United States
•onmental Protection
Agency
Human Resources Management
July 1989
Guidance
for the Selection of
High-Quality
Managers
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Activity to promote recovery and reuse
of paper and paper products is a matter of
national priority. The Office of Human
Resources Management, in an effort to
support this priority, has opted to use
recycled paper in printing this handbook.
Therefore, when you dispose of this publi-
cation, please keep in mind that it is on
recycled paper and should be disposed of
properly.
Your cooperation in assisting the
Agency in this important initiative is
appreciated.
Kenneth F. Dawsey
Director
Office of
Human Resources Management
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To all EPA Supervisors,
Managers and
Executives
I
am pleased to provide the enclosed guidance to
assist you in selecting the most qualified applicants
for managerial positions in EPA.
EPA's comprehensive approach to management
development recognizes that an outstanding
management corps results from the selection of
people with the right skills, followed up by
appropriate training and development and
reinforced by the criteria used to evaluate and
recognize performance.
This guidance addresses the first step in the
process: selection of the most qualified candidates
for management positions. More than ever, EPA
needs leaders with a balance of management skills,
technical competence and a broad base of
experience to meet the complex environmental
challenges ahead. These challenges range from
dealing with pollutants with cross-media impacts,
to negotiating with multiple levels of government,
to managing teams of highly skilled, diverse
professionals.
As you face the difficult decisions inherent in
filling management postitons in the future, I
encourage each of you to use this guidance in
conjunction with your human resources officer to
carefully analyze the mix of skills and personal
qualities required for the job.
It is an investment of time and energy that will
pay large dividends for you and EPA in future
years
Kenneth F Dawsey
Director
Office of
Human Resources Management
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Contents
1 Purpose
2 What Is A Manager?
4 Management Excellence Criteria
6 Selection Procedure
10 Appendix A Management Excellence Criteria Definitions
12 Appendix B Model Interview Questions
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Purpose
Background
Objective
Guidance
for the Selection of
High-Quality Managers
This guidance establishes specific selection criteria
that should be utilized when filling supervisory,
managerial and executive positions in EPA, and
outlines methods for incorporating the criteria into
Merit Promotion Announcements. This guidance is
part of EPA's continuing effort to foster
management excellence throughout the
organization.
EPA has a comprehensive management
development program which focuses on the three
systems that directly impact the quality of the
Agency's supervisors, managers and executives:
• Recruitment and Selection
• Training and Development
• Appraisals and Awards
This program, called Framework for Achieving
Managerial Excellence (FAME), is based
upon extensive studies of thousands of succesful
supervisors, managers and executives in the federal
government and many hours of hard work by a
cross-section of EPA employees concerned about
management excellence. These efforts have led to
the identification of a set of consistent criteria most
important for success at each management level.
These criteria, hereafter referred to as
"Management Excellence Criteria", reflect the
Agency's position that a balance of technical and
management skills is necessary for effective
management at EPA. This mix of skills incorporates
"what" functions a manager performs, "how" they
are effectively accomplished, and the background
and experience needed to have a broad perspective.
Our objective is to institutionalize a more consistent
approach to identifying and selecting supervisors,
managers and executives with the skills needed to
manage a complex, technical, decentralized federal
agency.
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What is a Manager?
A manager is someone who gets work done
through others, which is very different from-
doing the work oneself as a technical analyst.
Managing people involves a set of skills distinct
from those required to do the programmatic work
of the organization. An effective manager must
perform competently in major functional areas such
as supervision, representation and monitoring;
must use certain characteristics to perform these
functions effectively such as communication,
interpersonal awareness and results focus; and
finally must have varied experiences to have a
broad perspective and strategic view.
As general guidance, there are three levels of
management identifiable in EPA:
Supervisor—generally first line - team, unit, section
or equivalent level organizations. A supervisor
needs technical competence to review the work of
the group; and communication skills for motivating,
coaching, counseling and keeping work
relationships running smoothly.
Mid-Level Manager—someone who directs
subordinate supervisors - usually branch chief or
deputy division director level. In addition to the
skUls of a supervisor a manager must demonstrate
leadership and flexibility in planning and
coordinating the work products of several
organizations.
