FedUpward Podcast Love Rutledge

Public administration guru Dr. Don Kettl joined me on the podcast to talk about what feds can expect over the next month - will the gov shut down? Will feds get repaid if it does? Explore these questions and more.
Don recently authored a book, one of many he's written about public management and operaitons. You can find it here.
Don specializes in public management and public policy. He previously served as dean in the School of Public Policy at the University of Maryland, and is a nonresident senior fellow at the Volcker Alliance, the Brookings Institution and the Partnership for Public Service. It was an honor to have him back on the show.

Looking for a degree program that fits YOUR needs? UMGC might be just what you're looking for. Justin Hasty, director for UMGC's federal strategic partnerships, and Daniel Mintz (daniel.mintz@umgc.edu), Department Chair for information technology, joined me on the show to discuss how an online degree program can help build your skills in areas needed across the federal government.
https://www.umgc.edu/learn-more/gen/degree/bachelors-degrees-online.html?marketcode=WB307001&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw44mlBhAQEiwAqP3eVqp4Kj9QX0zlkipgg9wofvk07SwV_Z5BoqrIiHeJAEgEOmICPTbnRhoCgeIQAvD_BwE

Nominated by President Obama and confirmed by the US Senate in February 2010 as Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, Doug Wilson was the first openly-gay individual to be Senate-confirmed to a senior-level Pentagon position. Prior to retiring from government in March of 2012, he served as Senior Spokesman for the Department of Defense and the Principal Communications Advisor to the United States Secretary of Defense and Deputy Secretary of Defense.
Doug brought us a master class in motivation and belonging in this episode. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did! He touched on how to stay excited about service, working on politically sensitive issues, belonging, combatting negative perspections of public servants, and so much more.
Learn more about Doug's charity here:
https://www.vetscommunityconnections.org/
 

The President of Federally Employed Women (FEW), Pam Richards, explained what FEW does, why you should join and what's coming up in this year's National Training Program in Columbus, Ohio, July 9-13. You can register for the event and become a member here.
FEW is a private, non-profit organization founded in 1968 shortly after government issued Executive Order 11375 which added sex-discrimination to the list of prohibited discrimination within the Federal Government. Although E.O. 11375 was an important milestone, several women were concerned that the Civil Service Commission and individual agencies may not put forth the vigorous effort necessary to ensure compliance with E.O. 11375. Although the Federal Women’s Program (FWP) had been established, the early organizers of FEW realized that the government could dismantle FWP, and they wanted to ensure that there would always be an organization dedicated to promoting equality for women and addressing concerns of women in the Federal workforce. Additionally, because FWP is a government function, it is limited in its political scope, and cannot lobby Congress. As a private organization, FEW is not restricted in that area.
As a private organization, FEW works as an advocacy group to improve the status of women employed by the Federal government. This includes contact with Congress to encourage progressive legislation. FEW national officers meet with management officials at all levels of agencies to demonstrate support of the FWP, encourage officials to support the program and to obtain insight on the effectiveness of the FWP at agency and local levels

Mika Cross, former federal employee, federal work and future of work expert, joined me in this episode to talk about the latest news in the Biden Administration on telework guidance, how to expertly request telework flexibilities, and how to search for jobs that offer flexibility. 
She also discussed a new tool she's built to help your organization survey how things are going. You can contact her directly through the links below to test it!
https://www.mikacross.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/worklifechampionoftheuniverse/
OPM's April 2023 guidance on returning to work:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/M-23-15.pdf
 

I welcomed Jason Briefel back to the show for a frank talk about pay compression for federal employees. He's one of the few people you'll hear speaking publicly on behalf of feds about this issue. Think about it - how do we attract talent to federal service if pay in high cost areas doesn't come close to keeping pace with private industry,;political appointees often have HUGE responsibility. but make less than their subordinates; getting promoted to senior executive service means tons more hours and work but no more pay ...????? None of this makes sense, y'all.  Jason discusses the problems pay compression causes and how you can advocate inside and outside your organization to spark action on this.
Get educated here:
Start with the actual pay tables --
https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/
Then move to discussions of why have people cap out early on pay ain't great:
https://www.govexec.com/pay-benefits/2023/03/pay-caps-fed-exec-lobby-group-reform-past-due/384254/
https://federalnewsnetwork.com/pay/2023/03/biden-plans-federal-pay-compression-fix-streamlined-hiring-in-fy-24-budget/
https://www.fedsmith.com/2023/01/04/pay-compression-pay-caps-impacting-federal-employees-frozen-at-183500/
https://www.federaltimes.com/management/pay-benefits/2022/11/03/white-house-urged-to-fix-pay-compression-at-federal-agencies/
https://fedmanager.com/news/fma-applauds-nortons-leadership-on-salary-compression
https://thehill.com/changing-america/respect/poverty/3858204-lawmakers-push-for-higher-pay-for-federal-employees/
This isn't new...
https://www.gao.gov/assets/fpcd-80-72.pdf
https://www.congress.gov/congressional-report/108th-congress/house-report/586/1