The penultimate leadership opportunity in the career federal service is the Senior Executive Service (SES). While we all know people who are in the SES that perhaps shouldn’t be, ideally, the SES represents the best of the best the government has to offer.
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Preparing Executive Core Qualifications (ECQ)
You’ve examined your qualifications and interest, and made the decision to apply for the Senior Executive Service (SES). It is time to start working on your ECQs. Don’t wait until you have a specific SES posting. There is absolutely no reason why you cannot work on your ECQs now.
Not Job Specific
ECQs are NOT job specific; instead, they are about your leadership. Getting your ECQs prepared ahead of time will allow you the necessary time to prepare your executive resume and any Technical Qualifications (TQ) associated with an individual posting. Once you have a strong set of ECQs, you can use them across multiple postings.
What goes into ECQs?
ECQs include specific evidence of your possession of the each of the 5 executive competencies (leading change, leading people, results driven, business acumen, and building coalitions). In addition to the 5 ECQs, there are also 28 sub-competencies embedded within the ECQs and an additional 6 cross-cutting competencies that should be clearly exhibited throughout your ECQ document.
What is CCAR and why does it matter?
CCAR (challenge, context, action, result) is the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) rubric that must be used for your ECQs. Using this rubric will help readers of your ECQs understand your stories. The CHALLENGE is the specific problem you faced, the CONTEXT tells the reader about the people involved, the organization, the larger climate, and other details that demonstrate the executive nature and complexity of the challenge. ACTIONS are the things that you personally did (or that you directed others to do) to address the challenge. And of course, RESULTS are proof that you solved the challenge. In a perfect world, results should be demonstrate using qualifiable metrics; it’s not enough to say “things improved…” you need to prove that they improved.
What are your ECQ stories?
Before starting to write, you should identify your ECQ stories. Your stories need to be executive (rather than transactional) and ideally show enterprise-wide impact. Examples should be from the past 10 years (5-7 years is better if possible). Your examples should have an ending so that you can demonstrate results. If your specific example has not yet fully concluded, provide a specific metric to demonstrate progress. And obtaining a degree or talking about your philosophy will not be considered executive. Focus on specific leadership achievements.
How can you identify your stories?
There are two ways to go about identifying your stories; the first way is to identify when you led change, led people, etc. The second way is to identify your most significant achievements from the past 10 years and then match them to a specific ECQ. Both ways work; you need to figure out what works bet for YOU. It is not unusual to have more stories than you need for Results Driven and not enough for another ECQ. If that is a situation you face, review the underlying competencies for the ECQs and see if you can tell your story in that frame. For example, if you have too many Results Driven stories and not enough Leading Change, look at the underlying competencies for leading change (vision, strategic thinking, innovation/creativity, external awareness, flexibility, and resilience) and see if you can think about how to tell one of the results driven stories through the leading change lens.
Other things to keep in mind:
Review OPM Guidance on preparing ECQs (see: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/senior-executive-service/reference-materials/guidetosesquals_2012.pdf.) Try to have at least one action for each underlying competency in every ECQ (and keep the underlying competencies in the right ECQ). Use as many numbers as possible throughout your ECQs—numbers of people, dollar value of budgets / projects / contracts, timeframes, etc.
These numbers provide context to your stories and the ultimate readers of your ECQs is the Qualifications Review Board (QRB) at OPM—they will not know your agency or your job. Focus on your leadership, not your technical acumen. Be prepared to spend the necessary time to put together a good package; in my view, this is 40-60 hours.
And if you’re struggling with your package, get help! No one does this alone.
Make the Interviewers Love You! Part 1 of 2
We all get nervous when it comes to interviewing. And if you are one of those who say that if you could just get the interview, you’ll ace it, you should be nervous! Interviews are not the time to wing it; preparation and planning is the key.
Interviews, whether in person, via videoconference, or on the phone, all require that you promote yourself, your qualifications, and your accomplishments. Here are 5 tips to make the interviewers love you:
Tip #1: Show your interest in the organization and the job. Be ready to articulate why the specific job and organization are a fit for you; know why you are applying (and saying you want a promotion is not the right answer!) and how this particular position leverages your skills, experience, and interests.