Executive—division directors and above - an
executive at EPA must have a broad perspective of
various environmental and management issues, be
able to represent his or her organization inside and
outside the Agency, and show the ability to balance
a variety of legislative and technical concerns in
making policy and programmatic decisions.
NOTE: The generic term "manager" is used when
referring to supervisors, mid-level managers and
executives as a group.
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Distinctions
between
Management
Levels
The concept of different levels of management with
distinct functions and skills is the basis for the
Managment Excellence Criteria presented below. It
is important to note, however, that these
distinctions between the three management levels
should not be used in a rigid fashion. They are
based on a study of thousands of federal managers
across government, and therefore must be applied
to the requirements of each specific management
position in EPA.
For example, although in general the
representation function (i.e., presenting, explaining,
selling the work unit's activities to management in
the agency, and/or persons outside the agency) is
more important at the executive level than the
supervisory level, a particular supervisory job in EPA
may have representation as a critical function.
The distinctions are useful as general guidance,
but they do not preclude the need to carefully
analyze the particlular functions and skills required
for each management position.
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The "What
and "How"
Management
Excellence Criteria
There are twelve criteria which reflect the "what" or
functional responsibilities of management positions,
and nine criteria describing "how" managers are
effective in performing these roles.
As a guide, the list below represents each of the
criteria, and identifies those which have been found
to be most important at each level, i.e., (S) for
supervisors, (M) for mid-level managers, and (E) for
executives.
"What" Managers Do"
"How" Managers Are Effective
Human Resources (E,M,S) Communication
Management
Supervision (E,M,S)
Work Unit Guidance (E,M,S)
Work Unit (E,M,S)
Monitoring
Coordination (E,M)
Work Unit Planning (E,M)
Budgeting (E,M)
Contracts/Resources (E,M)
Administration
Program Evaluation (E,M)
External Awareness (E)
Interpretation (E)
Representation (E)
Interpersonal
Awareness
Leadership
Flexibility
Action Orientation
Results Focus
Broad Perspective
Strategic View
Organizational
Sensitivity
(E,M,S)
(E,M,S)
(E,M)
(E,M)
(E,M)
(E,M)
(E)
(E)
(E)
Appendix A provides definitions of each of these criteria
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Broad-Based
Background
In addition to the functions and skills which
describe "what" managers do and "how" they are
effective, a broad-based background is of particular
importance in a complex, decentralized agency with
multiple cross-cutting issues like EPA. The
following are examples of the types of experiences
which provide such a background:
1. Headquarters and field experience.
2. Policy and operations experience.
3. Staff and line experience.
4. Experience in more than one environmental
program.
5. Experience in more than one administrative field
(budget, finance, human resources).
6. Experience in more than one organization
(Federal, state and local government, executive,
legislative and judicial branch, private sector,
academia).
7. Participation in agencywide task forces or
committees.
8. Education, training, or experience with
professional associations.
9. Teaching courses in the EPA Institute.
The importance of a broad base of experience will
vary for each particular job. As a general rule, it
becomes increasingly important at each higher level
of management. However even first-line
supervisors are likely to be involved in issues that
cut across media, headquarters and regions, etc.
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Technical At EPA' technical competence is critical to
achieving the agency's mission. There are two
aspects to technical competence. First, there is the
specialized expertise required for certain positions,
such as engineering, law, accounting, and contract
administration. The second aspect of technical
competence is specific programmatic knowledge
needed to be effective, such as knowledge of
RCRA, drinking water standards, or clean air
standards.
Applicants for positions which have specific
technical requirements are not considered unless
they meet these standards, as established by the
Office of Personnel Management and EPA for each
position.
This guidance recognizes that effective management
requires a set of skills in addition to the technical
expertise required for a managerial position. For
example, a technically brilliant chemist will not be
an effective manager if he/she is poor at
communicating to staff or planning the work of the
division.
Likewise, it is recognized that an individual with
outstanding communication and planning skills will
not be an effective manager if he/she does not
understand the technical issues at hand.
There is no magic formula for determining the
appropriate balance of technical and management
skills for a job, although as a general rule technical
expertise tends to be relatively more important at
the supervisory level than at the mid-level manager
and executive level; The most important message in
this guidance is that close attention must be paid to
both types of skills when identifying the
requirements for a managerial position and
assessing the capabilities of applicants against these
standards.
