THE AGENCY S RECRUITMENT SYSTEM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP84B00890R000400040026-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 105
• Document Creation Date: December 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 23, 2003
• Sequence Number: 26
• Publication Date: May 1, 1980
• Content Type: REPORT

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OFFICE OF
THE INSPECTOR GENERAL
Inspection Report
THE AGENCY'S RECRUITMENT SYSTEM
PrUf:171C7
May 1980
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KIDENTIAL
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
. Purpose and Scope
The purpose of this inspection has been to determine
whether the Agency's recruitment and selection system is
effective in obtaining on a timely basis the quality and
number of new employees needed to meet its needs.
Beginning in April 1979, a seven-member team from the
Office of the Inspector General, supplemented by two
nationally-renowned experts in psychological testing, has
examined the entire range of the Agency's recruitment
system--personnel planning and requirements; search for
applicants; processing and selection of new employees.
Primary attention -has been given to the recruitment of new
professional and technical employees, with special chapters
devoted to the crucial problem of clerical recruitment,
to the recently-expanded Career Training Program, and to
4
psychological testing.
Several hundred Agency employees have been interviewed
as part of this inspection--component heads, supervisors,
processing personnel, and new employees in a wide variety of
functional categories. Two comprehensive employee surveys?a.-
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were undertaken, one of 1300 employees entering on duty in
the 22 months between October 1977 and August 1979, the
other of their immediate supervisors. Over 900 of the new
employees, and more than 500 of the supervisors, responded.
Their responses produced the Agency's first quantified look
at the recruitment experiences and attitudes of new employ?
ees, and provided line management assessments of the new
employees and the recruitment system.
The inspection team consulted with representatives of
twelve major academic institutions throughout the United
States to obtain their evaluations of, and suggestions for,
. _
Agency recruitment. Senior executives of several carefully
chosen business corporations have cooperated by giving us
their -concepts for organizational recruiting as well as
detailed descriptions of their recruiting activities.
Finally, we have ascertained from several other federal
...agencies,.amOnT-them the Department of State and .Federal
-
Bureaw---of-Inv_estigation,-a picture of their recruiting.
efforts and the results attained.
II. The Agency's Recruitment System
This inspection report begins with a basic descrigtitih
of the Agency's recruitment system. Very few Agency personnel
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working within the system or endeavoring to evaluate it for
different reasons appear to have the detailed, comprehensive
understanding of the effort which is essential for determin-
ing its strengths and weaknesses. Complicated and diffused,
it was established in the 1950's as a combination of de-
centralized personnel planning among the Agency's operating
components, centralized recruiting by the then Office of
Personnel (OP), and decentralized selection by the com-
ponents -from OP-supplied applicants. This fundamental
concept obtains today although, as certain components have
come to experience difficulty in acquiring the types and/or
numbers of new employees they need, the recruitment effort,
too, has become decentralized in a number of instances.
Chapter II_of this report is a detailed account of the
many elements of the entire cycle of planning, recruiting,
-selecting and processing new Agency employees. It serves as
the focus for the_analysis, conclusions and recommendations
in the subsequent chapters of the report. The most salient
characteristics of -the Agency's recruitment system are an
annual projection of recruitment requirements for profes-
sional, technical and clerical personnel; high medical,
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security and professional standards requiring lengthy
processing times; a nationwide, full-time staff of ,19
recruiters giving primary attention to the university
population; and use of recruitment strategies designed to
induce the individual, rather than the Agency, to initiate
personal contact.
In. The Recruitment Climate
When the present recruitment system was first estab-
lished in the 1950's, the Agency was an expanding but
relatively little known organization with large, mostly
generalist, personnel requirements. With a marked boost
from the new field recruitment structure, the Agency attrac-
ted large numbers of quality applicants willing to persevere
in the face of lengthy processing times and little knowledge
of the jobs for which they were being considered. Their
strong disposition to accept the Agency on faith was but-
tressed by attractive salaries and benefits which generally
were commensurate with, and in many instances better than,
those available elsewhere.
Today the Agency is smaller, its personnel needs fewer
and in many cases, more specialized. We have achieved
cons4derable visibility and within the American society
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there appears wide-acceptance of the need for a U.S. intelli-
gence (espionage) arm. Interest in Agency employment and
applicant flow are high, but today's quality applicants are
different. They seek reassurances about the Agency because
of recent notorieties, want more knowledge about their
prospective work, weigh more job options, are less patient
with processing times. The Agency also is losing much of its
competitive edge in salary and benefits.
ABecause the existing recruitment system is able to
satisfy the bulk of our needs for new personnel, there are
those Agency officials who contend that the system is sound
because "it
works." But it works with what we find to be
? unnecessary sluggishness. Moreover, personnel shortages have
developed in several key areas, notably scientific, tech-
nical and clerical categories. Minority recruitment has not
produced significant results. The Agency also is on the
-threshold of a new recruitment climate characterized by
rising _salary pressures and need for quicker responses and
improved articulation of job opportunities if we are to gain
the services of high caliber personnel.
? Agency salaries presently appear competitive for
entry-level personnel except for some scientific, technical
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and clerical categories, and for minority candidates. Our
data indicate that for the better-than-average electronics
engineer, computer scientist and stenographer we are at
least 10% below going rates. Because Government pay scales
do not adjust as quickly or fully to inflationary pressures
as those of private industry, we believe the Agency shortly
will be facing significant salary disadvantages unless there.
is liberalized use of appointment grades and salaries.
also note a trend by private industry to hire the bachelor-
applicant over the higher-priced graduate-level
_While concern for salary differentials is legitimate,
ith
question. We believe that more stress needs to be given to
-nonmonetary advantages to Agency employment--job challenge,
employment location, importance of the Agency's mission.
. ,
AlanyjFiralLafficiaIs also appear to be oblivious to candi-
'date apprehensions, -not always expressed, about possible .
,Aglast wrongdoinqt job tenure and employee morale. Such
? officials are generally insulated from labor market dynamics,
and are not familiar with professional recruiting concepts
and techniques. We believe that the Agency should develop a
training program for personnel engaged in the recruitment"
selsction cycle.
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IV. Personnel Requirements
There is little ion
.ad II
in the
Agency. That which is performed, by the Human Resources
Analysis Staff of the Office of Personnel Policy, Planning
and Management (OPPPM), has been largely ignored by compo-
nents when making personnel decisions which have significant
impact on recruitment and staffing. Failure to take into
account, for example, the longer-term effect of recent
decisions, first to curtail, then to expand, the intake of
Career Trainees and clericals for the Directorate of Opera-
tions, has
had 'a major impact on recruitment. It also
caused uneven distributions among the Directorates's junior
and middle grade operations officers. OPPPM asserts that it
is enhancing its. long-range personnel planning capabilities
and is seeking to gain the cooperation of the Directorates
in this effort.
Even with regard to short-term personnel requirements,
there is lack of anticipation and planning. Forty percent
of the-500 line managers who responded to our survey during
this inspection indicate-that the recruitment effort begins
in their units only when impending vacancies become known.
Given the present recruitment system, it will probably_tae
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between six and nine months to produce a replacement, but
departing employees rarely provide that much advance notice.
Particularly damaging has been the lack of advance
personnel planning to deal with the now critical shortage of
scientific and technical linguists to translate documentary
intelligence of vital importance to our national security.
? The loss of foreign language speaking skills among Agency
personnel also continues at an alarming rate, approximately
20% in five major languages--Russian, German, Spanish,
French and Italian--in the last five years. The losses are
even greater in some other languages; nor has the Agency
added significantly to its inventory of speaking skills in
any key foreign language during this period. Among the 63
newly-hired Career Trainees in the July/August 1979 Class,
only 12 have a tested foreign language speaking proficiency
at minimum professional level, or better; in the February
1980 class, 11 of 67. We see the revitalized Language
Incentive Awards- Programs as a partial solution at best.
There is clear need-for long-term planning which identifies
the need for foreign language, and other, sll.stx_igger,
an intensive recruitment and, uite possibly, an internal.
training program to overcome the shortages.
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Two documents, supposed to be compiled annually,
constitute basic guidance for current recruitment efforts.
The Advance Staffing Plan (ASP) projects the number of new
employees needed, by components, in each of the nearly 200
functional job categories within the Agency. Recruitment
Guides (RGs) endeavor to describe the jobs for which new
employees are sought, identify the qualifications needed by
applicants for them, and indicate appointment grades and
administrative considerations which apply.
Neither documentary mechanism is particularly effective.
The ASP is overblown--"guess work" in the eyes of one OPPPM
official. The ASP for FY 1979- listed
filled. According-to OPPPM,
ositions to be
new employees were hired
during the year. Despite the seeming shortfall; the Agency
was only 31 under its employee ceiling at the end of the
. :
year._ The disparity between personnel requirement and
recruitment statistics .is traceable mostly to inflated ASP
figures. OPPPM is revising the guidelines for the ASP,
which is developed by operating components, to make it more
realistic and to link it with the three-year projection
cycle which is part of the annual budget exercise.
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The RGs, also prepared by components, relate only to
professional and technical positions. Some are written by
staff officers, others by line managers. Many are vague or
give such sparse information as to be of little help to
recruiters already handicapped by lack of direct knowledge
and experience of the jobs for which they are recruiting.
The RGs, in our judgment, should be prepared by the
line managers who do the hiring. Our survey of immediate
supervisors of the recently-hired reveals that 70% of them
are involved in the hiring process but a surprising 60% are
not even-aware that RGs exist. Many who are assert that RGs
relating to positions under their supervision are both
inaccurate and outdated.
_ - Although RGs are supposed to be revalidated annually,
many are not and recruiters often question their current .
applicability. Recruiters also often believe that RGs
call for unrealistically high applisnlAINLgdifications.
Given the large number of RGs (about 180) and the vagueness
of many, it is understandable that most recruiters concen-
trate their time and efforts on those which call for the
largest number of generalist candidates--editors, photo
interpreters, Career Trainees, etc. Recruiters ordinari-317
do not recommend applicants for specificRGs (positions),
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for components. We think applicant recommendations need to
be more specific, and that recruiters need both better
guidance and feedback from components about the appropriate-
ness of candidates they recommend.
The Agency began to recruit minorities aggressively
only in 1975 and in 1978 adopted the "20/5/2" Equal Employ-
ment Opportunity Plan- for women, blacks and Hispanics in our
professional ranks._ At the end of FY 1979, the Agency's
professional complement was 18.2% female (up 2.2% from
1975) 3.8% black (+1.4%) and 1.6% Hispanic (+0.9%).
plan has not been incorporated into
component personnel planning and hiring mechanisms.
. Applicant Search
Over 83% of the 500 first-line supervisors surveyed as
part of this inspection indicate that the quality of their
new employees is utav or above when compared with prede-
cessors. At the same time, 17% indicate their units are
having serious problems getting both the quality and quantity
of new employees needed. Based on these results and on
extensive interviews throughout the Agency, we conclude that
present applicant search mechanisms are producing quality
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applicants for most vacancies, but 112L2112231111_nme
hard-to-get cate.gories--electronics engineers and techni-
cians, computer systems programmers, photo scientists and
clerical employees. Some components which are experiencing
a shortfall in S&T recruits, and a few with requirements for
specialized or advance-level personnel, have resorted to
their own recruiting.
, Despite extensive recruiter contacts with university
placement officials and the Agency's use of mass media
advertising and its own recruitment literature, over 50%
of recent hires state-that their interest in Agency employ-
ment was first prompted by the personal suggestion of
employee (other than a recruiter), friend, colleague,
professor or relative. (OPPPM regards this figure as
ris_)%ofrofgFewe,ssjat2al and technical
credited advertising and fewer than 20% cited Agency
notices or literature in placement offices. Further under-
scoring the importance of personal, and especially employee
referral, 57% of the newly-hired indicate they have already
recommended Agency employment to others and 91% would do so.
The importance of a Headquarters area recruiting effort is
manifest in the fact that almost 56% of new professional
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employees assert that they dealt with the Agency's Wash-
? ington Area Recruitment Office, and only 21% with field
recruitment offices.
Advertising in mass media and university campus dailies,
and in professional journals, has long been a useful recruit-
ment tool. In mid-1979, as part of the intensified search
? for Career Trainees, a more lively advertising campaign was
undertaken by OPPPM in consultation with a New York advertis-
ing firm. The campaign evoked a great deal ?of press
and TV attention for the Agency, and more than 13,000
individual responses have been received. Recruiters assert,
however, that few viable candidates emerged from early
versions of the'-ad owing to the omission of certain basic
information. Not mentioned were the requirement of U.S.
citizenship, salary range, need to relocate to Washington,
D.C., that appointments were at the entry level, and that
resumes should be submitted. As a result, OPPPM Head-
quarters and field components until only recently were tied
up in answering an immense volume of inappropriate corres-
pondence. Some university placement officials also expres-
sed concern to inspectors that these ads "renewed the
specter of international adventurism" by the Agency.
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With a few exceptions, anti-CIA feeling on university
campuses is reduced to the point where it is no longer an
obstacle to Agency recruitment. College placement officials
contend that today's graduates make employment decisions
largely in terms of job challenge, location and starting
salary. They further contend that the Agency's role in
foreign affairs and its job opportunities are not well-known
in academic circles and suggest several steps to overcome
this ignorance. One problem encountered in the relationship
between Agency recruiters and university placement officials
the latter's desire for feedback on the disposition of
?
student cases referred/for employment. OPPPM Headquarters
officials do not regard this as a serious problem, but we
found instances in which Agency field recruiters had pro-
vided both oral and written feedback to placement officials
as one means of maintaining close relations. Because of the
need to balance public relations with cover considerations,
we suggest that the Agency develop and communicate to
placement officials a position on this question.
