WASHINGTON, DC - Yesterday, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) announced the following changes to the Senior Executive Service (SES) and Senior-Level (SL) and Scientific and Professional (ST) performance appraisal system certification process:

• Automatic renewal of fully certified appraisal systems based on OPM/Office of Management and Budget (OMB) review of annual data submission to determine ratings, pay, and awards decisions comply with statute and regulation; 
• Agencies are no longer required to submit performance plans with certification requests; and 
• Agencies will have greater flexibility to demonstrate pay differentiation using the combination of performance-based pay adjustments and performance awards, which will be referred to as “annual performance-based compensation”

OPM Acting Director Margaret Weichert stated in a memo to federal agency leaders that these changes are meant to “better support agencies in meeting their mission, enhance service and stewardship, and prepare for the Workforce of the 21st Century in support of the President’s Management Agenda (PMA)” and “reduce agency burden by removing procedural hurdles.”

OPM based the decision on agency feedback and the vision for effective governance set forth in the PMA.

Implementation will begin on Monday, January 7, 2019.