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Selection Procedure
Use of Management The specification of quality ranking factors
Excellence Criteria in (commonly referred to as Knowledges, Skills and
Quality Ranking Factors Abilities - KSAs) for a vacant position is one of the
an*J Dn*.n.-. Dltn» ' •
and Rating Plans
keys to incorporating the Management Excellence
Criteria in the Agency's hiring process for
supervisors, managers and executives. Quality
ranking factors are determined by a subject matter
expert, designated by the selecting official, in
consultation with the servicing human resources
office.
Quality ranking factors are used to differentiate
between those applicants who have met the
minimum technical requirements for the job. For
example, consider a division director job in an EPA
research laboratory. The job announcement first
lists the qualification requirements, which are the
minimum official technical standards set by OPM
(e.g. biology degree), and any minimum
requirements set by EPA (e.g. knowledge of
research methods).
The next section on the job announcement lists
the factors to be used in selecting the best applicant
from those meeting the minimum technical
requirements. This is the point at which this
guidance recommends incorporation of appropriate
Management Excellence Criteria, such as:
1. Supervision
2. Communication
3. Work Unit Monitoring
These criteria would then be developed into
quality ranking factors by developing a rating plan
for each criteria which assigns points based on the
expertise demonstrated in an applicant's SF-171. In
addition, each quality ranking factor is assigned a
weight, reflecting the relative importance of each
factor to the job.
Flexibility in Use of
Management
Excellence Criteria
Although there is no set of mandatory or prescribed
ranking factors for any supervisory or managerial
position at EPA, this guidance reflects the
Agency's expectation that the human resources
specialists and the selecting official work together to
ensure an appropriate balance of technical and
management skills needed to do the job.
As a guideline, the following model should be
used to ensure the desired balance:
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"Rateable"
Management
Excellence Criteria
"Non-Rateable"
Management
Excellence Criteria
Use of at least two of the rateable Management
Excellence Criteria as quality ranking factors. .
Although there is a total of twenty-one
management excellence criteria listed on page 4, not
all of them are easily "rateable" or lend themselves
to being quantified in a rating plan. The thirteen
rateable criteria are designated in Appendix A.
For example, the rateable criteria that are
typically most important at the supervisory level are
human resources management, supervision,
communication, and work unit guidance and
monitoring. At least two of these (or others on the
list that may be appropriate for a particular job)
should be selected and developed into quality
ranking factors.
Use of model interview questions in assessing best
qualified candidates' abilities related to the
non-rateable criteria
As noted above, eight of the excellence criteria do
not easily lend themselves to rating plans (e.g.
interpersonal sensitivity, flexibility, strategic view),
and will not often be used in the initial ranking of
applicants. If a selecting official chooses to
interview applicants, however, information about
their abilities with regard to these qualitative criteria
can be elicited.
Appendix B provides model interview questions
designed by the FAME Subcommittee on
Recruitment and Selection which should be used
when interviewing candidates.
NOTE: According to the Merit Promotion Plan, the
selecting official has the option of interviewing the Best
Qualified candidates. However, if he/she chooses to
interview one Best Qualified candidate, then all must be
interviewed.
Because of the importance of these qualitative criteria to
effective management, selecting officials are strongly
encouraged to use the interview option.
These questions should also be used as a guide
when discussing applicants with previous
employers, colleagues and references.
These model questions are written so that they can
easily be used to structure discussions with an
applicant's previous employers, colleagues and
references. These discussions are an invaluable source of
information on applicants and should be weighed heavily.
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Broad-Based
Background Criteria
A quality ranking factor should be used that
addresses the variety of an applicant's background
and experience
Because of the importance of this criterion at EPA,
it should be represented in the quality ranking
factors. The rating plan should demonstrate a broad
base of experience by satisfaction of any one or a
combination of the examples provided on page 5-
Balance of Technical
and Non-Technical
Ranking Factors
Use of a rating plan that assigns at least 25% of
the total VALUE of all ranking factors to
non-technical management excellence criteria.
While recognizing the importance of technical
competence at EPA, and the need for flexibility in
determining the relative balance between technical
and management skills for each management
position, it is expected that at least 25% of the total
weight of the quality ranking factors be assigned to the
management factors.