Field recruiters, already hard pressed to maintain
demanding schedules, generally avoid giving speeches and
briefings? They claim these have little immediate or direst
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er
recruitment payoff. We agree and believe that recruiters
generally should not be used in this capacity, but still see
need for public relations work by other Agency officials as
part of the effort in applicant search. We also believe
there is need for a major re_v_ampi.ng_o!'_g7y_recruitment
literature which is almost uniformly regarded by placement
officials with whom we consulted as dull and uninformative.
There has been considerable success in recruiting
nonminority women for the DO and NFAC. The former recently
encouraged the hiring of female operations officers and
in the last three Career Trainee classes there have been a
total of 46 women destined for the DO. The DS&T, however,
is having serious difficulty finding female engineers and
technicians of
Minority
wham there are painfully few in our society.
recruitment is hampered by impressions that
the Agency is a domestic police organization as well as a
nonequal opportunity employer. There is keen competition
within the society for minority professionals, and lucrative
salary offers by business corporations are a formidable
challenge-. Some Agency elements are making serious efforts
in minority recruitment, nonetheless. OPPPM is assigning
four new minority recruiters to its 13-member field recruit-
ment staff. This is in addition to three black recruiters
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already assigned to the Headquarters area. Agency EEO
officials have developed contacts with minority universities
and colleges and in mid-1979 organized a Headquarters
conference for placement officials at minority academic
institutions in southern and southwestern U.S. Some Agency
components are making particular effort to recruit minority
professionals but find the task very difficult.
We are not persuaded that reliance on the Agency's EEO
? structure and on an expansion of minority recruiters is the
best solution, however. We believe that minority recruitment
should be an integral part of an overall recruitment system
in
which
lime managers exercise the responsible role.
.The background of the Agency's field recruiters is
_diverse.. -About -one' third were direct hires without prior
.:Agency-experience; another third have substantive experience
in operating components; the remaining third are primarily
Personnel careerists. Their relatively brief training has
consisted largely of observing other Agency recruiters, then
learning- on the job insingleton field assignments. We view
such training as inadequate particularly with regard to
their acquiring a comprehensive knowledge of the approx-
imately 180 different jobs for which they are expected to
recruit.
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We find lack of consistency among recruiters concerning
what they say to candidates about the mission and functions
of the Agency, the nature of jobs for which candidates might
qualify, the importance in appropriate cases of keeping
confidential one's interest in the Agency, and the nature
and duration of applicant processing. Recruiter techniques
for interviewing and evaluating candidates in ?the typical
25-minute session also differ.
Fundamentally, field recruiters have an almost impos-
sible task because of the vast geographic territory and
target population each is assigned; the more than 180 types
? constant
.numbers
for which they are expected to recruit; and the
pressure
from Headquarters to submit
increasing
of applicant-files. We believe the recruiters, in
general, do a
remarkable job. The function, in our judgment,.
is wron?gly-conceived, however.
The Washington Area Recruitment Office (WARO), staffed
by six recruiters, is credited with providing approximately
one third of the Agency's new employees annually. Unlike
field offices, which maintain a low visibility, WARO is a
walk-in facility as well as a regular recruitment office for
the District of Columbia and nearby states. It enjoys a
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number of advantages over field offices--ready access to
operating components and processing elements and a largely
local target population for whom relocation is not a factor.
About 90% of the Agency's new clerical employees come
through WARO. The staff talks with more than 7,000 persons
annually, most of whom are nonviable or marginal prospects.
Coping with such an overwhelming volume causes major pro-
blems and it is perceived by many applicants, and employees
who refer prospects to WARO, as an inefficient and impersonal
findjOPPPM s-network relies heavily on "bulk" recruit-
ment,:_leaving to operating components the time-consuming
the qualified applicants.- We are
task of winnowing out
concerned that 'between 75% and 80% of the more than 3,500
professional and technical applicants being produced annu-
ally by the recruitment system as a whole are never placed'
intoprocess for-empldyment. We believe the entire recruit-
merit system- needs to become more selective to eliminate
clogging the Agency's selection and processing mechanisms.
At WARO, in particular, the need to screen large numbers of
walk-in candidates to determine those who should be inter-
viewed on the spot is an inappropriate and inefficient use
of the staff's time. Except for clerical candidates, WARO
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interviews should be by prior appointment, relying on normal
OPPPM mechanisms for review and referral of resumes.
We believe OPPPM field clericals, who function as
office managers for the recruiters, perform a variety of
responsible functions for which they are undergraded.
Upgrading of their positions appears justified.
The Agency's two student programs--the Student Trainee
(Co-op) Program and the Graduate Fellow Program--are highly
regarded by line managers who benefit from their services.
About 61% of Student Trainees have converted to regular
employment and approximately 23% of Graduate Fellows since
inauguration of the programs in 1962 and 1966, respectively.
The latter program is not intended as a direct recruitment
vehicle but as a means for the Agency to inform academicians
about its functions and professional opportunities. Both
programs are expensive; in contrast to an estimated $8,000
- to recruit and: _process each regular employee, each Student
Trainee who converts to staff employment costs about $13,000,
each Graduate Fellow about $34,000.
VI. Applicant Processing and Selection
The- Office of Personnel Policy, Planning and Management
recently has taken several steps intended to improve apPi-
capt processing. It is now retaining new professional and
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technical applicant files for ten days in a centralized
Skills Bank to permit their being reviewed by several
components. The procedure is also intended to preclude
delays occasioned by components' "sitting" on files without
decision or action, but in May 1980 there were still approxi-
mately 175 delinquent files, i.e., held by components for
more than two weeks. As part of a new system it is planning,
OPPPM hopes to resolve the problem of delinquent files. We
believe stronger organizational discipline, e.g., a com-
ponent's loss of to a particular applicant on whom it
has not acted expeditiously, is necessary to achieve this.
OPPPM's backlog in corresponding with applicants
appears to have been eliminated and a positive step taken
by initiating -early processing of electronics engineers, a
hard-to-get category. A planned minicomputer system is
? expected to
for
provide for better applicant file tracking and
recovery of files of inactive applicants with skills
suited to new requirements.
?The-fundamental problem, however, is that too many
marginal applicant files are clogging the selection and
processing channels. During the last four years, OPPPM's
Recruitment Division has produced an average of almost 2,800
professional applicants, of whom about 600 were p1aced-7h
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process for employment and approximately 320 entered on
duty. This represents nine applicants for each EOD, five
applicants for each one placed in process. These ratios
have been increasing as the recruitment system expands.
Worse still, the Career Training Program reviewed 1,075
applicants for 63 places in the mid-1979 CT Class, a ratio
?
of 17:1. Efforts are underway to reduce this ratio to 12:1,
still too high, in our judgment.
Components with generalist requirements are thus
enabled to be highly selective about applicants, but with
resultant delays in decisionmaking and processing. On the
, other
hand, the OPPPM recruitment system is not producing
-enough-hard-to-get and, advance-level applicants, indicating
a need both to refine and redirect our recruiting efforts.
.--Because
of its retaining new applicant files in the
Skills Bank, OPPPM extracts skeletal information from new
applications and resumes and communicates it to components
electronically through-its daily Applicant File Listing. We
find the information contained in this listing much too
sparse and believe-that it results in the loss of many good
applicants whose full credentials are not brought to the
attention of operating components. OPPPM estimates that 222
of professional applicants were rejected in 1979 withou4-a
a
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component ever having seen the file. We believe the Skills
Bank and Applicant File Listing mechanisms should be abol-
ished in favor of direct dissemination to components of
fewer, more carefully screened applicants. We also note
that the separate channel for handling minority applicants,
the Minority Employment Coordinator structure, has resulted
in gaining more serious consideration for minority appli-
cants but has not improved the six to nine month processing
time common to most professional applicants. We believe the
MEC structure should be abandoned and minority recruitment
made an integral part_of the new recruitment system outlined
in the principal recommendation arising from this inspection
report.
-Our review ofapplicant processing has uncovered areas
in which some reduction of time can be achieved and these
are 1isted in the body of this report (Chapter VI).* The.
really significant steps, however, would be to eliminate
marginal files from the system and to effect quicker deci-
sions by-components about applicants. We find this practice ,
prevalent in major business corporations and think the
Agency cannot afford to do less. Our principal recommen-
dation addresses these problems.
-afax.
*Several actions initiated in this area by D/PPPM are
also noted.
a
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After lengthy processing time, respondents to our EOD
survey most frequently cited lack of correspondence from the
Agency as a complaint. OPPPM's planned minicomputer system,
programmed to tickle applicant cases for an interim or
30-day letter, should rectify this problem when it becomes
operational. The elimination of superfluous applicant files
should have a salutary effect as well.
VII. Clerical Recruiting
? About half of the Agency's
new employees each
year are in clerical categories--typists, stenographers,
clerks, guards couriers, telephone operators, laborers,
security escorts. OPPPM officials estimate that 450 appli-
cants should be in process at all times to counter clerical
turnover and meet new requirements, calculating one entrant
on duty from each two applicants in process. OPPPM reports
that,_ as a result of intensified effort, 83 new clerical
employees entered on duty in January 1980 - a record for the
first month of the year. In February 1980, there were about
500 clerical applicants in process but, acccording to OPPPM,
there is still a "critical shortage" in virtually all
clerical categories.
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_ .
The major problems in clerical shortfall are processing
delays, drug usage and salary disadvantages. Processing
delays are difficult to pin down for clerical applicants,
but appear to fall into the period between the applicant's
submission of forms and the initiation of formal processing--
perhaps a lapse of as much as two months-- and delays by
applicants in coming to Headquarters for processing. We
have suggested, and OPPPM has implemented, the assignment of
an additional officer to the Clerical Staffing Branch/OP,
which is responsible for the selection and processing of
virtually all clerical applicants.
Ninety percent of new clerical employees come from
within a 50-mile radius of Washington, D.C. OPPPM has only
three full-time clerical recruiters--two in Washington, one
25X1 --but its recruiters of professional per-
sonnel throughout the country also have responsibility for
some clerical recruiting. Heavy workloads for the latter
recruiters, _and marked disinclination on the part of the
clerical prospects to relocate to Washington, pose formid-
able obstacles to their success, however.
The Directorate of Operations has been getting only two
or three new clerical employees monthly against an average
of 45 vacancies. By contrast, the Foreign Service has
xxiv
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- ?
been able, at least prior to the Iranian crisis, to satisfy
its needs for clericals in overseas assignments. One reason
for the difference appears to be the method of recruitment.
Foreign Service teams, which include clerical personnel,
travel throughout the country to provide firsthand informa-
tion and evaluation for clerical prospects. Another factor
is that the DO is still trying to regain momentum lost
during its 16-month freeze on clerical hiring in 1977-78.
Several significant problems derive from the Agency's
testing of clerical candidates. Passing the Short Employ-
ment Tests (SET) is a prerequisite for consideration. We
find,-however, that the SET--a measure of vocabulary,
arithmetic skills and ability to transfer data has not been
validated for Agency use, as recommended by the developer,
The Psychological Corporation.
Only about 25% of candidates who take the Agency typing
test pass it, and _only 10% the stenography test. Outside
certifications are not accepted. We are concerned about the
low passing rates, but note that the Office of Personnel
Management has reviewed the stenographic test and affirmed
its fairness and reliability. Nevertheless, the stringent
? +Paw
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stenographic standard strikes us as anomalous in view of the
underutilization, and consequent loss, of stenographic
skills among large numbers of current clerical employees.
Testing of clerical candidates in the field often is
makeshift and unprofessional. We believe such testing
should be contracted out.
We also find a serious question of ethics involved in
the way OPPPM uses stenographic and typing test results to
? determine clerical appointment grades and titles. Some
_candidates seeking typist or stenographic positions who fail
pre-employment testing, nonetheless are appointed to grades
and given titles as if they had passed. Retention of status
is? contingent upon their passing the respective test at the
. time of EOD. Eighteen were downgraded from stenographer to
typist in FY 1979; figures for typists who were reclassified
as clerks are not available. For the failed stenographer,
annual salary is reduced about $1,200 after E00; for the
failed typist, ?promotion opportunity is restricted, and the
new employee-must pay travel and household moving expenses
which he/she had expected the Government to pay. OPPPM
contends that these practices are necessary incentives for
hard-to-get clericals and points out that all appliGagt-s
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f',1.77ETC5Vr! 4
th
UAL
sign a form when they first apply acknowledging the condi-
tions. We believe, however, that the practice is unfair
to the employees affected, particularly in view of low
passing rates for the two tests, and reflects poorly on the
integrity of the Agency. In our judgment, appointment grades
and titles should be awarded only on the basis that appli-
cants satisfy established criteria in the pre-employment
stage. Allowance should be made for upgrading if the
test(s) can be passed within 90 days following EOD.
Finally, our EOD survey reveals that 37% of new
clerical employees are dissatisfied with their jobs,
At least part of this dissatisfaction appears due to the
fact that neither the new clerical employee nor the receiv-
. ing component is afforded opportunity for preassignment
interview. We believe such ?interviews should be inititated
at the time of EOD.
VIII. Career Training Program
This recently-expanded program was examined in the
context of the Agency's total recruitment effort. We looked
at it particularly in the light of the assertion by the _NAPA
A
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FE-zrrYllq
? 41.
team that it is laroely DO oriented. We find that conten-
tion accurate, although NFAC is looking to the Program for
approximately 20 new analysts a year, the number
for the DO. We conclude that without a fundamental re-
thinking of the Proqug as a source
of junior officer generalists for the Agency as a whole, and
without an allocation of personnel positioas_ta_it_thr.