Tip #2: Research the organization, the position, interview panel members, and hiring manager. Google the organization; review their website, recent press, and strategic plan, as well as how the position fits into the organization’s strategy and mission. Check out your interview panel and hiring manager on LinkedIn so you can learn a little bit about their background and use that information to connect with them. This is not stalking—this is doing your research!
Tip #3: Be ready for “tell me about yourself,” and recognize that this is not a chance to share your biography. This is your opportunity to highlight your skills, experience, and accomplishments in a couple of pithy sentences. Of course, you want to tailor your response to the specific job you’re interviewing for. Practice your answer out loud and time it; aim for 45 – 60 seconds.
Tip #4: Have CCAR stories ready. You want to answer interview questions with specific examples / stories of your experience. The best framework to use for telling your stories is CCAR: context, challenge, action, result. Here’s an example:
Context: “I work as an IT specialist at a small local government agency. About a year after I started, the Director decided to update the agency’s website, my job was to test and launch the new website after it had been designed and developed.”
Challenge: “This was challenging because the website was 5 years old, used old technology, and no updates had been made since the original launch. In addition, I was given only 2 weeks for testing and launching—there was a lot of pressure.”
Action: “First, I created a comprehensive testing strategy and schedule for reviewing all of the new website’s content and graphics. I established daily check-ins with testers to ensure all timelines were met and all issues were identified and addressed. I also did a “soft launch,” to ensure that the new website worked in real time. To ensure user feedback during the soft launch, I added a pop-up short survey to encourage input from actual customers. Finally, I drafted a regular update schedule so that the new website would remain fresh in terms of content, as well as programming.”
Result: “As a result of these efforts, I launched a new website within the timeframe allotted to update it. Our agency receives a lot of positive feedback on the new website and it now serves as a model for other local government agencies’ websites. In addition, use of the updated website increased 20% within 6 months of updating.”
Tip #5: Use “I” when answering questions: While most of us grew up hearing that it is wrong to brag, there’s no “I” in team, etc., an interview is not the time to be self-effacing. Even though most of us operate as part of a larger team, most interviewers want to know about your personal contributions. You’ll need to temper your use of “I” so that you don’t off as a braggart and give credit to a group effort when due, but don’t forget that hiring managers are hiring YOU, and not your team.
Career Challenges, Opportunities Contribute to Employee Wellness
OPM’s Federal Workforce Priorities Report for 2018 identifies employee health as an area it wants agencies to focus on to boost productivity at the organizational level.
However, physical health is just one aspect of the broader concept of wellness that helps drive success for both individuals and their agencies. Equally important is mental exercise. Lifelong learning – career development and engagement, in other words – challenging your brain, is an important part of staying “healthy.”
A 2012 study from Aon Hewitt notes that career opportunities are key to employee engagement. And, with 70% of US workers unengaged, seeing career development as a part of wellness is a must.
How do you know if your brain is challenged? Do you see your work as personally rewarding? Are you satisfied with the work that you do—do you feel like you are making a difference / contribution? If so, great! If not, then perhaps you can start to think about developing your career (and your brain).
There are many ways to develop without formal training or coursework, such as cross-training or “shadowing” with a co-worker to learn a new procedure, process, or system; coaching or mentoring; and self-analysis of values and interests so that when a learning opportunity presents itself, you’ll know if it’s something you want to pursue. Additionally, if your work doesn’t provide the volume of learning experiences you crave, consider volunteer work as a great way to learn, network, and keep yourself challenged.
You may also want to talk to your supervisor about creating an Individual Development Plan (IDP). Just doing something can help you start to feel better and more engaged. There are no regulatory requirements mandating employees complete IDPs within the Federal Government, although many employee and leadership development programs require IDPs. Completing IDPs is considered good management practice, and many agencies have developed their own IDP planning process and forms.