This 25% "floor" means that higher relative weight
should be assigned to the management factors if
the subject matter expert in the servicing human
resources office judges that it is appropriate. The
floor approach is intended to reinforce the
importance of the management factors regardless of
the position, while avoiding a debate over the
relative importance of technical and management
skills at each level of management.
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Use of
Other Criteria
as Quality Ranking
Factors
While this model should be followed, additional
factors may be used, as appropriate.
Adherence to the above model will result in the use
of at least three of the Management Excellence-
Criteria in every announcement for a management
position in EPA (two factors from the rateable
criteria, and one from the Broad-Based Background
criteria). This guidance does not preclude adding
additional ranking factors that may be important for
a particular job.
Supplemental
Statement
For each vacancy announcement filled under this
guidance, a supplemental statement addressing
each of the quality ranking factors should be
required. This requirement will reinforce the need
for applicants for EPA management positions to
provide evidence of their competence regarding the
Management Excellence Criteria, and will assist
selecting officials in their assessments.
Additional
Assistance
Contact your servicing Human Resources Office for
more information and assistance in the use of this
guidance.
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APPENDIX A
Management Excellence Criteria Definitions
E = Executive
M = Mid-Level Manager
S = Supervisor
Rateable Criteria
(E,M,S) Human Resources (E,M)
Management: Projecting the
number and types of staff
needed by the work unit,
and using various personnel
management system /£ Mv
components (e g '
recruitment, selection,
promotion, performance
appraisal, EEO, Affirmative
Action) in managing the
work unit.
(E,M,S) Supervision: Providing (E,M)
day-to-day guidance and
oversight of subordinates
(e.g. work assignments,
coaching, counseling, etc.),
and actively working to (E,M)
promote and recognize
performance
(E,M,S) Communication: Speaking,
writing, listening.
(E,M,S) Work Unit Guidance:
Converting plans to actions
by setting short-term
objectives and priorities, (E,M)
scheduling/sequencing
activities, and establishing
effectiveness and efficiency
standards/guidelines
(E,M,S) Work Unit Monitoring:
Keeping up-to-date on the
overall status of activities in
the work unit, identifying
problem areas, and taking
corrective actions (e g. (E)
rescheduling, reallocating
resources, etc)
Coordination: Performing
liaison functions and
integrating work unit
activities with the activities
of other organizations.
Work Unit Planning:
Developing and deciding
upon longer-term goals,
objectives, and priorities,
and developing and
deciding among alternative
courses of action.
Budgeting: Preparing,
justifying, and/or
administering the work
umf s budget
Contracts/Resources
Administration: Assuring
the availability of adequate
supplies and equipment,
ADP hardware/software,
facilities, overseeing
procurement/contracting
activities, and/or overseeing
logistical operations
Program Evaluation:
Critically assessing the
degree to which
program/project goals are
achieved and the overall
effectiveness/efficiency of
work unit operations, to
identify means for
improving work unit
performance.
External Awareness:
Identifying and keeping
up-to-date with key agency
policies and priorities and/or
external issues and trends
(e.g. economic, political,
social, technological) likely
to affect the work unit.
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Non-Rateable Criteria
(E) Interpretation: Keeping
subordinates informed about
key agency and work unit
policies, priorities, issues
and trends and how these
are to be incorporated in
work unit activities and
products.
(E) Representation: Presenting,
explaining, selling and
defending the work unifs
activities to the supervisor in
the agency, and/or persons
and groups outside the
agency.
(£,M,S) Interpersonal Awareness:
Self-knowledge and
awareness of effect on
others; sensitivity to needs,
strengths, and weaknesses
of others, negotiation,
conflict resolution;
persuasion, selling.
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APPENDIX B
Model Interview Questions for
Non-Rateable Management Excellence Criteria
These interview questions should be
used in the interview process and
when discussing applicants with
previous employers and references to
gain insight into the qualitative or
personal characteristics important for
effective management in EPA.
Broad Perspective
(Broad, long-term mew; balancing short
and long-term considerations)
1. What do you consider to be the
day-to-day tasks associated with your
present job?