IcjiingA, the DO cast is likely to continue.
Based on psychological test results, and except for
foreign language qualifications, Career Trainees seem to be
bright as ever. While there are some changes in temperament
and attitudes, tending more toward family/leisure orienta-
tion, on-the-job supervisors indicate high satisfaction with
new CTs, as well as with other new employees. The tripling
of CT intake in 1979 does not appear to have compromised
this quality to any discernible extent.
What the expansion has done, however, is to dominate
the Agency's total recruitment effort and, to a lesser
degree, processing channels (psychological testing and
polygraph examinations). CT requirements constitute about
one third of Agency requirements for professional and
technical personnel, but have aggravated processing delay.s
and.hiring shortages in other employee categories.
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None of the OPPPM recruiters has had direct operational
experience, but the enrollment in July 1978 of many of
them in a "minioperations course" helped them understand the
work and qualifications of junior operations officers. The
CT Staff's rejection of four out of every five applicants
recommended for the Program, however, has caused confusion
and frustration among the recruiters about CT selection
standards. The Staff's consideration of almost 1,100
applicants for approximately 65 CT positions seems highly
excessive; we believe- there should be less concern about
producing large numbers of candidates and more concern about
the earlier selection and processing of the most promising
ones.
The Program's: record of recruiting females has improved
noticeably, owing to the DO's recent acknowledgement that
women have been effective operations officers. There have
been a total of 46 women destined for the DO in the last
three CT classes. The Program has been able to'recruit some
Hispanics, but only about 35 blacks have been hired in the
history of the Program, five within the last two years. In
general, the recruitment of minority CTs has been sporadic
and uncoordinated and does not differ significantly from the
Agency's overall problems with minority recruitment.
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Determination of entry grades is also proving trouble-
some to a significant number of CTs. A highly sought after
group, many have taken salary cuts or declined higher offers
to join the Agency. Many believe, however, that the Agency
is "trying to get us on the cheap" and think the CT Staff is
evasive, arbitrary and inequitable in its salary determina-
tions. The Staff has what appear to be workable criteria,
but its unwillingness to disclose the criteria to applicants
and new CTs, and possibly uneven application of the criteria
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have created suspicions and misunderstandings. We believe
that a review of the criteria and their application is
dictated and that, for reasons of professionalism and
credibility, general disclosure is advisable.
IX. Professional Applicant Test Battery
The PATS, an eight-hour series of written tests, is
? '
administered to about twn thirds of the applicants for
?
professional employment. Individual components determine
whether applicants for a given position should be tested.
Hiring officials' use of the PATB as a selection device is
discretionary; only 25% of more than 500 supervisors who
were surveyed during this inspection indicate that they give
the PATS results significant weight in their employment
decisions. (Higher weights are accorded to academic work/
training, prior work experience, and judgment based on
personal interview.) Over 60% of these supervisors either
have no opinion about the PATB's usefulness or indicate it
is not used by their components. On the basis of Agency-
wide interviews as well as a review of Recruitment Guides,
we find an applicant may be required to take the PATS for a
particular position in one component but not fpr a compa-
rable position in another component. Similarly, some
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applicants for a particular position will have been tested,
others not. We see need for a systematic Agency policy
concerning the testing of applicants to establish some
uniformity about the positions for which testing is required;
the essentiality of evaluating test results for all appli-
cants for positions in which testing is used as a selection
tool; and the nature of the testing itself.
The two psychological consultants from Columbia
University who examined the PATS on our behalf conclude that
there ?are serious deficiencies in the evidence developed
over the years for the reliability and validity of the PATB.
They report that only five of 31 separate tests in the
battery have reliabilities which are minimally acceptable
within the profession, and that reliabilities are partic-
ularly weak for females and minority groups. The Psycho-
_
-
logical Services Staff (PSS), which administers the PATS,
has recently produced a study of the reliabilities of eight
of the tests which it claims refutes the consultants'
criticism.
Among 23 PATS tests which the consultants examined
for validity, only ten tests present sufficient research
evidence, they claim, to judge their validity and that, even
in these ten, the evidence is weak and does not meet minimum
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standards set by the American Psychological Association
(APA) or the Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection
Procedures developed by the U.S. Equal Employment Oppor-
tunity Commission (EEOC). Again, PSS strongly contests this
view, asserting that its methology and validation studies
conform fully to standards,established not only by the APA
and EEOC, but also by the which
conducts nationwide PATB testing for the Agency.
PSS' work in assessing the validity of the PATB has
been based on the "criterion-related" approach which en-
deavors to establish a significant statistical relationship
between- one or more test scores, on the one hand, and a
measure of employee performance on the job, on the other.
All concerned have acknowledged that fitness report ratings,
which are the primary performance measure relied upon, tend
to be subjective- and, given the fact that the great majority
of Agency employees - have been rated "Strong" or better, are
hot well differentiated. As such, they are poor instruments
upon which to base test validation. The consultants urge,
and we agree, that the Agency's test program, as well as its
other selection devices, should be based on a comprehensive
job analysis which identifies key abilities, knowledge and
skills required by a particular job or job category. Tests
?
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kiLh
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C,
are then developed against these attributes. Known as a
"construct" approach to test validation, this would require
a major change in concept for the Agency's testing program
but one which we find is endorsed by many leading authorities
in the field of psychological testing today. In practical
terms, this would lead to marked curtailment in the use of
PATB until a new testing program is developed.
The consultants find no direct evidence of bias
or unfairness in the PATB in relation to female or minority
groups. They state, however, that there is serious poten-
tial for misuse or unfair use of it in this context. The
inspection team concludes, from a review of both PSS and
consultant data, that the PATB, in general terms, does not
discriminate against black applicants and is not, therefore,
vulnerable to a charge of adverse impact. At the same time,
however, we find no steps yet underway to maintain and
report test data for minority groups in relation to specific
jobs or job categories in the Agency, a requirement stip-
ulated in the EEOC guidelines.
X. Cost of Recruitment
We have been unable to discovely_glagtosima-study
of the cost of the Agency's recruitment program. OPPPM's
CPIPTLig JT-77-filt
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44
recruitment and placement budget of almost $3 million is
augmented by extensive, but not clearly identifiable,
resources in Security, Training (Career Training Program),
Medical Services and all components engaged in hiring new
personnel.
The cost of OPPPM's field recruitment network is
approximately $900,000, or more than $3,000 for each of the
285 new employees it produced in FY 1979. Because of an
expansion of this network without a commensurate increase in
personnel requirements, the per capita cost for EODs from
field offices in FY 1980 likely will be closer to $3,500.
A senior OPPPM official asserts that the cost of the
total recruitment, selection and processing system was
$8,000 per EOD, based on an informal 1976 study. We esti-
mate that, currently, total program and personal services
costs for the system are in the vicinity of $10 million,
or about $10,000 per EOD.
XI. Recruiting for the '80s
Agency recruiters, under present circumstances, face a
Herculean task. The guidance which they receive about
personnel requirements is quantitatively overblown and
rM
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L.; 5..11% IriL
qualitatively imprecise. Their recruitment territories and
target populations are vast and they are under constant
pressure to submit more applicant files. The resulting
applicant file flow clogs selection and processing mechan-
isms, and for many positions produces more good candidates
than can be absorbed.
Simultaneously, the Agency is experiencing a recruit-
ment shortfall in scientific, technical and clerical cate-
gories, and the situation is getting worse. Our recruiters
are not well equipped to recruit specialists. The Agency is
losing a competitive edge in entry-level salaries while
failing to sell the nonmonetary advantages of Agency
employment.
The recent trend has been to expand the field recruit-
ment network--opening three new field offices and adding
five black and three auxiliary recruiters. Yet, aside from
the U.S. armed forces with their needs for massive numbers
of relatively unskilled personnel, we found no large organi-
zation that maintains a nationwide, full-time network of
field recruiters. Business corporations, as well as the
U.S. Foreign Service, use professional line personnel to
recruit new professionals; recruiting is not a full-time job
for these professional employees. Selection for recruiting
CONFIDENTIAL
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duties is considered an honor, and is often reserved for
"comers". Line personnel are selected because they can
best articulate what the organization does, what the appli-
cant will be doing, and the benefits of working for their
particular organization. They are carefully selected and
trained, and sent to field locations in teams, buttressed by
clerical support. Hiring decisions are made early, either
immediately following initial contact or after a visit by
the candidate to an organizational facility.
We believe the Agency should adopt a similar system,
converting recruitment from a staff to a line function.
The-final chapter of this report contains a recommendation
for a pilot project to select and train a small number
of substantive personnel--professional, technical and
clerical--for brief periods of recruitment duty. They would
be assigned to perhaps two or three teams of ten members
each, including female and minority employees, and sent
under the direction of the Office of Personnel Policy,
Planning and Management to selected areas of the country to
interview candidates developed through prior advertising,
academic contacts, personal referrals and other means.
Consolidated field recruitment offices would be maintained
to carry out the latter responsibilities. We see two major
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benefits to be derived -- highly selective judgements about
candidates early in the recruitment cycle and, therefore,
fewer but more viable applicants in the system, and accel-
erated selection and processing for those recommended by
substantive recruiters. By this means we would expect to
obtain the very best candidates, reduce the burden of
unwanted files, fulfill our S&T, minority and clerical
requirements, and reduce processing time by merging the
recruiting and selection functions.
i-1D; ;c4
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SECREI
RECOMMENDATION
1. DOCI request D/PPPM to develop
in consultation w/DD's a liberal-
ized appt grade structure for
hard-to-get personnel.
2. The DD's be required to obtain
from D/PPPM an evaluation of the
impact on recruitment and
staffing of major changes con-
templated in personnel require-
ments.
3. DD's be required to review and
validate the accuracy of the
Advance Staffing Plans sub-
mitted by their components
4. D/PPPM issue revised guidelines
for the preparation of Recruit-
ment Guides.
5. DD's ensure that Recruitment
Guides prepared by their
components conform to the
revised guidelines.
6. D/PPPM designate an officer to
review Recruitment Guides for
their clarity, specificity,
and completeness; verify their
accuracy with hiring officials;
and disseminate them to Agency
personnel engaged in recruiting
duties.
D/PPPM COMMENT DDA COMMENT
Concur. D/PPPM already has Concur, but wish to avoid
adequate measures to deal component bidding wars.
with this on a case-by-case
basis to maintain uniformity
and equity.
Concur
Concur
Concur
Concur. Guidelines will
call for annual review.
Concur
None
None
None
None
None
SEMI
1G RESPONSE
Appt salaries have almost
reached topmost steps in
some grades; basic shift
is needed, case-by-case
approval should not be
necessary.
None
None
None
None
Recommendation was revised
to omit a technical point
bothersome to the DDA.
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SHRE I
RECOMMENDATION D/PPPM COMMENT DDA COMMENT IG RESPONSE
7. D/PPPM assure that professional
and technical applicants for
employment are recommended
against one or more specific'
Recruitment Guide(s).
8. DD's incorporate the EEO Plan
(20/5/2) into the Advance
Staffing Plans and the hiring
mechanisms of their directorates.
9. D/EEO compile for the DDCI a
quarterly report on minority
recruitment and recommend
corrective action, where
necessary.
10. D/PPPM, in consultation with
Dir/Public Affairs, develop
a monograph for distribution
within the Agency to alert
employees to the importance
of, and means for, recommending
Agency employment to others.
11. D/PPPM, in coordination with
Dir/Public Affairs, develop
printed and visual materials
tailored specifically for
the Agency's recruitment
program.
Concur. Being done but will None None
be formalized in new computer
system (CAPER).
Concur
Concur. ?PPM is already
providing these statistics.
Concur. We have already
published bulletins re
clerical and CT prospects.
Concur. We also plan
similar consultation re
cassettes and slide shows.
None None
None None
None
None .
The recommendation intends a
broad, continuing publication,
especially for new employees.
Most desirable.
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o[J111.1
RECOMMENDATION
12. D/EEO, in cooperation with the
DD's, compile a centralized data
bank of recruitment sources for
female and minority candidates
in professional and technical
fields and make such data available
to personnel engaged in recruiting
for the Agency.
13. D/PPPM develop for use in an
Agency training program for
recruiters consistent guidance
about informing candidates of
the mission and functions of the
Agency, the need for cover (in
appropriate cases), and the
nature and duration of applicant
processing.
14. D/PPPM discontinue walk-in
interviews at WARO, for other
than clerical candidates, in
favor of prearranged inter-
views. Acceptance of resumes
from walk-in prospects should
be continued, however.
D/PPPM COMMENT
OPPPM already has such a
repository
We will reaffirm standing
instructions to recruiters
' and will work with OTR in
developing appropriate training
None
None
Non-concur. Recommendation is None
not based on reasoned judgment.
We should talk to the engineer,
linguist, scientist, CT appli-
cant, minority, etc., in any
forum possible. Makes no sense
to ask them to return later by
appointment.
15. D/PPPM instruct Position Mgmt. Concur
& Compensation Division to revalu-
ate the grade ceiling for field
clerical positions for the pur-
pose of upgrading them.
None
t,rni11:1"
DDA COMMENT
1G RESPONSE
The OPPPM repository lists
only academic institutions.
Professional/trade assns and
other sources need to be com-
piled. OEEO is the logical
unit to do this.
Despite standing instructions,
recruiters vary greatly in
their treatment of these
subjects.
