Enactment and Implementation of the National Security Personnel System: Policy Made and Policy Unmade

Abstract

This case study reviews the enactment and implementation of the National Security Personnel System (NSPS) in the U.S. Department of Defense. Proponents of reform seized the opportunity to enact reform in the aftermath of 9/11, basing their arguments on national security concerns. However, the policy‐making process did not produce a consensus for reform among key stakeholders in the personnel management policy community. Instead, the NSPS angered and alienated the Office of Personnel Management, the public employee unions, and a number of congressional Democrats. Implementation of the NSPS became problematic as Defense Department officials attempted to move quickly and independently to get the new system online, eventually forcing the department to put the system on hold. In the end, Congress imposed limits on its implementation, advocates for the system disappeared, and a new president supported the repeal of NSPS. This case provides useful insights into the formulation of future strategies for personnel management reform.

Rediscovering Defense Policy: A Public Policy Call to Arms

“…Complementing the extensive quantitative work already in this area, in-depth singlecase or comparative-case studies will help bring the policy implementation process to life. This is exactly what Brook and King (2011) do in their examination of the failed the National Security Personnel System (NSPS) during the George W. Bush administration.…”

“…Once the NSPS’ last remaining proponents left office (i.e., Rumsfeld and Chu), the Obama administration ultimately halted and repealed the controversial program in 2009. The authors conclude, “[P]roponents of future reform might consider … [developing] a proposal collaboratively and present Congress with a detailed reform plan that can be debated and amended with the participation of all stakeholders” (Brook & King, , p. 906). Although simple enough, common‐sense implementation strategies like this seem to be the exception, not the rule, in government.…”

“…Following the attacks of September 11 and in the midst of the run‐up to war in Iraq, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld charged the Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, Dr. David Chu, with transforming the Pentagon's civilian personnel system to include more flexible starting salaries, performance pay, extended probationary periods, academic and term appointments, and sabbaticals, among other features (Brook & King, ). The Bush administration managed to exploit overlapping committee jurisdictions to muster enough congressional support to enact the NSPS through the 2004 National Defense Authorization Act in the name of national security.…”

Civil Service Reform Is Dead: Long Live Civil Service Reform

“…The denouement of MaxHR (DHS) and NSPS (DoD) has been discussed elsewhere (Brook & King, 2011; Institute for Defense Analysis, 2017; Riccucci & Thompson, 2008) and will not be repeated here other than to state that both fell afoul of union opposition, adverse court decisions, and congressional opposition. While MaxHR was never implemented, NSPS was phased in for non-bargaining unit members of the DoD workforce beginning in 2006 and remained in place for some members of that workforce through 2011.…”

Implementation: Making Hard Work of Something Simple

“…One body of implementation theory focuses on the contestability of policy and the barriers and hurdles that need to be overcome in implementation matters that are passionately debated (Brook and King ; Hood ; Le Grand ). Another focuses on the management skills and organisational prescriptions to make things happen.…”