Experience

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.

Thinking About Changing Careers?

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Changing careers is a major undertaking; it takes time and effort. You’ll need to assess yourself and your skills and think about how your existing skills might transition to a new career. You’ll also need to spend time researching your new career; this includes traditional research to learn about your new field, as well as networking with people who are already in it. You may also need to go back to school to learn new skills. And finally, you need to recognize that you may not be able to shift to a new career and retain your current salary (especially if you’ve been working in your industry for a long time).

If you’re still game, here are some questions to ask yourself:

  • Do you want to pursue a new job, or a new career?
  • Why do you want to make a change?
  • What do you LIKE about your current job/career?
  • What do you DO NOT LIKE about your current job/career?
  • What do you want your next job to do for you that your current job doesn’t. In other words, what will be different about your next job.
  • What is your dream job. What are the kinds of things you’d be doing each day if you were working in your dream job?
  • What are you most proud of in your past work experience? How does that translate into a new career?
  • How much do you need to make in your next job/career (each year)? How much do you want to make in your next job/career?
  • What tools do you need to move forward? More training / education? Updated resume? Updated LinkedIn profile?
  • Who can you work with to support you during your job search? Champions? People who might have ideas about your desired new role?
  • What 10 organizations would you like to work for, whether or not they have current openings?

These questions, of course, are just a start. Be prepared for the transition to take time and expect setbacks along the way. Don’t let fear of the unknown stop you; yes, you CAN change careers as long as you’re willing to be realistic, put the in the hard work, and get started. Assessing yourself and where you want to go is the first step. Good luck!

Validating Your Experience—Third Party Endorsements

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We have talked about the importance of documenting your experience on your resume and through your cover letter. In addition to documenting your experience through achievements and metrics, another way to demonstrate your expertise and effectiveness is through third party endorsements. There are several ways to approach this:

  • Consider featuring a quotation from a recent performance evaluation or award recommendation on your resume. On a USAJOBS resume, you could call it a Supervisory Endorsement and put it in the Additional Information Section of USAJOBS. Be sure to identify where the quote came from (e.g., Recent Performance Evaluation) and identify the source, either by name or title. Here’s an example:

“Branch Chief Smith is keenly versed on all laws, regulations and policies relevant to the program. He is working diligently to transform the operational paradigm from solely security to a frontline/investigative methodology…and to retool training…He is an expert on the science that distinguishes DHS’s program from all others, particularly in the area of guarding against cross contamination.” 2016 Performance Review.

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