Earliest possible referral of
hard-to-get candidates to
substantive interviewers is
preferable to immediate WARO
interview. Relatively few
hard-to-get types walk in;
the bulk are generalist and
marginal candidates who drain
WARO staff from recruiting
which needs to be much more
positive and selective.
None
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STORE].
RECOMMENDATION
16. D/PPPM abolish the Skills Bank
and Applicant File Listing;
instead, after reviewing &
a:inowledging receipt of new
applicant files, initiate the
referral recomiended by the
recruiter.
17. D/PPPM arrange for files of
applicants rejected by one
component, including the
Career Training Staff,
to be reviewed for possible
referral to other components.
18. DDCI authorize D/PPPM to with-
draw an operating component's
right to an individual applicant
on whom the component fails to
make a decision to interview,
place in process or reject
within two weeks of receiving
the file.
19. 0/Security begin an experi-
mental program to polygraph
applicants before starting a
background investigation to
determine whether a significant
reduction in the number of
investigations can be effected.
The experiment should include the
option to repolygraph an applicant
following the background investi-
gation, when necessary.
D/PPPM COMMENT
This recommendation has been
overtaken by our new process-
ing system.
Many CT files are reviewed
? by other components.
Non concur. I have both the
authority and "toughness"
necessary in our new applicant
processing system. I intend
to take every possible step
to make our system work.
We have initiated discussion
with D/Security on such a
program since it is an
important part of our new
(recruiting) system.
DDA COMMENT
Non concur. Strongly recommend
retention of Skills Bank and
Applicant File Listing. Latter
should include more useful
information, however.
None
Concur
The Office of Security will
study the feasibility of a
pre-investigative polygraph
testing where they feel such
would be appropriate.
SME1
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IG RESPONSE
OPPPMis still using the
Skills Bank/AFL system.
The recommendation intends
thatOPPPMmake a specific
determination about the
suitability of each CT
applicant rejected for the
Program. OPPPM's comment
relates only to component re-
quests for CT files when they
first appear on the Applicant
File Listing. A more active
effort re CT rejects is intended.
We believe OPPPM"s "expediter"
system will not adequately
change longstanding practices
of "sitting" on applicant
files unless sanction is
involved.
None
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SECRET
RECOMMENDATION
20. D/MS insure that psychiatric
consultants share with each
other and with staff psychia-
trists their knowledge and
experience as related to the
evaluation of applicants, that
they be briefed by operating
officials about the Agency's
functions and personnel needs.
21. D/MS delineate the respective
roles and functions of PSS and
SSB in the applicant screening
process and codify these in
Agency regulations.
22. D/PPPMdefine the kinds of cases
the Applicant Review Panel should
consider and codify the ARP's
role and functions in Agency
regulations with specific
emphasis on the right of
managers to appeal its
recommendations.
D/PPPM COMMENT
None
None
Concur, except for pro-
viding appeals. To do
so would require dissemina-
tion of very sensitive info
and diffuse standards of
suitability. Managers are
apt to react in terms of
their own parochial needs
rather than the Agency's
as a whole. Central exer-
cise of this authority allows
uniform, equitable treatment
of all cases.
DDA COMMENT
Current OMS procedures do
allow for sharing of
knowledge and experience
by psychiatric consultants.
They are briefed on Agency
functions and personnel needs.
Differences between these two
functions were included in the
Agency Regulatory System in
October 1977.
We support the inclusion of the
ARP charter in the Agency regu-
latory system. The regulation
should define operating guide-
lines as recommended. ARP should
continue to function in same
basic manner as it has for last
several years.
SECUT
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IG RESPONSE
The psychiatric consultants
professed to the inspection
team a lack of such exchange
and an ignorance about Agency
mission, functions and jobs.
An OMS internal reg. (1-1)
provides highly generalized
statements only about the
responsibilities of these
units.
Where judgment, as opposed to
formal precepts, is involved,
managers in the actual work
environment should be entitled
to submit a view for considera-
tion when, in their opinion,
the circumstances of an individual
case so dictate. At the same
time, the Panel would be operating
in less of a vacuum.
Approved For Release 2003/06/20 : CIA-RDP84600890R000400040026-4
SEC REI
RECOMMENDATION
23. D/PPPM engage the services '
of an independent contractor
to assist new employees who
are relocating to the
Washington area.
24. D/PPPM revise Form 894 to state,
in unequivocal terms, the
the improbability of clerical
employees advancing to
professional status.
25. D/MS arrange a validation study
for the Short Employement Tests.
D/PPPM COMMENT
Defer. OPPPM is currently
providing an (externally-
published) apartment guide
and a booklet concerning
local housing, schools, etc,
Clerical Staff Branch main-
tains a current notebook on
apartments. Our projected
Family Liaison Service can
provide considerable assistance
in this area.
DDA COMMENT
Believe it wculd be prudent
to consult OGC about its
legality; 0/Comptroller
should be asked to size the
people and dollars that
would be required.
Non concur. In FY 1979, 298 None
clericals were advanced to
professional or technical
positions; we see no need to
be as unequivocal as recommended
Concur
While the SET has not been
validated specifically for
clerical tasks performed in
the Agency, we feel that its
validation when originally
developed was adequate. If
Agency management disagrees,
OMS will conduct an appropriate
validation study.
SEMI
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IG RESPONSE
These appear complicated
responses to a relatively
simple proposal to solve
a straightforward problem.
The number cited by OPPPM
constitutes about
the Agency's full-time, staff
clericals. (NB: This informa-
tion is classified SECRET).
Given this percentage, and the
extensive morale problem within
the Agency among clerical
employees whose advancement
is circumscribed, especially
at the G5-7 level, we believe
the caveat is required.
None
2 5X1
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RECOMMENDATION
26. D/PPPM
a. Revise Form 894 to eliminate
downgrading;
b. appoint stenographers and
typists at grades and titles
only on the basis of criteria
fully satisfied prior to
EOD;
c. revise Form 894 to advise
would-be stenographers and
typists that the next higher
grade for stenographers) or
title for typists) will be
awarded only upon passing
the qualifying tests within
90 days after EOD;
d. revise Form 894 to advise
typist applicants that
failure to pass the typing
test prior to EOD will require
their having to pay their own
moving expenses.
27. D/PPPM assign an additional officer
to the Clerical Staffing Branch
and expand authority within the
branch to select applicants and
initiate processing.
28. D/PPPM instruct Clerical Staffing
Branch to initiate formal process-
ing of clerical applicants within
one week of receiving workable
applicant forms.
D/PPPM COMMENT
We believe our new pay system
for clericals will eliminate
most of these downgrading
problems. It will require
revision of Form 894.
This has already been accom-
plished.
This is a standing instruction
and was and is being done.
SEC RE r
None
None
None
DDA COMMENT
IG RESPONSE
The new clerical pay system
retains the downgrading
feature for failed steno
candidates, despite
liberalized scoring. We
continue to believe this
procedure is unethical
and should be dropped.
None
The inspection found this not
being done despite standing
instruction; OPPPM's model of
present clerical processing
shows this period to be 20 days.
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Approved For Release 2003/06/20 : CIA-RDP84600890R000400040026-4
TAU
RECOMMENDATION
29. D/PPPM reinstitute the clerical
pool for qualified typists,
who have passed a pre-investiga-
tive polygraph examination, to
perform unclassified work until
they are fully cleared and
assignable.
30. D/PPPM set the policy of
having new clerical employees
interviewed by their prospec-
tive components before being
assigned. If either has
strong objection, another
assignment should be arranged.
31. MCI have the Executive
Committee examine whether the
Career Training Program should
retain its primarily DO orienta-
tion or be used more broadly by
the Agency as an intake mechanism
for junior officer generalists.
D/PPPM COMMENT
We believe this recommenda-
tion has been overtaken by
the new system proposed in
our covering memorandum (of
response to the draft inspec-
tion report).
Non concur. Such policy
would further delay
processing. We already
reassign new employees
when there is not a good
match. Follow-up inter-
views would better
determine the extent of
and reason for clerical
dissatisfaction.
No basic disagreement, but
we should note that any
large-scale recruiting of
CT's for VAC will further
strain our already overlpaded
recruiters. .
DDA COMMENT
Believe the Agency would
benefit from re-establishing
the clerical pool. Also
believe that the concept of
professional pools, particularly
for specilty areas where
professional skills can be
applied to unclassified applica-
tions, should be examined. We
certify our willingness to
study the implementation and aid
in establishing security procedures
to cover persons assigned to
pools.
None
None
SECREr
IG RESPONSE
If OPPPM can process
clerical applicants
for employment within
42 days, as projected
in its model, need for
a pool is obviated. If
not, a pool would be
highly beneficial to
both the Agency and the
clerical applicant in
need of a job
The recommendation relates
not to applicant processing
but to post-EOD assignment.
It is better to assign
personnel wisely to start
with, than to have to resort
to reassignment due to a
poor match. Responses to
the 1G new employee survey
provide ample evidence that,
among new clerical employees,
lack of an interview with
the component of prospective
assignment is a major source
of/satisfaction.
dis
The recommendation does not
envisage a net addition in the
recruitment of new employees,
but the possible redirection to
the CT Program of some professional
employees who are now recruited
directly for components.
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SEMI
RECOMMENDATION
32. ODD and DDA provide consistency
between cover arrangements for
applicants and the cover used
by Office of Security back-
ground investigators.
33. DTR establish a system for the
Career Training Staff to brief
applicants about pre-employment
cover and to communicate with
applicants through channels
not attributable to the
Agency.
? 34. OTR review the criteria used
by the CT Staff for determining
entry-level grades for CT's,
adjust any found inequitable,
but abolish the detailed
point system used to determine
grades and salaries.
D/PPPM COMMENT
We are surprised by the reported
inconsistency, but will continue
provide specific guidance to our
recruiters on how to address the
cover issue.
None
We plan to contribute to the
review by the DTR.
,
,:,..f..t.1;11.1. ?
DDA COMMENT
We believe the pre-EOD cover
to situation for CTs is a serious
one requiring further study.
OS believes an improper inference
has been drawn in your report
virtually any Executive Branch
activity. Applicants should be
so informed to preclude mistaken
impression.
This recommendation has been
implemented.
OTR has recently reviewed the
criteria, as recommended. We
believe the point system evolved
from a need for specificity in
the process, and is the most
effective way to deal with the
mix of qualifications presented
by current CT applicants.
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IG RESPONSE
Guidance to recruiters
must be consistent with
OS and Central Cover
Staff guidance. The
OPPPM comment appears
to be made in the context
of its own unilateral
concerns. We believe
that State Department
security officials, repre-
senting themselves as
such, conduct background
investigations of appli-
cants for employment with
their organization. WP
Details re changes have
not been provided to OIG.
OTR did not comment on the
point about adjusting
possibly inequitable grades.
We learned indirectly of
one case which was adjusted
and are aware of several
others challenged by
CT's.
25X
25X1
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SECRET
None
RECOMMENDATION
35. DTR disclose to current CT's
and applicants the general
criteria for determining grades
and salaries.
36. The MCI instruct ExCom to
develop for regulatory issuance
an Agency policy specifying
types of positions for which
selection tests are to be
administered, and types of
testing appropriate to them.
37. The DDCI
a. authorize D/PPPM to con-
tract with job analyst
specialists to assist in
developing an Agency job
analysis program;
D/PPPM COMMENT
We plan to contribute to
the review by the DTR
None
None
b. establish a professional unit None
under D/PPPM to develop and
try out a new applicant test
program, and establish
acceptable reliability and
validity data and norms
before tests are authorized
for use in personnel selection.
Also assure reliability and
validity of all other Agency
testing for professional and
non-professional applicants.
SF.CRP
DDA COMMENT
Non concur. We favor
retention of current
practice by which
individual managers
decide when to use PATB
in the selection process.
(D/MS comment)
Non concur. Original
construction of the PATB
was based on logical
analysis of Agency jobs,
and is proving workable.
(D/MS comment)
Non concur. Responsibility for
job analysis should not be
assigned to OPPM. Inspectors
apparently do not understand
difference between job analysis,
which is in the domain of-test
validation, and job description,
which is in the domain of position
management and compensation. If
more job analysis- is needed; it
should be assigned to PSS along
with added personnel. (D/MS '
conment)
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IG RESPONSE
OTR has been opposed to
disclosing these criteria;
The absence of a comment
surprises us.
Standards are necessary for
purposes of equity and
fairness to all applicants.
Mean test scores do not
constitute a logical job
analysis, nor can training
criteria be used to demon-
strate job-related validity.
OPPPM is the proper locus for
a job analysis program as it
relates to all personnel
selection procedures, not
just testing.
Approved For Release 2003/06/20 : CIA-RDP84600890R000400040026-4
SHUT
RECOMMENDATION
38. D/MS continue to administer a
partial PATB of 8 cognitive
tests and essay pending a job
analysis and test development
program.
39. DIMS, in consultation with
D/PPPM, assure that a profile
of cognitive test results, plus
the unevaluated essay, be placed
in an applicant's file prior to
review by hiring officials.
None
None
40. D/PPPM enter into computerized None
records for indefinite retention
the names, special skills and
test profiles of hard-to-get
and unusually promising appli-
cants.
41. D/MS discontinue reporting
results of five specific
tests which consultants view
as indefensible, and of the
PATB narrative report.
None
D/PPPM COMMENT
DDA COMMENT
Non concur. (D/MS)
Non concur if raw, unevaluated
scores are to be placed in file.
