. Officers at 4 of the 13 police forces  received federal law enforcement retirement benefits, while officers at the  remaining 9 police forces received standard federal employee retirement  benefits. According to officials, all 13 police forces performed many of the  same types of general duties, such as protecting people and property and  screening people and materials entering and/or exiting buildings under  their jurisdictions. The minimum qualification requirements and the  selection processes were generally similar among most of the 13 police  forces.
At $39,427 per year, the U.S. Capitol Police, Library of Congress Police,  and Supreme Court Police forces had the highest starting salaries for  entry-level officers, while entry-level officers at the NIH Police and Federal  Protective Service received the lowest starting salaries at $28,801 per year.  The salaries for officers at the remaining 8 police forces ranged from  $29,917 to $38,695. Entry-level officers at 5 of the 13 police forces received  an increase in pay, ranging from $788 to $1,702, upon successful  completion of basic training. Four of the 13 police forces received federal  law enforcement retirement benefits and received among the highest  starting salaries, ranging from $37,063 to $39,427. Figure 2 provides a  comparison of entry-level officer pay and retirement benefits at the 13  police forces.
Entry-level officers at 12 of the 13 police forces (all but the U.S. Postal  Service Police) received increases in their starting salaries between  October 1, 2002, and April 1, 2003. Entry-level officers at three of the four  police forces (FBI Police, Federal Protective Service, and NIH Police) with  the lowest entry-level salaries as of September 30, 2002, received raises of  $5,584, $4,583, and $4,252, respectively, during the period ranging from  October 1, 2002, through April 1, 2003. In addition, entry-level officers at  both the U.S. Capitol Police and Library of Congress Police—two of the  highest paid forces—also received salary increases of $3,739 during the  same time period. These pay raises received by entry-level officers from  October 1, 2002, through April 1, 2003, narrowed the entry-level pay gap  for some of the 13 forces. For example, as of September 30, 2002, entry- level officers at the FBI Police received a salary $8,168 less than an entry- level officer at the U.S. Capitol Police. However, as of April 1, 2003, the pay  gap between entry-level officers at the two forces had narrowed to $6,323.
Officers at the 13 police forces reportedly performed many of the same  types of duties, such as protecting people and property, patrolling the  grounds on foot, and conducting entrance and exit screenings. Police  force officials also reported that officers at all of the police forces had the  authority to make arrests. Although there are similarities in the general  duties, there were differences among the police forces with respect to the  extent to which they performed specialized functions.
section_title: DHS Organizational Transformation
paragraphs: We have observed in our recent Performance and Accountability Series  that there is no more important management reform than for agencies to  transform their cultures to respond to the transition that is taking place in  the role of government in the 21st century. Establishing the new DHS is  an enormous undertaking that will take time to achieve in an effective and  efficient manner. DHS must effectively combine 22 agencies with an  estimated 160,000 civilian employees specializing in various disciplines,  including law enforcement, border security, biological research, computer  security, and disaster mitigation, and also oversee a number of non- homeland security activities. To achieve success, the end result should not  simply be a collection of components in a new department, but the  transformation of the various programs and missions into a high  performing, focused organization.
Implementing large-scale change management initiatives, such as  establishing a DHS, is not a simple endeavor and will require the  concentrated efforts of both leadership and employees to accomplish new  organizational goals. We have testified previously that at the center of any  serious change management initiative are the people—people define the  organization’s culture, drive its performance, and embody its knowledge  base. Experience shows that failure to adequately address—and often  even consider—a wide variety of people and cultural issues is at the heart  of unsuccessful mergers and transformations. Recognizing the “people”  element in these initiatives and implementing strategies to help individuals  maximize their full potential in the new organization, while simultaneously  managing the risk of reduced productivity and effectiveness that often  occurs as a result of the changes, is the key to a successful merger and  transformation.
Chairwoman Davis, today you are releasing a report that we prepared at  your and Senator Voinovich’s request that identifies the key practices and  specific implementation steps with illustrative private and public sector  examples that agencies can take as they transform their cultures to be  more results-oriented, customer-focused, and collaborative in nature.
