A-76. Officials generally agreed about which  human capital activities were suitable candidates for ASD. The general consensus was that virtually any activity could  be an ASD candidate as long as it did not require an intimate knowledge of  the agency or involve oversight or decision-making authority that should  belong with the agency. Notwithstanding the broad conceptual agreement among the agencies, they  showed differences in their choices of human capital ASD activities. Lesson learned: Understand the complexity and requirements of the  activity prior to making an ASD decision. Some agencies noted using the panel  award approach to select providers. OPM Has a Central Role in Assisting Agencies’ Management of ASD

OPM has a central role in agencies’ management of ASD by providing  assistance and guidance in operating human capital programs. Recommendation for Executive Action

Given the need expressed by agency officials about the importance of  sharing data and lessons learned concerning the use of ASD for human  capital activities and consistent with OPM’s ongoing efforts in this regard,  we recommend that the Director of OPM take the following action:  Work with the CHCO Council to create additional capability within OPM  to research, compile, and analyze information on the effective and  innovative use of ASD and strengthen its role as a clearinghouse for  information about when, where, and how ASD is being used for human  capital activities and how ASD can be used to help agency human  capital offices meet their requirements. We conducted semistructured interviews with human capital officials from  the selected agencies to gather information on (1) the human capital  activities for which the agencies were using ASD, (2) the basis of their  decisions, (3) how they were managing the use of ASD, and (4) the lessons  they had learned. The Office of Personnel Management’s Training and Management  Assistance (TMA) program is an example of an interagency contract  service program.
Why GAO Did This Study

Human capital offices have traditionally used alternative service delivery (ASD)--the use of other than internal staff to provide a service or to deliver a product--as a way to reduce costs for transaction-based services. GAO was asked to identify which human capital activities agencies were selecting for ASD, the reasons why, how they were managing the process, and some of the lessons they had learned. Eight agencies were selected to provide illustrative examples of ASD use.

What GAO Found

The selected agencies were using ASD for the full range of their human capital activities. Agencies generally approached their management of ASD in similar ways. They conceptually agreed that human capital activities that did not require an intimate knowledge of the agency, oversight, or decision-making authority could be considered for ASD, although in practice they showed differences in their choices of ASD activities. GAO identified several lessons the agencies had learned about ASD management, such as the importance of understanding the complexity and requirements of an activity before making an ASD decision. As the President's agent and adviser for human capital activities, OPM also has a central role in assisting agencies' management of ASD. Several agencies noted that they used OPM's Training and Management Assistance program, which provides human capital contract assistance. However, the officials also cited the need for sharing information about specific ASD efforts, useful metrics, and lessons learned.