Potential for unfair and improper
use is high if raw scores are
provided. (D/MS Comment)
Non concur if raw, unevaluated
scores are to be included.
Potential for misuse of raw
scores is high. (D/MS Comment)
Non concur. The tests are
professionally sound and highly
useful. To replace narrative
reporting with list of raw test
scores is ill-advised. (D/MS
Comment)
sEutr
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IG RESPONSE
None
This recommendation initially
stipulated "test results", ?
meaning evaluated results, but
has been changed to "profile
of results" to preclude wrong
inference.
Recommendation is revised to
specify test profile to pre-
clude inference that raw
test scores were intended to
be included in applicant files.
Continue to believe that PSS
arguments for reliability and
validity of these tests are
not persuasive. Re narrative
report, it was not and is not
now being recommended that raw
test scores be disseminated.
Terms "test results" and "test
profile" have been used through-
out to mean evaluated results,
not raw scores. It was recomendcd
that only the essay be included
on an unevaluated basis.
Approved For Release 2003/06/20 : CIA-RDP84600890R000400040026-4
sr.pprj
RECOMMENDATION
/JDt Prc,0.-..141 ttbltlior,
42. DCI directAthe conversion,
Timal,14.411?,..1 of the Agency's
present recruitment system to
a new system with the following
principal elements:
a. the transfer of recruit-
ment responsibilities to
line management to encom-
pass the careful selection
and training of professional,
technical and clerical
employees for recruitment
duties; such employees
ultimately as many as 40
from each directorate and
NFAC, to serve on field
recruitment teams for
two to four weeks, not
necessarily consecutive,
during a given year, and
to be rotated periodically;
b. the similar selection and
training of inter-directorate
teams to serve in WARO, but
for a more extended period
of time;
c. the development and annual
conduct of a training
program to provide employees
newly assigned to recruiting
duties a comprehensive
knowledge of current-
personnel requirements
and of recruiting techniques
and procedures.
D/PPPM COMMENT
Non concur. This recommenda-
tion, in the light of the
preceding 140+ pages simply
does not make sense. Through-
out the report are conments
about the extent to which the
present recruitment system has
been fulfilling Agency require-
ments in general as well as
maintaining quality levels.
The report, as did my own
study, identified "sluggishness"
as the most serious problem
In the processing of applica-
tions. Rather than deal with
this single problem, the
recommendation here would
dispense with a structure that
Is conceded to have worked and
continues to work. Replacing
trained recruiters throughout
the country who know their
territory well, have excellent
lines of communication with
sources of applicants with
teams that would descend on
these recruitment sources like
a horde escapes logic. Little
attention is given to the time
and expense required to develop
and train large numbers of ad hoc
recruiters. No comment is made
on how universities and other
sources would react. No attempt
Is made to develop cost esti-
mates of where economies of
time and money would be
achieved. No analysis is
DDA COMMENT
This involves a cardinal change
to the current recruitment and
hiring structure in the Agency.
It implies a large, direct commit-
ment of Agency personnel resources,
even from offices currently satis-
fied with the quantity and quality
of applicants and personnel
currently being processed into
the Agency. Your report goes to
considerable length to portray
many inefficiencies in the current
system; you conclude that "Direct,
active participation by line
managers... is a logical and probably
the most efficient course of action
for the Agency to take", yet you
present no evidence to substantiate
the recommendation. We are aware
of several OPPPM initiatives
already in progress that will
address many of the major procedural
problems discussed in the report.
We believe adoption of these
improvements will substantially
compress the recruitment cycle. It
is this reinvigorated system, aug-
mented selectively by line recruit-
ment, that should be compared to
the full line recruitment system
you propose here. We think the
line recruitment system proposed
here, considering the tremendous
number of different skills and
levels of people we need, will be
much less efficient than a restruc-
turing of the current system.
Offices which require new personnel
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10 RESPONSE.
Careful reading of the
inspection report will
find that "sluggishness"
was not cited as the
most serious recruitment
problem. Of equal
importance is the problem
of "bulk" recruiting by a
permanent field staff
considerably removed in
knowledge and experience
from a vast number of
jobs for which it is
trying to recruit. The
result is a flood of
professional applicants
(more than 3,000 in FY 79),
75% of whom are never
processed for employment
and only 13% of whom MD.
It is also a fact that
more components are doing
their own recruiting
because the present system
is not satisfying their
needs. Some of this is
coordinated with OPPPM, some
is done independently. There
is some stumbling over each
other in the field. The
D/PPPM and DDA comments
appear to overlook that
this reconmendation pro-
posed a pilot project,
not a total conversion, to
provide answers to some of
the questions they have
raised. Also, it envisages
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RECOMMENDATION
42. (continued)
d. the authorizing of members
of these recruitment teams
to reject candidates or,
upon receipt of completed
applications, to initiate
immediate action for
Headquarters interviews
and /or formal processing
for employment within
mechanisms established by
D/PPPM;
e. the dissolution of the
Minority Employment
Coordinator structure
and the inclusion of
minority employees and
women in the recruitment
teams;
f. the retention of not more
than three OPPPM regional
field offices to provide
planning and administrative
support for the recruitment
teams.
D/PPPM COMMENT
SECREI
made of the impact on our
minority recruiting effort
which is just building.
Components would be forced
to recruit by themselves
even though their requirements,
except in hard-to-get cate-
gories, are fully being met.
We cannot take seriously such
a radical change from a system
that is working without at
least some analysis and
factual evidence that the
system proposed here would at
least be able to achieve what
the present system is....
To say that we find this
recommendation amazing and
disappointing is to understate
our lack of regard for the
reasoning that led to its
formulation.
SEGREf
DDA COMMENT
with more generalized back-
grounds, for which the OPPPM
system is able to supply
candidates, should not have to
commit line personnel to an
already responsive recruitment
system. OTR and OPPPM have
already begun work on the
develoOment of a training pro-
gram for personnel, including
line managers, involved in
recruitment and selection.
Therefore, Recommendation 42(c)
will be implemented shortly.
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IG RESPONSE
the retention of consolidated
OPPPM field offices, not a
dissolution, to maintain
contacts with sources, a very
legitimate concern indeed.
We would expect at least two
recruiters in each regional
office. We would also anticipate
a personnel commitment by each
directorate of three man years,
cumulatively; those selected
and trained would be directorate
recruiters, not individual
component recruiters and not
nearly as narrow gauge as DDA's
coments suggest. We commend
D/PPPM for his new approach; we
think it most desirable and
likely to streamline processing
considerably, although not as
much as hoped. Nor will it
solve all of the basic recruit-
ment problems of the Agency. We
believe D/PPPM's system and that
which is proposed here are not
only compatible, but are comple-
mentary and necessary, and both
should be tried.
Approved For ReleasMalitat'84600890R000400040026-4
II. THE AGENCY RECRUITMENT SYSTEM -- A GENERAL DESCRIPTION
A. Personnel Requirements
The cycle by which the Agency hires new employees
theoretically begins with an annual planning of personnel
needs within approximately operating components of
the Agency. This planning, wh.ich projects only a year
ahead, attempts to identify and describe the types of
positions for which new employees are to be hired, as
well as the qualifications sought in candidates. This
information is codified in what are called Recruitment
Guides (see Tab A), of which there are approximately 180 for
professional and technical positions in the Agency, e.g.,
operations officer, editor, economic analyst, computer
programmer, supply officer, telecommunicator, foreign
linguist, mechanical engineer, electronic technician.
The component planning process also projects the number of
new employees needed in each functional category, including
clerical classifications. These projections are consoli-
dated, first by Directorate, then for the Agency as a
whole into the Advance Staffing Plan (ASP) (see Tab 6).
Together, Recruitment Guides and the ASP constitute the
4
CONFIDENTIAL
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Approved For Release 2003/06/20 : CIA-RDP84600890R000400040026-4
CONFIDENTIAL
basic guidance by which the Office of Personnel Policy,
Planning and Management (OPPPM) undertakes to satisfy the
Agency's needs for new employees.
Overlying this basic guidance for the past several
years has been an annual Equal Employment Opportunity
Plan (EEOP), authorized by the DCI. The EEOP, adopted from
the Office of Personnel Management, establishes goals of 20%
women, 5% blacks and 2% Hispanics among our professional
employees.
B. Candidate Sources
Candidates for Agency employment come from a wide
variety of sources. They are stimulated by official Agency
action -- advertising; recruiting literature distributed to
university placement offices or employment offices throughout
the country; contact by Agency officials, especially field
recruiters, with persons in academic, business, or other
endeavors who are seen as in position to refer candidates to
the Agency for employment. A large percentage of applicants
is referred in unofficial ways -- through friends, relatives,
professional associates, and Agency employees. Large
5
CONFIDENTIAL
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Approved For Release 2003/06/20 : CIA-RDP84600890R000400040026-4
CONFIDENTIAL
numbers write to the Agency in Washington, or contact one of
the field recruitment offices which, although maintaining a
low profile, are listed by number, but not address, in local
telephone directories. Ultimately, a person seeking employ-
ment must obtain and submit an application through one of
three mechanisms -- the field recruitment network; the
Oa
Washington Area Recruitment Office; or a component other
than OPPPM.
C. Field Recruitment Network
The Recruitment Division (RD/OPPPM) maintains a field
network of 11 full-time (and one part-time) professional/
sible for producing a specified number of clerk/steno and
clerk/typist applicants. There is an additional full-time
field recruiter in
who specializes in clerical
and technical recruiting. All full-time field recruiters
have part-time assistants (30 to 35 hours per week).
6
CONFIDENTIAL
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CONFIDL
Individual recruiting territories range from a minimum of 1
1/2 states and 52,000 square miles to ten states with
800,000 square miles, and total populations ranging from 10
to 40 million.
On 1 July 1979, a pilot program of auxiliary recruiters
was inaugurated; three Agency retirees, one each in central
have been selected for part-time professional recruiting
duties under a local full-time recruiter. They receive a
monthly stipend of $200, plus expenses, and $500 for each of
their applicants who is formally processed for Agency
employment.
Almost all candidacies for Agency employment are
self initiated in the sense that first contact is made
by the candidate, not by an Agency recruiter. Relying
on the sources noted in (6), above, and normally having
had opportunity to review a personal resume beforehand,
recruiters interview applicants in the recruiters' offices,
in hotels/motels, other public places and on university
campuses.
Most interviews are concluded within 25-30 minutes
and, during campus visits, as many as 15 candidates are
7
CONFIDENTIAL
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Approved For Release COWMEN
nAtB00890R000400040026-4
interviewed in one day. Applicants judged by the recruiter
to be qualified for one or more positions in the Agency, and
who appear interested, are given application forms to
complete (and in some cases are scheduled for testing). If
and when the forms are returned by the candidate, the
recruiter ..appends an interview report and transmits the
applicant file to RD with a recommendation as to which
component(s) the recruiter believes the applicant is suited.
D. Washington Area Recruitment Office (WARO)
WARO is located on the ground floor of Ames Building.
It is staffed by a chief, six recruiters and four secre-
taries.
WARO operations do not differ significantly from
field recruitment offices except that walk-ins are accepted
and, if their resumes appear promising, they are interviewed.
WARO deals with three kinds of applicants: walk-ins;
local write-ins whose resumes are referred by RD to WARO
for followup; and candidates who are found through visits by
WARO's professional recruiters to academic campuses in and
around the District of Columbia, and as far south as North
Carolina, and by clerical/technical recruiters to high
schools, state employment offices and other locations in
Washington, D.0 and adjoining states.
8
CONMENTIAL
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Approved For Releasedi
4600890R000400040026-4
E. Component Recruiting
Several Agency offices conduct their own recruit-
ing efforts either independently or in conjunction with
OP. The offices that do so generally are looking for
candidates with highly specialized or scarce skills, candi-
dates which the Agency's field. recruitment network has
difficulty producing. These offices, to a large extent,
depend on advertising and referrals from campus contacts,
Agency employees, and industry. The Offices of Economic
Research, Scientific Intelligence, Data Processing and
several offices in DS&T are significantly involved in
recruiting on their own behalf, and more are becoming
actively involved.
F. Student Programs
The Agency has two student employment programs: the
Student Trainee Program whose primary purpose is to augment
the Agency's work force in the long term, and the Graduate
Fellow Program designed to inform selected graduate students
concerning what the Agency does and how it does it, i.e.,
improve the Agency's public image. These programs also
serve as indirect recruiting devices in that participants
are expected to recommend the Agency to others. Partici-
pants in both programs are given full staff clearances. The
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Student Trainee (or Co-op) Program has a 100-125 partici-
pants who work in the Agency, primarily in DS&T offices,
during part of the year for academic credit in a work/study
program concurred in by their academic institutions. The
Graduate Fellow (formerly Summer Intern) Program is limited
to graduate school students who work in various Agency
components during the summer months and return to academic
study. Approximately 65 students participated last summer.
G. OPPPM Headquarters Processing - Phase I
The application forms of professional and technical
applicants, once received at Headquarters, are referred to
the recently-established Applicant Screening Panel in RD,
where they are reviewed for completeness and skeletal
information is extracted about the applicant -- education,
experience, foreign language, asking salary, and the compon-
ent(s) recommended by the recruiter -- for the Applicant
File Listing (AFL). This daily compilation of new applica-
tions and resumes (see Tab C) is disseminated electronically
to some 90 computer terminals throughout the Agency for
review by hiring components. At this stage, OPPPM rejects
more than half of those who have sent in resumes but
almost no one who has submitted a formal application.
