Objective 1.2: Promote Good Government
The Justice Department employs more than 115,000 people and has a budget of more than $30 billion. Operating an organization this large requires the management resources and infrastructure of a Fortune 100 company. Over the past twenty years, however, as the Department has grown and its mission has become more complex, the resources allocated toward management and administration have dramatically shrunk. The result is a set of existing management structures that do not fully promote analytic rigor, efficiency, or innovation. To ensure efficient operations, promote internal controls and oversight, prioritize data-driven decisionmaking, and recruit and retain top-notch talent, the Department will take a strategic and innovative approach to updating its management structure, training, and collaboration; to modernizing its technology; and to promoting diversity and ensuring equal employment opportunity.
The Department’s workforce is its key asset for achieving its mission. Ensuring that every employee can use their full talents and focus to solve pressing problems requires an inclusive workplace. The Department can also better serve our diverse country when its workforce includes a variety of backgrounds and perspectives. To these ends, we are working to assess and improve diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) at all levels of our human capital operations, from recruitment and retention to training, evaluation, and promotion.
Strategy 1: Achieve Department Management Excellence Through Innovation
The Department will encourage management excellence through innovation by assessing and strengthening its internal management and administrative structures. The Department will focus on leadership development and on improving how information is shared both with internal and external audiences. The Department will optimize its management structure to ensure focused attention on administrative operations. This includes conducting a full assessment of Department security, risk management, oversight and compliance, and strategic planning structures.
To grow and sustain an organizational culture that values innovation and collaboration, the Department will promote leadership development that reflects its values. Because good management does not happen by chance, we will revise training resources and implement a range of tools and capabilities to prepare new managers to lead, while also providing growth opportunities for existing managers and executives. The Department will improve internal information sharing to make it easier for employees to leverage organizational information and the knowledge and talent of their colleagues.
Finally, the Department will emphasize user-centered design practices and plain language to ensure that its public-facing technology tools provide clear, concise, and usable information to the public.
Strategy 2: Foster a High-Performing Workforce that Represents the Public We Serve
The Department will update internal guidance, best practices, and policies related to outreach, recruitment, and hiring, and use data to help ensure diversity and equity at each step of the recruitment, application, and hiring processes. We will conduct a similar review of human capital management practices, including evaluation processes, professional development opportunities, and promotion criteria, to eliminate visible and hidden barriers for employees of all backgrounds. We must also ensure equal pay for equal work within positions and across similarly situated components and identify workplace flexibilities that will allow us to recruit and retain the best employees.
Beyond policies, we must continue to foster a workplace culture that values diversity. To this end, we will develop a robust curriculum with modules for new employees and will incorporate and expand the Diversity & Inclusion Dialogue Program. To create a safe environment for all employees, the Department will begin by establishing parameters, guidelines, and best practices for components when addressing sexual and other harassment allegations. We will also work to end stigma associated with seeking treatment for mental health issues and improve employee support by advertising available resources and publicly addressing employee fears regarding security clearances, fitness for duty, and professional licensing that can pose barriers to treatment. And we will expand wellness programs and serve as a leader in suicide prevention across the law enforcement community.
Strategy 3: Implement Department-wide Data and Technology Modernization
To ensure efficient stewardship of federal resources, the Department will carry out a Department-wide data and technology modernization. We will identify technology solutions to address current infrastructure capability gaps. Through innovation and partnerships, the Department will lead the law enforcement community to embody a culture that uses data-driven and risk-informed decisionmaking. We will promote intelligence sharing and collaboration across the law enforcement community and the supporting infrastructure systems. Finally, by anticipating future challenges, the Department will proactively deliver investigative capabilities by identifying technology advancements and creating strategic industry partnerships.
Key Performance Indicators:
- Percent increase in the Department’s average score on selected Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) questions related to how well managers cultivate innovation, creativity, and collaboration
- Percent of people involved in hiring who have completed implicit bias and interview skills training within the last three years
- Disparities in employee attrition rates
- Percent of Department websites reflecting U.S. Web Design System requirements and meeting best practices for plain language and user-centered design
- Percent of common data sets accessible amongst Department components
Contributing DOJ Components: All components