2. What are the longer range
considerations? How have you
planned to accomplish them? Which
did you consider most important?
3. What do you do to balance these
competing considerations?
Strategic View
(Collectinglassessmglanalyzmg
information; diagnosis, problem-solving;
anticipation, judgement)
I. Describe a technical problem in
which you had to use your analytical
skills.
2. Describe a special project/task
assignment that you feel required
you to make a major decision. How
did you go about arriving at your
decision?
3 Describe a major obstacle which
you have had to overcome in any of
your past jobs. How did you deal
with it?
4. Describe a situation when you had
to make a decision or take action on
an issue in which no policy existed
5. In a crisis/emergency situation that
you might have experienced, how
did you go about identifying the
causes? What steps did you take in
solving it?
6. How far ahead do you anticipate
future events? Do your long-range
plans allow for unscheduled events
and are they realistic?
Organizational Sensitivity
(Sensitivity to and awareness of agency
needs and its environment, awareness of
importance of non-technical factors, such
as organizational dynamics.)
1. How do you keep yourself
informed about what is going on in
your organization a level above you?
A level below you?
2. What do you consider to be your
best sources of information about
what is going on in the Agency?
Leadership
(Individual, group; willingness to lead
and manage.)
1. Descnbe your leadership style.
2. Describe what you consider to be a
good leader. What changes'do you
feel you would need to be a good
leader?
3. What is your philosophy for
delegating responsibility to others?
Give an example of when you have
delegated responsibility while you
were in a leadership role.
4. What would you say are your
strengths in leading others? What are
your weaknesses?
5. Descnbe an example of a
leadership role you have held that
you actively sought.
Flexibility
(Openness to new information; behavioral
flexibility; tolerance for
stress/ambiguity/change; innovativeness.)
1. How does waiting for an
important decision from higher
management affect you? How would
you cope with it'
2. Would you consider your style as
a manager to be formal or informal?
Describe a situation where you had
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to use the opposite management
style. How did you feel about it?
3. Describe a work situation that
required you to work with people
you found difficult to work with.
How did you deal with the
conflict/confrontation?
4. Give an example of your
innovativeness in which you
successfully resolved a work related
problem.
5. Describe a stressful situation you
have encountered in your job. How
did you cope with it?
6. How do you deal with constant
change (program, budget, office
environment)?
7. Describe a situation in which your
carefully laid plans did not
materialize as expected. What
strategy did you use to reformulate
your plans?
Action Orientation
(Independence, proactivity; calculated
risk-taking, accepting responsibility,
decisiveness.)
I. What kinds of decisions do you
make on your own?
2. What sorts of recommendations do
you make to your supervisor?
3. Tell me about a difficult problem
that you had to solve independently.
How did you put together a plan to
solve it? What sort of recommen-
dations did you propose?
Were they accepted? If not, why?
How did you keep management
informed?
Results Focus
(Concerned with goal achievement;
follow-through, tenacity)
1. What process do you use to set
goals? Do you have a specific process
that you would use to achieve your
goals?
2. How did you get other people
(subordinate staff and management)
to buy into goals you have set?
3. Describe an example of a goal you
achieved and how it related to the
mission of your organization.
4. Tell me about a goal you failed to
meet. What happened? How did you
feel?
Interpersonal Awareness
(Self-knowledge and awareness of impact
on others; sensitivity to
needs/strengths/weaknesses of others;
negotiation, conflict resolution;
persuasion, selling.)
1. Describe a situation in which a
subordinate did some work which
you endorsed, but which was
ultimately not accepted. How did
you communicate to the employee
what had happened?
2. Did you ever have to sell an
unpopular position (or decision) to
your staff? What did you do to
prepare yourself to discuss it? What
did you feel would be the concerns
of your staff? Did you anticipate
accurately?
3. How would your colleagues
describe your sensitivity to their
needs?
4. How do you deal with assigning
work to an employee whose
weaknesses would likely impair the
quality of the product?
5. How do you view the role of staff
meetings? How do you conduct a
staff meeting?
6. Have you ever had to tell an
applicant that he or she was not
selected for a job? Someone on your
staff? How did you do it? What did
you say?
7. Describe examples of employees or
colleagues seeking your guidance on
career decisions or major problems
facing them at work.
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