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After review by the panel, applicant forms are trans-
mitted to the Correspondence and Records Branch, Staff
Personnel Division (CARB/SPD) where an (orange) Official
Applicant File and a processing control card are created,
and a letter sent to the applicant acknowledging the
Agency's receipt of the forms. The files of certain pre-
committed applicants, such as telecommunications specialists
and Career Trainees, are sent directly to the interested
component. Under a procedure recently established by OPPPM
to expedite the processing in a particularly hard-to-get
category, electronics engineer applicants (grades GSE-7 thru
11) are placed into formal processing almost immediately,
leaving for later determination the component to which
the applicant will be referred. A similar procedure for
scarce electronics technician applicants is contemplated.
Except. in the instances cited above, the new applicant
files are sent to the Professional Staffing Branch, Staff
Personnel Division (PSB/SPD) and for ten calendar days are
placed on a shelf, called the Skills Bank, where they are
available for review by representatives of hiring components.
Component representatives who find an applicant of interest
on the AFL have the option of ordering the file from the
Skills Bank (for delivery sometime after the expiration of
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the ten-day shelf retention) or of visiting the Skills Bank
in Ames Building to review the file. Components which are
trying to obtain applicants with scarce skills tend to visit
the Bank because their expressed interest in an applicant
usually has primacy over components which ask for files to
be sent to them and because an on-the-spot request that the
applicant be brought in for Pre-Processing Interview (PPI)
can be serviced much more quickly.
If no component interest is expressed in a given
applicant by the end of the ten-day period, the file is
removed from the Skills Bank and the applicant is sent a
rejection letter. According to OPPPM officials, approxi-
mately 22% of 3600 professional and technical applicants
were rejected in this way during FY 1979. Typically,
components will ask that full applicant files--in some cases
resumes--be sent to them upon completion of the ten-day
waiting period in the Skills Bank. If more than one com-
ponent requests the same file, an OPPPM selection officer
determines to which component the file will be sent; the
other components normally are not advised of this decision.
After reviewing the applicant file, a component either
will reject the applicant or request a PPI. If rejected,
the file is returned to OPPPM for possible review by another
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component or for the transmittal of a rejection letter to
the applicant. If the component desires a PPI, however, the
file is returned to Professional Staffing Branch where a
processing assistant requests a name check of the applicant
by the Office of Security. Upon favorable response from OS
-- an unfavorable response to a simple request for a Head-
a
quarters interview is extremely rare -- the processing
assistant contacts the applicant by telephone or mailgram to
arrange Headquarters interviews. Following interviews, a
decision is made to reject the applicant or initiate formal
processing for employment. If rejected, the file is re-
turned to OPPPM for preparation of a rejection letter; if
"put in process" (PIP), the file is sent to SPD for the
processing assistant to prepare official requests for
security and medical clearances.
H. Career Trainees
Listing. Their files are not held in the Skills Bank but
are transmitted directly to the Career Training Staff (CIS),
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Office of Training. CTS decides whether or not to interview
applicants in the field; to bring them in for Pre-Processing
Interviews, testing and psychological assessment; or to
reject them. If the decision is positive, processing
assistants assigned by OPPPM to CTS handle all of the
processing, except for official correspondence which is sent
and received by Correspondence and Records Branch/OPPPM. If
the decision is negative, the file is returned to OPPPM
where records indicate if another component had expressed
interest in the file when it was first listed in the Appli-
cant File Listing. The file is not relisted on the AFL. If
no other interest has been expressed, the applicant is sent
a rejection letter. If a component has expressed interest,
the file is referred to the component for normal handling.
I. Minorities
Minority files are not listed on the Applicant File
Listing. Instead they are transmitted to the Minority
Employment Coordinator (MEC), OPPPM, who reviews the file
to determine which directorate/offices might have an
interest. He has the authority to reject candidates he
judges not qualified. In cases of positive judgment,
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Office of Training. CTS decides whether or not to interview
applicants in the field; to bring them in for Pre-Processing
Interviews, testing and psychological assessment; or to
reject them. If the decision is positive, processing
assistants assigned by OPPPM to CTS handle all of the
processing, except for official correspondence which is sent
and received by Correspondence and Records Branch/OPPPM. If
the decision is negative, the file is returned to OPPPM
where records indicate if another component had expressed
interest in the file when it was first listed in the Appli-
cant File Listing. The file is not relisted on the AFL. If
no other interest has been expressed, the applicant is sent
a rejection letter. If a component has expressed interest,
the file is referred to the component for normal handling.
I. Minorities
Minority files are not listed on the Applicant File
Listing. Instead they are transmitted to the Minority
Employment Coordinator (MEC), OPPPM, who reviews the file
to determine which directorate/offices might have an
interest. He has the authority to reject candidates he
judges not qualified. In cases of positive judgment,
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which generally requires a decision by an operating com-
ponent to initiate processing, OPPPM initiates processing of
clerical applicants.
K. OPPPM Headquarters Processing - Phase II
A decision to begin formal processing for employment,
whether for professional, technical, or clerical appointment,
requires further review of the Personal History Statement
(PHS) and other applicant forms to determine their complete-
ness and currency. A PHS which is more than six months old,
for example, may require contacting the applicant for
updated information. For professional and technical appli-
cants, this review takes place in the Professional Staffing
Branch; for clerical applicants, in the Clerical Staffing
Branch. If there are no problems which require contacting
the applicant, the file is passed to a processing assistant
who prepares the forms to begin security and medical process-
ing. The processing assistant also arranges for reproduction
of the PHS to serve Office of Security (OS) background
investigation requirements. In approximately a week, the
processing assistant is informed by OS and the Office of
Medical Services (OMS) that their respective processing has
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been initiated and that the processing assistant can contact
the applicant to arrange the pre-employment trip to Washing-
ton for the medical and polygraph examinations. The
applicant is contacted, and depending on his or her avail-
ability and OS and OMS scheduling problems, the pre-employ-
ment processing trip is arranged, usually six weeks hence.
This contact by the processing.assistant is usually the
first definite word to the applicant of the Agency's
intent to hire. A follow-up letter is sent to the applicant
confirming that he or she is being considered for a position
and the grade and salary of that position; a schedule of
processing appointments is enclosed.
L. Security Processing
The OS investigation is twofold: background investi-
gation and polygraph examination. When the file is received
in Clearance Division/OS, a name check against OS files is
undertaken and an interagency (FBI and military) name check
is initiated. A security appraiser decides which
will have responsibility for the background
investigation and the case is assigned. It is at this stage
that the processing assistant in Professional Staffing
Branch/OPPPM is informed that the pre-employment polygraph
examination can be scheduled.
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The background investigation normally addresses the
last 15 years of the applicant's life. Investigations are
ordinarily run to completion even when significant, seem-
ingly disqualifying information is uncovered during the
investigation. A summary of the highlights of an investiga-
tion is cabled to Headquarters followed by a pouched
report. Starting at the point when an investigation request
is received in OS, an average of 45 days is required to
complete and report the results of an investigation, an
average of 60 days for issuance of full clearance. The
averages fluctuate depending on OS workload.
During the applicant's pre-employment processing
visit to Headquarters, the polygraph examination is normally
scheduled to follow the physical examination. In most cases
the polygraph examiner will have the cabled results of the
background investigation. The result of the polygraph
examination is transmitted to the Clearance Division, by
telephone if satisfactory, by written report if there is a
noteworthy problem.
A security appraiser in Clearance Division reviews
the results of the applicant's background investigation
and polygraph examination, summarizes the findings and
recommends approval or disapproval of the applicant. If
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approval is recommended, and the supervisor concurs, OS
approval is granted. If disapproval is recommended, the
case is referred through the OS chain of command to the
Director of Security. Only the latter has authority within
OS to disapprove an applicant for employment for reasons of
security. Security disapprovals are issued in about 10% of
applicant cases; this percentage has been fairly consistent
over the years, according to OS statistics. Cases in which
the background investigation or the polygraph examination
uncovers questions of suitability for employment, in con-
trast to established security criteria, are referred to the
Applicant Review Panel for resolution (see N. below).
M. Medical Processing
Examination by the Office of Medical Services(OMS) is
also twofold: physical and psychiatric. These examinations
are given in Ames Building. For selected categories,
psychological testing and assessment are added. The phys-
ical includes laboratory tests the first day and a physical
examination and consultation with a physician the second
day. Prior to the physical, OMS will obtain, with the
applicant's permission, a statement from the applicant's
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doctor pertaining to any prior significant medical problem.
The psychiatric evaluation involves filling out a Personal
Index, review of the form by a psychometrist, and in about
two-thirds of the cases a psychiatric interview. It takes
an average of one and one-half hours to complete the form.
The psychometrist, based on her experience and staff guid-
ance, reviews the form for potential psychiatric problems
and determines which applicants should have a psychiatric
interview. (All CT candidates are given a psychiatric
interview.)
Approximately four percent of applicants are rejected
for employment for medical reasons (1.5% clinical, 2.5%
psychiatric). Cases involving questions about suitability
are referred by OMS to the Applicant Review Panel.
N. Applicant Review Panel (ARP)
The ARP was established in 1953. It is chaired by an
OPPPM officer with representatives from OS, OMS/Psychiatric
Staff, and 0/EE0, and an advisory member from OMS/Psycholog-
ical Services Staff. It reviews applicant cases referred by
OS and OMS involving questions which are not disqualifying
under security or medical criteria. Examples are heavy
drinking, job hopping, habitual tardiness, indebtedness, and
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volatile behavior. The ARP follows guidelines enumerated in
the Federal Personnel Manual Letter 731-3 and in Executive
Order 10450. It meets weekly and considers approximately a
dozen new cases each week. Most of its decisions are
consensus judgments. It recommends by memorandum to D/PPPM
against the employment of some 200-300 applicants a year,
about half the cases referred for its consideration and
10-15% of all applicants in process. D/PPPM almost always
concurs. ARP and OS, combined, annually reject about 500
applicants who are being processed for employment.
O. The Final Stage
OPPPM processing assistants are informed when each of
the above clearance actions is completed. If clearance is
denied, the applicant is sent a letter of rejection stating
that a variety of factors has resulted in a decision not to
hire. Specific reasons are not given; a persistent applicant
can determine the reason(s) by submitting a request under
the Privacy Act. If, on the other hand, clearance is
approved by OS and OMS, the processing assistant contacts
the hiring component to determine a desirable date for entry
on duty (EOD). Components sometimes may indicate at this
stage they are no longer interested in a particular applicant
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or are unable to hire the individual because of administra-
tive constraints. However, if there are no complications,
the assistant contacts the applicant to determine the
latter's preference. In some cases, a certain amount of
negotiation between the applicant and the hiring component
is required to fix a firm EOD date. EOD usually occurs from
30 to 60 days after full clearance has been approved.
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AMNSIRMIVE
III. THE RECRUITMENT CLIMATE
A. Then and Now
Since the 1950's, there have been major changes in
the Agency and in the nation's recruitment environment.
416
During the Korean conflict, the Agency was expanding in
mission and size, but was still little known and not very
visible. A nationwide network, centralized in the then
Office of Personnel, was developed for producing a large
number of candidates for employment in professional and
technical positions. The emphasis was on the recruitment of
generalists. Circa 1965, there were full-time Agency re-
cruiters in
In contrast to the centralization of recruitment,
the actual hiring of applicants was decentralized among
relatively autonomous operating components which selected
the best prospects from a seemingly endless flow of files
provided by the recruiters. One Agency official has likened
the process to a supplier (the recruiter) filling barrels of
disparate merchandise in a country store, letting buyers
(components) make their own particular choices.
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As the Agency became better known and developed a
mystique, it was able to attract large numbers of highly
qualified applicants willing to persevere in the employ-
ment quest despite lengthy processing times, minimal revela-
tion about jobs for which they were being considered, and
virtually 410 communication from the Agency during the long
wait for appointment. Salaries and benefits offered by the
Agency were commensurate with, and in many instances better
than, those available elsewhere. The Agency also enjoyed a
distinct edge in intangible attractions -- service to
country, intellectual stimulus, opportunity for travel,
participation in the "omniscience" of U.S. intelligence.
The present milieu is decidedly different. The
Agency has contracted in size and has fewer recruitment
needs. We have achieved, not altogether by choice, consider-
able visibility. The resulting public awareness and atti-
tudes have had both positive and negative impact on recruit-
ing. The essentiality of a U.S. espionage function is still
widely accepted within the country and there exists exten-
sive interest in the Agency as a place to work. The volume
of inquiries and formal applications is high. (See Tab D.)
But the "bloom" has faded. Today's applicants are more
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skeptical about the Agency and its reputation, seek more
assurances about job tenure and Agency morale, want more
knowledge about jobs, are less patient with processing time,
weigh more job options, and expect substantial monetary and
professional benefits.
Although the country's unemployment rate would suggest
? that employers can be highly selective, applicants who offer
high-caliber credentials appear to have the advantage.
Those entering the employment market expend considerable
effort looking for the "best" job. A 1979 study by the
placement office at Northwestern University indicates that
the reputation of a would-be employer is still important,
but applicants no longer focus on a single employer.
Fortunately, judging from the results of employee surveys
- and interviews conducted during this inspection, the
Agency continues to draw people for whom this organization
has had an almost exclusive appeal.
There are those in the Agency who contend that the
basic recruiting concept and system established in the
1950's remains essentially sound on the grounds that "it
works". We find, however, that the system works only with
what we regard as unnecessary sluggishness. Recruiting
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shortages have developed in several key areas, notably in
scientific and technical personnel at both entry and ad-
vanced levels, and in clerical personnel. Minority recruit-
ment efforts, which only began in earnest in FY 1974, have
not produced significant results. We also believe that the
Agency is on the threshold of a change in recruiting circum-
stances, characterized by rising salary pressures and need
for quicker responses and improved articulation of job
opportunities if we are to gain the services of high
caliber personnel.
