After security disaster, OPM director resigns in disgrace

[RV_]

This one is a foregone conclusion but more than accepting a resignation news I'd like to see what is being done to prevent another.

 

To nobody's surprise, with more than 22 million federal government employee personnel records revealed, OPM's director will leave her post.

 

Excerpt:

 

"It was only a matter of time.

 

After it was revealed last month that more than four million federal personnel records had been stolen, members of Congress quickly demanded that the agency's director Katherine Archuleta should be fired.

On Friday, Archuleta resigned.

 

In an e-mail, Archuleta wrote: "Today I informed the OPM workforce that I am stepping down as the leader of this remarkable agency and the remarkable people who work for it. This morning, I offered, and the President accepted, my resignation as the Director of the Office of Personnel Management."

 

She continued, "I conveyed to the President that I believe it is best for me to step aside and allow new leadership to step in, enabling the agency to move beyond the current challenges and allowing the employees at OPM to continue their important work."

 

More here: http://www.zdnet.com/article/after-security-disaster-opm-director-resigns-in-disgrace/?tag=nl.e589&s_cid=e589&ttag=e589&ftag=TREc64629f

[SWRick]

So I guess I missed seeing that the CEOs of JP Morgan/Chase, Target, etc etc etc etc had similarly "resigned in disgrace"?

[chirakawa]

It seems that our entire government has been in reaction mode for several years now, instead of being proactive and preventing these failures. It's been just one example of incompetence after another, from the failure to get the ACA online experience up and going to the Secret Service, FEMA, DEA, Veterans Affairs, IRS, State Department, etc.

 

I can understand having bad apples in any organization, private or public sector, but to have one top level manager after another just not having a clue is embarrassing.

 

And, for those who will accuse me of being political, this didn't start in the present administration. It has a long history going back several.

[Pieere]

That is all one has to do when they screw up on a career is resign; even though they have messed up on some real serious stuff. I thiink that one should be responsible and allowed to stay and with a supervisor by their side, help to try and correct the problem so it don't happen again! could have been made a scapegoat also for some one else.

[Vladimir]

It seems that our entire government has been in reaction mode for several years now, instead of being proactive and preventing these failures. It's been just one example of incompetence after another, from the failure to get the ACA online experience up and going to the Secret Service, FEMA, DEA, Veterans Affairs, IRS, State Department, etc.

 

I can understand having bad apples in any organization, private or public sector, but to have one top level manager after another just not having a clue is embarrassing.

 

And, for those who will accuse me of being political, this didn't start in the present administration. It has a long history going back several.

 

The problem really is the political appointees. You do have to meet minimum education and intelligence standards to be a civil service employee.

 

I ran into a political appointee that did NOT understand that all (but two) Federal agencies work for the President. How can you miss that in the constitution?? How can you run a Federal agency without understanding that??

 

I was talking politics with my civil service boss one time and he said...."Remember, you are not electing a President.....you are electing a government."

 

So those things like able to run a large organization, leadership, understand of delegation and supervision of millions of employees all come into play AFTER the election.

 

I believe that is why as a general rule Governor's make better President's than Senators.

 

PS. The CEO of Target was fired.

[DuffMan]

She may have "stepped down" but I bet her paychecks are continuing - just with another title!

[Selah]

Its a great symbolic gesture that she resigned but this goes way beyond a directors incompetence. What I want to know is who is/was the CIO, Chief Information Officer. That is the real person that needs to be held accountable. And did the agency not have a information security person?

This isn't a person failure, it is a system failure.

[Vladimir]

The problem in civil service is that competent people are not recognized. So incompetent people tend to get promoted. They create problems and then solve them. This creates the impression that they are compent.

 

When I was working I was really dependent on our computer shop to maintain the system since I was the most demanding user. The shop functioned really well. No complaints on my part. The Information Director came up for a promotion. Rumors were flying that he was NOT going to the promotion. So I went into his supervisor and argued that the guy was outstanding and deserved a promotion.

 

His reply was short and to the point...."why does he deserve a promotion. His shop works fine. There are no problems".

 

Well, the end of the short story. IBM offered him twice the salary. They recognized that "no problems" meant a competent manager. And he ended up working for them instead of the Federal government;

[Cyberdave]

Vlad, that about sums it up...

[Ray,IN]

Oddly enough, the previous day she stated she would not resign. Sounds like she had some convincing.