ANNUAL ACTIVITY REPORT FY-1964 OP/POD/PLACEMENT BRANCH

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-01826R000200030013-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 8
• Document Creation Date: December 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 27, 2001
• Sequence Number: 13
• Content Type: REPORT

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ANNUAL ACTIVITY REPORT FY-1964
OP /POD /PLACEMENT BRANCH
A. Description of Functions
The Placement Branch's main functions are as follows:
(1) Consult with Agency operating officials and advise as to personnel
policies and procedures on matters pertaining to the selection of
applicants; (2) Determine the minimum qualifications of applicants
and individuals accepted for employment; (3) Make periodic surveys
for the purpose of ascertaining the requirements for personnel needed
in the Scientific, Technical, Research, Analytical, and Support type
of positions; (4) Furnish timely requirements to the appropriate
officials for outside recruitment if qualified and available personnel
cannot be located within the Agency; (5) Approve personnel actions
involving excepted appointments, promotions, reassignments, etc. ,
for the DD/I, DD/S&T, and DD/S components; (6) Determine and
approve the salary entitlement; (7) Approve and process all new
appointment actions for DD /P; (8) Review "Outstanding" and "Weak"
fitness reports; (9) Interview job applicants; (10) Interview candidates
for reassignment; (11) Counseling of employees; (12) The administra-
tion of the Engineering and Scientific testing program; (13) The
determination of applicants to be coded; (14) The orientation and brief-
ing of new employees; (15) The actual processing of EOD procedures;
(16) Preparation of significant statistics and reports relative to Place-
ment Branch activities; (17) Preparation of special correspondence;
(18) Conduct follow-up interviews of new employees (GS-05 through
GS-12 -- six to eight months after EOD date.)
B. Number of People Involved in Work Force
We have had a work force of during this past
FY. Currently there are staff employees. This represents
an 18. 5% reduction in the staff. One (1) professional is engaged in
general management and supervisory responsibilities; - profes-
sionals and - clericals are engaged in placement and processing
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SUBJECT: Annual Report FY-64
Correspondence Section
C. Production Figures
In FY-64, according to machine statistics, professional 25X9A2
types entered on duty. This figure does not includeJOT's. 25X9
=technicians and professional types, Grade GS-06 and above, were
placed in the Office of Communications. A substantial number of the
total placements in junior professional categories employed at GS-05
levels are not included in the above figures.
This volume of placements required the dispatching a total of
34, 474 pieces of correspondence; 27, 139 were routine letters, 3, 897
letters required individual preparation, 281 letters were prepared to
answer Congressional and front-office interest, and 3, 157 letters
were required for special projects. We had forecast that we would
experience an increase in our correspondence volume of approximately
10 per cent in FY-64, but this expected workload did not materialize
because of restrictions in personnel strength. However, it may be of
interest to note , even though we acquired less new 25X9
employees, the correspondence load was greater than last FY's work-
load, and was accomplished with one less employee. Workload
factors for the last four (4) Fiscal Years has been:
Letters completed
FY-61
26,
931
Letters completed
FY-62
31,
992
Letters completed
FY-63
34,
348
Letters completed
FY-64
34,
474
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We closed out FY-64 with =people in process. In
comparison with the previous FY, we closed out FY-63 with
people in process.
D. Problems Met and Solved
The problem of instantaneous retrieval of applicant files has
required that we create a new control record system. This record
enables us to know the exact location of any applicant file at any time
it is under consideration.
In response to the request to resume "follow-up" interviews,
we have embarked upon a plan to concentrate our efforts on all pro-
fessional EOD's, GS-05 through GS-12. Plans have been made to
conduct these follow-up interviews not earlier than six months after
EOD, and not later than eight months after EOD. The program is
being resumed in July 1964.
Effective and timely two-way communication continues to be
an important by-product of the Personnel Officers' Monthly Meeting
in which POD/PB participates.
The Placement Officers have devised a way they can facilitate
the immediate retrieval of applicant files of previously rejected candi-
dates. Each officer keeps a chronological name listing by occupational
skills of cases whose applications are less than a year old. We have
had extremely good results working over this group and plan to continue
this practice.
An obviously over-staffed force resulted from the ceiling
restrictions imposed early in FY-64. We have subsequently reduced
our staff by 18. 5% by normal attrition and reassignment of the surplus
personnel. While this was being accomplished, we were able to fur-
nish approximately 300 man-hours of voluntary assistance to other
Division and Branch requirements. While the personnel costs were
steadily decreasing, some other economies were effected; i. e. , three
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SUBJECT: Annual Report FY-64
four-drawer safes were turned in. Five telephone instruments,
three telephone (10 switch) key boxes, and three secretarial desk
units have also been turned back to stock.
