ECQ

What Do You Mean My ECQs Need Work?

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It is not unusual for me to get a call from recently selected Senior Executive Service (SES) candidates asking for help with their Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs). They have been told by their selecting agency that their ECQs need work before submission to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).

Hand selecting a file among many files. Some files in background have red Xs on them.

When I read their ECQs, candidates are often surprised to hear that their ECQs need a complete overhaul before submission. How, they want to know, could they have been selected if their ECQs need as much work as I say?

Here are my thoughts:

  • If you applied internally, your agency likely already knows you.
  • The agency focused more on your Technical Qualifications (also known as Mandatory Technical Qualifications or Professional Technical Qualifications) than on your ECQs.
  • Your ECQ stories are more agency- or technically-focused and “inside baseball” so they were relatable to agency readers who were not really thinking about OPM requirements.
  • Agency reviewers were not focused on OPM requirements.

It is important to remember that your audience for your ECQs is not people who know you are or likely to be wowed by your technical brilliance. Instead, OPM reviewers, known as a Qualifications Review Board (QRB), are looking for specific examples of your leadership experience as expressed through your 10 ECQ stories. Those stories need to meet specific criteria and be told in a certain way.

As you work on your ECQs, be sure to review OPM guidance for ECQ writing. Make sure that your ECQs are written using the Challenge-Context, Actions-Results (CCAR) framework, reflect the key competencies from each ECQ, include stories from the past 10 years, and clearly demonstrate your executive (not managerial) experience.

Getting selected for an SES position is great—congratulations! Understand, however, that getting selected does not guarantee that your ECQs will pass a QRB. Make sure that you put your best ECQs forward so that you are certified by a QRB the first time.

For more information check out our SES Playlist on YouTube or learn more about our SES & ECQs services.

Writing Your ECQs—Quick Tips

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You’ve made the decision that it is time to prepare your Executive Corps Qualifications (ECQs). Where do you start?

  • Identify your achievements and match them to specific ECQs. Before deciding what story to use in which ECQ, read the ECQ definitions and put the story in the ECQ where it fits the best. All achievements must be from the past 10 years and can only be used once. Focus on YOUR accomplishments, not those of your agency or organization. You should have 10 separate achievements and achievements should be from your executive level (this is generally GS-14 and up for current federal employees; O-6 and above for military members, and comparable experience for private sector applicants).
  • Review the definition of CCAR (challenge-context-action-result) to make sure you understand it. Your ECQs must be prepared using the CCAR framework.
  • Outline your stories. ECQ reviewers are looking for challenges above and beyond your daily work; try to have at least one action for each of the ECQ’s underlying competencies; and keep in mind that all results must show that you solved the challenge.
  • Use as many metrics as you can. Throughout your narratives, be sure to include numbers of people, dollar figures, customers served, etc. And, quantitative results are always more compelling than non-quantitative ones. If you do use a qualitative result, you may want to use a quote from an award recommendation or performance evaluation. It’s not enough to just note that things are better; you need to prove it.
  • Utilize “I” throughout your narratives. Although you may have worked with a team or supervised others during the achievement, your ECQs need to focus on your personal contributions.
  • Remember your audience. While your agency may “want” you for a SES position, they can’t have you unless you are certified by a Qualifications Review Board (QRB). The QRB members who will review your ECQs if you are selected by your agency will not include anyone from your agency. That means your ECQ narratives must be understandable to those who do not know your work or your acronyms.
  • Put in the required time. Putting together a strong ECQ package takes time. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) estimates that you should spend 40+ hours preparing the first draft of your ECQs—and another 6 months to get it right.

Ready to get started? There’s no time like the present!

Are Your ECQs QRB-Ready?

