People
Letter: DNA authentication is best
A member of the intelligence community advocates relying on DNA scans — stored in a stand-alone system — because other authentication methods are vulnerable to tampering.
People
New tech improves communication for employees with loss of hearing
The Library of Congress has begun a new video relay service to improve how deaf and hard-of-hearing employees can communicate with each other and with hearing employees.
People
Letter: Charbo’s job was never easy
A reader says lawmakers should be ‘in the trenches’ rather than criticizing Scott Charbo’s efforts as DHS’ chief information officer.
People
Letter: NSPS misinterpreted
Some organizations in Europe have jumped on the NSPS bandwagon, only to change their minds later, one reader reports.
People
DHS' Church moving back to industry
Charles Church, director and CIO for the National Protection and Programs Directorate, will join ACS as vice president of homeland security and defense.
People
Letter: Our leaders must get serious about national security
A reader says Congress should penalize DHS for delaying a project to secure the country’s border with Mexico.
People
Letter: Walker will be missed
A reader praises the comptroller general for listening to employees and upholding sound fiscal management practices.
People
DHS responds to congressional criticism of Charbo promotion
Secretary Michael Chertoff details the former CIO's successes and leadership skills.
People
Bush administration calls for health IT to control costs
As part of a bill designed to cut costs, the administration could require doctors and hospitals to use electronic health records in treating Medicare patients.
People
Letter: OPM should say what it means
OPM says it takes five years for a pay-for-performance system to be successful because that’s how long it takes for knowledgeable employees to retire or give up fighting for a fair system, according to one reader.
People
FedSource has problems with DOD task orders, IG says
The Treasury Department’s acquisition service made mistakes when it helped the Defense Department make purchases in fiscal 2006, according to a report from DOD’s inspector general.
People
DHS abandons efforts to implement new labor relations rules
In a court filing, the Homeland Security Department said it would not revise labor relations provisions relating to its new personnel system before its statutory authority to implement the system ends.
People
Letter: Walker's human-capital changes unsuccessful
Hopefully in his new job he will not continue to promote himself as a 'human capital expert' after the mess he made at GAO, leading to the first union in the agency's history.
People
Letter: Revolving background specialist announcements questioned
Agencies have announced, recruited and interviewed background specialists only to have the administration cancel the announcement and reopen.
People
Letter: Pay for performance is a 'zero-sum game'
Without more funds, the new system is a zero-sum game. If one person gets more someone else gets less! Just another beauty contest.
People
Letter: Collaboration suffers when performance pay objectives not well-established
The lack of a financial or profit motive in government makes pay for performance problematic because employees are not competing against another organization, so it tends to foster more internal competition.
People
Letter: Performance pay diminishes freedom, protection
Pay for performance eliminates protection from negative personnel actions by managers who can harass and fire employees who don't cooperate when asked to overlook policy violations. This is one of the most basic reasons government employees are needed.
People