B. Salary Competition
Agency salaries seem generally competitive for entry-
level personnel, except for some scientific, technical and
clerical categories, and minority candidates. Inflationary
pressures are such, however, that private corporations tend
to move quickly and frequently to adjust salary scales
upward. We believe that the Agency will be facing signifi-
cant salary disadvantages shortly unless there is greater
discretionary use of appointment grades and salaries.
Salary disadvantages have already emerged in Agency
components seeking scientific and technical personnel
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at both entry and advanced levels. Officials in the National
Photographic Interpretation Center, the Information Manage-
ment Staff and the Offices of Communications, Technical
Services, Data Processing, Sigint Operations, and Development
& Engineering express concern at their growing inability to
locate and obtain a sufficient number of qualified engineers,
electronics technicians, computer systems programmers, and
physical scientists. The Office of Communications (OC)
has only 80% strength in its approximately electronic
technician positions and 85% strength in its
mgineering
positions. Internal transfers to DS&T, where grade struc-
tures are higher, account for some of the OC engineer short-
ages. The Office of Data Processing has only 74% of its1---]
systems programmer positions filled.
The problem is not limited to initial recruitment;
of equal concern is the loss of personnel already employed,
especially of engineers and systems programmers. Their
mobility and frequent job changes have become commonplace
in the larger society but have introduced "cultural shock"
into many Agency components accustomed to career commitment.
An official of a major international engineering and
construction firm told us that the annual turnover rate
among engineers in his industry is approximately 45%.
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Two Agency components have provided us with case
summaries of applicants who have rejected Agency employment
because of salary offers. Our own investigation confirms
this fact and provides a measurable dimension. Listed below
are comparisons of average annual salary offers on a national
scale for' 1979 college graduates without experience and
Agency salary levels for the samecategory of personnel. The
national figures have been tabulated by the College Placement
Council (CPC) and the Endicott Report, published by North-
western University.
CPC/Endicott Agency Difference
Engineers
$18,360
$18,101 (GSE-7/1)
$ 259
Computer
16,560
13,925 (GS-7/1)
2,435
Scientists
The current average starting salary-for engineers nationwide
is 10% higher than a year ago, for computer scientists 11.5%
higher. Agency salaries in these categories are 6% and 7%
higher; respectively (October 1978 to October 1979). The
nationwide salary figures cited are average; offers to those
with better than average qualifications are scaled upwards
to more than $20,000 (GS-11) for engineers and $19,000
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1. all
(GS-10) for computer scientists. Interestingly, a s,phen-
omenon which has emerged in this upward salary spiral is a
trend by private industry to favor the hiring of bachelor-
level candidates over the higher-priced graduate-level
prospects: There is a major move within the Agency to make
appointments at advanced steps (higher salaries) within the
grade authorized. OPPPM must approve each case. We believe
this approach is at best a makeshift solution to a problem
which requires fundamental rethinking of the Agency's grade
and salary structure for hard-to-get personnel. For
example, the Agency's standard grade for a bachelor-level
engineer without experience is GSE-7, ranging from $18,101
(Step 1) to $22,277 (Step 10). Current appointments are
being made as high as $21,349 (Step 8), leaving less than a
$1,000 leeway within the GSE-7 grade. Given existing
inflationary pressures, this margin will soon evaporate.
Secretaries are in the hard-to-get category as well; at
the same time, despite the Agency's low clerical attrition
rate compared with the rest of the Federal government, the
Agency is losing secretaries to private industry. Appli-
cants can bargain with private industry for entry level
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salaries whereas the Agency basically has a fixed scale.
Stenographers, in particular, can command premium salaries.
Private industry often offers more prestige, more challeng-
ing duties than typing and shorthand, and more generous
benefits.
Many Agency components have turned to part-time cler-
ical staffing to save money and positions. In late 1979,
there were almost 150 such requirements outstanding. OPPPM
is having particular difficulty in locating part-time
clerical candidates because pay scales -- diluted by infla-
tion, transportation, parking and subsistence expenses --
are not sufficient to attract clerical applicants in the
numbers needed. Even in the Washington area with its high
concentration of governmental jobs versus those in the
private sector, the latter is drawing relatively larger
numbers of clerical applicants because of advantages in
salaries and benefits.
RECOMMENDATION:
1. The Deputy Director of Central Intelli-
gence have the Director of Personnel
Policy, Planning and Management to
develop, in consultation with the
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Deputy Directors, a liberalized struc-
ture of appointment grades for hard-to-
get personnel to enable operating
components to cope with current infla-
tionary salary pressures.
C. Not By Bread Alone
a
The above analysis is not to suggest that job seekers
believe the Agency is just another employer in what is
basically a salary rat race. Although there is legitimate
reason for concern about salary differentials, numerous
Agency officials who are involved in hiring appear to
be overemphasizing the salary issue. Several other pertinent
considerations, both positive and negative, appear to be
receiving inadequate attention. According to a study by the
placement office at Northwestern University , job challenge
remains the single most important magnet for those seeking
employment. However, a combination of poorly written
recruitment guides, security restraints, lack of intimate
knowledge of Agency jobs among recruiters, and insufficient
attention by component interviewers to relating job demands
to candidate qualifications and interests result in gen-
erally poor Agency salesmanship. We believe that, in
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contrast to earlier times, the Agency needs to sell itself
to candidates, particularly in the hard-to-get categories,
but without compromising concern for candidate motivation
and excellence.
The second most important factor for today's job
seeker, according to the Northwestern study, is employment
location. Yet, Agency hiring otficials appear to pay scant
attention to the positive aspects of assignment in Washing-
ton, D.C. and overseas. OPPPM recently worked with an
Agency component to produce a specialized pamphlet on job
challenge and the advantages of living in Washington, and
expects to do more of this. We find that candidates are
also concerned about the nature and importance of the
Agency's mission, professional pride, the state of employee
morale, and prospects for job tenure in the wake of highly-
publicized "firings" in the Operations Directorate. We
think hiring officials need to address these issues when
dealing with candidates.
Component hiring officials are insulated from labor
market dynamics, and are not familiar with professional
recruiting concepts and techniques. We believe that the
Agency, as part of the new approach to recruitment outlined
in Chapter XI of this report, should develop a training
program for personnel engaged in the recruitment/selection
cycle.
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IX. PROFESSIONAL APPLICANT TEST BATTERY (PATB)
The PATB, an eight hour series of written tests, has
been used by the Agency for more than 20 years as a tool for
the selection of new professional employees. It is admin-
istered by the Office of Medical Services/Psychological
Services Staff (PSS). This inspection examined two aspects
of the PATB -- its use in applicant processing and selection,
and the evidence concerning its reliability and validity.
The first aspect was addressed by the inspection team,
the second by two experts in psychological testing who have
extensive experience in academic, military and indus-
trial settings, and are widely quoted in current profes-
sional literature on the subject.
[The complete report prepared by the consultants
appears as Appendix H to this report. Detailed consultant
findings and explanations are necessarily omitted from this
chapter which attempts to present their major findings
in non-technical terms. Appendix H should be read in its
entirety to obtain a full understanding of the consultants'
findings.]
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A. Agency Use of the PATB
Our findings concerning the use of PATB are based on a
questionnaire survey of 900 employees entering on duty
between 1 October 1977 and August 1979, and of 500 super-
visors. They also derive from interviews of Agency employ-
ees, and from a review of Recruitment Guides which indicate
whether the PATB is supposed to be administered to appli-
cants for a particular type of job.
We find that there is no consistent policy within the
Agency as to which applicants should take the PATB and which
not. Among recently-hired professional employees, two thirds
report they had taken the PATB and one third report they had
not. All Directorates resort to it to some extent, but the
Directorate of Science and Technology relatively little. It
is, for example, administered to applicants for engineering
positions in some components, but not in others. As appli-
cant files are shunted from one component to another, it
often happens that among applicants being considered for the
same type of position, some will have been tested, some not.
APUiNIATT7
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Decision as to whether an applicant must take the PATB
is made at the Office and Division levels, and such deci-
sions often are not consistent among Offices and Divisions.
Even within components which specify in their Recruit-
ment Guides that the PATB is to be administered to appli-
cants for certain positions, reliance on it by individual
managers varies from extensive ta total disregard. More than
60% of 500 supervisors who were surveyed either have no
opinion about PATB's usefulness or indicate that it is not
used by their components. Only about one-fourth of the
supervisors indicate that they give significant weight to
the applicant's performance on PATB in making employment
decisions.
There is a need for the Agency to develop a systematic
policy on the role of PATB in personnel selection. This does
not imply that all applicants_should be tested, just that
applicants for a given type of position should be evaluated
against uniform selection criteria. Policy guidelines need
to be set for determining the positions for which the
PATB is to be used as a selection device, and such guidelines
should be followed by all components. If the decision to
require or not require PATB for professional jobs is made
arbitrarily by individual managers there is a high potential
ANIENISTRATi',i4.141ZERNAL USE ONLY
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for violating EEOC Guidelines on disparate treatment of
applicants In the opinion of the Office of General Counsel,
"If CIA does not comply with lawful and appropriate EEOC
regulatory issuances, CIA would stand in violation of both
1/
statute and executive orde-17."
RECOMMENDATION:
36. The Deputy Director of Central Intelligence
instruct the Executive Committee to develop,
for regulatory issuance, an Agency policy which
specifies the types of positions for which sele-
tion tests are to be administered, and the types
of testing appropriate to such positions.
B. Reliability
An important consideration in evaluating a test
battery is its reliability; a test is regarded as reliable
if repeated measurement gives consistent results for a
1/
Memorandum from the Deputy General Counsel to the Director
of Equal Employment Opportunity, OGC 79-05429, 13 June
1979.
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given individual or if the individual's relative standing in
a group shows little change. If test scores are not reli-
able, they cannot be used with confidence for accurate
measurement or prediction.
Some reliability data are available from PATB research
performed in the mid-1950's. PSS states that, in 1975, five
additional studies were made of the reliability of the PATB,
although only one 1975 study was made available to the
consultants and the inspectors.
A review of these data shows that for white males and
females, only five of the PATB's 31 tests have reliabili-
ties that the consultants regard as being at least minimally
acceptable. For all other tests and scales in PATB for which
reliability data are available, they regard the reliabili-
ties as below minimally acceptable level; i.e., the scores
from them are too unstable for use in making decisions about
individuals. No reliability data are available for the
sample of writing ability or the scoring procedure. The
consultants find PATB reliability data particularly inade-
quate for females and minorities, due apparently to failure
to recognize that females and minorities have become a more
significant portion of the Agency's professional work force
than they had been in the 1950s.
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The consultants caution that, until adequate evidence
exists that a test is sufficiently reliable to be used, it
is unwise as well as legally questionable to use it as a
personnel selection device. To do so violates professional
standards for test development and violates Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Guidelines because it can lead
to false interpretation of tesf scores,
The Psychological Services Staff (PSS), in response to
the consultants' findings and conclusions, asserts that when
the PATB was developed in the 1950's it was validated,
normed for use in personnel selection, and a concerted
effort made to establish its reliability. PSS further
asserts that once the reliability of the tests is estab-
lished, and the test battery put into use, there is usually
little reason to question the reliability further. We
believe the changing composition of the applicant population
constitutes ample reason to recheck PATB reliability. In
consequence of the consultants' criticism of the adequacy of
the reliability data, PSS recently conducted reliability
studies of eight of the PATB's cognitive tests administered
to 426 applicants in 1978 and 1979. On the basis of these
studies, PSS advises that reliability co-efficients for the
235 males, 191 females, 228 whites and 198 blacks in the
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study exceed minimally acceptable levels. We find several
difficulties with these results: the statistical method
used to establish test reliability yields spuriously high
results when used with tests whose questions are not independ-
ent or for tests that are timed. Also, results of reli-
ability itudies for the eight tests cannot be assumed to
extend to the other 23 tests in-the battery. A recommenda-
tion later in this chapter addresses the PATB's reliability
within the context of a comprehensive approach to the
Agency's psychological testing program.
C. Validity
A second major consideration in evaluting a test
battery is its validity; a test is regarded as valid if
there exists a demonstrably logical relationship between
specific elements of the test battery and knowledge and/or
skills required in the job, or there is a statistical
relationship between test scores and performance on the
job.
The consultants, in their review, considered the
several types of validity recognized by the American
Psychological Association (APA). Essentially, there are
three -- content validity in which actual elements of the
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work are replicated in testing; construct validity in which
knowledge, abilities and skills logically related to tasks
performed on the job are tested; and criterion-related
validity in which statistical comparisons are made between
individuals' scores on certain tests (not necessarily
related"demonstrably to the work) and measures of incumbents'
performances on the job. An example would be a correlation
between scores on a numerical operations test and performance
in a job not involving mathematical computation. Virtually
all of the validity studies conducted by PSS on elements of
the PATB over the years have been of the criterion-related
type.
The consultants reviewed 23 studies done by, or under
the auspices of, PSS. They conclude that the evidence
presented for the validity of these studies is seriously
inadequate. They state that of 16 PSS studies relating
performance on the tests to performance on the job, only ten
provide sufficient information to permit judging the evi-
dence for validity. They find that even the evidence which
is presented in the ten studies is fragmentary, very weak
and unconvincing, and does not meet minimum standards set by
the APA or the EEOC's Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selec-
tion Procedures. The consultants point out that the samples
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of job incumbents which were used are too small; that
the incumbents who were studied represent primarily a
high ability range and cannoteffectively be used to
validate tests which seek to differentiate among applicants
across the entire range of abilities; and that relevant,
reliable and unbiased job performance measures were not
available by which to judge the incumbents' success on the
job.