DHS could use these practices and steps to successfully transform its  culture and merge its various originating components into a unified  department. (See table 3.)
section_title: DHS Strategic Human Capital Management
paragraphs: As Secretary Ridge and his leadership team will recognize, strategic  human capital management is a critical management challenge for DHS. In  our report on homeland security issued last December, we recommended  that OPM, in conjunction with the Office of Management and Budget and  the agencies, should develop and oversee the implementation of a long- term human capital strategy that can support the capacity building across  government required to meet the objectives of the nation’s efforts to  strengthen homeland security. With respect to DHS, in particular, this  strategy should    establish an effective performance management system, which  incorporates the practices that reinforce a “line of sight” that shows how  unit and individual performance can contribute to overall organization  goals;   provide for the appropriate use of the human capital flexibilities granted to  DHS to effectively manage its workforce; and foster an environment that promotes employee involvement and  empowerment, as well as constructive and cooperative labor management  employee relations.
In response to these recommendations, the Director of OPM stated that  OPM has created a design process that is specifically intended to make  maximum use of the flexibilities that Congress has granted to DHS,  including the development of a performance management system linking  individual and organizational performance. Chairwoman Davis, at your  and Senator Voinovich’s request, we are reviewing the design process DHS  and OPM have put in place and we expect to issue our first report this  September.
DHS must also consider differences in pay, benefits, and performance  management systems of the employee groups that were brought into DHS.  Last March, the Secretary of Homeland Security highlighted examples of  such differences. For example, basic pay is higher for Secret Service  Uniformed Division officers than for General Schedule police officers. TSA  uses a pay banding system with higher pay ranges than the General  Schedule system. The Secretary also cited differences in benefits. The  Secret Service Uniformed Division officers and TSA Air Marshals are  covered under the law enforcement officer retirement benefit provisions,  while the Federal Protective Service police and law enforcement security  officers and various Customs Service employees, among others, are not.  Further, the Secretary stated that DHS and OPM employees will determine  if the differences in pay and benefits constitute unwarranted disparities  and if so, they will make specific recommendations on how these  differences might be eliminated in DHS’s human resources management  system proposal, which will be submitted later this year.
The performance management systems among DHS components also have  significant differences that need to be considered. The performance  management systems vary in fundamental ways. Of the 4 largest agencies  joining DHS, the Customs Service’s and TSA’s performance management  systems have 2-level performance rating systems. We have raised  concerns that such approaches may not provide enough meaningful  information and dispersion in ratings to recognize and reward top  performers, help everyone attain their maximum potential, and deal with  poor performers. The Coast Guard has a 3-level system and Immigration  and Naturalization Service has a 5-level system.
One of the key practices mentioned above to a successful merger and  transformation is to use the performance management system to define  the responsibility and assure accountability for change. An effective  performance management system can be a strategic tool to drive internal  change and achieve desired results. Effective performance management  systems are not merely used for once- or twice-yearly individual  expectation setting and rating processes, but are tools to help the  organization manage on a day-to-day basis. These systems are used to  achieve results, accelerate change, and facilitate two-way communication  throughout the year so that discussions about individual and  organizational performance are integrated and ongoing. The performance  management system must link organizational goals to individual  performance and create a line of sight between an individual’s activities  and organizational results.
Chairwoman Davis, at your and Senator Voinovich’s request, we identified  a set of key practices that federal agencies could use to create this line of  sight and develop effective performance management systems. These  practices helped public sector organizations both in the United States and  abroad create a line of sight between individual performance and  organizational success and, thus, transform their cultures to be more  results-oriented, customer-focused, and collaborative in nature. DHS has  the opportunity to develop a modern, effective, and credible performance  management system to manage and direct its transformation. DHS should  consider these key practices as it develops a performance management  system with the adequate safeguards, including reasonable transparency  and appropriate accountability mechanisms in place, to help create a clear  linkage between individual performance and organizational success.
We recently reported that TSA, one of the components that joined DHS,  has taken the first steps in creating such a linkage and establishing a  performance management system that aligns individual performance  expectations with organizational goals. TSA has implemented  standardized performance agreements for groups of employees, including  transportation security screeners, supervisory transportation security  screeners, supervisors, and executives. These performance agreements  include both organizational and individual goals and standards for  satisfactory performance that can help TSA show how individual  performance contributes to organizational goals. For example, each  executive performance agreement includes organizational goals, such as  to maintain the nation’s air security and ensure an emphasis on customer  satisfaction, as well as individual goals, such as to demonstrate through  actions, words, and leadership, a commitment to civil rights. To strengthen  its current executive performance agreement and foster the culture of a  high-performing organization, we recommended that TSA add  performance expectations that establish explicit targets directly linked to  organizational goals, foster the necessary collaboration within and across  organizational boundaries to achieve results, and demonstrate  commitment to lead and facilitate change. TSA agreed with this  recommendation.
