The United States Career Executive Service : its operation and role in policy

Abstract

The career Senior Executive Service (SES) in the U.S. government is constructed and operates to ensure that 1) the development and selection of executives is based upon merit, 2) executives display integrity and provide leadership and continuity in the administration of federal laws and programs, and 3) executives carry out the policies of the President and his Administration, but not become so closely identified with a particular Administration that they are viewed as partisan.

With creation of the SES, the government (political management) gained greater flexibility to assign executives where they would be most effective in accomplishing agencies' missions and where the best use could be made of their talents. Executives gained the potential for greater rewards, but the government gained greater ability to hold executives accountable since the law provided no effective appeal rights for performance-based actions. Therefore, the executives accepted greater risk in exchange for the possibility of greater rewards.

The reality has differed from the promise of the SES. One year after executives entered the new service in 1979, the Senior Executives Association was founded by career executives in response to both pay compression and the system's first broken promise (the limitation by Congress of the number of bonuses which could be paid). Since then, some problems have been addressed with varying degrees of success, but other problems remain, and few believe that the SES has fully met its original promise.

Remaining problems include: agencies' reliance on rank in position, rather than rank in person; an increased number of political appointees which has reduced opportunities for career executives and/or distanced them from the top; difficulty in changing positions within an agency or in moving to another agency; limitations placed on the rewards promised by the Act; and severe pay compression within the ranks. Finally, both Congress and the Administration have often failed to recognize the substantial differences between other federal employees and the SES, a failure which has inevitably worked to the disadvantage of Senior Executives.

Current issues affecting the corps include substantial downsizing, a proliferation of distinct agency executive systems and provisions which are fragmenting this government-wide corps, efforts to gain greater accountability through performance management requirements, career executives' relations with political appointees, the types of executives included in the SES, mobility between positions and agencies, and the coming crisis in executive retirements.

Nonetheless, the career corps functions extremely well, is comprised of very able, talented and experienced executives who are devoted to public service and whose achievements are substantial; and has served every Administration with distinction since its creation, but has remained free of the taint of partisanship.

In theory, political appointees develop policy and career executives implement policy. In practice, however, career executives contribute to the development of policy in a variety of ways, including through the annual budget process, legislation, and agency development of the detailed policies and procedures required to implement federal laws and programs.

Precisely to what degree career executives are involved in policy issues depends on the particular responsibilities of the executive's position, the executive's relationship with the political appointee to whom he or she reports, and the agency or department in which the executive is employed.

There is a broad spectrum of career executive involvement in policy matters, however, their greatest influence derives from their abilities, experience and knowledge, as well as their commitment to public service.