The consultants also find that PSS' statistical mea-
sures of the degree of agreement between the test scores of
individuals who were hired, and supervisors' subsequent
rating of the performances of these individuals in partic-
ular jobs have been inconsistent and generally low. They
assert that such results are to be expected in the absence
of suitably reliable tests and when the hiring process
eliminates the less talented applicants, resulting in a
restriction in the range of talent available for subsequent
study.
PSS has, in some of its studies, developed special
criteria for measuring employee performance, but PSS acknowl-
edges that the job performance data used in its validation
studies generally is not satisfactory. Fitness report
ratings on which many of the studies are based are neither
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sufficiently reliable nor differentiated to provide an
acceptable basis for test validation.
The consultants find no validity data of any kind for
the PATB writing sample
and point out that the
, which compares an
applicant's self-expressed interests with those of incum-
bents in a wide variety of jobs common outside the Agency,
lacks both Agency norms and Agency validation. PSS contends
that Agency norms per se are not necessary for the
because external interest profiles developed as part of the
instrument are relevant to Agency jobs. The inspectors
find, however, that a hiring official contemplating the
selection of an applicant for a job as a librarian, re-
searcher, or security investigator is not demonstrably
helped when informed in the PATB narrative report that
the applicant has interests s.imilar to a forester or aviator.
Although there have been some attempts to validate certain
items on the Biographical Information Inventory, statistical
evidence for its validity is lacking and, again, because of
the lack of explicit job analyses, logical relationships
cannot be established.
Four PSS studies have been done on the validity of
PATB test scores for predicting success in foreign language
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training. According to the consultants, only two of the 31
PATB tests were related with any consistency to success in
foreign language training'but these related only to training
in French and Spanish. They conclude that the results
of these four studies do not establish the value of PATB for
evaluating language aptitude. PSS objects to this conclu-
sion and states its work in this area remains exploratory.
Still we find the results being reported to hiring officials
as predictors of performance in foreign language study.
It is the consultants' view that the confidence with
which results of the validation studies are reported
as predictors of job performance greatly exceeds the level
of confidence which is justified by the statistical data on
the reliability and validity of the PATB.
Given the inadequacies, on both theoretical and
practical terms, of the existing criterion-related test
validation program, we believe the Agency should adopt a
distinctly different approach which is both professionally
and pragmatically sound. The consultants recommend a
construct test validation based on comprehensive job
analyses, and we agree. (A proper job analysis identifies
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the knowledge, abilities and skills an individual should
possess in order to perform a particular job, or group of
similar jobs, effectively.)
The consultants find no evidence, in the PSS data
which were made available to them, that comprehensive job
analyses 'have been performed for the purpose of validating
the PATB or other Agency personnel selection procedures.
They explain that the mean test score profiles of individ-
uals already performing Agency jobs, which are now relied
upon, do not constitute job analyses. They conclude that
there is no logical, professionally justifiable relationship
(or construct validity) between the PATB and the jobs for
which it is used as a selection tool. PSS asserts that its
Test Data Book #15, dated 1 July 1958, constitutes evidence
of job analyses appropriate for this purpose. The consul-
tants disagree, pointing out that almost all the data in the
book relates to success in training rather than to success
on the job and that training criteria cannot be used to
demonstrate job-related validity.
The consultants cite the absence of job analyses upon
which to base selection as the most serious deficiency of
the PATB. They assert that the lack of job analyses is a
violation of APA professional test development standards
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and of EEOC Guidelines when a statistical relationship
between test scores and job performance ratings cannot
be established feasibly.
PSS, in commenting on the consultants' report, has
construed their recommendation of comprehensive job analyses
for the Agency as a "mechanistic, task-oriented approach".
The thrust of the consultant' recommendation is that
comprehensive job analyses identify not the detailed tasks
to be performed, but the human attributes (knowledge,
abilities, and skills) needed to perform a given job, or
group of similar jobs. In endorsing the consultants' view,
the inspection team is suggesting the use of just such a job
analysis instrument, one which has been used widely, although
certainly not exclusively, in private industry and which
forms a basis for the Federal Bureau of Investigation's
testing program to select new special agents.
Initial work in conducting comprehensive job analyses
could be accomplished under contract by a group of cleared
test development specialists/consultants, using commercially
available instruments. At the same time, the Agency should
hire test development specialists for an ongoing capability.
We estimate that three to four professional personnel, with
supporting staff, would be a workable complement for such a
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test development unit. Appendix H of this report should be
provided to them for initial guidance.
The inspection team believes that responsibility for
the development of an Agency comprehensive job analysis
program should be placed within the Office of Personnel
Policy, Planning, and Management, rather than in the Psycho-
logical Services Staff, Office Cf Medical Services, because
such analyses are relevant not only to testing but to the
entire range of personnel selection procedures. We note that
a recommendation to this effect recently was made by the
Agency task force for implementing the Uniform Guidelines
and was approved by the DDCI.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
37. The Deputy Director of Central Intelligence:
a. authorize the Director of Personnel Policy,
Planning, and Management to contract with
job analysis specialists to assist the
the Agency in developing an Agencywide
job analysis program by a specific date.
These specialists should consider, among
others, the Position Analysis Questionnaire,
developed at Purdue University, for this
purpose. It is a worker-oriented, as opposed
to a task-oriented, approach. It permits
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one to generalize the human attributes under-
lying diverse jobs performed in the Agency.
b establish a. unit of three to four profes-
sionals under the Director of Personnel
Policy, Planning, and Management to develop
and try out a new applicant testing program,
and establish professionally acceptable
reliability and validity data and norms
for such tests before they are authorized
for administration and use in personnel
selection. This unit should also be respon-
sible for assuring the reliability and validity
of all other Agency testing for professional
and nonprofessional applicants. Job analysts
and test development specialists with demon-
strated professional training and practical
experience in the specialized fields of job
analysis and test development should be hired
for this unit.
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D. PATB Narrative Report
The consultants have major reservations with respect
to the narrative report that is prepared to summarize an
applicant's PATB results. They assert that the strong,
confident recommendations to hire or not to hire applicants
for specific jobs or in specific components are not sup-
ported by the available evidence for validity of the PATB.
The consultants point out that since most of the PATB tests
lack adequate reliability and have little demonstrated
validity for jobs in the Agency, the narrative reports
based on the test scores are misleading and potentially
unfair. In addition, they find no written guidelines
available to or used by the psychologists in writing the
narrative report, and state that sections of the reports
tend to vary considerably in unpredictable ways. To them,
the variations appear due as much or more to the personal
idiosyncrasies of the psychologists as to differences in
performance on PATB among applicants. For example, reports
of applicants' writing abilities variably address grammar,
syntax, spelling, sense, and literary quality, and use
ambiguous terms to describe the results.
4
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PSS challenges criticism of the PATB narrative report
because the consultants and inspectors failed to examine the
raw test scores on which the reports are based. The Staff
asserts that objective judgments of the reporting of test
results cannot be made in the absence of direct, side-by-
side comparison of the narrative reports with the test
scores on which those reports lre based. The inspection
team acknowledges that such side-by-side comparison was not
made but reiterates that comparable sections of narrative
reports vary greatly in both the selection and treatment of
points which are addressed. In the final analysis, the real
value of the narrative report to a hiring official depends
on the reliability and validity of the test results behind
it, and on their objective presentation.
E. Relevance for Minorities and Females
At the time of the consultants' review there was no
evidence that studies of adverse impact as defined by the
EEOC had been done for PATB or for any other selection
procedure used in the Agency. Although there was no direct
evidence of bias or unfairness, the consultants believe
there is the following serious potential for misuse or
unfair use of PATB:
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no evidence that minorities were represented
in the groups used to norm the tests;
no evidence that minorities have been included
in the samples used to determine job-related
validity;
evidence that females have not been repre-
sented at all in some samples and are under-
represented in others;
reliability data for PATB tests and scales are
not available for minorities, nor for the work
attitude scales for females.
Only two studies of minority applicants apparently
have been done by PSS. According to the consultants,
one of these, done in 1974, did not analyze the data cor-
rectly and must be disregarded. The other, initiated in
197.9, they view as not yet conclusive with respect to
fairness of the PATB. The study was in process when they
completed their review. PSS reports that the now completed
study of 952 black applicants between January 1974 and
January 1977 reveals that the Agency hired approximately the
same percentage of blacks from among those who took the PATB
as it did from among those who did not. The PSS study also
found that, among black applicants who were tested, the
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scores of those who were hired were superior overall to
the scores of black appl),cants not hired. Finally, PSS
reports that during this period the Agency hired 15% of the
black applicants who were tested, 13.8% of the white appli-
cants who were tested. PSS concludes that PATB testing has
no adverse impact on black applicants and that this study is
sufficient to meet EEOC Guidelines on this question.
We conclude from our own review of the Uniform Guide-
lines for Employee Selection Procedures that PSS' view
on this question should be acceptable to the EEOC for the
time being. However, the Guidelines stipulate that data
about the impact of selection techniques, including tests,
must now be compiled in relation to specific jobs or job
categories. This is not yet being done.
PSS asserts that there is not enough test data for
other minority groups to make any determination whether
these groups are experiencing adverse impact from the
PATB. Again, the Guidelines specify that in the absence of
such data, "the Federal enforcement agencies may draw an
inference of adverse impact of the selection process from
the failure of the user to maintain such data, if the user
has an underutilization of a (minority) group in the job
category, as compared to the group's representation in
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the relevant labor market or, in the case of jobs filled
from within, the applicable work force." (Section 4.D.)
Thus, the Agency will be required to maintain and report
minority test data with which user components will be able
to conform to the Guidelines.
F. Summing Up
The Psychological Services Staff seeks an augmentation
of its staff with which to intensify its research work
on the PATB and other psychological services; it also seeks
improved access to personnel data which would strengthen its
criterion-related test validation program. We believe that
PSS is, indeed, shorthanded, but are concerned that, in its
comments on the consultants study, appears to support
the status quo concerning the content, reliability and
validity of the PATB as well as to endorse individual
managers' completely discretionary use of it in the selec-
tion process.
By contrast, we believe that major changes should be
made in the testing program to make it more reliable and to
convert test validation to the construct validity concept
based on a comprehensive job analysis program within the
Agency. We are moved to this view both by the consultants'
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report and by the Uniform Guidelines which call for selec-
tion criteria based on job analysis.
Despite their criticism of the PATB and of the validity
evidence for it, the consultants see the Agency's need for
a battery of good selection tests. If testing is eliminated,
the only 'procedures for selecting personnel would be inter-
view, review of past academic ecords and experience, and
personal recommendation. They view each of these alterna-
tive procedures as having major shortcomings, with none
being able to provide the sort of relevant information about
an applicant's capabilities that are potentially available
from a good selection battery.
Based on the consultants' foregoing analysis of PATB
and their evaluation of the Agency's vulnerability to legal
challenge, we considered the recommendation that PATB be
suspended in its entirety until validity and adequate
reliability of its tests have been established. However, we
share the consultants' belief that the Agency needs a
battery of good selection tests and recognize the possi-
bility that future studies may indeed confirm the construct
validity and adequate reliability of some of the existing
PATB tests. Consequently, we favor a modified course of
action which retains certain aspects of the current PATB
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program while efforts are initiated to develop a sounder
psychological testing program for the Agency.
Although the consultants found no suitable evidence for
validity of the measures of intellectual ability, and that
some of these tests had low reliabilities, we do not recommend
that use of these be discontinued at this time. Some
require modification, and all require new norms based on a
representative sample of current applicants. They also
require a logical rationale (to establish construct validity)
for their use, based upon a sound job analysis. Pending
such developments, they may provide at least some basic
measure of an individual's intellectual ability. They
should be modified, however, with all possible speed.
RECOMMENDATION:
38. The Director of Medical Services continue to
administer the following tests subject to the
Agency's initiating a job analysis and test develop-
ment program:
Vocabulary
Reading Comprehension
Figure Matrices
Arithmetic Reasoning
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Contemporary World Affairs
Numerical Operations
Considerations
Interpretation of Data
Essay (Writing Sample)
We agree with the consultants that profile results of
the eight cognitive tests lista above should routinely be
reported in the files of all applicants who are tested,
and that names of applicants with special skills and
high abilities be retained for computerized recall for an
indefinite period. Reports of applicant test profiles
should include the notation that the use of the eight
cognitive tests is an interim procedure pending a validated
testing program. The essay also 'should be included in the
applicant file on an unevaluated basis. This data, of
course, should be removed when an applicant enters on
duty.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
39. The Director of Medical Services, in consultation
with the Director of Personnel Policy, Planning,
and Management, insure that a profile of cognitive
test results, plus the unevaluated essay, be
placed in an applicant's file prior to its review
by hiring officials.
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40. The Director of Personnel Policy, Planning and
Management enter into computerized records for
indefinite retention the names, special skills
and test profiles. of hard-to-get and unusually
promising applicants.
41. The Director of Medical Services discontinue
reporting test results for the following PATB tests
and procedures which the consultants view as
indefensible:
PSS Professional Applicant Testing Report
'(the narrative report written by OMS/PSS
psychologists) in its entirety.
The tests could, however, continue to be administered for
internal research purposes until sufficient validity data
are available to support their use as a selection tool.
166
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