Madam Chairwoman and Mr. Chairman, this completes my prepared  statement. I would be happy to respond to any questions you or other  members of the Subcommittee may have at this time.
For further information, please call me or Weldon McPhail at   (202) 512-8777. Other key contributors to this testimony were   Carole Cimitile, Katherine Davis, Geoffrey Hamilton, Janice Lichty,  Michael O’Donnell, Lisa Shames, Lou Smith, Maria Strudwick,   Mark Tremba, and Gregory H. Wilmoth.
section_title: Related GAO Products
subsections: section_title: Law Enforcement Personnel
paragraphs: Federal Uniformed Police: Selected Data on Pay, Recruitment, and  Retention at 13 Police Forces in the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Area  (GAO-03-658, June 13, 2003).
Review of Potential Merger of the Library of Congress Police and/or the  Government Printing Office Police with the U.S. Capitol Police   (GAO-02-792R, July 5, 2002).
Federal Retirement: Benefits for Members of Congress, Congressional  Staff, and Other Employees (GAO/GGD-95-78, May 15, 1995).
Capitol Police: Administrative Improvements and Possible Merger With  the Library of Congress Police (GAO/AFMD-91-28, Feb. 28, 1991).
Recruitment and Retention: Inadequate Federal Pay Cited as Primary  Problem by Agency Officials (GAO/GGD-90-117, Sept. 11, 1990).
Report of National Advisory Commission on Law Enforcement   (OCG-90-2, Apr. 25, 1990).
Federal Pay: U.S. Park Police Compensation Compared With That of  Other Police Units (GAO/GGD-89-92, Sept. 25, 1989).
Compensation And Staffing Levels Of the FAA Police At Washington  National And Washington Dulles International Airports   (GAO/GGD-85-24, May 17, 1985).
section_title: Human Capital and Organizational Transformation
paragraphs: Results-Cultures: Implementation Steps to Assist Mergers and  Organizational Transformations (GAO-03-669, July 2, 2003).
Human Capital: Opportunities to Improve Executive Agencies' Hiring  Processes (GAO-03-450, May 30, 2003).
Human Capital: OPM Can Better Assist Agencies in Using Personnel  Flexibilities (GAO-03-428, May 9, 2003).
Human Capital: Selected Agency Actions to Integrate Human Capital  Approaches to Attain Mission Results (GAO-03-446, Apr. 11, 2003).
Results-Oriented Cultures: Creating a Clear Linkage between Individual  Performance and Organizational Success (GAO-03-488, Mar. 14, 2003).
Human Capital: Effective Use of Flexibilities Can Assist Agencies in  Managing Their Workforces (GAO-03-2, Dec. 6, 2002).
Highlights of a GAO Forum: Mergers and Transformation: Lessons  Learned for a Department of Homeland security and Other Federal  Agencies (GAO-03-293SP, Nov. 14, 2002).
Highlights of a GAO Roundtable: The Chief Operating Officer Concept: A  Potential Strategy To Address Federal Governance Challenges   (GAO-03-192SP, Oct. 4, 2002).
Results-Oriented Cultures: Using Balanced Expectations to Manage  Senior Executive Performance (GAO-02-966, Sept. 27, 2002).
Results-Oriented Cultures: Insights for U.S. Agencies from Other  Countries’ Performance Management Initiatives (GAO-02-862, Aug. 2,  2002).
A Model of Strategic Human Capital Management (GAO-02-373SP, Mar.  15, 2002).
Human Capital: Practices That Empowered and Involved Employees  (GAO-01-1070, Sept. 14, 2001).
section_title: Major Management Challenges
paragraphs: FBI Reorganization: Progress Made in Efforts to Transform, but Major  Challenges Continue (GAO-03-759T, June 18, 2003).
Homeland Security: Information Sharing Responsibilities, Challenges,  and Key Management Issues (GAO-03-715T, May 8, 2003).
High-Risk Series: Strategic Human Capital Management (GAO-03-120,  Jan. 1, 2003).
Major Management Challenges and Program Risks: Department of  Justice (GAO-03-105, Jan. 2003).
Homeland Security: Management Challenges Facing Federal Leadership  (GAO-03-260, Dec. 20, 2002).
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