The problem of providing opportunities for training was
successfully met. Six of the professional staff had Agency training
courses in exc`e.,p=;.s'of 240 man-hours. Nine members of the profes-
sional staff attended the Supervisor's Re-orientation and Indoctrination
sessions. Three of the clerical force have had an opportunity to in-
crease their clerical skills by attending the Agency Clerical Refresher
Courses. This training was accomplished, in the face of a constantly
diminishing work force, by extra effort on the part of other members
of the staff.
During FY-64 we reduced seven different operating procedures
to writing for inclusion in the POD Procedures Handbook. We have one
more ready for publication. This will be a continuing requirement as
procedures change and new requirements are placed upon us and, of
course, the need to revise and up-date the already existing procedures.
The problem of more realistic recruitment requests has been
solved in part by insisting that the requests reflect what the respective
components could actually accommodate ceiling-wise.
E. Problems Met and Not Solved
We continue to have a "space layout" problem. We do not have
(1) reasonably adequate or accessible space for conducting our EOD
processing, (2) privacy for conducting counseling, and (3) follow-up
interviews. This is not mentioned again to embarrass anybody but
rather to make a historical note of the problem as one that has been with
us for some time and one yet to be solved. A recommendation regarding
this matter is made in Section F.
Considerable "wheel spinning" is undergone by trying to recover
the perishable product represented in "current" applications. We
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believe if the recommendation in Section F regarding this subject is
approved -- the placement effort will be far more efficient and our
efforts more productive.
Our efforts to provide both professional and high level
secretarial replacements from personnel already on our rolls -
working at lower grades - is stultified because we encounter unreason-
able delays in negotiating for release dates of either type. A recommen-
dation relating to this problem is submitted in paragraph F (9).
F. Forecast--Work, Staff, Problems, Recommendations
25X9A2
It seems reasonable to expect the Agency to have to hire
25X9A2
25X9A2
approximately= employees in FY-65. Approximately
clerical,~OT's and types. Approximately
i11 be
pro-
25X9A2
fessional types of all grades will have to be procured.
25X9A2
We propose to accomplish our requirements with at least two
less processing technicians and possibly one less correspondence clerk.
We strongly believe little benefit results in maintaining applicant
files in AFS for more than one year. A recommendation addressing
itself to this issue will be made later in this report.
Of Interest: The following losses were sustained by Placement
Branch in the last fiscal year -- identities and replacements (if any)
are recorded in that order:
GROUP 1
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SUBJECT: Annual Report FY-64
Recommendations
(1) A telephone service survey to improve efficiency and
possibly more economies.
(2) A space review of present facilities to ascertain if the
need for privacy could be accomplished by the creation of at least
two more rooms to be carved out of our open space.
(3) The immediate disposition of all applicant files which
are more than one year old.
(4) Revision of correspondence to inform applicants that the
Agency will keep their cases under active consideration but for one
year; however, if further consideration is desired, it will be the
individuals responsibility to request we continue our interest in their
application.
(5) The more frequent use of the monthly Personnel Officers'
Meetings more extensively in cooperation with the Chiefs of the various
personnel divisions as a two-way communications system to discuss
and resolve issues of mutual interest.
(6) The Placement Branch be delegated authority to approve
invitee and EOD travel orders. This is recommended to relieve Chief,
Personnel Operations Division and Deputy Chief, Personnel Operations
Division of this time-consuming detail. This should expedite our pro-
cessing and substantially cut down on the time "lag" factor which we
are trying to eliminate.
(7) The Chief, Placement Branch be delegated the authority
to approve requests for exception to entrance-on-duty rates for
applicants. Appeals from our action could be referred to Chief, Per-
sonnel Operations Division for adjudication. This should relieve the
Director of Personnel and the Deputy Director (Support) of becoming
involved in what at best could only be described as "administrative
details". We would be guided by precedent cases--referring only
those to higher authority that would be classed as unique or unusual and
for which no official Agency policy had been previously announced.
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(8) Obtain an official Agency policy that employees ranked
in the lower ten (10) per cent of the career service total, regardless
of grade, be referred to the concerned Placement Officer for coun-
seling and appropriate reassignment efforts.
(9) Obtain an official Agency policy that provides for the
releases of qualified candidates for higher grade vacancies; i. e. ,
not more than thirty (30) days for professionals and not more than
fifteen (15) days for clericals.
G. Concluding Remarks
We have had a reasonably good year in FY-64. It is difficult
to foresee exactly what has to be done in FY-65. Our staff is adequate
to do the anticipated requirements as now planned.
We have now cut or have planned further reductions in the
staff to an absolute minimum. We will be sorely pressed to keep
workloads current when we have to accommodate leave requests,
training requirements, and any unusual sick leave demands. Otherwise
we are ready and confidently forecast at this early date that we can
and will do what is expected of the Placement Branch during FY-65.
GROUP I
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