Shipmates,
This last Wednesday (18 March) I took part in something that is becoming a tradition in the Department of Homeland Security and personal duty for me.
First some background:
About two years ago Under Secretary George Foresman and I met with Marta Perez, the Chief Human Capital Officer in DHS, and George Tanner, the Chief Learning Officer. We were trying to create a program to develop senior leaders in the Department. We knew there would be a change in leadership in the Department and a transition to a new administration. We believed we could create a group of leaders in the GS-13/14 and O-5/O-6 grades that could become a pool that the Department could draw on for special projects and transition teams.
We met with Pat McGinnis from the Council for Excellence in Government. The Council had an established Excellence in Government Fellows Program that had been a long standing program to produce leaders in government. We all agreed that with some version of this circulum could be adapted for use in a DHS Fellows program. From that meeting came the DHS Fellows Program.
http://www.excelgov.org/Programs/ProgramDetail.cfm?ItemNumber=9309
Recently, the Council for Excellence in Government merged with the Partnership for Public Service
http://www.ourpublicservice.org/OPS/
The Partnership has agreed to continue to support the DHS Fellows Program. The details of the program and application process are in the link below.
http://apps.ourpublicservice.org/ali/
From that link:
The DHS Fellows Program will allow participants to remain on the job during program. DHS Fellows dedicate 2-3 days every six weeks to the program as well as participate in a 60 day rotational assignment within DHS. This will allow DHS Fellows the on-going opportunity to practice new leadership approaches and skills. In addition, the team results projects will deliver value to the Department of Homeland Security throughout the year.
Back to the Tradition:
From the first convening, the Fellows have met to begin the program at Ground Zero in New York. At each convening I have addressed the Fellows. That is what I did on Wednesday.
As part of my talk I try to pass on (1) the history of how the Department was created; (2) the unique conditions that have challenged us in building the Department as an institution; (3) the external environment in which we operate; (4) the need for functional integration and operational coordination; and (5) for this group the challenges associated with the transition of administration and new leadership.
As usual, the group was inquisitive and eager to understand what they could do to build a better department. I told them what I have told every group ... the Homeland Security Act is the promise we must keep everyday in how we conduct operations. Further, it is our responsibility to build the Department as an institution. It is hard. We work in the unflinching glare of 7/24/365 media coverage and oversight. The threats we face are diverse and the spectrum of missions is broad. That said, the work is needed and the work is noble.
I would invite those who have participated in the Fellows Program to comment.
ADM A