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Before you may be officially appointed to the Senior Executive Service (SES), your Executive Core Qualifications (ECQ) must be approved by an Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualifications Review Board (QRB). What do you have to do to ensure that your ECQs are ready? Follow these tips for a winning package:

  • Follow all formatting rules: 1-inch margins, 12-point font, and 10-page narrative limit. Number pages and don’t forget to include your name. There is no reason to include the competency definition.
  • Spell out your acronyms. Each time. Each ECQ should be readable as a standalone document.
  • Adhere to the CCAR model. Your ECQs should be written using the Challenge, Context, Actions, Results rubric. The focus should be on your executive actions and results.
  • No more than 2 stories per ECQ. Do not repeat stories. And make sure that your stories showcase your leadership achievements, not your technical acumen.
  • Use “I” throughout. Minimize the use of “we,” passive language, and third person.
  • Adhere to the time limits. All stories must be from the past 10 years; if possible, try to use stories from the past 5 years.
  • Do not name names. ECQs should name reference specific people.
  • Keep your personal philosophy, favorite leaders, and information about your “journey” to yourself.
  • Include all underlying competencies in your stories. For example, leading change should evidence vision, strategic thinking, innovation, flexibility, resiliency, and strategic thinking.
  • Be sure to align your stories to the ECQ definitions. And make sure that your examples demonstrate executive leadership, not managerial skills.
  • Remember that readers of your ECQs will not be from your agency. Be sure to make your ECQ stories understandable to people who do not know your agency or work.
  • Proofread, proofread, and proofread again.

Writing a strong set of ECQs takes time. Be prepared to spend 40-80 hours writing yours. And be sure to follow the rules! More information on ECQ writing can be found at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/senior-executive-service/reference-materials/guidetosesquals_2012.pdf.

Can You Write Executive Core Qualifications (ECQ) by Tomorrow?

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Nearly every day I get a call from someone seeking help to prepare a set of Executive Core Qualifications (ECQ) as part of their Senior Executive Service (SES) package. Unfortunately, many people want their ECQs written in 3 days—sometimes less!

When I begin to ask them questions about whether they have a draft, are familiar with CCAR, or have thought about their stories, the answer is often no. To prepare a strong set of ECQs, you should expect to spend a significant amount of time: 1) identifying your examples, 2) writing, and 3) reviewing and editing.

  • Identifying ECQ examples: Before sitting down to write your ECQs, you should identify 10 or more examples / stories to use. Your stories must fit the competencies (Leading Change, Leading People, Results Driven, Business Acumen, and Building Coalitions); be from the past 10 years (5 is better if possible); and be at the executive level. Hosting meetings, arranging for training, implementing someone else’s plan is not typically considered executive. Your examples should demonstrate your strategic thinking and ideally, have enterprise-wide impact.

As you identify your examples, you may find that you have stories that could fit in more than one ECQ. Try to pick the strongest match to the ECQ and that ECQs underlying competencies (for example, the underlying competencies for leading change are: vision, strategic thinking, external awareness, innovation/creativity, flexibility, and resilience).

  • Writing: Once you have your stories identified, you should outline your stories using the required CCAR model. CCAR is the acronym for Challenge-Context-Action-Result. It may even help to write out the parts of the CCAR model and then outline each part of the CCAR with the details. What does CCAR mean and how to use it?

Challenge. Describe a specific problem or goal.

Context. Describe the individuals and groups you worked with, and/or the environment in which you worked, to address a particular challenge (e.g., clients, co-workers, members of Congress, shrinking budget, low morale).

Action. Discuss the specific actions you took to address a challenge.

Result. Give specific examples of measures/outcomes that had some impact on the organization. These accomplishments demonstrate the quality and effectiveness of your leadership skills.

Once you have your outline, then you can start writing. Be sure to focus on your leadership skills and not your technical expertise (save that for the Technical Qualifications) and don’t forget to include the underlying competencies in your essay. Include as many metrics as possible throughout and make sure you can prove your results; it’s not enough to say things are better—you need to show that they are by using a clear before and after metric. You may want to think about including one action for each underlying competency.

  • Reviewing / Editing: Don’t forget to leave time for this. Your ECQ draft should be 10 pages (2 pages for each ECQ). Have someone who does not understand your work review your ECQs (remember, that ECQ reviewers at the Office of Personnel Management level will not be from your agency or likely familiar with your work). Do a “word search” to make sure you have covered all 28 underlying competencies—and put them in the right ECQ. Check spelling and grammar—don’t rely on spell check. And make sure that you have used “I” rather than “we;” the hiring manager and reviewers want to know what you did.

