Historically, Almost Everyone in the Federal Government Has Met Expectations
About 90% of senior executives get a top two rating, so a new rule limits top ratings to 40%.
David Senra · a16z's First Employee on the History of a16z, Venture Capital & Fixing the Government | Scott KuporHistorically, almost everyone in the federal government has met expectations. Historically, 99.7% of workers rated a three or higher on a five point scale, leaving just 0.3% below expectations.
Scott Kupor, who runs the Office of Personnel Management, the government's hiring and personnel agency for about two million civilian workers, says that math is not possible in a workforce that large.
On that scale, a one means someone should probably not be there, a three means someone is doing what was asked, and a five means someone is knocking the cover off the ball. Every organization needs plenty of threes.
The squeeze is tightest at the top. Among roughly 7,000 senior executives, about 90% receive a four or a five, the ratings reserved for extraordinary or outstanding work.
Kupor says that makes it hard to keep strong performers, who watch colleagues dial it in without consequences. When almost everyone is rated at the top, he says, a thousand dollar bonus has no incentive or retentive value.
Under a new rule, no more than 40% of a group can get the top rating, and at least 60% of the bonus pool must go to those top rated workers.
Questions people ask
How are federal employees rated?
Most employees are rated from one to five at year end. A one signals serious failure, a three means meeting expectations, and fours and fives are meant for extraordinary or outstanding work.
What exactly changes under the new rule?
The new policy says no more than 40% of employees in a group can receive the top rating. At least 60% of the available bonus money must then go to that top group, concentrating rewards among fewer people.