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Washington—True civil service reform means having a federal workforce that is an engaged and active participant in continually improving efficiency and service to taxpayers, the leader of the largest independent federal union told a group of federal leaders yesterday at a forum sponsored by the Council for Excellence in Government and the Washington Post.

“Not much attention is paid to tapping the workforce to understand how to improve processes and efficiency,” said Colleen M. Kelley, NTEU national president. Government leaders would do well to recognize the fact that the federal workforce is the government’s most valuable asset.

The NTEU leader pointed to “span of control” obstacles, with decisions being made at the top and multiple layers of management hindering communication. Too often, changes are issued to employees “as a directive, not as an invitation to a two-way conversation.”

When it comes to ideas to reinvent government, frontline employees are left out of the loop, President Kelley said. Frontline federal employees can identify obstacles to improvements such as a lack of resources, including money and time. “The federal workforce can be a creative and innovative force for change. They just need an opportunity to be involved,” she said.

If federal employees were given the tools and resources to do their jobs and included in reengineering initiatives, there would be little need for competitive sourcing since agencies would be continually improving for maximum efficiency, she noted.

President Kelley took part in a forum, moderated by Patricia McGinnis, President and CEO, Council for Excellence in Government, including notable federal sector leaders including Clay Johnson, Deputy Director for Management, Office of Management and Budget, David Walker, Comptroller General of the United States, and John Gage, President of the American Federation of Government Employees.

NTEU is the largest independent federal union, representing some 150,000 employees in 30 agencies and departments.