How long does all of this take? SES applicants should expect to spend 40 to 60 hours (or even more!) of solid work to put together a strong set of ECQs. So no, I am sorry, but I cannot get your ECQ written by tomorrow…or even 3 days.

Are You Ready to be a Government Leader?

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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.

Read more

Using the Challenge-Context-Action-Result (CCAR) Model

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If you are SES aspirational—or even if you’re not, the Challenge-Context-Action-Result (CCAR) Model should be your friend. Not only is CCAR required for the writing of Executive Core Qualifications (ECQ), it is also useful for interviewing.

Using CCAR allows you to tell your story in an interesting and compelling way. How does CCAR work? When writing your ECQ stories (or responding to interview questions), consider the following:

Challenge.

Describe a specific problem or goal. The more significant the challenges faced and overcome, the more significant the results will appear.

Context.

Talk about the individuals and groups you worked with and/or the environment in which you worked to tackle a particular challenge (e.g., clients, co-workers, members of Congress, shrinking budget, low morale). This is the background information needed to understand why your accomplishment was significant.

Action.

Discuss the specific actions you took to address a challenge. Focus on actions that showcase your ability to solve problems in the organization to which you are applying. Be sure to include multiple actions. Some people find it easier to actually list their actions (1, 2, 3, etc.; you can smooth it out when you edit). 

Result.

Give specific examples of the results of your actions. These accomplishments demonstrate the quality and effectiveness of your leadership skills. Results can be quantitative (with metrics) and/or qualitative. And of course, they need to demonstrate that you solved the problem.

Here’s what a potential CCAR outline might look like:

Achievement: Ensure 24/7 security requirements were met while complying with mandated furloughs during 2013 Sequestration.

Challenge:

  • Midway through the fiscal year, it became evident that Congress would not provide relief from the Budget Control Act of 2011, and the agency would be forced to comply with guidance requiring furloughs.
  • Available staffing did not permit the simultaneous full furlough and minimum security requirements to provide proper building security.
  • I was required to reduce labor hours by 22% over 7 weeks.

Context:

  • The Budget Control Act of 2011 required significant budget cuts to the agency for fiscal year 2013.
  • Department guidance leading into 2013 directed the agency to plan as if the cuts would not be implemented.
  • I was required to ensure 24/7/365 security for vital assets throughout the Department while still taking my “share” of cuts.

Actions:

  • I created a 5-person team to develop a solution to meet the security requirements and reduce expenditures toward reduction targets. I aimed to find other reductions to try to avoid furloughs.
  • I created a quantitative framework of prioritized staffing to meet security requirements and associated costs. I had my team develop alternatives with risk assessments versus cost. These scenarios demonstrated that the required 7 furlough days presented an unacceptable risk to the agency and its tenants.
  • My business case and risk assessment showed that a 3-day furlough could be sustained within acceptable risk parameters.
  • Simultaneously, I sped the deployment of an automated scheduling tool 4 months ahead of schedule to replace the decades-old, paper-based process so that staffing could be assessed in near real-time. I developed technological solutions that complied with departmental guidance for deploying new software, trained administrative officers, and provided technical support for all shifts of FTEs and contractors.

Results:

  • My 3-day furlough proposal persuaded agency leadership, who adopted it in place of the previous mandates. Politically, this caused less strife than justifying a complete furlough exemption.
  • The prioritized framework I created based on risk assessment has served as the baseline minimum security standard since it was deployed. All staffing changes since then have been assessed within this framework.
  • The lessons learned from the limited deployment of the automated scheduler significantly improved its full deployment later that year with operational lessons learned. The system is still in use by the agency and is being deployed to a wider set of users. Agency leadership views it as the most significant tool for managing staffing hours (which is the single largest agency expense) in the agency’s history.

Once you have an outline, you can “fill in the blanks” and craft your story.