While there is no one “correct” form for recording your development plan, an effective plan should include, at minimum, the following key elements:
- Profile – name, position title, office, grade/pay band
- Career goals – short-term and long-term goals with estimated and actual completion dates
- Development objectives – linked to work unit mission/goals/objectives and your development needs and objectives
- Training and development opportunities – activities you will pursue with estimated and actual completion dates. These activities may include formal classroom training, web-based training, rotational assignments, shadowing assignments, on-the-job training, self-study programs, and professional conferences/seminars
- Signatures – both you and your supervisor should sign and date
- A way to track your progress. Its not enough to just have a piece of paper (or electronic form). You should track your progress on meeting your goals.
While not a panacea for all ills, knowing where you are going and how you can get there will go a long way to meeting your personal wellness goals.
OPM Asking Agencies to Prioritize Continuous Professional Growth
In its 2018 Federal Workforce Priorities Report OPM has said it wants agencies to provide employees with ample opportunities for continuous professional growth and skill development. Regardless of the extent to which agencies make new opportunities available, it’s a worthy goal and one you should be take seriously.
Yes, assignments might take you outside your comfort zone (that’s a good thing), and yes, those assignments might be collateral to your existing duties. However, they can also be growth opportunities that will enhance your exposure to others in your organization as well as teach you new skills. And to maximize the effectiveness of those opportunities, research has shown that those experiences are most effective when:
- You had one-on-one meetings with your immediate manager to discuss how to apply the development in your specific role.
- You perceived that your manager endorsed and supported this specific opportunity.
- You expected to be recognized or in some other way rewarded for applying what you learned.
Perhaps that list will jog you imagination as to what to look for. Also, don’t forget that volunteer leadership or growth roles can provide the same benefits. Just because it’s not formal training, does not mean that it doesn’t “count” or can’t help you move forward in your career.
In fact, consider this quote from Michael M. Lombardo and Robert W. Eichinger and the Center for Creative Leadership’s The Career Architect Development Planner, a classic book on how to become an effective leader:
“Development generally begins with a realization of current or future need and the motivation to do something about it. This might come from feedback, a mistake, watching other people’s reactions, failing or not being up to a task – in other words, from experience. The odds are that development will be about 70% from on-the-job experiences – working on tasks and problems; about 20% from feedback and working around good and bad examples of the need; and 10% from courses and reading.”
In essence, what this is saying is that adult learners learn best by doing. This does not render formal training ineffective, however, we should not ignore the very real and positive effects of developmental assignments, details, task force assignments, and the like, on our learning.
Pro Tip: Don’t Copy Language from your Resume into LinkedIn
LinkedIn is great for networking and job search but there are certain features you want to be careful with or avoid all together. One of the ones you want to avoid is actually controlled by a setting within Microsoft Office 356, allowing language from your LinkedIn profile to be used in Microsoft Word’s Resume Assistant feature – that is, for other MS Office users to access language from your LinkedIn profile.
Resume Assistant is available to Microsoft 365 users who are Office Insiders, and allows you to see work experience examples and skills descriptions from public LinkedIn Profiles. This means that the hard work you have done to create your unique profile may show up in Resume Assistant and become parts of other jobseekers’ resumes. In other words, Resume Assistant provides content from LinkedIn users to help you develop your resume. You will not be able to identify the names of the people whose content you are seeing. Resume Assistant It will also show you potential jobs that meet your criteria.
While this might not bother you if you’re trying to create a resume, if you are job hunting and have spent time, effort, and perhaps money to develop your resume, you may not want other people stealing / using that content for free. And if the content is used often enough, your content might become boilerplate language for other resumes.
Bottom line: Be aware that LinkedIn now has a feature where your profile can be extracted into a Word document by other LinkedIn users.
Here is how to make sure this setting is turned off:
- Go to your “Settings” section.
- Click on “Privacy.”
- You will see the option for “Microsoft Word.” Click on that.
- Make sure the setting is then changed to “No.”
Further, you should never copy and paste your resume into your LinkedIn profile where that language could be copied. Let lots of people see your LinkedIn profile, but only give your resume to people you target.